Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

30 reviews

taicantfly's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

"Two years ago we pulled out from Griffin for a last hunt. We ransacked the country. Six weeks. Finally found a herd of eight animals and we killed them and come in. They're gone. Ever one of them that God ever made is gone as if they'd never been at all."

A heartbreaking book about the violence and wretchedness that went into building the American southwest. From the infamous monologue (that which exists without my knowledge...) to the Judge scappling away ancient paintings to the seemingly random genocide of whole tribes and their traditions, this book will desensitize you with its overwhelming and needless violence and cruelty and then it will be swept under the rug as the bones of vultures in the desert.

In the end the Judge asks if there were any witnesses to what had been. If apart from him and the Kid anyone had known or seen Glanton, the Jacksons, Toadvine, Bathcat, Tobin, Tate, Shelby. As he pulls the kid into the outhouse, we now know that all of that is lost to the arrow of time and no matter what, as says the Judge:

"Men's memories are uncertain and the past that was differs from the past that was not."

Judge Holden is the centrepiece around which the violence unfolds, a near-omniscient possibly-immortal god (or at least prophet) of war. Shocking character and completely unimitable.

This was the first McCarthy book I read and I was by no means disappointed. A flawless, soul-crushing and very difficult read which I would not recommend to anyone struggling with misanthropic thoughts.

I will be seeing a 7 foot tall bald albino in my nightmares for the rest of my life.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Cultural appropriation, Slavery, Blood, Religious bigotry, Xenophobia, Animal death, Classism, Colonisation, Racism, Sexual content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Trafficking, Animal cruelty, Excrement, Genocide, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Violence, War, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Murder, and Pedophilia

bheller77's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Rape, Xenophobia, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Death, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, War, Excrement, Suicide, Torture, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Animal cruelty, Cannibalism, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Racism, and Stalking

Very dark. Violent. Gory.

ronophica's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Death of parent, Murder, Ableism, Animal death, Hate crime, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Gore, Body horror, Gun violence, War, Rape, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Child death, Death, Excrement, Cursing, Violence, and Sexual harassment

asililydying's review against another edition

4.5

depraved.  The 'wild west' and manifest destiny created a Level of atrocities probably greater than the dark ages. Enlightenment was only bringing pure hateful fire to the darkness.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Excrement, Ableism, Bullying, Cannibalism, Genocide, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Grief, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Violence, Body shaming, Murder, Racism, Sexual content, Stalking, Antisemitism, Body horror, Hate crime, Torture, Vomit, Suicide, Addiction, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Confinement, Cursing, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Slavery, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, War, and Xenophobia

octoberrust1108's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

An unflinching but incredibly important work about human nature and a staunch criticism of the romanticization of the Western genre. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Murder, Animal death, Gore, Racism, Rape, Body horror, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Violence, and Genocide

bwood95's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Body horror, Colonisation, Racism, Genocide, and Gun violence

gremlintamer's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Classism, Blood, Suicide, Violence, Religious bigotry, Rape, Murder, Gun violence, Child abuse, Body horror, Sexism, Xenophobia, War, Hate crime, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Trafficking, Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, Racism, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Gore, Drug use, Cursing, Colonisation, Animal cruelty, Alcoholism, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Ableism, Drug abuse, Death, Child death, and Cannibalism

This book is A LOT.

velais's review against another edition

Pretentious writing style and run-on sentences make this a difficult read for those with attention deficits, or those who do not enjoy re-reading books.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Racial slurs, Animal death, Gore, and Racism

Moderate: Colonisation, Death, and Body horror

burgundy_fairy's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

It's masterfully written. It also bored me out of my mind. I wish I could've experienced it as it deserved but I found it difficult to pick up. Maybe someday I can read it better but for now, 3 stars is all I can give.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Violence, Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Alcohol, Colonisation, Death, Hate crime, Racism, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Slavery, War, Murder, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Blood, Child death, and Gore

I very well may have missed content warnings. I also could not discern their weight. The book is written so that everything is mentioned in passing but also in a very raw manner.

slothrop_garp's review against another edition

challenging dark informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Gun violence, Child abuse, Body horror, Racial slurs, War, Torture, Murder, Genocide, Child death, Gore, and Blood