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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Really infused with a lot of horror tropes without making the characters' fates horrible or depressing
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Summary: From the Neck Up by Aliya Whiteley is a wild and wonderfully weird short story collection. Over sixteen stories it takes us into worlds not unlike our own, but with sometimes shocking differences.
-Recommended for fans of weird short stories
-Not recommended if you like settings with overt magical abilities
-Recommended if you enjoy stories that explore earth in a future that sees human life transformed
-Not recommended if you like all ideas to be explored in a lot of depth
As always, reviewing a short story collection can feel like a lesson in madness. But Whiteley has made it easier on me by providing common threads and themes I can discuss, as well as an astonishingly good opening novella.
We’ll start at the beginning, with Brushwork. Brushwork is set in an approximate future, where Britain is in an ice age, and the elderly are given jobs growing fruit and vegetables for the wealthy in special facilities. Mel is one such worker, and she paints her memories using the same brushes that she uses to pollinate the melons she looks after. A group of ‘agro-terrorists’ takes over the facility, and Mel strikes up a singular friendship with a young man in that group. The whole story is exquisitely crafted, both heartbreaking and heartwarming, and is the only story in the collection that I will outright state my rating for. It got a rare 10/10 for me.
So now, moving onto more overall themes, the future and our relationship with nature after we ruin the planet seems to be one that crops up a lot, whether it is the strange adaptations that occur when children ended up living on plastic islands in the sea, or plants trying to form a symbiosis of sorts with humans.
Other themes explored more than once are: dissatisfaction with the life you’ve found yourself living; revelations as to core meanings in your life; things imposing on human bodies; memories and rituals.
Whiteley manages to always write with a subtle beauty, which kept me going for stories that didn’t quite work for me as well as the others. Her worlds are rich with half glimpsed details, but often ideas come so fast that there is so little time to mull on them before the story is over. Out of all of the stories there was only one that I didn’t end up finishing.
Highlights (other than Brushwork) include Three Love Letters From an Unrepeatable Garden – a perfectly plotted epistolary story about a flower with a transcendental aroma; Into Glass – a dark introspective story about turning love into beautiful sculptures; Blessings Erupt – a sci-fi tale about a now bitter woman who can take away a disease of others, but to the detriment of herself; and The Spoils – which follows the ritual butchering of a strange underground creature, and the effect it has on the people chosen to receive its parts.
The construction of this collection falters for me in that my favourite story is placed right at the start, and and then is followed up with two other of the stronger stories – I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed when my enjoyment of the stories dropped for several in a row, and then became more varied after that. That said, the overall quality balances out to the point where I would heartily recommend From the Neck Up to anyone looking for short stories that surprise, haunt and touch your heart.
Rating: 8.5/10
Thanks to Netgalley and Titan Books for providing me with an e-arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
For reviews like this and more, visit my blog
-Recommended for fans of weird short stories
-Not recommended if you like settings with overt magical abilities
-Recommended if you enjoy stories that explore earth in a future that sees human life transformed
-Not recommended if you like all ideas to be explored in a lot of depth
As always, reviewing a short story collection can feel like a lesson in madness. But Whiteley has made it easier on me by providing common threads and themes I can discuss, as well as an astonishingly good opening novella.
We’ll start at the beginning, with Brushwork. Brushwork is set in an approximate future, where Britain is in an ice age, and the elderly are given jobs growing fruit and vegetables for the wealthy in special facilities. Mel is one such worker, and she paints her memories using the same brushes that she uses to pollinate the melons she looks after. A group of ‘agro-terrorists’ takes over the facility, and Mel strikes up a singular friendship with a young man in that group. The whole story is exquisitely crafted, both heartbreaking and heartwarming, and is the only story in the collection that I will outright state my rating for. It got a rare 10/10 for me.
So now, moving onto more overall themes, the future and our relationship with nature after we ruin the planet seems to be one that crops up a lot, whether it is the strange adaptations that occur when children ended up living on plastic islands in the sea, or plants trying to form a symbiosis of sorts with humans.
Other themes explored more than once are: dissatisfaction with the life you’ve found yourself living; revelations as to core meanings in your life; things imposing on human bodies; memories and rituals.
Whiteley manages to always write with a subtle beauty, which kept me going for stories that didn’t quite work for me as well as the others. Her worlds are rich with half glimpsed details, but often ideas come so fast that there is so little time to mull on them before the story is over. Out of all of the stories there was only one that I didn’t end up finishing.
Highlights (other than Brushwork) include Three Love Letters From an Unrepeatable Garden – a perfectly plotted epistolary story about a flower with a transcendental aroma; Into Glass – a dark introspective story about turning love into beautiful sculptures; Blessings Erupt – a sci-fi tale about a now bitter woman who can take away a disease of others, but to the detriment of herself; and The Spoils – which follows the ritual butchering of a strange underground creature, and the effect it has on the people chosen to receive its parts.
The construction of this collection falters for me in that my favourite story is placed right at the start, and and then is followed up with two other of the stronger stories – I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed when my enjoyment of the stories dropped for several in a row, and then became more varied after that. That said, the overall quality balances out to the point where I would heartily recommend From the Neck Up to anyone looking for short stories that surprise, haunt and touch your heart.
Rating: 8.5/10
Thanks to Netgalley and Titan Books for providing me with an e-arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
For reviews like this and more, visit my blog
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
A wide-ranging if somewhat uneven collection that really showcases Whiteley's remarkable versatility.
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I adore Aliya Whiteley's writing. I knew it from the moment I read and loved Skyward Inn and From The Neck Up just cemented this. Each and every story stands out and there isn't a single story that is weaker than the others. Whiteley is a power house in spec fic writing and you just need to start reading her works if you haven't already.
This is the type of collection where when you flick back to stories you remember them and what was going on. I could have read all of them as full-length stories, but Whiteley manages to pack in the perfect amount of plot and character development. They range from 80 pages to as short at 10 pages, but yet they are all as strong as each other. It's incredibly hard for me to pick a favourite from the collection.
Whiteley explores a whole range of situations, and all of them are set in our recognisable worlds. From what happens in a new Ice Age, to rainbows filled with human faces, and a vengeful Ancient Egyptian priestess. There is a huge variety within this collection but it forms a perfectly cohesive book that you will find hard to put down.
Honestly, I absolutely loved this. Whiteley is top of her game and her works are unlike anything else.
I adore Aliya Whiteley's writing. I knew it from the moment I read and loved Skyward Inn and From The Neck Up just cemented this. Each and every story stands out and there isn't a single story that is weaker than the others. Whiteley is a power house in spec fic writing and you just need to start reading her works if you haven't already.
This is the type of collection where when you flick back to stories you remember them and what was going on. I could have read all of them as full-length stories, but Whiteley manages to pack in the perfect amount of plot and character development. They range from 80 pages to as short at 10 pages, but yet they are all as strong as each other. It's incredibly hard for me to pick a favourite from the collection.
Whiteley explores a whole range of situations, and all of them are set in our recognisable worlds. From what happens in a new Ice Age, to rainbows filled with human faces, and a vengeful Ancient Egyptian priestess. There is a huge variety within this collection but it forms a perfectly cohesive book that you will find hard to put down.
Honestly, I absolutely loved this. Whiteley is top of her game and her works are unlike anything else.