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ska1224's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Body shaming, Mental illness, Dementia, Death, and Terminal illness
savvylit's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Schweblin has written yet another book that expertly navigates the terror of the deepest and most unknowable parts of the human psyche. She imagines scenarios that are horrible due to their close proximity to reality. What if your parents lost their minds and you had to stand by and wonder if you ever really knew them? What if you thought that you'd met a kind stranger but then your encounter suddenly took on a sinister air?
Every story in this collection is unsettling and well-crafted. However, there is one that stands out above the rest and that is the longest story, "Breath from the Depths." In that story, the protagonist is a bitter, enfeebled old woman with a memory problem. Her forgetfulness makes her both obsessed with structure and totally paranoid. She no longer trusts her husband in any way, constantly implying his stupidity. In addition to her mind, her body doesn't function the way that she wants it to either. She frequently laments the fact that she can't even die despite feeling ready to go. In Breath from the Depths, Schweblin has so brilliantly hit on all of the very specific frustrations of memory loss and aging. As someone who has closely witnessed multiple elderly family members experience varying forms of dementia, I was blown away (and a bit terrified) by Schweblin's vivid and believable portrayal of memory loss in this story.
Overall, Seven Empty Houses as a collection is an excellent glimpse into Schweblin's skill at capturing dread and psychological horror. She remains one of my favorite contemporary authors and I cannot wait to see what she publishes next.
Every story in this collection is unsettling and well-crafted. However, there is one that stands out above the rest and that is the longest story, "Breath from the Depths." In that story, the protagonist is a bitter, enfeebled old woman with a memory problem. Her forgetfulness makes her both obsessed with structure and totally paranoid. She no longer trusts her husband in any way, constantly implying his stupidity. In addition to her mind, her body doesn't function the way that she wants it to either. She frequently laments the fact that she can't even die despite feeling ready to go. In Breath from the Depths, Schweblin has so brilliantly hit on all of the very specific frustrations of memory loss and aging. As someone who has closely witnessed multiple elderly family members experience varying forms of dementia, I was blown away (and a bit terrified) by Schweblin's vivid and believable portrayal of memory loss in this story.
Overall, Seven Empty Houses as a collection is an excellent glimpse into Schweblin's skill at capturing dread and psychological horror. She remains one of my favorite contemporary authors and I cannot wait to see what she publishes next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Dementia, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Death, and Mental illness
tigger89's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
What does it mean to be missing something? In these seven short stories, Samanta Schweblin paints a vivid and unsettling portrait of seven situations where something vital has been overlooked or misplaced, and the consequences that result. Originally published in Spanish, this collection has been translated to English by Megan McDowell.
Overall I enjoyed these stories. I'd picked up this book based on a recommendation billing it as a horror novel, but in my subjective opinion, with the exception of The Unlucky Man — a story about a young girl who feels ignored by her parents on her birthday and the man who gives her the attention she craves — the horror was very light. Rather, I found sadness in most of the stories. The houses were missing their things, and instead of feeling unsettled by the consequences I just mourned the loss. The writing style fit the tone of the stories very well, setting the stage for each scenario with quick strokes before leading the reader through the narrative at a brisk pace.
My favorite stories were the aforementioned The Unlucky Man, Breath from the Depths, and Out. Breath from the Depths, the longest story in the collection, is about an elderly, chronically-ill woman who's busy preparing for the end of her life when a neighborhood boy starts coming around her house. Out is about the aftermath of a couple's argument, and about choosing what to let go of and what to keep.
The collection does trend toward the bizarre, particularly the second story, My Parents and My Children. I admit I don't entirely understand that one. I can tell you what happened, but the ultimate meaning — and I do believe there was one, based on the other stories in the collection — was lost on me. But maybe that one will click for you and you'll be left stumped by one of the ones I liked.
Overall I enjoyed these stories. I'd picked up this book based on a recommendation billing it as a horror novel, but in my subjective opinion, with the exception of The Unlucky Man — a story about a young girl who feels ignored by her parents on her birthday and the man who gives her the attention she craves — the horror was very light. Rather, I found sadness in most of the stories. The houses were missing their things, and instead of feeling unsettled by the consequences I just mourned the loss. The writing style fit the tone of the stories very well, setting the stage for each scenario with quick strokes before leading the reader through the narrative at a brisk pace.
My favorite stories were the aforementioned The Unlucky Man, Breath from the Depths, and Out. Breath from the Depths, the longest story in the collection, is about an elderly, chronically-ill woman who's busy preparing for the end of her life when a neighborhood boy starts coming around her house. Out is about the aftermath of a couple's argument, and about choosing what to let go of and what to keep.
The collection does trend toward the bizarre, particularly the second story, My Parents and My Children. I admit I don't entirely understand that one. I can tell you what happened, but the ultimate meaning — and I do believe there was one, based on the other stories in the collection — was lost on me. But maybe that one will click for you and you'll be left stumped by one of the ones I liked.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Dementia, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Child death, Death, Grief, and Pedophilia
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