fictionalkate's review against another edition
3.0
Fifty-something Lizzie Prain is stuck. Trapped in an unhappy marriage and trapped in the middle of woods. One morning in March she picks up a garden spade and kills her husband, Jacob. After thirty years of being his wife, Lizzie doesn't feel like she should suffer any further for one moment of insanity (or is it clarity) in their garden. Being an extremely practical woman, Lizzie comes up with a plan. Eat the evidence. Starting with the hands, Lizzie disposes of Jacob one body part at a time with the hope that in one month she will be free of Jacob and able to start a new life.
Lizzie Prain is seemingly unremarkable. She's a victim of life. Of circumstances. Neither Lizzie nor Jacob are happy in their marriage but neither one can bring themselves to leave. The first time we meet her, she has already done the deed and now has Jacob segmented and resting in multiple bags in the freezer. I'm not normally a squeamish person. I've read Thomas Harris' Hannibal Lecter series and watched the films multiple times. However there were times when I found this book a difficult read. The discomfort I felt arose not from the act of cannibalization but rather the way Lizzie Prain handled it. Disassociated from the act - boiling, braising, roasting and butchering - and yet very connected. No matter the cut, she still referred to her meals as "Jacob" and struggled physically and emotionally to eat him.
Unemployment, loneliness and depression are all important themes throughout the novel. Lizzie Prain is malnourished. Her body and soul have been underfed for years and while Jacob may not have been a provider in life, Lizzie sees this as her chance to replenish herself before starting a new life for herself. It's an interesting novel in terms of there is no real villain. Jacob wasn't physically abusive nor had he done anything that would make clear justification as a reader for WHY Lizzie was driven to murder. There's a distinct lack of passion. Perhaps that is just to reiterate their passionless marriage but it made the act that much harder for me to comprehend. Why did this apparently ordinary and somewhat dull woman kill her husband?
There are times when we got to see someone other than Lizzie's thoughts. I understand the reason behind the dual point of view throughout the novel, I felt a little taken out of the story whenever Lizzie wasn't narrating.
This book made me uncomfortable at times but I was compelled to see how everything worked out for Lizzie Prain. Season to Taste is descriptive (perhaps too vivid at times for me) but well written with a main character I found to be fascinating to read. I'm glad I had the opportunity to read this book.
Lizzie Prain is seemingly unremarkable. She's a victim of life. Of circumstances. Neither Lizzie nor Jacob are happy in their marriage but neither one can bring themselves to leave. The first time we meet her, she has already done the deed and now has Jacob segmented and resting in multiple bags in the freezer. I'm not normally a squeamish person. I've read Thomas Harris' Hannibal Lecter series and watched the films multiple times. However there were times when I found this book a difficult read. The discomfort I felt arose not from the act of cannibalization but rather the way Lizzie Prain handled it. Disassociated from the act - boiling, braising, roasting and butchering - and yet very connected. No matter the cut, she still referred to her meals as "Jacob" and struggled physically and emotionally to eat him.
Unemployment, loneliness and depression are all important themes throughout the novel. Lizzie Prain is malnourished. Her body and soul have been underfed for years and while Jacob may not have been a provider in life, Lizzie sees this as her chance to replenish herself before starting a new life for herself. It's an interesting novel in terms of there is no real villain. Jacob wasn't physically abusive nor had he done anything that would make clear justification as a reader for WHY Lizzie was driven to murder. There's a distinct lack of passion. Perhaps that is just to reiterate their passionless marriage but it made the act that much harder for me to comprehend. Why did this apparently ordinary and somewhat dull woman kill her husband?
There are times when we got to see someone other than Lizzie's thoughts. I understand the reason behind the dual point of view throughout the novel, I felt a little taken out of the story whenever Lizzie wasn't narrating.
