You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Scan barcode
bobsandtheirbooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The Coiled Serpent is a short story collection of varying strange and eclectic stories, with themes of the human condition.
I thought this collection was very cool! Each story was well written for its subject matter, and I always love reading stories about how weird humans can be when pushed enough or of their own volition or from being nurtured in certain environments.
Admittedly one or two stories I didn't entirely get but they were still enjoyable!
My favourite stories were The Poison Garden and Madame Flora's.
Highly recommend if you love a weird tale or two.
Thank you to NetGalley and Unnamed Press for the e-arc in exchange for a free, voluntary and honest review.
I thought this collection was very cool! Each story was well written for its subject matter, and I always love reading stories about how weird humans can be when pushed enough or of their own volition or from being nurtured in certain environments.
Admittedly one or two stories I didn't entirely get but they were still enjoyable!
My favourite stories were The Poison Garden and Madame Flora's.
Highly recommend if you love a weird tale or two.
Thank you to NetGalley and Unnamed Press for the e-arc in exchange for a free, voluntary and honest review.
superperfundo's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
shirecrow's review against another edition
2.0
This is definitely a short story collection...
Okay let's be serious, what is it with me and short stories? They just don't work for me ever.
I'm the last person to dislike "surreal" and "gross" books. I'm a very big fan of grimdark and weirdfiction but The Coiled Serpent didn't do it for me at all.
A praise from me: Grudova does know how to write disgusting shit. They have a very specific voice that gives you slight goosebumps and a very weird feeling in the back of your throat.
Now to the unkind part of the review.
I was going to write a little review about every story but decided against it after noticing that each story was irritating me just like the one before.
First of all, there's way too much detail and description. Everything gets described, from the grandma we will never see again, to the bedsheets that don't matter, to the chocolate bar that I don't give a fuck about. Texture, look, feel, and so on. Most of the stories are filled with descriptions instead of, y'know, story.
Speaking of chocolate. I don't know if this was on purpose but there is chocolate in every damn story. I can't tell if these things are meant to be or if the author just really likes them and accidentally threw them into each story and was like "I think that sounds fine!"
Another thing that a lot of the stories suffer from is the fact that there is almost no build up at all. Mostly, we sit there and read some 20 pages and at the 19th page it's like "everyone is weird and the house isn't a house btw lol" and we're like "oh... okay, now what?" just to be met with the title of the next story.
Reading this felt like a 500 page long chore that I do not want to repeat again. But I do believe that Grudova has the ability to shape themselves into a well liked author and I think that I'd give them another try if they publish a story that has the room and time to breath and become.
Thank you to Netgalley, the Publisher and Camilla Grudova for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Okay let's be serious, what is it with me and short stories? They just don't work for me ever.
I'm the last person to dislike "surreal" and "gross" books. I'm a very big fan of grimdark and weirdfiction but The Coiled Serpent didn't do it for me at all.
A praise from me: Grudova does know how to write disgusting shit. They have a very specific voice that gives you slight goosebumps and a very weird feeling in the back of your throat.
Now to the unkind part of the review.
I was going to write a little review about every story but decided against it after noticing that each story was irritating me just like the one before.
First of all, there's way too much detail and description. Everything gets described, from the grandma we will never see again, to the bedsheets that don't matter, to the chocolate bar that I don't give a fuck about. Texture, look, feel, and so on. Most of the stories are filled with descriptions instead of, y'know, story.
Speaking of chocolate. I don't know if this was on purpose but there is chocolate in every damn story. I can't tell if these things are meant to be or if the author just really likes them and accidentally threw them into each story and was like "I think that sounds fine!"
Another thing that a lot of the stories suffer from is the fact that there is almost no build up at all. Mostly, we sit there and read some 20 pages and at the 19th page it's like "everyone is weird and the house isn't a house btw lol" and we're like "oh... okay, now what?" just to be met with the title of the next story.
Reading this felt like a 500 page long chore that I do not want to repeat again. But I do believe that Grudova has the ability to shape themselves into a well liked author and I think that I'd give them another try if they publish a story that has the room and time to breath and become.
Thank you to Netgalley, the Publisher and Camilla Grudova for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
andalicesays's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
joeday2712's review against another edition
2.0
Note to self: if a short story collection is described as “surreal”, that usually means “nonsensical”
lostcupofstars's review against another edition
3.0
This was really gross. I found a few of the stories interesting but overall they seemed to fall short. I thought the title story was the most boring.
teresa0623's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.0
I think Brandon Taylor said it best on the back of this book, saying something along the lines "This book is for the sickos"....truer words have never been spoken.
Every single story in this collection was weird or odd but utterly captivating. I couldn't put it down, literally read it in one sitting because I needed to know where Camilla Grudova was going to take me. Between the poison garden that a woman makes to help the general public with their problems, to the men that believe they will reach a whole new level of enlightenment if they don't cum and the house full of girls/women who have stopped getting their periods....Grudova has written a truly original collection of short stories that will take you to the brink of your sanity.
Thanks to The Unnamed Press for the ARC!
Every single story in this collection was weird or odd but utterly captivating. I couldn't put it down, literally read it in one sitting because I needed to know where Camilla Grudova was going to take me. Between the poison garden that a woman makes to help the general public with their problems, to the men that believe they will reach a whole new level of enlightenment if they don't cum and the house full of girls/women who have stopped getting their periods....Grudova has written a truly original collection of short stories that will take you to the brink of your sanity.
Thanks to The Unnamed Press for the ARC!
vivianej's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.0
elsphippard's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.5