Reviews

Something Borrowed, Something Blood-Soaked by Christa Carmen

etakloknok's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

mlivings8's review against another edition

4.0

I listened to this one but didn't see that as an option, anyway I enjoyed these stories, some intrigued me more than others of course, but the only complaint I would have is the abrupt ending to some of the stories. Other than that I really enjoyed these stories and highly recommend it to any fan of good writing.

georgesreads's review against another edition

2.0

A feminist horror short story collection. This sounded so intriguing and some of the stories were so great (the second was really good actually) but overall they just didn’t scare me and a lot of them just missed entirely for me. The title and cover are both great- but the story that the entire collection revolves around.. was not great in my opinion. ALSO.. the first story? Maybe I’m just not smart enough, because I could read the words they just didn’t seem to make a sentence.. idk
Some of the collections contents could be expanded and turned into a brilliant novel, but overall this wasn’t great in my opinion.

seed193's review against another edition

5.0

This book was everything I look to read around Halloween and more. Each story hooked me right away and was the perfect length to read on lunch breaks or before bed. What makes this collection stand out was the way each story stuck with me. I thought of Audrey as I buckled my children in one cold morning. Olive's plight was tangible and I was cheering for Molly to make it. I felt like I reached with Lauren for her phone and rode the train. The author's use of imagery was awesome (wet fingers on an ice cube...yes!) and each scene was painted in my mind. I look forward to more compelling stories from this author.

P.S. "Madame Pig" still makes me chuckle.

drakaina16's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This collection of short stories honestly blew me away. I will be eagerly looking forward to reading more from Christa Carmen!

Thirsty Creatures ⭐⭐⭐
Red Room ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Something Borrowed Something Blood-Soaked ⭐⭐⭐
Souls, Dark and Deep ⭐⭐⭐
All Souls of Eve ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Liquid Handcuffs ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Lady of the Flies ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Girl Who Loved Bruce Campbell ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
A Fairy Plant In Grief ⭐⭐⭐
Wolves At the Door and Bears In the Forest ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This Is Our Angry Train ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The One Who Answers the Door ⭐⭐⭐
Flowers From Amaryllis ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

raincorbyn's review against another edition

5.0

A great collection of eerie, stressful, and imaginative stories. Carmen clearly shines in the more realistic stories focused on addiction, recovery, and treatment, and weaves that horror and feeling of "can I trust anyone or anything?" in well with the supernatural horror stories.

It was great not knowing if a story would turn supernatural, or, even more horrifically, stay in the realm of plausible, flawed people in pain who could turn dark because real life addiction / mental health can be dreadful for everyone around. I look forward to more! Also props for portraying kids' POVs in horror in a way that felt genuine and vulnerable, while mistrustful of know-it-all adults.

blood_read_books666's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

stefanicox's review against another edition

5.0

Wow! I read this book in less than 48 hours. It gripped me from almost the very first pages and didn't let go until the end. I loved that this collection was so entwined with issues of addiction and gender. So many of the pieces explore these topics with care, without losing the thread of a good plot. The stories here feel empowering, and like a love song to the genre of horror itself. Compulsively readable. Can't wait to see Christa's next book!

saffronbunny's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood, Death, Drug abuse, Addiction, Murder, Drug use, Self harm, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Torture

Minor: Toxic relationship and Animal death

josephvanburen's review

4.0

I first read Christa Carmen's story "Red Room" in Unnerving magazine and loved it. This collection was every bit as good as I expected. She does a great job of taking old school horror tropes & even older school gothic conventions, placing them in scary modern settings, then subverting half of them and embracing the rest. The tales that result are refreshing takes on the influences they are rooted in and give nods to. Addiction is a big theme in this book, which is a horror close to my heart. I also really liked the sense of a shared universe with some characters appearing, or at least being mentioned in, more than one story. If you like mess-with-your-head horror that is just as poetic as it is disturbing, read this book.