ruthypoo2's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Looking for a way to recover financial stability and win back his estranged wife, Mario embarks on a life of crime he sees as short term. An opportunity becomes available for Mario to join two friends for a high-paying job that promises to be the payday they all need to start over and leave behind their criminal pasts. Unfortunately, this last job takes them into the underbelly of a world where the strong survive eliminating rivals and punishing traitors, and in this world, spirituality harnesses not just God, but the Devil too.
Really well-written story and a good translation. The assorted people and various landscapes of their environments felt visceral and real. In a lot of books and movies, criminals and the poor are portrayed in a one-dimensional way, but in this book, the characters possess great intelligence and depth, and the reader may likely be exposed to a harsh reality that many people experience but many more are insulated from by virtue of their skin color, neighborhood, lineage, and sometimes just luck.
I listened to the audiobook, and the narration by Jean-Marc Berne was excellent.
Graphic: Confinement, Animal cruelty, Murder, Torture, Violence, Body horror, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Child abuse
Moderate: Animal death, Drug use, Gore, Physical abuse, Grief, Racism, Addiction, Blood, Cancer, Child death, and Racial slurs
Minor: Alcohol, Homophobia, Infidelity, and Medical content
victoriaharris001's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide attempt, Torture, Vomit, Animal death, Cancer, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Addiction, Gaslighting, Gore, Trafficking, Transphobia, Violence, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Body horror, and Suicidal thoughts