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kathiwoe 's review for:
Tender Is the Flesh
by Agustina Bazterrica
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Please read all the trigger warnings before starting to read this book - I have added content warnings to this review. It is incredibly disturbing. A short spoiler-y review is hidden down below:
Even though I felt I knew how this was going to end, that Marcos would end up using the woman just as a human incubator and killing her afterwards, it still felt really disjointed for me. I think this is due to the fact that he seems to be really struggling throughout the entire book with what his part in this society is, then names the woman he impregnates and spends a lot of time with her. He does not treat her just as a body throughout the book, so the abruptness of his actions in the end and the justification of it did not make sense to me. I feel especially iffy about the last sentence, it seems out of character.
Or perhaps the ending was rushed, I did realise him turning around regarding the way he planned to deal with the scavengers, however even then he was having trouble justifying his actions to himself.
Had the author made the ending more cohesive, this would have been a 4.0-4.5 star read for me. It made me nauseous and challenged me heavily. With the ending being as it is it is a 3.5 star read for me.
Or perhaps the ending was rushed, I did realise him turning around regarding the way he planned to deal with the scavengers, however even then he was having trouble justifying his actions to himself.
Had the author made the ending more cohesive, this would have been a 4.0-4.5 star read for me. It made me nauseous and challenged me heavily. With the ending being as it is it is a 3.5 star read for me.
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Medical content, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail