Source: Goodreads

Book Review: All the Sinners Bleed

I am first and foremost a fantasy novel fanboy. However, once in a blue moon, a non-fantasy novel so good comes along that it makes me wonder if I should read more non-fantasy novels. All the Sinners Bleed is one of those books. And my god, was it a really brutal book. I think this is the fastest I have ever read a book. I probably only took four hours in total devouring this 370-page book. I was completely LOCKED IN. Everything becomes secondary to reading this (including my job, sorry boss). The story is gripping and the book is impossible to put down.

The book tells a story of a race and power struggle in a rural American town. Titus Crown, our protagonist, is the first Black sheriff of Charon County, a town with a long history of hostility towards the Black community. The peace between races is delicate, and when a murder unfolds that involves both races, the town begins to fracture. Titus must navigate this chaos, keep his job, and find the murderer before it is too late, all in a system that does not always want him to be there.

What I really love about the book is its pacing. Never did I find any section that was particularly boring or unnecessary. I feel that S.A. Cosby is putting everything there for a reason and wastes no time dilly-dallying. Titus himself is also one of the strongest protagonists I have read in a while. He is believably flawed, yet his thought process made sense. Navigating this maze with the left wall being your responsibility as a sheriff and the right wall being your identity as an African American is believable. He is the kind of man that you want to watch your back when things go south. Titus is HIM.

Finally, as I said before, I think I need to read more non-fantasy novels. Right now, I’m in the middle of The Sun Eater series. However, it sounds like Hadrian Marlowe must wait.¹ This book has done that much.

5/5