Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

22 reviews

klvelasquez22's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

• Loveable characters? No

3.25

I’m glad I gave it a try as I’ve been wanting to read McCarthy for a while - but it definitely wasn’t for me, and I probably won’t be reading McCarthy again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Racism, Violence, Child death, Animal cruelty, Racial slurs, Animal death, War, Rape, Death, Sexual violence, Colonisation, Alcoholism, Murder, Excrement, Blood, Xenophobia, and Injury/Injury detail

fkshg8465's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

An incredibly violent book, providing an intimate look into a psychopath’s head.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Bullying, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Gun violence, Genocide, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic friendship, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Gore, Body horror, Colonisation, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, Blood, Cultural appropriation, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Misogyny, Racism, Torture, War, and Xenophobia

jaybeesgotpaperback's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

It was a slow read due to the complicated language, and I understand why there are McCarthy scholars as there is so much to unpick. But thoroughly enjoyed the read even though some of the content is challenging 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Racial slurs, Racism, Gore, Blood, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Gun violence, and Death

Moderate: Genocide, Child death, Animal cruelty, and Animal death

Minor: Cursing, Genocide, Infidelity, Excrement, Cannibalism, and Mental illness

skippy_skippington's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

A deconstruction of the mythologized North American old west, tearing away the veneer of respectability and civilization. Stark, horrific, violent, and weirdly beautiful at times. Not for those with a sensitive constitution.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Murder, Xenophobia, War, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Classism, Cursing, Genocide, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, Child death, Colonisation, Excrement, Pedophilia, Violence, Religious bigotry, Toxic friendship, Animal death, and Blood

luisatkinson's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Violence, Racism, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Murder, Pedophilia, Genocide, Blood, Gun violence, Xenophobia, War, Alcoholism, Sexual violence, Colonisation, Child abuse, Misogyny, Gore, Excrement, and Alcohol

fatherofmysteries's review against another edition

dark informative reflective tense slow-paced

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

5.0

There is no review I could write that could begin to sum up the journey that this book took me on

He is dancing, dancing. He says that he will never die.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Vomit, Genocide, Murder, Animal cruelty, Antisemitism, Blood, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Confinement, War, Violence, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Alcohol, Death, Child death, Drug use, Racial slurs, Fire/Fire injury, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Physical abuse, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Alcoholism, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Gore, Stalking, Torture, Racism, and Colonisation

Moderate: Medical content, Cannibalism, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Incest, Addiction, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Body horror, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Pedophilia, and Grief

nyxlexica's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

3.0

Difficult to read. Very slow, very distant, no character to get behind. An intense depiction of a period in history I knew nothing about, though, with an incredible villain. Happy I've read it but can't say I enjoyed the process, exactly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Violence, Sexual violence, Cursing, Death, Gore, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Ableism, Mental illness, Torture, Child death, Racism, Alcoholism, Kidnapping, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Blood, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, War, Gun violence, Hate crime, Animal death, Colonisation, Genocide, and Racial slurs

erinjk's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Slavery, Rape, Sexual assault, Gore, Child death, Colonisation, Violence, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Racial slurs, Racism, War, Torture, Sexual violence, Murder, Gun violence, Death, Child abuse, Blood, Animal death, and Animal cruelty

ddavare's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Torture, Violence, Body horror, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Excrement, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia

This is a purely violent book. I did not enjoy this at all. It's supposedly considered a great American novel?? I understand what the author was trying to convey (fate vs. free will, humanity's taste for violence, hipocrisy of Christianity), but this could have been done with at least 70% less violence. Whatever happened to the power of suggestion? JEEZ!!! - I mean the author suggests what happens to the protagonist (I use the word "protagonist" very lightly) at the end and leaves it up to the audience to imagine it. I would not recommend this book (as a person who is not white or a man) as it's triggering in every regard. Unless you are a lit major, writer, or enjoy reading literary challenges (the writing is interesting and challenging), I don't recommend. I think the average reader would not draw out the author's point, and would not be able to see through all this violence. This has not added any value to my knowledge and just created unnecessary stress and disappointment in Western culture (and I'm already disappointed with our political climate). This is a rant. I was set up to read this as part of a group read, and I am not happy about it and am using Storygraph as a way to vent.

shuzige's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Torture, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Death, Murder, Racial slurs, War, Animal cruelty, Gore, and Gun violence