There is little in the way of plot and I did not find myself caring about the characters. Many passages seemed to go off on completely unrelated topics. I am not a big fan of stream of consciousness, but it thought it successfully portrayed the delusions and hallucinations of an advanced alcoholic condition. The author’s writing style is filled with long descriptive sentences and stream of consciousness thoughts, not always coherent, of the protagonist. Overall, I found it a chore to read, but there were flashes of brilliance. On a deeper level, it is more about how a life can be overtaken and destroyed by addiction, suggested by setting the book during “The Day of the Dead” as well as living “under the volcano,” and waiting for it to erupt and consume an ever-diminishing life. On the surface, the storyline follows a British Consul, living in Mexico with his brother, whose ex-wife has come to help him and see what may be salvageable of their relationship. Literary fiction and tragedy about a man suffering from the long-term effects of alcohol abuse.
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