A review by malignantmoon
Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

An incredibly bleak and gruesome story, one that would have been impossible for me to finish if not for McCarthy's wonderful prose. Even with the great writing, it's a challenging read. The violence is so constant and explicit, yet written so casually you only take it what's happened after a few moments or even with a reread of the scene. The Kid, the main character, disappears into the background, and the supporting cast are some of the worst examples of men in storytelling. Very little happens in the book, it's not driven by characters or plot, simply by a cycle of violence.  

Even so, there were so many lines of dialogue I found beautiful, that made me sit and reflect on humanity and love and purpose. There are moments of mercy in this story, and moments of loyalty to brothers, even though no one is ever rewarded for this behaviour. Tobin's dedication to keeping the Kid away from the Judge, a consistent and selfless act, had me rooting for him in vain. The Kid's rejection of the Judge (who could possibly be satan himself), and his worship of war, is a brave act, a rejection of the American expansion into the West, though we know it to be futile.

I think it's very fair to not want to read/finish the book due to the darkness of it, I fault no one for this, at times, I felt the same. While it seems gratuitous, McCarthy knows what he is doing, very clearly so, by choosing one scene in the novel that he locks the readers out of. We do not know what happens, we get no descriptions and are only told by others that "it's bad in there". It's by far one of the most disturbing and haunting parts of the novel. 

Would I recommend this book? no <3 
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