Reviews

The Butchers' Blessing by Ruth Gilligan

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aakono's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

3.75

ashattack13's review against another edition

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4.0

This story was so phenomenal and captivating, it was hard to put it down and focus on other things. I loved how seamlessly the different stories were woven together, and how each story was important. There was not a single character that felt underdeveloped or unimportant. The story follows 5 characters that are connected through the myth and reality of The Butchers. At its heart, it is a coming of age thriller, that explores families at a cross-roads in a world that is starting to progress past tradition.
The story opens up with a description of a photo: a dead man strung up by his feet like a slaughtered cow. It’s haunting and captivating at the same. As the story progresses, the photograph lingers in the mind of the reader. It is in the concluding pages of the book that the story behind the photograph is revealed. Like the photo, the story behind it is equally haunting and phenomenal.
I never thought a story flanked by the scare of Mad Cow Disease would be as captivating as this novel was, but Gilligan is an excellent story teller. Overall, Gilligan does a fantastic job at captivating readers with her colorful language and the thrilling stories of each character. To discover that the story of The Butchers was made up, I was a bit disappointed. Mainly because I wanted to read more about The Butchers. To have the myth feel so real to readers, comments on how brilliant Gilligan was in her “Myth-building” and storytelling.

nikkim167's review against another edition

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3.5

Def a weird but interesting read. Also less gory than I was expecting

claire_reads_1594's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

lucyremitz's review against another edition

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2.0

2.5stars. I read this book pretty quickly. It was an interesting idea and concept, the characters were fine. It was all fine! Had grabbed it impulsively in the bookstore and won't give too much thought beyond after reading it either.

misty_vistas's review against another edition

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4.0

Now THAT is how you do a book with multiple perspectives! Many characters I cared for and about. It was an amazing rich blend of realistic fiction and folklore.