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caitsidhe's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
what the fuck?
bernt's review
5.0
A hallucinatory journey across time and space where the flesh is just currency waiting to be hacked and butchered as payment for one's apotheosis. Take equal parts female autonomy, the horrors of childbirth, abuse through the lens of small town expectations, the concept of dreams are reality, government weapons, and every bodily fluid possible and put it in a blender. Blend to taste and serve in a tall glass. Wipe that arcane mixture off your lips and make peace with the fact that you may have missed several pieces of this puzzle. Proceed to cave your skull in. With any luck, you may be able to sleep again after Koch's evocative prose. If not, well moisturize your skin and get out the sharp implements because there's a bigger, better, you right behind all those pesky organs. We just got to cut them out.
eldritchfossil's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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
3.0
bookwyrm55's review
5.0
This novella is not a quick read. The opening sequence was so intense and visceral, covering deep emotion to intricate descriptions of things that will haunt me, that when I hit the second segment I had to stop, sit back, study the book and read the synopsis again to be certain it wasn't a short story collection and I'd somehow missed the conclusion of the first story. Robert Chambers fans are going to love this new addition to the lore of Carcosa. There is a teenaged girl experiencing dual worlds, one of mistreatment, torture, and disfigurement and the other in a place where she bonds with an angel. At least, she calls it an angel. There is a research scientist fighting to create a living weapon to prevent the world from sliding into darkness and the absolute control of the Yellow Queen and there is the weapon. Three points bonded.
Joanna Koch has a mastery of words that can be, at times, overwhelming. In this novella you can sometimes catch a breath during the periods when you are visiting the research facility, but then, those begin to slide as well.
This is a darkly poetic work that will challenge reader's imagations. It's a wonderful homage to classic horror while, at the same time, deepening the wounds and clawing it's own way forward. Not for light reading... but highly recommended.
Joanna Koch has a mastery of words that can be, at times, overwhelming. In this novella you can sometimes catch a breath during the periods when you are visiting the research facility, but then, those begin to slide as well.
This is a darkly poetic work that will challenge reader's imagations. It's a wonderful homage to classic horror while, at the same time, deepening the wounds and clawing it's own way forward. Not for light reading... but highly recommended.
metalcat18's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Warning this book is confusing!
The story is told in two viewpoints and plays off an old story called the Yellow Sign. Readers should be familiar with that story before reading this one.
These two characters intertwine and become entrenched in a cosmic horror saga. Lots of nasty body horror imagery and some feminist topics.
Overall the book is interesting but told so strangely that it took me out of it.
The story is told in two viewpoints and plays off an old story called the Yellow Sign. Readers should be familiar with that story before reading this one.
These two characters intertwine and become entrenched in a cosmic horror saga. Lots of nasty body horror imagery and some feminist topics.
Overall the book is interesting but told so strangely that it took me out of it.
porgyreads's review
challenging
dark
tense
4.5
I was following and then I was very lost. The labyrinth of the plot was not nearly as appealing as that of the language used. Kind of leaves you feeling like you’ve been shocked with ridiculous amount of electricity and then lived to tell the tale.
So cool. So so cool.
So cool. So so cool.
raincorbyn's review
5.0
Truly a singular story, told with beautiful, grotesque baroque images and hazy dreamscapes. Cosmic horror brought to the mobile home, with science fiction, family reunions of a sort, and unforgettable sensuous description. Don't miss it.