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broughtbybrokenminds's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I always love a good horror poetry collection, so this book immediately sparked my interest. There was a good spread of variety to this book from lyrical reflections on the horrors humans commit, to disturbing scenarios with striking imagery, odes to legendary film directors and pieces punctuated with a dark humor twist. Most of the works here utilize narrative poetry to tell quick self-contained stories. Like most collections, some of the tales will have a stronger impact on the reader than others. I particularly enjoyed “Not Just Anybody” about a family of sin-eaters, “The Power of Grief” where a man captures death only to have his son free him, and “Full Moon Limericks” which contains 8 short odes to the films of the iconic production company. This was a fast read that would be perfect for anyone looking for some bite-sized indie horror that celebrates the genre. This book put the author and publisher on my radar, so I’ll be looking forward to seeing what’s next for them!
Thank you Swann + Bedlam for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Body horror, Sexual violence, Death, Murder, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Terminal illness
wendalorian's review against another edition
3.0
This poetry collection was a range of hit and miss. Each poem describes to darker side of human nature, some quite unsettling.
The author did a great job in vividly describing how dark and depraved ones thoughts can be.
The ones that stood out were:
“Breaking the Cycle” - The way it dealt with generational trauma really spoke to me.
“The Power of Grief” - A beautiful and haunting look at grief and death.
“True Crime” - Interesting and thought provoking.
“Hypocrite” - An honest and raw look at Christians and how they’re not very Christ-like.
The ones that felt really out of place were “Three Examples of Why Clowns Ain’t Funny”.
I give it 3 stars. Because overall these poems did make me think, although some are forgettable.
(I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.)
The author did a great job in vividly describing how dark and depraved ones thoughts can be.
The ones that stood out were:
“Breaking the Cycle” - The way it dealt with generational trauma really spoke to me.
“The Power of Grief” - A beautiful and haunting look at grief and death.
“True Crime” - Interesting and thought provoking.
“Hypocrite” - An honest and raw look at Christians and how they’re not very Christ-like.
The ones that felt really out of place were “Three Examples of Why Clowns Ain’t Funny”.
I give it 3 stars. Because overall these poems did make me think, although some are forgettable.
(I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.)
theequeendee's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
4.5
I would like to thank Net Galley and the publishers for letting me read this book early in exchange for my honest review. I love how dark and morbid the author is in his poetry/ stories. I can't wait to read more of his work.
mercykill's review against another edition
4.0
* received an ARC via netgalley
True horror poetry! Each poem creating a raw blistering image. Each was a joy to read as a fan of the genre. It pulled from tropes (lovingly) and established unique ideas in turn. Splattering viscera and rotting flesh, like a cult classic film.
True horror poetry! Each poem creating a raw blistering image. Each was a joy to read as a fan of the genre. It pulled from tropes (lovingly) and established unique ideas in turn. Splattering viscera and rotting flesh, like a cult classic film.
maaariaaah's review against another edition
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
seherina's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
3.5
Thank you NetGalley and Swann + Bedlam for the chance to read and review "Where the Worm Never Dies" by Quinn Hernandez!
I'm not a horror girly, but I am a poetry girly which is why I was pretty excited to read this. But to sum, horror > poetry when it comes to this book. As poetry, it's fairly standard modern poetry, but the horror made me flinch and quite uncomfortable, which is not to say that it wasn't interesting. Poems like "Breaking the Cycle", "Pawn" and "Not Just Anybody" are really interesting explorations on religion and inherited anger.
I'm not a horror girly, but I am a poetry girly which is why I was pretty excited to read this. But to sum, horror > poetry when it comes to this book. As poetry, it's fairly standard modern poetry, but the horror made me flinch and quite uncomfortable, which is not to say that it wasn't interesting. Poems like "Breaking the Cycle", "Pawn" and "Not Just Anybody" are really interesting explorations on religion and inherited anger.
magenta_menace's review against another edition
0.75
thanks to netgalley for an arc of this title in exchange for an honest review. i wanted to like this so much based on the synopsis but i was really let down. first of all, there were so many moments where i couldn't tell if this was satire or edgelord nonsense, which i feel is a huge loss for this collection. if it played more into the humor, i feel i may have received this better. the horror is not revolutionary or transgressive to me in any way, even though the blurb referred to this as an uncanny odyssey of terror. i was not scared! like, clowns? sexual assault? weird religious metaphors? cheap and overdone in the genre in my opinion. "desire" was probably the most unique and abject piece for me. it may just be that for me, someone who regularly consumes extreme horror, i felt like this was nothing new and didn't live up to what it promised. additionally, typos and grammatical errors abound, which i am assuming will be fixed in post, but errors like "gentile" instead of "genteel," "it's" instead of "its" and "peace" instead of "piece" end up glaring on an already sparse page.
mistressviolet's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Great, thought-provoking pieces. All of the poems are dark and unsettling, to various degrees. And many had profound revelations that really made me pause and think. Deep and intelligent writing that isn't overly esoteric.
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