Paperback, 224 pages
Published Aug. 4, 2020 by Scribner.
Working at the local processing plant, Marcos is in the business of slaughtering humans —though no one calls them that anymore.
His wife has left him, his father is sinking into dementia, and Marcos tries not to think too hard about how he makes a living. After all, it happened so quickly. First, it was reported that an infectious virus has made all animal meat poisonous to humans. Then governments initiated the “Transition.” Now, eating human meat—“special meat”—is legal. Marcos tries to stick to numbers, consignments, processing.
Then one day he’s given a gift: a live specimen of the finest quality. Though he’s aware that any form of personal contact is forbidden on pain of death, little by little he starts to treat her like a human being. And soon, he becomes tortured by what has been lost—and what might still be saved.
I counted three times during this quick read my jaw dropped because something was just so revolting to think about past the words on the page. Comfortably uncomfortable throughout with impressive meaning to derive and think about long after the last page. Content warning for those who aren't usually into horror lit like myself
Wow. This book really shook me and I have a lot of thoughts about it. Too many to post on Goodreads, so check out my full review on my blog. (Warning for spoilers)
Following the spread of a virus that makes animal meat deahtly to humans, society turns to produce "special meat", humans engineered to be eaten. Tender is the Flesh takes you to the frightening daily life of the "meat hunter" of a processing plant, charged with contracts, meat quality etc. The story starts slow but becomes more and more frightening as the pages go and you're unable to let it go until the very end. It left me a deep mark and brought me quite a lot of things to think about.
A revolting dystopia, disturbing and dark, beautifully written.
There’s not much to be said that other reviewers haven’t. Aside from the usual comparisons to the noble savage and the duality of man, this is like Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” taken to extremes.
