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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
What a waste of a gorgeous cover. I’m sorry did I read the same thing as everyone else??? Gratuitous, pointless, nonsensical horror with paper thin characters and a message that is so surface level and obvious. I couldn’t suspend any disbelief by how ridiculous this book was. This author seems to think writing gross shit is all it takes to write a horror novel. I want the time back I spent reading this garbage of a book.
Merged review:
What a waste of a gorgeous cover. I’m sorry did I read the same thing as everyone else??? Gratuitous, pointless, nonsensical horror with paper thin characters and a message that is so surface level and obvious. I couldn’t suspend any disbelief by how ridiculous this book was. This author seems to think writing gross shit is all it takes to write a horror novel. I want the time back I spent reading this garbage of a book.
Merged review:
What a waste of a gorgeous cover. I’m sorry did I read the same thing as everyone else??? Gratuitous, pointless, nonsensical horror with paper thin characters and a message that is so surface level and obvious. I couldn’t suspend any disbelief by how ridiculous this book was. This author seems to think writing gross shit is all it takes to write a horror novel. I want the time back I spent reading this garbage of a book.
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
i don’t know what the hell i just read, but i can tell you i did not like it. the way that this has so many raving five star reviews about how and how gross and scary it was i can’t tell if im just fundamentally missing what’s happening that’s so good in this book or if people really enjoy the thirty thousand pieces of symbolism thrown in this. the book is written with gore and grossness in it, but its not something crazy (but i do read quite a bit of horror). i was more so trying to figure out what the hell is real. there’s so much symbolism and subtle imagery and hints dropped that the real point got lost for me like one chapter in. it’s like i have all these questions that…maybe i just missed? were they actually in a post apocalyptic world? was she actually that big of a liar and the whole book is a lie? why would i believe her mother? it’s like there’s all this actual character and story and setting questions that i didn’t get any answers to but oh no, generational trauma and creepy horror about gross monsters takes the forefront i guess. not to say that i don’t like a book that has ambiguity to it, but this felt like a whirlwind thrown into a tornado spun up in a blender. it had the sensation of being something, but was just a whole lot of twisting and turning. the part about her dad being her brother cause of her mom was …not shocking. if it was spoiled pages before, and then dropped again in the end, maybe it would have shocked me but..no.
THIS IS A DNF REVIEW. I tapped out at some point.
am a big fan of Eric LaRocca's work. You can find my reviews of THINGS HAVE GOTTEN WORSE SINCE WE LAST SPOKE, THE STRANGE THINGS WE BECOME And Other Dark Tales and YOU'VE LOST A LOT OF BLOOD at Cemetery Dance & LitReactor
https://litreactor.com/reviews/things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke-by-eric-larocca
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-the-strange-things-we-become-and-other-dark-tales-eric-larocca/
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-youve-lost-a-lot-of-blood/
I show up for everything he writes and I am almost never disappointed.
WE CAN NEVER LEAVE THIS PLACE is a bit of a departure from some of LaRocca's earlier work. Readers can expect this story to feel more like a fable or dark fairytale. The protagonist is a young woman named Mara who lives with her mother and has recently lost her father to a war that is waging outside their home.
Mara's mother is icy and unloving which comes across as unnecessarily harsh since the character development is a little thin. We're not really sure why Mara's mother despises her so much. It reminded me of James and the Giant Peach and how James (an orphan and a sweet boy) was treated so cruelly by his aunts. It's unexplained behavior the reader has to accept (sometimes I can get on board and sometimes I can't). The two of them live in squaller.
At some point in the tale, Mara's mother begins allowing strange guests to live in the house. She becomes preoccupied with them and their unusual promises, neglecting her grief-stricken daughter even further.
I have to admit, my experience was a perplexed one. I couldn't decide how I was supposed to interpret or engage with the story. I generally have a hard time with surreal, transgressive fiction. So I'm willing to admit the problem with this book lies with me and the way I don't enjoy feeling confused. I'm not good at the whole, "just go with it" kind of reading experience. There was one scene in particular, with a photograph I needed more from. I felt like there were more questions than conclusions; this unsettled feeling that I was missing something-was the author saying something about ugly trauma responses? Because this was full of them. Anyhoodles, this one didn't work for me and I felt like it was important for me to share my experience.
Merged review:
THIS IS A DNF REVIEW. I tapped out at some point.
am a big fan of Eric LaRocca's work. You can find my reviews of THINGS HAVE GOTTEN WORSE SINCE WE LAST SPOKE, THE STRANGE THINGS WE BECOME And Other Dark Tales and YOU'VE LOST A LOT OF BLOOD at Cemetery Dance & LitReactor
https://litreactor.com/reviews/things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke-by-eric-larocca
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-the-strange-things-we-become-and-other-dark-tales-eric-larocca/
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-youve-lost-a-lot-of-blood/
I show up for everything he writes and I am almost never disappointed.
WE CAN NEVER LEAVE THIS PLACE is a bit of a departure from some of LaRocca's earlier work. Readers can expect this story to feel more like a fable or dark fairytale. The protagonist is a young woman named Mara who lives with her mother and has recently lost her father to a war that is waging outside their home.
Mara's mother is icy and unloving which comes across as unnecessarily harsh since the character development is a little thin. We're not really sure why Mara's mother despises her so much. It reminded me of James and the Giant Peach and how James (an orphan and a sweet boy) was treated so cruelly by his aunts. It's unexplained behavior the reader has to accept (sometimes I can get on board and sometimes I can't). The two of them live in squaller.
At some point in the tale, Mara's mother begins allowing strange guests to live in the house. She becomes preoccupied with them and their unusual promises, neglecting her grief-stricken daughter even further.
