Well, I finally got to reading Blood Meridian! I know this book is quite popular now, and so praising it in a book subreddit may seem cliché, but it's been a while since I've read a book that was this fascinating. After reading this, I'll definitely be looking at more Cormac McCarthy novels (The Road is probably what I'll read next)!
The atmosphere of this book is amazingly built in my opinion. The book makes use of its lengthy descriptions of landscapes to create these bizarre, lonely, and bleak environments. It really helps with the feeling of unease and the feeling that something bad is going to happen soon throughout the novel.
Easily my favorite thing about the book though is the main antagonist, The Judge, also known as Judge Holden. This "man" is maybe my new favorite antagonist in all of fiction. Everything about him is so chilling. From his bleak nihilistic worldview, to his random disturbing acts of sadistic violence and depravity, he constantly scared me whenever he appeared because wherever he goes, death and violence ensues. I personally feel he's even scarier than Anton Chigurh, which says a lot.
Also obviously I have to mention the extreme violence because, well, it's Blood Meridian. Some of this was really gut-wrenching stuff. I knew it was a violent Western novel, but I didn't expect material like all the violence against children and animals. Most of the violence, though by no means constant, was really disturbing and tough to read, largely because of the vivid detailed descriptions. However, it didn't really feel like shock value to me, largely because of the general evil of all the characters, and the fact that they're all scalphunters. Still, it was very shocking and stomach-churning at points.
I'm not here to really give much of a review, but I just wanted to highlight the major points of the book that stood out to me. What were your thoughts on this novel, good or bad? I'd be happy to hear it all!
by PraiseBToGod_12345