A review by lizanneyoung
Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

4.5

 

⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

This is arguably the most extreme book you will ever find me reading. I read the synopsis several times, and a pretty detailed plot outline, before deciding whether or not to read this book. That said, it was a phenomenal read because of the underlying story being told and how the author crafted it. 

I will not get into what I discussed in the content warning. The readers are shown every facet of the industry because Marcos, the main character, is a senior-level employee at a processing plant. All I will say about it is the topic is handled with care since we see it through Marcos’ eyes, and it makes you consider the evil that is in this world and how it can spread. 

That said, I have given this book 4.5 stars because of the human story of it all. Marcos is a man who is suffering from immense grief. From the death of his son, the separation from his wife because of that, and his father’s suffering from dementia. Tender Is the Flesh is a story about one man’s efforts to survive in a world plagued by a system he doesn’t agree with while struggling to come to terms with the hardships of his own life. Marcos works through his grief while trying to manage his expectations of people, ones that he is now familiar with but still seems disappointed by.

This book excels because of the thought and care put into it by the author. It’s evident there was a great deal of time put into the development of this story and how it was written so that it doesn’t come across as goreporn, while showing what one should expect with a premise of this nature. I also credit the translator for an amazing job, as it was very smooth and seemed to get across the intended goal of the author’s line-level crafting.