Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes by Eric LaRocca

83 reviews

lovelylilelle's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Self harm, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Suicide attempt, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Blood, Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Toxic relationship

summersunautumnrain's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I wish all the gore without real context in this book would have been somewhat reduced. Definitely scarred me tho.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death

Moderate: Suicide and Child death

themeadowlibrary's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.5

What have you done today to deserve your eyes?

An interesting concept with some really badly done writing. 

I wish I could give this a higher rating because it was viscerally disturbing and unique. However, the writing fell extremely flat for me, and the overall story seemed rushed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Sexual content, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Self harm, Gaslighting, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Lesbophobia, Stalking, Death, Homophobia, and Suicide attempt

rosage's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

after reading the afterword it all makes much more sense. each piece left me with something to think about and sit on for a bit. this is a book i would recommend reading in parts instead of flying through like i did. you need that time to process the meaning behind each one and to see how the connect. i’ve decided to include my initial thoughts i wrote for each one just so i can go back and read them again later if i want. 

-things have gotten worse: honestly, i wish it was longer. i felt as though there were some lose ends that i would like to see tied up. i know she died but how? did she go back to work? i would also like to have seen more of their relationship and how that played into everything. i love that it was told through dms and emails though. it’s such an interesting way to tell a story. i wish it was done more often. 

-the enchantment: i really don’t have much to say for this one. personally i wish there had been more to it. it was a lot of religion and talk of christianity that i don’t really understand. her penance for “attempted murder of an angel” is to stay in purgatory for a while?? i think?? the scene with the flood was freaky though it scared me a little. 

-you’ll find that it’s like that all over: huh? just a bunch of bets to show why we should be polite? i don’t fully get it i don’t think

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Suicide, Grief, Gaslighting, Infertility, Murder, Child death, Death, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Torture, Emotional abuse, and Pregnancy

hunkydory's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Grief, Miscarriage, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Suicide, and Child death

mik_yekcuts's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.5

Feels like the author hates women, first and foremost. All the “horror” elements felt forced and gratuitous. Tried too hard to be edgy and shocking but the characters were not well developed enough for any of it to land. The repeated theme of crucifixion and pregnancy felt almost fetishistic, and was definitely redundant and out of place. I will say that I finished the first two very quickly but sadly was let down both times and really had to push myself to read the third story, anticipating disappointment again. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Violence, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Sexual content, and Suicide

ishouldreadthat's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Check out more book reviews and content here!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This review is spoiler-free.

Intense, provocative, weird. Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes is a book I'd been desperate to get my hands on ever since I first heard about it on social media. What did I think of it? It's gross, uncomfortable, chock full of body horror, and absolutely fantastic.

This is a book that wont click with everyone - I urge readers to check content warnings before picking it up- and I definitely wouldn't recommend it to non-horror readers. But for readers like me who enjoy reading books that push boundaries and touch on uncomfortable topics, THGWSWLS is a great read. It's fast-paced and utterly compelling, combining a literary writing style with some serious disturbing content.

There are three stories in this volume -- the titular THGWSWLS is definitely the strongest of the three. It's a story of a relationship spiraling into darkness told via chat logs and emails, with a hint of serious consequences. I can absolutely see why it became such a phenomenon within the horror community and was propelled into the mainstream. The other two stories feel a little like they sit in THGWSWLS's shadow. They were good and well written, but there is a lot that makes the titular novella feel unique.

This collection is thought-provoking, disturbing, and will sit in your mind long after you finish. I would highly recommend it to seasoned horror readers - it is perfect for your spooky season TBR.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Miscarriage, Suicide, Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Child death

bethanyhenderson's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Grief, Mental illness, Suicide, Torture, Animal cruelty, Death, Sexual content, and Animal death

nittiotvaan's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Blood, Gore, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Child death, Death, Grief, Miscarriage, Murder, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Torture, and Emotional abuse

christylouise's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I had really high expectations for this book, but felt like the stories fell short. Except from its interesting email format and making me say ‘eww’ out loud once it had very little else to offer. Maybe this type of book just isn’t for me, but overall it was a fast read and decently well written so I’d say give it a read and decide for yourself.

The other two short stories in this collection were off a similar vein, I don’t regret reading them but they were nothing special.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Miscarriage and Suicide

Minor: Sexual content

This books does not spare the details, two crucifixions take place, one is a child. Extreme Caution Advised!!!!