Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.22 AVERAGE
4.22 AVERAGE
dark
reflective
medium-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
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really enjoyed this collection of short stories!!!!
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
If horror stories are meant to make you feel very uncomfortable, then the stories in this collection are highly successful.
My favorite is the first one, “The Perfection of Theresa Watkins”. It involves a man resurrecting his wife using a technology
“Spider King” is also very memorable. A prisoner is released early in exchange for taking an experimental drug which
(crosspost)
My favorite is the first one, “The Perfection of Theresa Watkins”. It involves a man resurrecting his wife using a technology
Spoiler
where the mental data of the person to be resurrected is imprinted onto a donor’s brain—with prison inmates serving as the donors. It gets progressively trippier as we learn that the wife did not consent to this resurrection, and that this isn’t the man’s first attempt.“Spider King” is also very memorable. A prisoner is released early in exchange for taking an experimental drug which
Spoiler
gives him psychic links to a set of spiders that nest in his body.(crosspost)
Justin C. Key set out on a mission to re-work the horror genre. His admiration and well-versed understanding of it is evenly woven throughout this anthology.
His author’s note mentions that he doesn’t want to simply “make horror Black”, but bring Black experiences to build new horror. Spider King and The Perfection of Theresa Watkins are the best examples of this. Within that, he also brought mental health, neurodiversity, and immigration into the conversation.
There were times where he flipped the script and gave you something unexpected. However, he balances the horror and sci-fi very well! As someone who doesn’t read science fiction often, I enjoyed every story.
His author’s note mentions that he doesn’t want to simply “make horror Black”, but bring Black experiences to build new horror. Spider King and The Perfection of Theresa Watkins are the best examples of this. Within that, he also brought mental health, neurodiversity, and immigration into the conversation.
There were times where he flipped the script and gave you something unexpected. However, he balances the horror and sci-fi very well! As someone who doesn’t read science fiction often, I enjoyed every story.
Much more consistently good than a lot of story collections I've read. A lot of Black Mirrorish "what if technology but too much/what if X was fucked up" conceits, but executed really well. "One Hand In the Coffin" was especially creepy, plus very good depictions of autistic sensory stuff, imo.
Justin Key has a very solid collection of eight short stories in The World Wasn't Ready for You. I liked how unafraid he was to incorporate his experiences of Blackness into these stories, especially in the most hard hitting story, "Now You See Me." But even if you removed his musings on race in America these eight stories are still tense and impactful, especially the those that lean into horror (like "Spider King," another standout for me).
The Perfection of Theresa Watkins 2.5
Afiya's Song 3
Wellness Check 3
Spider King 4
One Hand in the Coffin 3.5
Customer Service 3.5
Now You See Me 4.5
The World Wasn't Ready for You 4
The Perfection of Theresa Watkins 2.5
Afiya's Song 3
Wellness Check 3
Spider King 4
One Hand in the Coffin 3.5
Customer Service 3.5
Now You See Me 4.5
The World Wasn't Ready for You 4