I have to admit, my experience was a perplexed one. I couldn't decide how I was supposed to interpret or engage with the story. I generally have a hard time with surreal, transgressive fiction. So I'm willing to admit the problem with this book lies with me and the way I don't enjoy feeling confused. I'm not good at the whole, "just go with it" kind of reading experience. There was one scene in particular, with a photograph I needed more from. I felt like there were more questions than conclusions; this unsettled feeling that I was missing something-was the author saying something about ugly trauma responses? Because this was full of them. Anyhoodles, this one didn't work for me and I felt like it was important for me to share my experience.
am a big fan of Eric LaRocca's work. You can find my reviews of THINGS HAVE GOTTEN WORSE SINCE WE LAST SPOKE, THE STRANGE THINGS WE BECOME And Other Dark Tales and YOU'VE LOST A LOT OF BLOOD at Cemetery Dance & LitReactor
https://litreactor.com/reviews/things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke-by-eric-larocca
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-the-strange-things-we-become-and-other-dark-tales-eric-larocca/
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-youve-lost-a-lot-of-blood/
I show up for everything he writes and I am almost never disappointed.
WE CAN NEVER LEAVE THIS PLACE is a bit of a departure from some of LaRocca's earlier work. Readers can expect this story to feel more like a fable or dark fairytale. The protagonist is a young woman named Mara who lives with her mother and has recently lost her father to a war that is waging outside their home.
Mara's mother is icy and unloving which comes across as unnecessarily harsh since the character development is a little thin. We're not really sure why Mara's mother despises her so much. It reminded me of James and the Giant Peach and how James (an orphan and a sweet boy) was treated so cruelly by his aunts. It's unexplained behavior the reader has to accept (sometimes I can get on board and sometimes I can't). The two of them live in squaller.
At some point in the tale, Mara's mother begins allowing strange guests to live in the house. She becomes preoccupied with them and their unusual promises, neglecting her grief-stricken daughter even further.
I have to admit, my experience was a perplexed one. I couldn't decide how I was supposed to interpret or engage with the story. I generally have a hard time with surreal, transgressive fiction. So I'm willing to admit the problem with this book lies with me and the way I don't enjoy feeling confused. I'm not good at the whole, "just go with it" kind of reading experience. There was one scene in particular, with a photograph I needed more from. I felt like there were more questions than conclusions; this unsettled feeling that I was missing something-was the author saying something about ugly trauma responses? Because this was full of them. Anyhoodles, this one didn't work for me and I felt like it was important for me to share my experience.
Merged review:
THIS IS A DNF REVIEW. I tapped out at some point.
am a big fan of Eric LaRocca's work. You can find my reviews of THINGS HAVE GOTTEN WORSE SINCE WE LAST SPOKE, THE STRANGE THINGS WE BECOME And Other Dark Tales and YOU'VE LOST A LOT OF BLOOD at Cemetery Dance & LitReactor
https://litreactor.com/reviews/things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke-by-eric-larocca
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-the-strange-things-we-become-and-other-dark-tales-eric-larocca/
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/review-youve-lost-a-lot-of-blood/
I show up for everything he writes and I am almost never disappointed.
WE CAN NEVER LEAVE THIS PLACE is a bit of a departure from some of LaRocca's earlier work. Readers can expect this story to feel more like a fable or dark fairytale. The protagonist is a young woman named Mara who lives with her mother and has recently lost her father to a war that is waging outside their home.
Mara's mother is icy and unloving which comes across as unnecessarily harsh since the character development is a little thin. We're not really sure why Mara's mother despises her so much. It reminded me of James and the Giant Peach and how James (an orphan and a sweet boy) was treated so cruelly by his aunts. It's unexplained behavior the reader has to accept (sometimes I can get on board and sometimes I can't). The two of them live in squaller.
At some point in the tale, Mara's mother begins allowing strange guests to live in the house. She becomes preoccupied with them and their unusual promises, neglecting her grief-stricken daughter even further.
I have to admit, my experience was a perplexed one. I couldn't decide how I was supposed to interpret or engage with the story. I generally have a hard time with surreal, transgressive fiction. So I'm willing to admit the problem with this book lies with me and the way I don't enjoy feeling confused. I'm not good at the whole, "just go with it" kind of reading experience. There was one scene in particular, with a photograph I needed more from. I felt like there were more questions than conclusions; this unsettled feeling that I was missing something-was the author saying something about ugly trauma responses? Because this was full of them. Anyhoodles, this one didn't work for me and I felt like it was important for me to share my experience.
dark
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
dark
I love a good weird book! This was a trippy dark fantasy that comments on generational trauma. Very surreal, abstract, claustrophobic, and uncomfortable.
I think this book requires a second read once you finish it. But also I need to sit with it before I dive back in
Not perfect but did enjoy this better than things have gotten worse since we last spoke. In an apocalyptic setting, a girl loses her father who supposedly walked out on her and her mother. Things quickly devolve and become a hellish nightmare. The twist at the end was a nice surprise and I was honestly more disturbed and disgusted by this novel than the author other novel things have gotten since we last spoke.
Merged review:
Not perfect but did enjoy this better than things have gotten worse since we last spoke. In an apocalyptic setting, a girl loses her father who supposedly walked out on her and her mother. Things quickly devolve and become a hellish nightmare. The twist at the end was a nice surprise and I was honestly more disturbed and disgusted by this novel than the author other novel things have gotten since we last spoke.
Merged review:
Not perfect but did enjoy this better than things have gotten worse since we last spoke. In an apocalyptic setting, a girl loses her father who supposedly walked out on her and her mother. Things quickly devolve and become a hellish nightmare. The twist at the end was a nice surprise and I was honestly more disturbed and disgusted by this novel than the author other novel things have gotten since we last spoke.