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chaosofcold's review against another edition
4.0
A short story can be a half formed thing. Often times these collections requires an awful lot of separating the wheat from the chaff and The Coiled Serpent is no exception.
When I read Children of Paradise I felt it didn’t quite push the horror envelope enough but the quiet yet grotesque horror of Children of Paradise that is still present in many of these stories which is where Grudova’s storytelling really shines.
There are several stories that raise the body horror stakes and launch into a higher realm of depravity but it kind of leaves a feeling of ‘and? Where’s the rest of it?’
If you’re a fan of no narrative just vibes then this will likely be something you’ll love. If you’re looking for meaty morsels that leave you thinking - you won’t quite find it here.
3.5 up to 4.
When I read Children of Paradise I felt it didn’t quite push the horror envelope enough but the quiet yet grotesque horror of Children of Paradise that is still present in many of these stories which is where Grudova’s storytelling really shines.
There are several stories that raise the body horror stakes and launch into a higher realm of depravity but it kind of leaves a feeling of ‘and? Where’s the rest of it?’
If you’re a fan of no narrative just vibes then this will likely be something you’ll love. If you’re looking for meaty morsels that leave you thinking - you won’t quite find it here.
3.5 up to 4.
sandytfrench's review against another edition
3.5
The Coiled Serpent by Camilla Grudova
Publication date: 2 November 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and Atlantic Books for providing me with an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
~~~~~
A little girl throws up Gloria-Jean's teeth after an explosion at the custard factory. In a damp, putrid spa, the exploitative drudgery of work sparks revolt. In a Margate museum, the new Director curates a venomous garden for public consumption.
~~~~~
Book 100! 😊 And seeing as I'm in my short story collection era (Sandra's version), this was a very fitting 100th read of the year.
But oh boy, it was weird, and it was gross.
I will give the same warning here as I did for Grudova's Children of Paradise (which was longlisted for this year's Women's Prize) - if you are at all squeamish about bodily fluids, excretions and suspicious substances, stay away from this book!
There were some very salient points made about poverty, classism, the oppression of the working class but I kinda lost sight of them and got distracted by trying to keep a tally of whether fecal matter made an appearance in every story in this book (the answer, Dear Reader, is *almost* every story...)
And yet, I was fascinated! I read this book in pretty much one sitting; I could not put it down. It is macabre, grotesque, gross and WEIRD! But the weirdness and the writing really did it for me. This book will not be for everybody but I will brace myself (and my stomach 🤢), and I will definitely read more from this author.
My favourite stories were The Green Hat, where revenge is a dish best served cold and Hoo Hoo, a weird, and quite sad, dystopian little tale.
~~~~~
Publication date: 2 November 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and Atlantic Books for providing me with an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
~~~~~
A little girl throws up Gloria-Jean's teeth after an explosion at the custard factory. In a damp, putrid spa, the exploitative drudgery of work sparks revolt. In a Margate museum, the new Director curates a venomous garden for public consumption.
~~~~~
Book 100! 😊 And seeing as I'm in my short story collection era (Sandra's version), this was a very fitting 100th read of the year.
But oh boy, it was weird, and it was gross.
I will give the same warning here as I did for Grudova's Children of Paradise (which was longlisted for this year's Women's Prize) - if you are at all squeamish about bodily fluids, excretions and suspicious substances, stay away from this book!
There were some very salient points made about poverty, classism, the oppression of the working class but I kinda lost sight of them and got distracted by trying to keep a tally of whether fecal matter made an appearance in every story in this book (the answer, Dear Reader, is *almost* every story...)
And yet, I was fascinated! I read this book in pretty much one sitting; I could not put it down. It is macabre, grotesque, gross and WEIRD! But the weirdness and the writing really did it for me. This book will not be for everybody but I will brace myself (and my stomach 🤢), and I will definitely read more from this author.
My favourite stories were The Green Hat, where revenge is a dish best served cold and Hoo Hoo, a weird, and quite sad, dystopian little tale.
