Reviews with content warning for Body horror - Tender Is the Flesh

This book was written solely for making the readers feel disgusted, horrified and angry. I don’t know how but it had such a magnetic field around it that I was gravitating towards this book despite it making me nauseous with its gruesomeness.

I truly believe that humans in general are capable of doing more bad than good because leaving the poor evil people aside, the rest of us either care too much for ourselves or for our loved ones. No in between.

I didn’t like a single person in this book. All were hypocrites. But you have no option to be anyone else in that dystopian world. All I saw were broken people who were trying to do the right thing on their own terms.

P.S. : In every kind of world, women will remain unsafe and be the most taken advantage of.

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dysentry_4_me's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced

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

4.0

It had it's moments but ultimately it boiled down to simply an interesting concept.

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sarafullofjoy's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

While I was fascinated I was also entirely horrified. This book was terrible but not because of its writing or readability. It will haunt you thinking about what people are capable of.

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majca's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

She had the human look of a domesticated animal.

This is a difficult book to review. I can't deny it was a captivating, unsettling and upsetting read. It's polemic, and at times the author goes to contrived extremes, drawing almost comical allegories. Still, I can appreciate that all-or-nothing commitment, though the shock factor gradually dulls with repetition. And while the simplistic, detached narrative amplifies the horrors in its own way, I didn't personally enjoy this style.

The plot itself doesn't venture much beyond its narrow focus, leaving the larger societal implications-economic, environmental, or political-frustratingly underexplored. I couldn't entirely ignore plot holes or suspend disbelief completely. It works better when considered a thought experiment that offers a dark, close-up glimpse into an altered society-one you accept without questioning the hows and whys. As an essay, it's haunting and thought-provoking; as a novel, it often strains credulity and suffers under its wasted potential.

The protagonist, while thoroughly unlikable, is fascinating in his hypocrisy. He considers himself morally superior to everyone around him, yet remains complicit-a product of societal norms he neither questions nor escapes. With no overt commentary from the author (both a strength and a weakness of the book), it raises interesting questions about how well and easily the human mind adapts to even the most gruesome circumstances.

The ending, though predictable and bleak, provides a fitting conclusion. It's the only outcome I found realistic and acceptable, given the world and characters built and the length of the novel.

Lastly, while it's of lesser importance to the overall experience, the portrayal of female characters was disappointing. I found myself double-checking to confirm the author was indeed female, given the internalized misogyny.

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grovesr's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

I read so many reviews about this book being cruel and disturbing, so I had to give it a read. And I can say, yes, it's just as grotesque as the reviews say. Admirably, so. From beginning to end I was thoroughly horrified. Vivid descriptions, gorey details. And at the end, you're left feeling the immense power humans have. And how fragile our ethics are. How quickly we could turn on each other, ravenous and desperate to get what we want... or need, even. This book was desperate and raw. Full of guilt and anguish. I love a book that can give me a flawed character, who commits horrible acts, and show me what led them to those decisions. Was Marcos right or wrong? Who can say, really. Until you're in his shoes and in that world. I think we're all much more capable of evil than we imagine.

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libbietemple's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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