siobhan_leahy's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
<spoiler ish here>
OK, so there is gore, there is carnage there is every trigger warning you can possibly think of and more that you can't but........ Is it realistic? Is it drawn from real life? Talking cows? Evil parents and inner personal demons?
Well I'm going to say yes!!!! And before you laugh (whoever saw a talking cow) I'll explain.
This is a story about a guy who's been abused by his only parent for 25 years, his boss at his 1st and only job sexually abuses him. Forcing him to doing things he doesn't want to, complete power trip and manipulation of the vulnerable. (sound familiar yet?)
Afraid of the world around him, desperate to be part of a normal loving family he clings to the only thing he has ever found comfort with. A disturbed girl living in a flat above him and the cows at the meat factory where he works.
His descent into madness and mental health is sadly a true reflection on the world in which we live. Working in this sector I see these vulnerable people everyday and my heart aches for them.
Mental health does not operate in the neat tidy box's we slide society into. It doesn't cover over the nasty dirty details of the human condition, like this book, it is cold, open, cruel, dirty, and outcast. Society seeks to hide it (and from it)! Mental health is a growing pandemic in today's world much like a developing herd of Murderous talking cows under a city.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Abandonment, Abortion, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Gore, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Rape, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Not for the faint hearted or those with a weak stomachrobin345's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Murder, Gore, Animal death, Violence, and Body horror
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Excrement, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Toxic relationship
earsore's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Pregnancy, Torture, Toxic friendship, Blood, Gore, Mental illness, Abortion, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Fatphobia, Murder, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit
Minor: Racial slurs
tigrah's review against another edition
- 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
1.75
Graphic: Abortion, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/injury detail, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Torture, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
enigmatics's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
2.75
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Animal death, Body horror, Blood, Vomit, Violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Torture, Murder, Mental illness, Excrement, Animal cruelty, Death, Sexual content, Gore, and Injury/injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Grief, Pregnancy, Body shaming, and Miscarriage
Minor: Grief, Cursing, Infidelity, and Medical content
Book contains graphic zoophilia.ballepai14's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Animal death, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Murder, Blood, Cursing, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Suicide, Sexual content, Rape, Miscarriage, Violence, Toxic friendship, Abortion, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy
akeila91's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The bad points is I think the story and character development fell short for me. I didn’t feel connected to any of the characters, bar a marginal pang of sympathy for his torturous life. But that didn’t grip me enough to become emotionally invested. The only character I felt any kind of draw to was dog. I feel like had the gore and disgust been turned down just a touch and the story and characters developed a little further, this could have been a 5 star read for me. But I understand what the author was trying to do. Anyone wanting to read please heed the TW’s as there is some very serious shit in this book.
Graphic: Abortion, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit
dromedaryreader's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Abortion, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Excrement, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, and Medical content
Minor: Incest and Fatphobia
straple's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
Graphic: Abortion, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gore, Racial slurs, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit
Beastialityfancyskeletons's review against another edition
4.0
How does one even rate something like this? I can't rate it in a scale of how much I enjoyed it because, well. I can't say I had a good time. I had A time, for sure. I had to put down my kindle from time to time because I was gaging, do with that what you will.
This book is disgusting, vile, ugly and shocking. That's what it set out to do, and it was sucessful in its endeavour to disturb, and that's the basis of my rating. Consider me disturbed.
At its core, Steven is a deeply disfunctional individual in the middle of a deeply disfunctional environment. The world of Cows is one of extremes. Nothing is left in mild terms.
And it'll haunt me for a very long time.
Whoever recommended this one in the Reddit post about disturbing books, you were right and also fuck you.
TW: murder; coprophagia; coprophilia; blood; bestiality; rape; grossness in general; animal cruelty; animal death; very explicit sex scenes; gore; violence; torture; abortion (by extreme measures); toxic relationships; domestic abuse.
Graphic: Abortion, Animal cruelty, Excrement, Vomit, Torture, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Murder, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, and Gore
Moderate: Cannibalism