mairead_parade 's review for:

The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James

3.25

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Compelling premise, but the execution felt a little half-hearted. The main plot, an Odyssey-flavored tale following the title character in 19th century Mexico/Texas, was interesting and propulsive. None of the other plot threads (some older peeks into the family’s history, a possible curse/Biblical connection, and a later generation in the 1960s) seemed as fully realized and just stole focus from the storyline I cared about.