Reviews tagging 'War'

As Meat Loves Salt by Maria McCann

11 reviews

finalgirlfall's review

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

4.0

okay, so i didn't really understand what was happening in a lot of this book. i thought mccann's efforts to historically situate the characters were like, well-intentioned, but probably ultimately failed, for the most part. (though i haven't done any research into the period/ideas surrounding the third english civil war, so i'm not certain that my ideas about how people thought back then are actually founded in reality.)

there's a section in the book, in the chapter "bad angel", where jacob is recounting a conversation he had with ferris in the army. he says:
Perhaps one day I would be able to tell him everything, even that I was that detested being, a ravisher. I knew Ferris would not admit that her being my wife changed the case. He had already expressed himself more than once on this subject, and said no man might force a woman, no not his wife, for that it took away her bodily dignity. Whenever he talked of it he clenched his fists and jaw, and I at first concluded he must have witnessed many instances among the soldiery; yet when I asked him he said it was a thing, thank God, that he had never seen for himself.


that section in particular struck me as (probably) not grounded in the reality of the time. but this was definitely an interesting, albeit brutal, read that gave me a lot to look into on google scholar! 
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aduqu's review

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

3.5

This book made me upset. It's good, it kept me entranced the whole way through, but the main character is an awful person and I spent a lot of my time reading this being disgusted with him.

Definitely recommend it for fans of dark historical dramas who don't mind an unreliable narrator! Definitely do not recommend it for anyone who likes to root for the main character, or who doesn't want to read about toxic relationships.
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remimicha's review

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hooligan's review

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adventurous dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I really liked the prose, this was written in a way that made me feel immersed in 17th century England with all its gross flaws. Also it was written in such a way that by the end of the book I was almost on Jacob’s side-even though he’s an incredibly awful person!
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owlribbon's review

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4.75

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nowiamjim's review

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

3.25

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savvypotions's review

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

5.0

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marlene2112's review

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challenging dark emotional inspiring sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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biab00's review

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

4.0

 Violent love eats up what it does love, and is mere appetite.

This was wild ride. The narrator is not a person that you easily sympathize (i didn't at all), you are in is head throught the whole book and by the end i just wanted to be free of this man's mind. 
Althought i hated this character most of the times, I would be lying if I said I didn't find his character fascinating to read. I do love to read books with morally grey (or really fucked up characters) like this one has, so this was a treat for me.
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teargarden's review

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

it pains me that Jacob walked away unscathed from all the misery he brought about.
very well written but the ending πŸ˜΅β€πŸ’«πŸ˜΅β€πŸ’«πŸ˜΅β€πŸ’«
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