Wow all I have to say is that was not the ending I was expecting! I thought Marcos had a change of heart about the whole establishment of human meat. As Jasmine is giving birth I thought it would be a beautiful ending weird but beautiful ending where Marcos, Cecilia and Jasmine co parent but no. He just stunned her and took her out to the barn. This was a messed up read the part that took the heaviest toll on me was when the kids found the stray puppies. But I have to say it was great read had me hooked! Anybody that read this book what did you pick up reading after it?
by 97Bloodorange__
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>As Jasmine is giving birth I thought it would be a beautiful ending weird but beautiful ending where Marcos, Cecilia and Jasmine co parent but no.
why? he never treats her better than a dog. i think when they were sitting under a tree with her head on his lap, he was remembering his dog that died. the way he talks about her being entertained by TV and able to draw is akin to telling coworkers about the quirky thing your pet does. she is not an equal to him, ever.
worse, while he talks big game about everything surrounding ‘meat’ production being immoral as he profits handsomely from it. he wants the moral superiority to say ‘see, i am not like them’ while being exactly like them.
It got me too! Was not expecting that ending. It had me hooked as well and was a great read, I agree. Around the time of reading this book I also read the Necrophiliac by Wittkop and Crash by J.G. Ballard. Both gross in their own ways. Months later I read Meat by D’Lacey which is a similar premise to Tender but they both do their own thing IMO.
This book put me off meat for about a month
A friend lent it to me and I told her I was iffy about it part way through because I felt like the author was trying to portray him as a “soon to be” good guy and I just felt he was not a good guy. I mean Jasmine couldn’t consent so that was really it for me. I was satisfied by the ending because it didn’t try to make it seem like what he was doing could be redeemed. The puppies were another give away that he wasn’t going to be that kind of character and it devastated me too. I volunteer at a pet shelter so I’ve got the softest of spots for pets. I think the book very clearly starts off criticizing the parts of our society that kill and mistreat animals for meat and other products, but through the main character we get a more slow burn criticism of the kind of person that “loves” animals and keeps pets but also dumps them as they get elderly or is sweet to their livestock naming them, cuddling them etc until they no longer can fulfill their purpose (like a chicken who no longer lays eggs) so they’re cast off or killed.
After Tender is the Flesh, I read Tampa by Alissa Nutting, then Cows by Matthew Stokoe.
I loved the ending.
My least-favorite trope is “Man has a moral revelation, due to falling in love.” Especially when the narrative doesn’t really give the woman much agency. It feels like it’s essentially saying men can only have moral breakthroughs when they’re motivated by sex, which I think does a disservice to half the species.
Marcos’ relationship with Jasmine is NOT a real relationship. She doesn’t speak, she has nothing in common with him, she is just a beautiful thing he can project his feelings onto. It’s not a romantic relationship, because Jasmine has no real agency, it just has the superficial trappings of one.
The ending felt like the author acknowledging that it WASN’T romantic, it was creepy as fuck.
I read **Meat by Joseph D’Lacey** kind of the same premise but with a slightly different take on it.
Is there animal abuse in this book? I’d like to read it and I understand what it’s about, just can’t handle reading anything about animal abuse
Each to their own I guess but I loathed this book. It somehow managed to be deeply unpleasant and exhaustingly tedious at the same time. Not a good combo.
Tender is the Flesh is so good that it’s the only book like treat I’ve ever read. I tried to read other ‘gross’ books that got popular after that but honestly I do not like gore at all in movies or tv or books. So after it I’m pretty sure I read Red White and Royal blue as a pallet cleanser lol
I actually thought he’d chuck her in that barn and use her as breeding stock for his family and she’d live some weirdly tortured existence as pet to her kids.
Good read and I’d like to see a miniseries about it
People say the ending was cheap twist but I don’t agree. It’s very clearly shown throughout the book that he isn’t nearly as heroic or empathetic as the audience thinks. His “change” of heart is perfectly foreshadowed and I loved it. It’s probably my favorite dystopia now topping Brave New World.
I can’t believe what happened to her. I think I knew it was going to happen all along, but didn’t want to admit it to myself because I wanted jasmine to be safe so badly. I just sat there crying and crying when it was over, it broke my heart.
I stopped at the puppies. Everything else I was ok with because it’s fiction (so far, looking at you Handmaid’s Tale). I can’t deal with hurting animals just because.
lol co-parenting.
I read Lapvona by Otessa Moshfegh just before Tender Is The Flesh and I’d say it works as a next read: weird body horror grossness. Also recommend anything by Camilla Grudova, but her short stories are more surreal that TiTF. Tender Is The Flesh messed me up, the farming scenes were brutal but agree it was a great ending.
Such a good book; I tore through it much faster than I usually read and it’s one of those very rare books I’ll probably re-read.
I read “and then I woke up” right after. Not comparable but great horror read and interesting twist
I love horror and I can handle gore but this book almost made me not finish it. It’s a good book but holy moly is it intense. Glad I finished it but damn… don’t know if I’ll recover from that ending.
One of my favorite things about that book is it gets you to side with the narrator so fast that the ending seems like a shock.
But the whole time he acts against the industry while playing what he describes as an incredibly important role within it.
He literally watches human “hides” being tanned and talks about the barbarism of it all while simultaneously being the point man for a huge distribution operation.
The ending shocked me too, but after some reflection the protagonist has no real leg to stand on. In his head he’s different, but he may have his arms in deeper than anyone we meet.
Something felt weird the entire time reading this book, something felt off about Marcos, the ending surprised me, but then everything that “felt off” made sense with that ending. That’s what I love about the book.
Like a small example was him leaving food for Jasmine in bowls, I’m like, do you mean a plate good sir or casserole or something similar? It’s been 8 months with this woman in your house, surely you taught her some things to do. And then the tying her up at night so “she wouldn’t hurt herself” that’s the same thing people say when they leave dogs in crates.
That’s just one example, many things made me stop and think wait what? But at the end everything made sense ..
I predicted the ending and found this book to be so disappointing. I think I would like it if there was an overall problem in the book. I would like more info on the animals in Dr.Valkas lab , and see more about people question if animals are really dangerous.
Overall this book is about the mundane life of a man.