Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James

10 reviews

judassilver's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Grief, Police brutality, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Child death, Blood, Violence, and Racism

Moderate: Animal death, Alcohol, Colonisation, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Racial slurs, and Misogyny

Minor: Religious bigotry and Suicide

autonomous_lass's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Police brutality, Violence, Gun violence, Blood, Cursing, Death, and Gore

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Child death, Racial slurs, Racism, and Fire/Fire injury

blair_w's review

Even though it is a short book it felt dragged out. It just wasn’t holding my attention so I chose to drop it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Xenophobia, Violence, Racism, Racial slurs, Gore, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Police brutality, and Gun violence

gabi_tron's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Death of parent, Body horror, Violence, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Racism, Torture, Grief, Gun violence, and Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, and Blood

crows_in_a_trenchcoat's review

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Blood, Murder, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, Police brutality, Child death, Gun violence, and Suicide

Moderate: Alcohol, Colonisation, and Rape

jtemplin's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

CAWPILE Rating
Characters - 8
Atmosphere/Setting - 8
Writing Style - 8
Plot - 8
Intrigue - 7
Logic/Relationships - 7
Enjoyment - 8
- 
Average - 7.71428571428572

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, and Gun violence

Moderate: Colonisation, Gore, Police brutality, Grief, Xenophobia, Child death, Cursing, and Racism

Minor: Misogyny, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Child death, and Toxic relationship

devynreadsnovels's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Misogyny, Colonisation, Police brutality, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Hate crime, Death, Gun violence, Gore, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racial slurs, Blood, Body horror, Torture, Violence, Cursing, and Grief

Moderate: Pregnancy, Slavery, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Rape, Animal cruelty, Sexual violence, and Child abuse

ginabelle's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I think I was hoping for more magical realism aspects and less religion but I admire how this book grappled with the question of how to grapple and take responsibility for the sins of the past. It was missing something for me, but I can’t put my finger on it right now…but it was overall good!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Blood, Violence, Colonisation, Hate crime, Murder, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Gore, Grief, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Child death, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Torture

nehaanna's review

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A fantastic quick read that blurs the lines of reality and fantasy in the similar vein of many  authors such as Gabriel García Márquez. The story is frightfully real, and the illusions it weaves are as skillful as any magician casting a spell. There is relief as a decades long battle with humanity’s streak of goodness against a backdrop of evil culminates after a 68 year long penance. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, War, Gun violence, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Murder, Xenophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Blood, Death, Gore, Violence, Genocide, Hate crime, Classism, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Cursing, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Alcoholism, Vomit, Child abuse, Child death, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, and Pregnancy

litoreads's review

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I consider myself lucky to have had the opportunity to read this book before its pub date. Elizabeth Gonzalez James, the author, has been incredibly gracious in acknowledging my online posts about it while I was immersed in its pages. I am thrilled to declare that, for me, this marks another five-star read this year.

The Bullet Swallower delves into themes of generational trauma, antiheroes, and the significance of family. It skillfully weaves these elements into a captivating narrative of cowboy bandits, a train heist, a plot for

vengeance

, and supernatural forces, all wrapped up in exquisite prose. Gonzalez James dedicated several years to crafting this masterpiece, evident in the meticulous research and careful selection of every detail.

Among the many memorable lines in this book, the descriptions of nature's beauty, colors, and the poignant depiction of

Antonio's taste of death

in one of the final chapters stood out:

"

He let himself be swallowed up by the lights, to be slowly disassembled into a million fragments and absorbed. And he didn't so much think his final thought as he knew it instantly to be true: Death is the process of becoming light. Red, orange, yellow. He let himself be refracted. Green, blue, indigo. The last thing to be dissolved would be his consciousness and this he allowed, turning himself into the purest shade of violet, a late spring jacaranda petal borne on a warm wind into a darkening sunset. He flew directly into the light, adding his purple to the multitude residing there, and he was pleased that he could make the colors richer for those he left behind.

"

The knowledge that this story is rooted in the author's own family history adds an extra layer of excitement, prompting me to reflect on my own family background because my last name is Villa. While there's a playful family joke about being related to the famous Pancho Villa, despite his actual last name being Arango, the connection remains intriguing.

Whether you're a fan of cowboys, adventure, contemplation of life's meaning, or simply seeking an entertaining read that imparts fascinating facts about Mexico and Texas, like the reef road, this book is a must-read. If you identify as Latino, especially Mexican, the connection to the narrative is even more profound.

With supernatural elements, a no-bullsh*t bruja character, a fun

British

sidekick/partner and light fantastical touches, this story introduces an antihero character you will root for until the end, and it might even make you cry like I did. I think I can confidently say Antonio Sonoro is one of my favorite characters of all time.

I cannot emphasize enough the ✨excellence✨ of Gonzalez James' writing: descriptive without excess, perfectly paced, and able to encapsulate a fully-formed narrative with well-rounded characters and an adventurous plot within fewer than 300 pages. I sincerely hope you enjoy this book as much as I did when it comes out later this month on January 23rd.

5/5 stars.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Murder, Suicide, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Classism, Gun violence, Body horror, Police brutality, Gore, and Genocide

Moderate: Alcohol and Animal death