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abbeyholland's review against another edition
Got through 2 short stories before quitting 😬
Trigger warning for the first 2: necrophilia and child sexual assault / murder - sooooooooo yeah a definite no
Trigger warning for the first 2: necrophilia and child sexual assault / murder - sooooooooo yeah a definite no
rereader33's review against another edition
3.0
I have pretty conflicted feelings about this collection. On the one hand, I did really like a handful of the stories, and even those I didn't like I admit were written well or was disturbing. On the other hand, there were 12 stories in this collection and I only really like 6 of them and 6 stories out of 12 isn't good and certainly can't carry the collection. Overall, this was a good short story collection and one worth giving a chance, even if you only end up reading a handful of the stories inside.
Before I start the tedious task of reacting/briefly reviewing each story, let me tell you what the author nails in every story: perfectly encapsulating what makes each story disturbing/dark/frustrating. Whatever emotion(s) are meant to be felt while reading, Roupenian nails it every time. That being said, just nailing the emotions meant to be portrayed in each story doesn't make the story great, so enough bullshit, here are my thoughts on each story. *long sigh* Let's get this done.
"Bad Boy"-disturbingly plausible. Seriously, I could definitely imagine this exact scenario playing out and it made me super uncomfortable. I would have like more paragraph breaks and less run on sentences, but still a good story. Starts off the collection right, too.
"Look at Your Game, Girl"-Holy fucking SHIT, this disturbed me so much I felt my skin crawl. I could imagine myself being the main character and feeling everything she felt. Again, disturbingly real and exceptionally unnerving.
"Sardines"-That did NOT go where I thought it was going, but I actually really liked it. The ending was really cool and I liked the idea of wanting to punish those who've wronged you, only to be uncertain about your decision once you see the consequences. Very well done.
"The Night Runner"-All this story did was make me hate teenagers, specifically school kids. That's it. Honestly, not a good story and the ending was kind of predictable.
"The Mirror, the Bucket, and the Old Thigh Bone"-A very well-written fairy tale-esque story, but it kind off lost it's charm towards the end. Not bad, but not great either. I did like the ending, though.
"Cat Person"-Ummm yeah, I got what this story was going for, but it dragged SO DAMN BADLY. I honestly couldn't give a shit towards the end and while I did like the ending, it wasn't enough to salvage the rest of the story.
"The Good Guy"-HOLY FLYING FUCKER FUCK, why does a "nice guy" story have to be 50 FUCKING PAGES LONG?! I shit you not, by about halfway through the story I straight up FORGOT how this story started because it dragged EVEN WORSE than "Cat Person". Easily the worst story in the collection, simply read any "nice guy" story on the internet and you'll grasp what this story's about.
"The Boy in the Pool"-I liked where the story ultimately went and I liked the ending, but I didn't enjoy reading it. It was just okay.
"Scarred"-Despite how short this story is, I really liked it and LOVED the ending. I liked how it was written, formatted, and told. A surprisingly good story despite it's length.
"The Matchbox Sign"-Wasn't really invested in this story. I liked what it was ultimately about, but I wasn't interested in either character nor their relationship. It was fine, but that's about it.
"Death Wish"-Aaaaaaand we've boomeranged back to REALLY FUCKING DISTURBING and UNCOMFORTABLY REAL. While the writing style was kind of a pain to read, it definitely elevated the story and made it feel more personal, almost like something you'd read on a social media site or someone retelling this fucked-up thing they went through. Really fucking good, definitely one of the best from this collection.
"Biter"-This was a strong ending to the collection as well as a strong story on its own. An interesting yet disturbing look at obsession and how one act can be seen wildly differently depending on the genders of those involved. A pleasantly surprised ending to this collection.
So, there you have it. Would I recommend this collection to someone? Honestly, yes. Despite only liking half of the stories in the collection, I firmly believe this is a solid short story collection. I think the writing makes it easily accessible and the messages contained in each story are easy to parse out and when the story is done well, the message can burn a whole in your brain. While this isn't one that I would recommend first, I still think it's worth your time, if you're interested. Also, it's pretty short so it shouldn't take too long to finish. Anyway, those are my thoughts. The rest is up to you.
Before I start the tedious task of reacting/briefly reviewing each story, let me tell you what the author nails in every story: perfectly encapsulating what makes each story disturbing/dark/frustrating. Whatever emotion(s) are meant to be felt while reading, Roupenian nails it every time. That being said, just nailing the emotions meant to be portrayed in each story doesn't make the story great, so enough bullshit, here are my thoughts on each story. *long sigh* Let's get this done.
