Danielle Kaitlin (daniallreads)'s Reviews > The Bullet Swallower

** spoiler alert ** The problem was me...not the book.

Thank you Simon & Schuster for the early copy of the audio and physical copies of "The Bullet Swallower." This fantasy set in the west comes out on January 16th!

I haven't really dipped my toes into the "western" genre & seeing Elizabeth Gonzalez James newest on Simon Books Buddy program gave me the itch to try something new. What really piqued my interest was magical realism. You can never go wrong when there is a fantasy genre mash-up...right?

I was wrong but I think this is a "me" problem for why this book didn't work because there was a LOT to love about this book. It gave me the vibes of A Christmas Carol but crossed with Red Dead Redemption.

To give you a quick break down of what this book has to offer... it's basically "a family legacy is haunted by a grim reaper shadowy figure because of an ancestors evil choices and death is back to reap havoc on Jamie, our present day family member, to get what he is owed." The past and present point of view was truly what kept me going...but I will say I was WAY more invested in Antonio's story. Why?

It was filled with action!!! I mean...duh...it wouldn't be a proper western without A L L T H E V I O L E N C E! Guns, explosions and stabbing...oh my...yetttttt I think the gore in this one was a lot. It's very detailed. If you don't want to know what it feels like to get shot in the back of the head. This book probably isn't for you.

The vibes were SICK but I think I wanted more fantasy and less present day point of view. I was way too invested in the Sonoro family history & got really bored when we switched back to Jamie. To sum it up...some positives....tons of action! The POV switches that are dope (some of the time). James hints at the end that the plot was taken right from her personal family history which I thought was very creative & unique. Big bonus points for that!

Negatives...there was WAY too much going on. It felt like there were two stories going on. The characters I ended up loving got killed so I didn't end up having anyone to root for in the end. The gore was way too graphic. There wasn't enough fantasy.

This won't be my last western *cough* Done & Dusted *cough* but I will say it was not a great start...yeesh.

🐎 Red Dead Redemption & Indiana Jones Vibes
🤠 Adventurous
🚂 Treasure Hunting
☠️ GORE
🐎 Family History
🤠 Past & Present POV
🚂 Anti-Hero

You know I have unhinged thoughts about the audiobook too. *clears throat* The narrator did an awesome job! I thought they casted him perfectly. He fit what I imagined Antonio's voice to be. The southern accents worked. The pacing was a tad slow at 1.25x speed but that didn't necessarily take away from his performance. I was disappointed with how he represented Remedio. It ended up sounding robotic + monotone. I expected more from a character that embodies the grim reaper. But enjoyable audiobook experience!