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ellulin's review
3.0
Beyond the Bounds of Infinity is a short-story anthology about mostly cosmic horror and things beyond what you can imagine.
As with many collection this was very hit or miss for me, even though none of them were outright bad, I just found myself being unmoved by a lot of them.
I think that choosing The Birth of Sound to open up the collection was a smart choice because it was definitely the wildest story in my opinion. It is really hard to grasp what is happening but it gets you in the mood.
Fractures of Her Reflection was excellent in my opinion as it blurs the lines between what could be real and what truly is. It is a story about a woman with OCD who is convinced that if she does not tap her bedroom door every morning it will cause the end of the world.
I also enjoyed :
- Effigies of Monstruous Things : a single father of two decides to fix things in his building but finds something he shouldn't have.
- Cracks : A group of young children find a pretty glowing rock and bad things start to happen to the people around them.
- The Things We Do In the Dark : unwanted girl is sent down a pit to take care of a slumbering evil.
- A Dampered Embrace : the son's mother dies, her grave is robbed, and his father calls him to tell him he found a mermaid.
- 24 Points : hunting trip gone wrong.
- Passage : expedition stuck in the ice and blood sacrifices
- Gyges : a surprisingly fun exorcism
I would like to mention that some short stories such as The Silent Letter or Burning Slumber had very interesting premises but did not work for me. But I think they still deserve to be mentionned here.
It was not the best short story collection I was given to read, I already knew many of the tropes, but I think it could be a good introduction to the genre of cosmic horror. There is body horror but truly not that much so definitely beginner friendly.
Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC of the book.
As with many collection this was very hit or miss for me, even though none of them were outright bad, I just found myself being unmoved by a lot of them.
I think that choosing The Birth of Sound to open up the collection was a smart choice because it was definitely the wildest story in my opinion. It is really hard to grasp what is happening but it gets you in the mood.
Fractures of Her Reflection was excellent in my opinion as it blurs the lines between what could be real and what truly is. It is a story about a woman with OCD who is convinced that if she does not tap her bedroom door every morning it will cause the end of the world.
I also enjoyed :
- Effigies of Monstruous Things : a single father of two decides to fix things in his building but finds something he shouldn't have.
- Cracks : A group of young children find a pretty glowing rock and bad things start to happen to the people around them.
- The Things We Do In the Dark : unwanted girl is sent down a pit to take care of a slumbering evil.
- A Dampered Embrace : the son's mother dies, her grave is robbed, and his father calls him to tell him he found a mermaid.
- 24 Points : hunting trip gone wrong.
- Passage : expedition stuck in the ice and blood sacrifices
- Gyges : a surprisingly fun exorcism
I would like to mention that some short stories such as The Silent Letter or Burning Slumber had very interesting premises but did not work for me. But I think they still deserve to be mentionned here.
It was not the best short story collection I was given to read, I already knew many of the tropes, but I think it could be a good introduction to the genre of cosmic horror. There is body horror but truly not that much so definitely beginner friendly.
Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC of the book.
ashleybreader's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
atlastheninth's review
3.75
Thank you to NetGalley and RDS Publishing for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed here are my own.
Like with any anthology there were some stories I liked more than others. While all of the stories were part of the horror genre, quite some of them weren't as heavy on those elements as I'd hoped though.
My personal favourites were
- The Things We Did In The Dark
- In The House There Were Teeth and There Were Eyes
- Passage
Also this quote from Passage!
"We're all devoured by something, darling. Shouldn't it at least be something that loves you back?"
shrikebait's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Beyond the Bounds of Infinity subverts cosmic horror's historic bigotry and uplifts diverse voices.
I really enjoyed the variety in this anthology. There's existential horror, body horror, eco horror, and more.
In my opinion, the most disturbing tales combine very real horrors marginalized people face with otherworldly elements.
As with most anthologies, some stories resonated with me more than others. Live Free or Die by Danny Brzozowski hit me especially hard as an openly queer trans man.
Thank you to RDS Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to read this book for free. I'm leaving this review of my own accord.
I really enjoyed the variety in this anthology. There's existential horror, body horror, eco horror, and more.
In my opinion, the most disturbing tales combine very real horrors marginalized people face with otherworldly elements.
As with most anthologies, some stories resonated with me more than others. Live Free or Die by Danny Brzozowski hit me especially hard as an openly queer trans man.
Thank you to RDS Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to read this book for free. I'm leaving this review of my own accord.
josefinedal's review
3.75
Thank you so much for the chance to read this!
This is my first time reviewing a short story collection, so i was kinda lost on how to do it. I've decided to give my overall thoughts!
This collection was very entertaining, packed with errieness and mystery. Unfortunatly many of the stories fell a bit short, they were still entertaining enough, but not incredible. Every now and again something interesting would come though!
My favorite was by far The Things We Did in the Dark by Julia Darcy. SO interesting and well written, really loved it.
This is my first time reviewing a short story collection, so i was kinda lost on how to do it. I've decided to give my overall thoughts!
This collection was very entertaining, packed with errieness and mystery. Unfortunatly many of the stories fell a bit short, they were still entertaining enough, but not incredible. Every now and again something interesting would come though!
My favorite was by far The Things We Did in the Dark by Julia Darcy. SO interesting and well written, really loved it.
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