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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
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
The Coiled Serpent is not for the weak stomachs among us. I don’t have a weak stomach, and still found myself gagging while reading this collection of short stories. There’s nothing too grotesque for Grudova to tackle, and she’s excellent at weaving that imagery together.
Conversely, while I thought the graphic descriptions of bodies, blood, etc were really well done, and the stories themselves inventive, I found the writing lacking something. Grudova’s stories were all stylistically the same, and kind of bare of storytelling. They felt rushed, with no time to breathe. So this was a mixed one for me.
I received this ARC from the publisher via NetGalley. It came out on October 8, 2024.
Conversely, while I thought the graphic descriptions of bodies, blood, etc were really well done, and the stories themselves inventive, I found the writing lacking something. Grudova’s stories were all stylistically the same, and kind of bare of storytelling. They felt rushed, with no time to breathe. So this was a mixed one for me.
I received this ARC from the publisher via NetGalley. It came out on October 8, 2024.
A collection of magically bizarre short stories.
Standalone however some themes are reoccurring in other stories, great selection of horror, dystopia and gothic fiction.
Incredible sharp language, At times it did feel a bit rushed.
Standalone however some themes are reoccurring in other stories, great selection of horror, dystopia and gothic fiction.
Incredible sharp language, At times it did feel a bit rushed.
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
2⭐️ I think this had so much potential tho 😭
I was initially really excited to read this book. As a lover of strange stories and grotesque imagery, I was really drawn in by these elements in this series of short stories. I think the writing style was great and I love how uncomfortable the prose made me feel.
Other than that, I feel like these stories were all shock and no substance. There felt like there wasn’t any proper plot within any of the stories and I really struggled to connect with the characters as the stories are so short (sometimes not even 10 pages).
I think this book had a lot of potential but just didn’t live up to my expectations with execution. I still enjoyed the absolute weirdness that was these stories tho 🤣
Thanks NetGalley & Unnamed Press for having early access to this e-arc 💕
I was initially really excited to read this book. As a lover of strange stories and grotesque imagery, I was really drawn in by these elements in this series of short stories. I think the writing style was great and I love how uncomfortable the prose made me feel.
Other than that, I feel like these stories were all shock and no substance. There felt like there wasn’t any proper plot within any of the stories and I really struggled to connect with the characters as the stories are so short (sometimes not even 10 pages).
I think this book had a lot of potential but just didn’t live up to my expectations with execution. I still enjoyed the absolute weirdness that was these stories tho 🤣
Thanks NetGalley & Unnamed Press for having early access to this e-arc 💕
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
It was not my cup of tea, unfortunately. Quite gruesome stories. If you like short horror stories you may give it a try.
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!
The most common reaction I had while reading the book was receiting "what the fuck, what the fuck, what the actual fuck" on a loop. I found most of the stories quite bizarre and didn't knew what to think of most of them tbh, especially at the beggining.
The book tackle themes of body horror here and there but imo where the book shines the most is in it's descriptions of truly the most grotesque situations. Not only is Grudova great at coming up with the exact situation/imagery to disgust you (the son in the third story, iykyk) but I think it becomes even more disgusting and disturbing when you sit for a moment and meditate the fact that this IS life for a lot of people. It is exagerated, but it also reflects accurately what a lof of folks have to go through because of 🌈capitalism🌈
Putting that aside, I did find myself kind of disapointed that a lot of the stories seemingly had no plot? They felt a bit like outlines (very curt narration, not much description) or first drafts. It would be like peering into the life of this random person one moment and then at a random point the story ends. I suspect both the language she used and the nature of the narrative might have to do, again, with the fact that this are supposed to be your random everyday person, whose lives are just kind of unremarkable? Yet the simplicity of the language makes it that more shocking when you read someone eating vomit nonchalantly because there is just no build up, there's no sensation that this is a special moment, it's just part of every day life.
I think for me this is might of those books that becomes more enjoyable when you read it a second or third time. Because on first read I think it is quite easy to fixate on the grotesque parts and overlook the social critique.
The most common reaction I had while reading the book was receiting "what the fuck, what the fuck, what the actual fuck" on a loop. I found most of the stories quite bizarre and didn't knew what to think of most of them tbh, especially at the beggining.
The book tackle themes of body horror here and there but imo where the book shines the most is in it's descriptions of truly the most grotesque situations. Not only is Grudova great at coming up with the exact situation/imagery to disgust you (the son in the third story, iykyk) but I think it becomes even more disgusting and disturbing when you sit for a moment and meditate the fact that this IS life for a lot of people. It is exagerated, but it also reflects accurately what a lof of folks have to go through because of 🌈capitalism🌈
Putting that aside, I did find myself kind of disapointed that a lot of the stories seemingly had no plot? They felt a bit like outlines (very curt narration, not much description) or first drafts. It would be like peering into the life of this random person one moment and then at a random point the story ends. I suspect both the language she used and the nature of the narrative might have to do, again, with the fact that this are supposed to be your random everyday person, whose lives are just kind of unremarkable? Yet the simplicity of the language makes it that more shocking when you read someone eating vomit nonchalantly because there is just no build up, there's no sensation that this is a special moment, it's just part of every day life.
I think for me this is might of those books that becomes more enjoyable when you read it a second or third time. Because on first read I think it is quite easy to fixate on the grotesque parts and overlook the social critique.
Such a strange, unique and interesting collection of stories. Even though it took me a few of them to fully get into it, I simply couldn't stop reading no matter what. Such an incredible writing style and an absolutely amazing way to turn the mundane into something more. Every single story is so thought-provoking, I had the best time while reading this and I found myself wanting more by the end.
Many thanks to Unnamed Press & NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own.
Many thanks to Unnamed Press & NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own.
I don't get these stories I don't like these stories so far. I have zero desire to continue reading.
The first short story wasn't really anything. There wasn't any story telling beyond "I saw this. I smell that" and there wasn't any point to it?? I would rather read something enjoyable
DNF at 28%, so I won’t rate this one.
There’s a weirdness to this collection that does appeal to me. There’s also a gross out factor that reminds me of Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung. But in the stories I read, it didn’t really amount to much. In that sense it reminded me of Kelly Link, which is a selling point for fans of her, of course! But I find Link has a similar weirdness without point in her writing, and I lose interest.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
There’s a weirdness to this collection that does appeal to me. There’s also a gross out factor that reminds me of Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung. But in the stories I read, it didn’t really amount to much. In that sense it reminded me of Kelly Link, which is a selling point for fans of her, of course! But I find Link has a similar weirdness without point in her writing, and I lose interest.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
I’m a lover of strange short stories when they are done well and offer a deeper commentary, which is why, based on the blurb, I picked this one up. Having previously read Camilla Grudova's work, I was excited to explore this collection—both the cover and the buzzwords in the description drew me in. Unfortunately, I was left disappointed and ended up DNF’ing it around halfway through.
The frequent references to bodily fluids felt like they were included purely for shock value and added very little to the narrative of each story. Normally, I’m not the slightest bit bothered by elements of body horror, but when it feels like there’s no purpose other than to be as gross as possible, I lose interest in reading further.
To me personally, the writing style also felt overly simplistic. At times, it seemed as though I was reading a play-by-play description of an unedited draft. While this may have been an intentional narrative choice by the author, it sadly didn’t work for me.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Excrement