Marcos lives in a world where all of the animals become toxic for humans to eat, and they all need to be killed. It did not matter if they were your friendly dog, a noisy neighbour’s cat or a cow that was meant to be eaten. Even animals living in the zoo were a danger to the human race, so they all needed to be exterminated. The human race had to find another source of meat, and they found ‘special meat’.
Marcos is a high-level manager working in one of the meat processing plants. He hates it, seeing every day people get slaughtered and sold in butcher shops, like in the past, you could buy pork chops, now you go and buy a human arm.
Yes, this is what people discovered as an alternative source of meat. Instead of killing cattle, they have humans on the big farms.
Our main character is a pretty miserable person. He and his wife are separated as their newborn child died, and he has to see every day how they butcher other humans.
In this book, there is a detailed description of how the human plant works. They don’t call them humans, they call them ‘Heads’. It is easier that way, not to think of them as actual people but as food.
People are bred in there and classified into classes for the best grade of meat.
In this plant, it is always so quiet. No one screams. Do you know why? They don’t have vocal cords, so they can’t cry. The heads are not people from the streets. They were born and raised in the plants, so they have no idea what normal life looks like.
This book is so disturbing in that way. To think we could eat other people. It evoked a lot of emotions and left me with that little uncomfortable itch.
Marcos needs to work in these plants as his father has dementia, and he wants all the best care for him, which costs a ton of money.
One day, as a gift from one of the plant owners, our main character gets a head of the highest quality. It was a generous gift. The head of this quality would cost a small fortune. As Marcos knows, any physical contact is forbidden and can cost him his life, he still goes into this ‘relationship’ with the woman who should be killed. Every day, he starts to treat her more like a human. He teaches her how it is to be human and takes care of her. She can be his last chance to find happiness and repair so many relations.
From there, the story goes downhill for me. Marcos’s relationship with this woman will be intense, and to know more, you have to read this book. Until about halfway through this book (which is around 230 pages), it was great, but then it started to feel repetitive and slow. I mostly read: and he drowe there, or drowe there.
The other flaw I found in this book is that the characters are not developed. We don’t have much information or personality in them. They are all paper-thin. I would love to know more about Marcos than just where he works, where he met his wife, what their life together is like, or what hobbies he has. We have no other information to give him some depth. The death of his small son is not enough for me to build the whole character.
Overall it was not a bad book. I would enjoy it more if I could relate to the main character more.
1. Atmosphere and tension: This is the backbone of horror- how well the book builds a creepy, unsettling vibe. Does the setting (dark woods, haunted house, possessed people) pull you in? Does the book keep you on edge, dreading what’s next? A great horror book makes the air feel thick with unease. 1
2. Characters and Relatability: Are the protagonists fleshed out enough to care about? Do their fears or flaws resonate? Weak characters can tank a story- nobody roots for a cardboard cutout. The best horrors make you feel their terror as if it’s your own. 0
3. Plot Coherence and Pacing: Does the story hold together logically, even in its madness? Are twists earned, not just cheap shocks? Pacing matters too- too slow, and it drags: too fast, and the fear does not sink in. A tight, well-structured plot keeps the horror gripping. 0.5
4. Fear factor and Impact: How much does it actually scare you? This varies by reader—some want visceral gore, others subtle dread—but the book should leave a mark, whether it is nightmares or lingering chills. It’s about emotional punch, not just jump-scares on paper. 1
5. Writing Quality and Styles: Clunky prose or overdone cliches can kill the mood. Does the language flow, painting vivid images without bogging down? The best horror writers wield words like weapons, sharp and deliberate, ampifying the story’s power. 0.5
3/5 Not bad