Scan barcode
the_coycaterpillar_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Let Me Out I’ve Had Enough is another stellar testament to just how much Mark Matthews understands the power of the human mind. This collection displays the emotions and pain at play when considering suicide, coping with the effects of suicide, and the disastrous aftermath. If you want a collection of stories to touch you deeply whilst wrenching gasps and shock from you then this is a collection that needs to be devoured. Intricate, painful, and overwhelming is how Let Me Out I’ve Had Enough should be described. It leaves scars on the soul, it is that powerful.
Mastectomy Scars – is designed to shock and hook you straight away. A dysfunctional family that is rocked by the suicide of the matriarch, cancer that ravages her body and soul. A father and lover keen to move on quickly, to make a fresh start, draw a line under the unfortunate business. A daughter that can’t make sense of the devastation, questions burning into her mind, wondering what the feel of a razor would feel like against her skin. Would she feel the thrum and throb of the blood exiting her body? Her father’s lover tries to manipulate her into being with her mum, what will that action set in motion?
Body of Christ – This is the longest piece of work contained within Let Me Out I’ve Had Enough. It is a story that manifests how suicide and religion are viewed in society. Faith has lost her mother after falling into a vegetative state and her father has to take the difficult decision to turn off her life support. Keagan, who lives across the street from Faith almost mirrors her situation. He has a difficult upbringing, with his mother being super religious and his father trying to fight the fires from her behaviour. His dad plans to end it all and does so in a disturbing fashion.
The Last Bug-Chaser – this is a story that is extremely relevant in a pandemic world. The Gideons who are known reverently as Bug-Chasers can be vessels for human evolution. A virus is ravaging the human race and the last Bug-Chaser is attempting to infect themselves with the virus to create a vaccine from their blood. Without them, the human race would have become extinct at various points in history already. A story that is frighteningly relevant but with a violent ending.
Mask of Sanity – I found this story to be the most frighteningly realistic story in this collection. Can working with the mentally ill make you more inclined to suffer from mental ill-health. Are we all just slipping our mark of sanity into place when we are in public? This was a superb story and it was the strongest in my opinion.
Tattooed All In Black – another cancer sufferer, another story full of grief, pain, and destruction. Lara Is sent home to die, she tells her husband that everything will be alright, but nothing is alright. A journey of self-destruction, a hope that Lara might make herself known, a friendly neighbour that only wants to help. This story had one of the best endings to a highly emotive plot.
Let Me Out I’ve Had Enough is a nuclear ball of energy. It taps into your humanity and makes you check on your loved ones. Unsettling, a scary look into our future as a society. It affected me in ways I’m struggling to verbalise. The brutality of it will knock you for six, bring you to your knees and leave you fighting for every breath.
Mastectomy Scars – is designed to shock and hook you straight away. A dysfunctional family that is rocked by the suicide of the matriarch, cancer that ravages her body and soul. A father and lover keen to move on quickly, to make a fresh start, draw a line under the unfortunate business. A daughter that can’t make sense of the devastation, questions burning into her mind, wondering what the feel of a razor would feel like against her skin. Would she feel the thrum and throb of the blood exiting her body? Her father’s lover tries to manipulate her into being with her mum, what will that action set in motion?
Body of Christ – This is the longest piece of work contained within Let Me Out I’ve Had Enough. It is a story that manifests how suicide and religion are viewed in society. Faith has lost her mother after falling into a vegetative state and her father has to take the difficult decision to turn off her life support. Keagan, who lives across the street from Faith almost mirrors her situation. He has a difficult upbringing, with his mother being super religious and his father trying to fight the fires from her behaviour. His dad plans to end it all and does so in a disturbing fashion.
The Last Bug-Chaser – this is a story that is extremely relevant in a pandemic world. The Gideons who are known reverently as Bug-Chasers can be vessels for human evolution. A virus is ravaging the human race and the last Bug-Chaser is attempting to infect themselves with the virus to create a vaccine from their blood. Without them, the human race would have become extinct at various points in history already. A story that is frighteningly relevant but with a violent ending.
Mask of Sanity – I found this story to be the most frighteningly realistic story in this collection. Can working with the mentally ill make you more inclined to suffer from mental ill-health. Are we all just slipping our mark of sanity into place when we are in public? This was a superb story and it was the strongest in my opinion.
