Of Love and Other Demons (Vintage International)

It's fine. This might be my last Marquez novel. They do tell different stories, but they all feel the same - an overwhelming flood of detail. Imagination for its own sake, which seems cool but often results in not really being sure if anything is important or meaningful. People acting in crazy ways for illogical reasons but excused by default goods - usually love - that turn out to be both good and bad - usually obsessive curses. This one was more interesting because it didn't mess around with time jumps or retroactive storytelling too much and, once the data dump of backstory was got out of the way, it basically told a story focused on two main characters and 3 or 4 secondary characters. I was genuinely invested in the relationship of Delaura and the girl, at least when he was questioning his assignment, but then they didn't entirely pay off that aspect. I was genuinely interest in the feelings of the Marquis to his daughter, but then it never really came to a head. I was interested in the way the possession storyline was ambiguous up until it wasn't any more. I would be curious how someone that actually believes in that garbage would interpret the story differently, but for me it just felt like an injustice, directly connected to racism via backwards superstitious rationalizations and nonsense. I can still appreciate the story as story - I don't need to believe in every aspect, thankfully, but I do wonder if perhaps I was missing something by not being that particular type of insane. Any way, it was fine. If it were any longer, I think I might have a different opinion though.

Of Love and Other Demons - Gabriel Garćia Márquez Used for prompt #14 - a character with superhuman abilities, but also could be used for prompts 20, 23, 25, 32, 33, 35, 37, 45 3-1/2 stars "When I stand and contemplate my fate and see the path along which you have led me, I reach my end, for artless I surrendered to one who is my undoing and my end, Into your hands at last I have come vanquished. Where I know that I must die, So that in myself alone it might be proven how deep the sword bites into conquered flesh." On the writing style itself, this book is 5-stars. You’re sitting in the middle of it’s twisted soul, and from the spot of the reader, it is a worthwhile, sumptuous tale worth of discussion, and Garćia Márquez seems to know this based on the title. As a work of fiction it is excellent. Have Google nearby to look up unfamiliar articles of clothing. My difficulty with the book is philosophical- the basis for the narrative is the so-called “love” between a 30+ year-old priest and a 12-year-old traumatized girl who is neglected by her parents, who may or may not be demon possessed, who sometimes behaves with “childish cruelty” and may or may not be dealing with having contracted rabies, but who happens to have long and beautiful hair (when it isn’t lice ridden). “Abrenuncio tried to dissuade him. He said that love was an emotion contra natura that condemned two strangers to base and unhealthy dependence, and the more intense it was, the more ephemeral. But Cayetano did not hear him.” If this is “love” we are all doomed. Also I’ve observed IRL that often men can’t tell the difference between women who are fun-crazy or clinically crazy, and, this just seems to be another example of that. (I looked to see if this booked has been banned in any of the recent stupidity, but, it hasn’t been. Perhaps the Tennessee state legislators find it instructive toward finding a young wife and tragically sad rather than a book which might be considered “grooming”…. But I’d doubt they’ve read it to begin with)