the_s_lightacademic's review against another edition
2.0
I guess I just don't understand what everyone else does. This seemed.... almost pointless to me. There was literally NO plot, we just followed the two characters as they lived their life. It was definitely very... not descriptive necessarily, but I could imagine the setting very well. So that was nice. It just didn't seem like anything was happening and I ended up being confused most of the time. Just really wasn't for me.
Though I will say that despite it not capturing my attention fully, I also found myself not able to DNF. I found myself wanting to finish it. Whether it was because it's such a short book or something about the story actually did speak to me, I'm not sure. But there's that.
Though I will say that despite it not capturing my attention fully, I also found myself not able to DNF. I found myself wanting to finish it. Whether it was because it's such a short book or something about the story actually did speak to me, I'm not sure. But there's that.
fern17's review against another edition
dark
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
1.5
chloerose's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
rcampbell's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
ash_acoustic's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
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
4.0
A quick read and hard to put down. Will need to reread at some point to better understand the unwritten story. Brutal in parts, so not recommended for everyone.
reubenlb's review against another edition
dark
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.0
short and tense - an analysis of dealing with loss amongst visceral violence
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Gore, Death, Blood, Confinement, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Miscarriage
andrew61's review against another edition
4.0
This novella set in the Welsh farming countryside is a compelling read. it captures vividly the hard life of a sheep farmer and is at times a gruelling read in its description of day to day life, however the farmer Daniel is at the same time struggling to cope with a loss which is made more poignant as we learn that Daniel is a silent man who has given himself to his farm and a woman who is his life's love, fellow worker and friend, the writer beautifully in very few words creates that emotion and from the first few paragraphs we are drawn to Daniel. However the contrasting tale is about an unnamed character , a big man, who we know has served a prison sentence for a crime but who is graphically involved in badger baiting. The book contains hard to read descriptions of him digging up a badger sett with his dogs and various companions and a visceral scene of a badger baiting arena. The contrast is evident in the two men who only meet twice and on the first time the 'big man' thinking Daniel weak because of the effect of his loss upon him. I raced through this book as it is very short but an excellent read but I suspect that it is deserving of a reread at some point as the descriptive writing also merits closer attention. I'd really recommend it even though at times tough going in terms of description of nature and man at it's darkest.
mimosaeyes's review against another edition
4.0
A raw and brutal read. Not a word wasted, and each scene able to snatch your breath away with either its violence (sometimes graphic) or its poignance (related to grief).
haversam's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
deea_bks's review against another edition
4.0
4.5*
I have to admit that I had not heard about this author until hearing him speak in a literary podcast. The way he was phrasing his words intrigued me and I decided to give his book(s) a go. And I am so glad I did!
His writing is the most intense and visual writing I have ever stumbled upon. There are two interrelated stories in this book and I really did not care for one of them (reading detailed descriptions of how badgers are killed in the Welsh countryside cannot really be my thing), but the other story from the book is about grief and oh God, can Cynan Jones express the subtilities of grief! In a few poetic, very intense sentences he gets you transported there, in the realm of someone else’s grief and I have to say that his words work like a spell! The way he uses and combines them in order to get this very intense result is simply astonishing. I’ll be sure to try his other books (novellas) as well.
I have to admit that I had not heard about this author until hearing him speak in a literary podcast. The way he was phrasing his words intrigued me and I decided to give his book(s) a go. And I am so glad I did!
His writing is the most intense and visual writing I have ever stumbled upon. There are two interrelated stories in this book and I really did not care for one of them (reading detailed descriptions of how badgers are killed in the Welsh countryside cannot really be my thing), but the other story from the book is about grief and oh God, can Cynan Jones express the subtilities of grief! In a few poetic, very intense sentences he gets you transported there, in the realm of someone else’s grief and I have to say that his words work like a spell! The way he uses and combines them in order to get this very intense result is simply astonishing. I’ll be sure to try his other books (novellas) as well.