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hectaizani's review
3.0
Collection of creepy short stories about the horrible things that lay just underneath the surface. I'm not all that big on short stories.
readmetwotimes's review
3.0
La scrittrice di questi racconti brevi deve essere una persona "interessante". Ha una fantasia tra le più spaventosamente macabre io abbia mai letto.
I racconti sono abbastanza non-sense, irrisolti, non per deboli di stomaco. Spaziano tra vari argomenti ma hanno lo stesso comun denominatore: il terrore. Quello di cui non si riesce a parlare, quello che non si può spiegare, quello di cui si può solo morire (a volte sarebbe davvero meglio).
Mi è piaciuto leggerli, ma non credo lo farò due volte.
I racconti sono abbastanza non-sense, irrisolti, non per deboli di stomaco. Spaziano tra vari argomenti ma hanno lo stesso comun denominatore: il terrore. Quello di cui non si riesce a parlare, quello che non si può spiegare, quello di cui si può solo morire (a volte sarebbe davvero meglio).
Mi è piaciuto leggerli, ma non credo lo farò due volte.
em_harring's review against another edition
3.0
[2.5 stars]
I liked this collection, to an extent. DeMeester certainly knows how to write, and some sentences/passages were quite beautiful and creepy and disgusting. When she chooses to use body horror, it's (for the most part) effective, and paints a vivid, visceral image of what's happening. My main issue with the collection is that most of the stories are annoyingly ambiguous. They feel ambiguous for the sake of ambiguity, and not for the actual plot of the story. The plots for most of the stories are glaringly thin, and because of the ambiguity, almost all of the characters bleed into each other. The strongest story is also her longest: "Split Tongues"; the story does have some ambiguous moments, but uses those well combined with other plot elements, rather than relying solely on ambiguity to drive the narrative.
Overall, I'm interested to read DeMeester's novels, because I'd like to see what she does with a long form narrative.
I liked this collection, to an extent. DeMeester certainly knows how to write, and some sentences/passages were quite beautiful and creepy and disgusting. When she chooses to use body horror, it's (for the most part) effective, and paints a vivid, visceral image of what's happening. My main issue with the collection is that most of the stories are annoyingly ambiguous. They feel ambiguous for the sake of ambiguity, and not for the actual plot of the story. The plots for most of the stories are glaringly thin, and because of the ambiguity, almost all of the characters bleed into each other. The strongest story is also her longest: "Split Tongues"; the story does have some ambiguous moments, but uses those well combined with other plot elements, rather than relying solely on ambiguity to drive the narrative.
Overall, I'm interested to read DeMeester's novels, because I'd like to see what she does with a long form narrative.
michael_benavidez's review against another edition
5.0
So I think it's important to state that I was given this book as a gift, and as such, I knew absolutely nothing about the book. There was no blurb to describe it on the back, and not wanting to screw with my expectations, I didn't bother to read any reviews or figure out what it's about. I only knew it was short stories because of the quote at the top of the book. That was all.
And to say that these are short stories is an understatement, many are over and done with within 5 pages (though as you go on into the book, some do get longer). And yet, for being so short, these stories stay with you. They are raw, tortured things, with a way to inject visuals that only a painter could probably create. The stories have a way of connecting with the reader through its characters, who aren't two dimensional bodies readied to be given hell.
There's really too many stories to go through to discuss each, but they are all unique. The stories tackle so many different topics, that for as short as they were, it did take me some time to finish, needing to sit back and think about what I just read before moving on to the next one.
I don't even know how to label this book. It wouldn't be fair to label it as horror, though most of the imagery is within that realm, and fantasy wouldn't cover the broad range of what's captured.
The stories are of hurt, hurting, missing, needing, hopeless, and maybe I'm a bit off on this one but somewhat hopeful. Not all, mind you. But at the end of some stories you're left thinking that despite how gruesome and visceral this is, that there may be hope for them, and in turn for us. Maybe that's just me. Who knows.
It is important to note that since the topics range so wide, I would tread cautiously, as some may be triggering.
But if you can, give it a read.It's a very beautiful, emotional book that mashes what we feel with the world of today, and the environment, everything is very earth and spiritual bound and it makes for some wonderful highlighted phrasing.
And to say that these are short stories is an understatement, many are over and done with within 5 pages (though as you go on into the book, some do get longer). And yet, for being so short, these stories stay with you. They are raw, tortured things, with a way to inject visuals that only a painter could probably create. The stories have a way of connecting with the reader through its characters, who aren't two dimensional bodies readied to be given hell.
