I loved this novel – fellow fans of Isabel Allende and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, you must have this on your list. Elizabeth Gonzalez James takes on the Latin American literary strand of magical realism and with it weaves a beautiful story of family, adventure, and justice.
I love a multi-generational saga, and although I'm not as familiar with Westerns, the underlying themes at play here (wealth, injustice, and a family curse) really drew me to this story. The story never seems to lose momentum, and I was absolutely hooked from the first page to the last. I was surprised that the ending moved me to tears – it tied together with a powerful twist. This is a truly unique novel, and I'd urge anyone in the mood for something a bit different to read it.

4.5*

There was a time when I never would have imagined that I'd be reading a magical realism western about a Mexican bandido, but here we are.

The first third of the book wasn't doing it for me but then all of a sudden I was engrossed. The story is told in alternating timelines where both POVs are encountering death in 'human' form. The characters include likeable people, downright detestable people and those who are morally grey but are definitely more bad than good (maybe). The story has a supernatural element but it feels really subtly done. It has an old western feel but is mainly told from the POV of Antonio, a Mexican Bandido. The other main POV is Jaime, the grandson of Antonio, who knows nothing about his grandfather until an old book is delivered to him, detailing Antonio's past exploits.

Antonio starts out as a character I really didn’t like and yet as the story progressed, I felt myself hoping he didn't get caught by the Rangers. Antonio is a complicated antihero, his POV is violent and dark, he has treated people horribly (including his wife) and his brother's death directly resulted from a decision Antonio made, but then he is brought back down to earth with a crash and it was good to see him humbled. I'd love to see artwork of Antonio after his injury because he sounded very disfigured and I imagine this added to the Texas Rangers hatred of him (along with him simply being Mexican, of course). Later in the story we meet Peter, who brings some light-hearted humour to a very dark story. Antonio is unsure of Peter's intentions early on but I loved the Peter and Antonio pair up immediately - possibly because of Peter's English humour 😄👌🏻thankfully Jaime's POV is not the main POV, as I really preferred what was going on with Antonio.

The author's note informs us that the story is based on the author's great grandfather, Antonio who was a bandido in the late 1800s. I enjoyed the story regardless of this information but that was fascinating to me. I'd also recommend the audiobook for this book because the narrator was great.

Thank you NetGalley for an eArc in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this one! First off, The Bullet Swallower is written in a really compelling way that is both beautiful and easy to digest (the latter of which can't be said for the themes covered in this story). This story was really easy to sink into, didn't contain a single page that wasn't needed and had me turning the pages towards the end. What brought this book to life for me was that although evil was the major theme of the story, our main characters fell in and out of that category seamlessly as the story progresses. This is one of the books I will probably think about often in the future and I would highly recommend it!

When i read the first line I couldn't help remembering: "Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía".
This is part of the incipit of One Thousand Years of Solitude, in case you don't know, and somehow it came to my mind even I read the book ages ago.
You can feel the echoes of Garcia Marquez and Cormac McCarthy in a sort of Tex-Mex Salad but, I think, there's also some echo of Jorge Amado and Lansdale.
There's plenty of noble fathers and there's a good story that pays homage to them.
Magic Realism at it's best, an entertaining and compelling story.
The author I quoted usually add some social remarks in their story, or, like Amado and Garcia Marquez, write political books.
This is a good story with plenty to love, some social remarks would have make it a great story
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Generations of Sonoro men going back to Spain pre-colonies seem to be cursed. They are evil or at least evil-doers. One - Antonio - is supposed to be taken to hell upon his birth in 1800s Mexico as a cursed debt repaid. However, the shadowy figure watching over him decides to see how his life might play out. Flash forward to 1960s Mexico City and a film star who lives happily but without a sense of a past. He is presented with a book of his family history that unsettles and derails his daily life. Both timelines are given life, but it is Antonio's story of regret and redemption that sings. Bright characters rendered in full detail, this book explores if it is possible to escape the violence of your past to forge a better life. Nice mix of magical realism, western tropes and family drama. Lovely.

𝙰𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔

Antonio’s family lost their fortune and the drought makes it impossible to provide for his family. When he learns a train loaded with treasures will head to Texas he decides to rob the train. His brother Hugo joins him and gets killed, and Antonio is left shot in the head. After being taken care of by a sweet lady and her son he goes on a quest for revenge. Many years later his grandson is given a book about their family, and after reading it he starts to understand his ancestors were aggressive, criminal men. When the “shadow” he read about also enters his life, he understands that someone in their family has to pay for their past….

𝙼𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔

Such an original story, I absolutely loved it! The story goes back and forth in time and makes you realize bit by bit not everything is black or white. The main character Antonio seems like a cruel bandit at first but he’s changing bit by bit and also tries to do what it takes to provide for his family. His grandson Jaime seems be the loving family man and successful actor, while he mostly just does what he wants without thinking of others. When he receives a book about his ancestors he also gets in contact with a mysterious man named Remedio. When he realizes who he is he does everything he can to protect his family. Be sure to read the author’s note at the end! Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this great novel and happy pub day Elizabeth!

Violence begets violence and in the case of The Bullet Swallower, that quote couldn't be more accurate. This new Western book doesn't necessarily do anything different or unique that hasn't been done in this field before, but the thematic weight of the characters' actions, sprinkled with the light bites of fantasy, make it a thoroughly engaging read.

The story itself is split across two time periods - 1895 and 1964 respectively. The 1895 story is the dominant focus here though and it centers on Antonio Sonoro, a ruthless man who has promised his wife he's going to hang up his bandit hate and stop a life of crime. Unfortunately, a drought and a desperate lack of money forces Antonio's hand and he heads out with his brother Hugo in pursuit of a treasure that could change their fortunes forever.