Tattooed All In Black – another cancer sufferer, another story full of grief, pain, and destruction. Lara Is sent home to die, she tells her husband that everything will be alright, but nothing is alright. A journey of self-destruction, a hope that Lara might make herself known, a friendly neighbour that only wants to help. This story had one of the best endings to a highly emotive plot.
Let Me Out I’ve Had Enough is a nuclear ball of energy. It taps into your humanity and makes you check on your loved ones. Unsettling, a scary look into our future as a society. It affected me in ways I’m struggling to verbalise. The brutality of it will knock you for six, bring you to your knees and leave you fighting for every breath.
read_amanda_read's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
gruhuken's review
2.0
There are absolutely glimmers of imagination and originality in this anthology of short horror stories but it's ultimately tempered by wordy writing and ham fisted metaphors that, while over stated, are still kind of baffling
Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review
Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review
shawna_reads's review
dark
reflective
sad
tense
3.0
"If you had to live for just one moment like this, you'd not have the heart to go on living."
Let Me Out I've Had Enough is a collection of 8 stories centered around grief, depression, loneliness, and suicide. From a psychiatrist haunted by spirits to an alien contracting a virus to save the world to a hanging gone wrong, all of the stories range from horror to cosmic.
I generally enjoy short story collections, but this one didn't quite hit the mark for me. I was very intrigued with the subject matter being psychological horror centred around grief/depression, however, I couldn't find myself resonating with any of the stories. Sadly, it didn't evoke as much of an emotional response as I was hoping to get.
Out of the 8 stories, only 2 of them stood out to me the most - Masectomy Scars and Mask of Sanity. I think I just had high expectations going into this, but don't let it deter you if you're interested in reading it. The stories were still raw and emotional, and addressed important issues we face in society.
Let Me Out I've Had Enough is a collection of 8 stories centered around grief, depression, loneliness, and suicide. From a psychiatrist haunted by spirits to an alien contracting a virus to save the world to a hanging gone wrong, all of the stories range from horror to cosmic.
I generally enjoy short story collections, but this one didn't quite hit the mark for me. I was very intrigued with the subject matter being psychological horror centred around grief/depression, however, I couldn't find myself resonating with any of the stories. Sadly, it didn't evoke as much of an emotional response as I was hoping to get.
Out of the 8 stories, only 2 of them stood out to me the most - Masectomy Scars and Mask of Sanity. I think I just had high expectations going into this, but don't let it deter you if you're interested in reading it. The stories were still raw and emotional, and addressed important issues we face in society.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
curiosityboughtthebook's review
5.0
A letter to the author:
Mark,
I adore your writing. It's full of emotion and grief. I've read some of your other works in the past and always loved them. That being said, some of the stories in this collection I couldn't read. Having recently lost my mom to cancer, it was too raw, too close to home. Seldom, does an author's writing touch me so deeply that I have to take a break from reading to dry my tears.
Horror isn't meant to be comforting, and you surely do an excellent job at making me feel uncomfortable. Even if some stories were too much for me to finish, I know they were excellent in themselves.
Mark,
I adore your writing. It's full of emotion and grief. I've read some of your other works in the past and always loved them. That being said, some of the stories in this collection I couldn't read. Having recently lost my mom to cancer, it was too raw, too close to home. Seldom, does an author's writing touch me so deeply that I have to take a break from reading to dry my tears.
Horror isn't meant to be comforting, and you surely do an excellent job at making me feel uncomfortable. Even if some stories were too much for me to finish, I know they were excellent in themselves.
michelareads's review
dark
sad
slow-paced
3.0
Let Me Out I've Had Enough is the first collection of short stories written by Mark Matthews, an author that I had the pleasure to know thanks to his beautiful horror novel The Hobgoblin of Little Minds.
This collection of horror / sci-fi stories heavily delves into depression, grief, loneliness, suicide: because of its content, I would not recommend this book if you're having dark thoughts (please read the introduction by the author, he explains a bit the content of each story and respective trigger warnings).
As with any collection, I didn't connect with all the stories ("The Last Bug Chaser" for example is about an alien coming to earth with the goal to contract a powerful virus to save humanity - isn't it ironic? Still to early for me, sorry), but some I really enjoyed. Here's my favorites:
- Mastectomy Scars: the story of a daughter who recently lost her mother and desperately misses her - heartbreaking but beautiful;
- Body of Christ: the longest story in the collection, possibly one of the weirdest and most disturbing novellas I've ever read in my life but so good;
- Mask of Sanity: a classic horror story of a new drug with very strange and unpredictable side effects.