There's really too many stories to go through to discuss each, but they are all unique. The stories tackle so many different topics, that for as short as they were, it did take me some time to finish, needing to sit back and think about what I just read before moving on to the next one.
I don't even know how to label this book. It wouldn't be fair to label it as horror, though most of the imagery is within that realm, and fantasy wouldn't cover the broad range of what's captured.
The stories are of hurt, hurting, missing, needing, hopeless, and maybe I'm a bit off on this one but somewhat hopeful. Not all, mind you. But at the end of some stories you're left thinking that despite how gruesome and visceral this is, that there may be hope for them, and in turn for us. Maybe that's just me. Who knows.
It is important to note that since the topics range so wide, I would tread cautiously, as some may be triggering.
But if you can, give it a read.It's a very beautiful, emotional book that mashes what we feel with the world of today, and the environment, everything is very earth and spiritual bound and it makes for some wonderful highlighted phrasing.
100pagesaday's review against another edition
3.0
Everything That's Underneath is a short story collection that explores the ignored, dark spaces, and things we try to not see or remember. With this unifying theme, the stories ranged from horror, to grotesque to strangely unsettling. With all short story collections, there were some stories that I loved and some I could live without. With this collection, there were also some stories that were very similar, like the same darkness was affecting different people .
Some of my favorite stories included The Dream Eater and Split Tongues. These stories were a little longer and really allowed me to get into them and wonder about the darkness and what it's intentions really are. In these stories I was also able to relate to the characters better and feel their interactions with the forces at play. Overall, an intriguing group of stories that explores themes of family, grief, sexuality and the draw of the unknown.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
Some of my favorite stories included The Dream Eater and Split Tongues. These stories were a little longer and really allowed me to get into them and wonder about the darkness and what it's intentions really are. In these stories I was also able to relate to the characters better and feel their interactions with the forces at play. Overall, an intriguing group of stories that explores themes of family, grief, sexuality and the draw of the unknown.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
100pagesaday's review against another edition
3.0
Everything That's Underneath is a short story collection that explores the ignored, dark spaces, and things we try to not see or remember. With this unifying theme, the stories ranged from horror, to grotesque to strangely unsettling. With all short story collections, there were some stories that I loved and some I could live without. With this collection, there were also some stories that were very similar, like the same darkness was affecting different people .
Some of my favorite stories included The Dream Eater and Split Tongues. These stories were a little longer and really allowed me to get into them and wonder about the darkness and what it's intentions really are. In these stories I was also able to relate to the characters better and feel their interactions with the forces at play. Overall, an intriguing group of stories that explores themes of family, grief, sexuality and the draw of the unknown.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
Some of my favorite stories included The Dream Eater and Split Tongues. These stories were a little longer and really allowed me to get into them and wonder about the darkness and what it's intentions really are. In these stories I was also able to relate to the characters better and feel their interactions with the forces at play. Overall, an intriguing group of stories that explores themes of family, grief, sexuality and the draw of the unknown.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
mrvette's review against another edition
3.0
A nice and quick read, with plenty of creepy moments. There are some interesting setups and DeMeester writes with clear skill. However, often the stories are too short to give much depth to most of the characters, and except for a few cases much of the time it seemed like there wasn't much of a message beyond the horror elements and basic concepts. I'd recommend reading these spread apart, when you're in need of a quick spook, but read through and the scares and movement of the individual plots gets very "same-y".
dolcezzina21's review against another edition
3.0
Very well written, dark, and eerie. The writing had a poetic feel to it. The overarching theme connecting the stories was dark and unique, but in this case, the stories came off as too similar and repetitive. Often times, I did not really understand what was happening and one story bled into another, losing impact. The last two stories were excellent: Split Tongues and To Sleep In The Dust Of The Earth.
kpombiere's review
1.0
"When he presses himself into the cleft between my legs, I open my mouth and the tongues spill out of me."
I know I'm over-critical of short stories, but this collection of mother-daughter-themed, body-horror-ish, Lovecraft-inspired tales was really not my thing. I kept hoping that one would be redemptive, but I just never really enjoyed them.
I know I'm over-critical of short stories, but this collection of mother-daughter-themed, body-horror-ish, Lovecraft-inspired tales was really not my thing. I kept hoping that one would be redemptive, but I just never really enjoyed them.
liz_in_vividcolor's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0