"Bad Boy"-disturbingly plausible. Seriously, I could definitely imagine this exact scenario playing out and it made me super uncomfortable. I would have like more paragraph breaks and less run on sentences, but still a good story. Starts off the collection right, too.
"Look at Your Game, Girl"-Holy fucking SHIT, this disturbed me so much I felt my skin crawl. I could imagine myself being the main character and feeling everything she felt. Again, disturbingly real and exceptionally unnerving.
"Sardines"-That did NOT go where I thought it was going, but I actually really liked it. The ending was really cool and I liked the idea of wanting to punish those who've wronged you, only to be uncertain about your decision once you see the consequences. Very well done.
"The Night Runner"-All this story did was make me hate teenagers, specifically school kids. That's it. Honestly, not a good story and the ending was kind of predictable.
"The Mirror, the Bucket, and the Old Thigh Bone"-A very well-written fairy tale-esque story, but it kind off lost it's charm towards the end. Not bad, but not great either. I did like the ending, though.
"Cat Person"-Ummm yeah, I got what this story was going for, but it dragged SO DAMN BADLY. I honestly couldn't give a shit towards the end and while I did like the ending, it wasn't enough to salvage the rest of the story.
"The Good Guy"-HOLY FLYING FUCKER FUCK, why does a "nice guy" story have to be 50 FUCKING PAGES LONG?! I shit you not, by about halfway through the story I straight up FORGOT how this story started because it dragged EVEN WORSE than "Cat Person". Easily the worst story in the collection, simply read any "nice guy" story on the internet and you'll grasp what this story's about.
"The Boy in the Pool"-I liked where the story ultimately went and I liked the ending, but I didn't enjoy reading it. It was just okay.
"Scarred"-Despite how short this story is, I really liked it and LOVED the ending. I liked how it was written, formatted, and told. A surprisingly good story despite it's length.
"The Matchbox Sign"-Wasn't really invested in this story. I liked what it was ultimately about, but I wasn't interested in either character nor their relationship. It was fine, but that's about it.
"Death Wish"-Aaaaaaand we've boomeranged back to REALLY FUCKING DISTURBING and UNCOMFORTABLY REAL. While the writing style was kind of a pain to read, it definitely elevated the story and made it feel more personal, almost like something you'd read on a social media site or someone retelling this fucked-up thing they went through. Really fucking good, definitely one of the best from this collection.
"Biter"-This was a strong ending to the collection as well as a strong story on its own. An interesting yet disturbing look at obsession and how one act can be seen wildly differently depending on the genders of those involved. A pleasantly surprised ending to this collection.
So, there you have it. Would I recommend this collection to someone? Honestly, yes. Despite only liking half of the stories in the collection, I firmly believe this is a solid short story collection. I think the writing makes it easily accessible and the messages contained in each story are easy to parse out and when the story is done well, the message can burn a whole in your brain. While this isn't one that I would recommend first, I still think it's worth your time, if you're interested. Also, it's pretty short so it shouldn't take too long to finish. Anyway, those are my thoughts. The rest is up to you.
aliciasokol's review against another edition
4.0
What a crazy little collection of short stories. Twisted, randy, dark and in many cases, sad. But some pretty funny moments too. I don’t read many short stories but this collection is worth checking out.
abbiemeldrum's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
humblebee20's review against another edition
4.0
This collection can be best described as a car accident: horrifying and leaves an undeniable impact, and yet you can't look away. I felt that aside from a couple of weaker stories, I loved this book. The stories are raw and even when they get weird, are powerful. Each is a punch in the gut (joke fully intended) that I didn't know I was exposing myself for. The way youth, sexuality and the perception of gendered expectations and roles worm their way into these stories give them all this grimy realness that sits on your tongue until it makes its way up into your brain. I'm often let down by short story collections, but despite myself, I picked up this one and had fun with it. I definitely can't stomach reading it again, but I guess the author did a great job then! Body horror, psychological horror, and even the horror of being perceived. Wonderful book that you should give a shot.
anyajulchen's review against another edition
3.0
Los relatos son sólidos y variados, solo que el del medio es demasiado largo y lo encontré algo repetitivo. Sin embargo, no hay pérdida en esta antología y la releeré sin dudas.