This book made me uncomfortable at times but I was compelled to see how everything worked out for Lizzie Prain. Season to Taste is descriptive (perhaps too vivid at times for me) but well written with a main character I found to be fascinating to read. I'm glad I had the opportunity to read this book.
andrew61's review against another edition
3.0
This book should come with a warning at the beginning about how gruesome some of the scenes are, and after a 50 pages I wasn't sure if I really wanted to carry on as The humour was buried very deep under a swathe of very black olive oil, garlic, vegetables and other fascinating recipes that Jamie Oliver or Hugh FW, would be proud of. The plot is as it says on the front cover, Lizzie Prain a woman in her late 40's murders her husband and proceed to cook and eat his remains from the freezer in her Surrey home. A curious book it was certainly in parts graphic in the portrayal of the cooking and eating but I was interested enough in Lizzie and her life to read on although I came away not entirely clear about what her husband had done that was so bad. Would I recommend it? Not sure , it depends upon how thick a skin you have and how black your sense of humour, interesting though.
booksbecreads's review against another edition
1.0
I did not enjoy this at all. The ending was even more disappointing
ciska's review against another edition
3.0
Jacob has been missing for a few days. That is because Lizzie decided to kill him. She obviously does not want to go to prison for this murder. She did it to start a new life in which she can be happy. But now she has a body and she needs to get rid of it.
Lizzie loves cooking and now she has enough meat to try out some nice new recipes.
How to eat you husband... yeah that definitely caught my eye. The cover and texts on it implicate so many crazy things that I knew I had to have this book.
The story is a bit gross.. well maybe a lot at points. There is a clear description how certain parts of the husband are dismantled. Lizzie tends to compare parts with your normal meat consumption thinking this is like chicken so I can do this with it. It might change the way you look at food for a while.
Lizzie is a bit confusing and nervous. Having obvious trouble to make normal contact to people but loves cooking. At points I was a bit irritated by her. In the end though her actions do make sense.
The developments in the book are a bit to crazy and over the top (what did you expect?) but in the end it was a fun and quick read.
Lizzie loves cooking and now she has enough meat to try out some nice new recipes.
How to eat you husband... yeah that definitely caught my eye. The cover and texts on it implicate so many crazy things that I knew I had to have this book.
The story is a bit gross.. well maybe a lot at points. There is a clear description how certain parts of the husband are dismantled. Lizzie tends to compare parts with your normal meat consumption thinking this is like chicken so I can do this with it. It might change the way you look at food for a while.
Lizzie is a bit confusing and nervous. Having obvious trouble to make normal contact to people but loves cooking. At points I was a bit irritated by her. In the end though her actions do make sense.
The developments in the book are a bit to crazy and over the top (what did you expect?) but in the end it was a fun and quick read.
traceyvj's review against another edition
2.0
Made me queasy - very graphic, but the characters were very boring.
natashasf1's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
khadeejahhalim's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
not bad, but a bit too slow for my liking. i liked lizzie, though. i really empathised with her. honestly, if i had to get married and stay married to a man, especially one like jacob, i'd probably kill him, too.
i wish more people on storygraph read this book so i could read more about what others thought of it, too.
i wish more people on storygraph read this book so i could read more about what others thought of it, too.
stephaniekhani's review
2.0
I really, really wanted to love this book. All of the blurbs and reviews in the press have been exciting and excellent. The subject matter was controversial and right up my street—I’m never one to shy away from the macabre or the weird.
Season to Taste (Or How to Eat Your Husband) was different and so unsettling that I’ve literally had to stop reading for fear of being physically ill. Maybe it’s my recent stomach bug making me nauseous but I think it has more to do with the matter of fact way Lizzie Prain goes about disposing of her husband. There’s something so disturbing about this book and it’s not just Lizzie’s cannibalistic actions at play here. I think it’s the methodical, almost robot-like way she goes about taking care of the body, preparing each piece for consumption and finally eating each piece that has me a bit sickly.
She even talks about which herbs she uses for each body part—likens the meat of her husband to various meats I eat on a weekly basis.
It’s enough to make me go vegetarian.
I really wish I could have finished this one. I’m sure the ending is great, I’m sure there are plenty more stomach churning moments… but I just couldn’t do it.
Season to Taste (Or How to Eat Your Husband) was different and so unsettling that I’ve literally had to stop reading for fear of being physically ill. Maybe it’s my recent stomach bug making me nauseous but I think it has more to do with the matter of fact way Lizzie Prain goes about disposing of her husband. There’s something so disturbing about this book and it’s not just Lizzie’s cannibalistic actions at play here. I think it’s the methodical, almost robot-like way she goes about taking care of the body, preparing each piece for consumption and finally eating each piece that has me a bit sickly.
She even talks about which herbs she uses for each body part—likens the meat of her husband to various meats I eat on a weekly basis.
It’s enough to make me go vegetarian.
I really wish I could have finished this one. I’m sure the ending is great, I’m sure there are plenty more stomach churning moments… but I just couldn’t do it.
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