Unfortunately, the pair bite off more than they can chew and when Rangers track them down, the unspeakable happens. Antonio is hell bent on revenge and sets off on a crusade to right these wrongs and cast vengeance on the Rangers.

Coinciding with this story is the 1964 plot, which sees Jamie Sonoro start to trace his family tree back through an old book, and soon realizes just how much blood is on the hands of his ancestors. As the story continues, a strange man named Remedio could hold the key to linking the past and present together.

The Bullet Swallower is an intriguing read and although it does lull a little around the middle, the second half picks up considerably. What's particularly fascinating here is seeing how Antonio's character develops across the book, and how his experiences with different characters - like a lackadaisical horse or an Englishman called Peter - shapes who he eventually becomes.

Thematically, the book almost predominantly embraces the idea of revenge and explores all angles of it. Is revenge really the best way of seeking redemption? How far does one's faults go? And is it all really worth it? Wrapped up in all of this is classic Western territory, so expect plenty of shootouts, tense encounters and grisly descriptions too.

On the same note as the latter, The Bullet Swallower features some absolutely gnarly images and descriptions. There's an entire chapter that details horrific injuries that Antonio suffers from and his road to recovery. It's both gut wrenchingly powerful in getting us inside Antonio's mind, and absolutely mesmerizing to read. Honestly, the level of detail, use of similes and general descriptions are incredibly powerful. Elizabeth Gonzalez James has done a brilliant job here with her prose and the book is all the stronger as a result. 

When you break it down, the plot itself is actually rather barebones but James has dressed this up with such great writing that it feels much more epic in scope as a result. The Bullet Swallower is, quite simply, a great read. It's a thoroughly engaging Western that fully embraces the genre and throws in some fantasy for good measure. It's not going to blow anyone away but it'll certainly leave an impression when you finish reading it.

First, it is too much pressure to compare this novel to the work of Cormac McCarthy and Gabriel García Márquez at the top of the synopsis. It seems to me a disservice to set expectations so high.
We have two-time frames: 1895 and 1964, in which we meet two members of the Sonoro family, Antonio and Jaime respectively. Antonio's part is very atmospheric, with that sticky heat, that violent and cruel world. Not so Jaime's, which is much more benevolent. Antonio Sonoro is a great character, complex and charismatic. I found Jaime a bit bland.
And then we have Remedio, who is the glue between the two generations. This part is supposed to be magical realism, but for me it's not, it's pure fantasy, maybe not "high fantasy", but not magical realism at all.
Overall, I enjoyed the reading, approaching it without expectations.
I thank NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with a digital copy for review.

En primer lugar, es demasiada presión que lo primero que haga la sinopsis es comparar esta novela con la obra de Cormac McCarthy y Gabriel García Márquez. Flaco favor me parece poner las expectativas tan altas.
Tenemos dos tiempos temporales: 1895 y 1964, en los que conocemos a dos miembros de la familia Sonoro, Antonio y Jaime respectivamente. La parte de Antonio es muy atmosférica, con ese calor pegajoso, ese mundo violento y cruel. No así la Jaime, que es mucho más benévola. Antonio Sonoro es un gran personaje, complejo y carismático. A Jaime lo encontré un tanto insulso.
Y luego tenemos a Remedio, que es el pegamento de las dos generaciones. Esta parte es la supuesta de Realismo mágico, pero que para mí no lo es, es fantasía pura y dura, quizás no “alta fantasía”, pero realismo mágico para nada.
En general he disfrutado de la lectura, acercándome a ella sin expectativas.
Agradezco a NetGalley y Hodder & Stoughton por facilitarme una copia digitalpara su reseña.

An overall enjoyable reading experience, I never found myself longing to pick the book back up, but also never wanted to put it down once I was reading. The characters, tone, intertextual references, and setting are all exceptionally strong throughout the novel. Despite these positives, I never found myself fully submerged in the story and believe this suffers the most common shortcoming for historical/magical realism novels, which is that it felt like it should have been either an extra 150 pages long, or 100 pages shorter. If the synopsis catches your eye, it very much does deliver on what is promised, so I would still recommend it to those who find themselves interested in the premise.

This was a departure from my typical fare, but the combination of magical realism and a western made it an attractive choice. It's a little light on magical realism, appearing in pockets rather than equally throughout the novel, but I appreciated the concepts of redemption and atonement that the magical realism allowed the story to have. I honestly despised Antonio at first and wondered how I was going to go through such an unlikable man's trip. However, as the novel progressed, I became increasingly angry when the timeline moved to Jaime's perspective in 1964, because I was considerably more interested in Antonio. I'm not sure when my feelings switched, but once I recognized what was going on, I couldn't put the book down.

I will admit that I battled through most of the book, wondering how important Jaime's point of view was to the overall tale. But, in the end, it emphasized the bittersweet sentiments of completeness and healing that come with forgiving of past wrongs.

I also wish that more consideration had been devoted to Hugo as Antonio aged. Obviously, the majority of the novel was about Antonio pursuing vengeance for Hugo's murder, but when his journey came to a finish and everything came to a close, I felt like Hugo was mainly forgotten. It was strange not to have him be as important in the end as he was at the beginning. This was a story that made an effect on me. People's tenacity always amazes me, whether it's immense physical hurdles (such surviving a gunshot to the face) or incredible grief (of which there is enough in this book), and I like how she blended that in with all the other cheerful elements. It's a difficult read at times, but it's well worth it.