Eight different worlds, but all equally dark and unsettling.
Definitely not for everybody, but still a good book. 3 stars.
* I'd like to thank Mark Matthews, Wicked Run Press and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
This collection of horror / sci-fi stories heavily delves into depression, grief, loneliness, suicide: because of its content, I would not recommend this book if you're having dark thoughts (please read the introduction by the author, he explains a bit the content of each story and respective trigger warnings).
As with any collection, I didn't connect with all the stories ("The Last Bug Chaser" for example is about an alien coming to earth with the goal to contract a powerful virus to save humanity - isn't it ironic? Still to early for me, sorry), but some I really enjoyed. Here's my favorites:
- Mastectomy Scars: the story of a daughter who recently lost her mother and desperately misses her - heartbreaking but beautiful;
- Body of Christ: the longest story in the collection, possibly one of the weirdest and most disturbing novellas I've ever read in my life but so good;
- Mask of Sanity: a classic horror story of a new drug with very strange and unpredictable side effects.
Eight different worlds, but all equally dark and unsettling.
Definitely not for everybody, but still a good book. 3 stars.
* I'd like to thank Mark Matthews, Wicked Run Press and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
house_of_hannah's review
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Thank you so much to Wicked Run Press and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC; it is greatly appreciated.
This book contains seven short stories, and one novella. They all vary by subject and genre, with some even having a major sci-fi feel, but they all share the dark thoughts that humans are capable of. There is an introduction by the author that I definitely think is a must read before diving into these stories, as he explains some of the major content warnings. Do not read this book if you are in a dark headspace, or are having any thoughts of suicide.
The first and last stories are probably my favorites in this collection. I found them both to be quite powerful, and play on some statistics. Even though this book is extremely bleak, the last story actually leaves us with some hope, and is probably the closest this can get to a "happy ending".
Suicide is a huge theme in these stories, but religion also plays a key part. You can definitely see the questions that the author has about existence and the afterlife. It's truly a deep-dive into the author's mind, and is fascinating even.
With that in mind, some of these stories are stomach churning. The novella, Body of Christ, is insanely dark, depressing, and even terrifying. Although the whole time I was reading this one all I could think is, "that's not how women work," so prepare for some strangeness here.
This collection will not be for everyone. It is the epitome of our dark thoughts, so many might find that these stories go too far. This is another reason why I think the author's introduction is so important. He is a professional counselor that is exposed to suicide daily, and has used writing as an outlet for that experience. I think writing is a fantastic way to deal with trauma and emotion, and it's quite personal that the author has chosen to share it with us.
This book contains seven short stories, and one novella. They all vary by subject and genre, with some even having a major sci-fi feel, but they all share the dark thoughts that humans are capable of. There is an introduction by the author that I definitely think is a must read before diving into these stories, as he explains some of the major content warnings. Do not read this book if you are in a dark headspace, or are having any thoughts of suicide.
The first and last stories are probably my favorites in this collection. I found them both to be quite powerful, and play on some statistics. Even though this book is extremely bleak, the last story actually leaves us with some hope, and is probably the closest this can get to a "happy ending".
Suicide is a huge theme in these stories, but religion also plays a key part. You can definitely see the questions that the author has about existence and the afterlife. It's truly a deep-dive into the author's mind, and is fascinating even.
With that in mind, some of these stories are stomach churning. The novella, Body of Christ, is insanely dark, depressing, and even terrifying. Although the whole time I was reading this one all I could think is, "that's not how women work," so prepare for some strangeness here.
This collection will not be for everyone. It is the epitome of our dark thoughts, so many might find that these stories go too far. This is another reason why I think the author's introduction is so important. He is a professional counselor that is exposed to suicide daily, and has used writing as an outlet for that experience. I think writing is a fantastic way to deal with trauma and emotion, and it's quite personal that the author has chosen to share it with us.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Cancer, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Sexual content, Self harm, Rape, Pregnancy, Murder, Mental illness, Medical content, Infidelity, Gun violence, Grief, Gore, Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Death of parent, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Abortion
Minor: Car accident and Drug use
More...