~~~~~
frombethanysbookshelf's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
4.0
This collection of short stories delves into the macabre, the startling and the strange; conjuring up visceral imagery and strikingly lasting emotional responses to the absurd and odd scenes that lay ahead.
From cursed hotels, to gardens of poisons, to a custard factory after an explosion, Grudova takes us on a journey to the uncanny valley where things are uncomfortably similar to modern day Britain but something is always just not quite right. Underneath the disturbing visuals and gothic storytelling is a scathing and incisive exploration into contemporary life, the anxieties and fears of the modern person and the terrifying oppression that power can deliver from above.
Every story has its own uniqueness, some with narrative structure, some feeling more like a string of thoughts or a moment in time - but all of them have that odd charm that makes this book to undeniably intriguing. It spans genres from fantasy, to gore, to social realism but they’re all tied together with that mesmerising voice.
I haven’t had the pleasure … or the discomfort of reading this author before, but I will definitely be doing so in the future.
Every story has its own uniqueness, some with narrative structure, some feeling more like a string of thoughts or a moment in time - but all of them have that odd charm that makes this book to undeniably intriguing. It spans genres from fantasy, to gore, to social realism but they’re all tied together with that mesmerising voice.
I haven’t had the pleasure … or the discomfort of reading this author before, but I will definitely be doing so in the future.
abbie_'s review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
3.25
Hello yes, I just have one question - what the actual fuck?
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my free digital ARC in exchange for me being thoroughly and utterly grossed out! I haven’t read Grudova’s first collection OR Children of Paradise, but I’m not sure that I would have been anymore prepared for The Coiled Serpent if I had. Every possible taboo you could think of is covered in these stories, every bodily fluid, every fucked up thing a person could do to another person, it’s all here. Grudova is clearly all about pushing boundaries, but I did often find myself asking what the point in some of the stories was. I’m quite a literal person, and so I’m always trying to figure out if there is a ~message~ or if these stories were just grotesque for the sake of it, to let the author’s creative juices flow. And lots of juices are indeed flowing, let me tell you 😩
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my free digital ARC in exchange for me being thoroughly and utterly grossed out! I haven’t read Grudova’s first collection OR Children of Paradise, but I’m not sure that I would have been anymore prepared for The Coiled Serpent if I had. Every possible taboo you could think of is covered in these stories, every bodily fluid, every fucked up thing a person could do to another person, it’s all here. Grudova is clearly all about pushing boundaries, but I did often find myself asking what the point in some of the stories was. I’m quite a literal person, and so I’m always trying to figure out if there is a ~message~ or if these stories were just grotesque for the sake of it, to let the author’s creative juices flow. And lots of juices are indeed flowing, let me tell you 😩
.
The stories do differ, but they all play on similar themes - creepy houses, oppressed & used women, food scarcity, revenge and unrequited sexual obsession. I wouldn’t consider myself a squeamish reader but my honestly this collection had me feeling physically nauseous more than once. My favourite stories were the less in-your-face shock value ones. The Green Room, for instance, where a woman whose daughter was killed due to a chemist’s negligence plays a long game of revenge. Or The Poison Garden, where a custodian of a Tudor house cultivates a garden full of poisonous plants which a young man thieves to nefarious and sinister ends.
.
Towards the end of the collection, the stories start getting more extreme, think cannibalism, self-combusting bodies, and I started to feel a bit drained from the constant gore. I prefer my dark stories to be a little subtler, I think!
.
Overall I’d say a mixed bag, but Grudova’s creativity and sense of atmosphere has got me curious about picking up her earlier works sooner rather than later!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Sexual violence, Rape, Vomit, Murder, Misogyny, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, and Body horror
Moderate: Miscarriage, Abortion, and Gun violence
emilunax's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
A wonderful collection of the weirdest stories! If you like anything disturbing and weird then you will enjoy every one of these short stories. Each one was completely different from the last, and packed such a punch considering their length. I highly enjoyed this collection and recommend it to anyone seeking out something completely different!
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