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caitlindoesntread's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
(Short story collection (10 stories): Horror, social commentary) Read this in four days. It possibly damaged me forever?? Some of the body horror descriptions are so grotesque that I literally felt sick. However, lots of the stories were written beautifully and at each twist I found myself pausing to think about the metaphorical implications or what real-life issue it could have been representing against the backdrop of a strange, scary, magical and suspenseful reality. Some of the stories I really enjoyed are "The Head, "The embodiment", The Frozen Finger" and "Snare". These were short, to the point and gripped me throughout the story. Some stories that I really did not enjoy were "Goodbye, my love", "Home sweet home" and "Ruler of the winds and sands. For the last two that I mentioned, I literally had no clue what was going on, especially in "Ruler of the winds and sands" and they were long, boring and repetitive. I neither liked nor disliked "Cursed bunny", "Scars" and "The reunion". Although "Scars" was WAY too long.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Incest, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Self harm, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Torture, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Sexual content, Addiction, Alcohol, Car accident, Drug use, Infidelity, and War
mommarex1221's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Death, Excrement, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Blood, Body horror, Classism, Confinement, Gore, Grief, Suicide, Vomit, Miscarriage, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
micasa's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
buku ini berisi 10 cerpen dengan topik yg berbeda-beda dan beberapa di antaranya mengkritik isu sosial. mungkin Bora Chung tidak bermaksud utk memberi kritik pada hal spesifik yg terjadi di masyarakat, namun menurutku tulisannya berhasil menjadi ‘warning’ untuk pembaca.
sebagai pembaca juga, aku akan menuliskan review disini :
1. ‘Kelinci Terkutuk’ adalah pembalasan dendam akan suatu hal di masa lalu yg sulit utk dilawan. jadi, dipilihnya cerpen ini sbg judul buku memang cocok utk menarik perhatian pembaca. aku suka dg konsep cerita bahwa pembalasan dendam jg akan menyakiti diri sendiri.
2. buatku, ‘Si Kepala’ menjadi cerpen dg tema kritik sosial kpd orang² dg kuasa lebih atas seseorang. selama membaca, aku agak ngeri membayangkan sosok kepala & meski aku sempat memprediksi ending cerita, kisah ini ‘ngeri’ dg pertanyaan sosok tsb.
3. ‘Menstruasi’ tidak semengerikan yg aku kira krn fenomena ini pernah tjd kepadaku sbg perempuan, tapi tentu saja tanpa drama & akhir cerita yg mengejutkan semua orang. aku rasa, isu menstruasi wanita tdk menjadi hal yg tabu agar tdk terjadi miskonsepsi spt yg disampaikan cerpen ini.
4. ‘Jari-Jari yang Dingin’ membawaku ke tempat yg cukup horror sekalipun aku baca cerpen ini di siang hari. all about the feels, i must said. this is straight up giving you chills.
5. ‘Perangkap’ membuatku marah-marah seharian dan mengutuk perilaku tokoh fiksi yg minim akhlak, wah pokoknya silahkan baca sendiri & petik moral value-nya.
6. ‘Selamat Tinggal Cintaku’ adalah kisah fiksi ttg robot & manusia yg aku yakin beberapa dari kalian tahu ini akan berakhir dimana tapi krn ini horror, iya ini cerita cinta yg seram.
7. ‘Bekas Luka’ adl satu-satunya cerita yg membuatku merasakan mixed feeling. sejujurnya, saat membaca aku agak bosan krn cerpen ini lbh panjang dr yg lain & kisah ini juga mengingatkanku dg novela 'The Ones Who Walked Away from Omelas' dr Ursula K. Le Guin, sangat mengerikan juga menyedihkan.
8. ‘Rumahku Istanaku’ bikin emosi dan aku bersimpati dg tokoh wanita disini, selamat berjuang utk kehidupan yg lbh baik. semoga kamu kuat sampai akhir.
9. ‘Penguasa Angin dan Pasir’ terkesan seperti dongeng tapi dg tokoh² & plot yg lebih realistis. tokoh wanita disini, juga hebat.
10. ‘Reuni’ adalah cerpen yg menjadi favoritku dan tiap² perenungannya terasa dekat dg rumah, karena senyatanya yg mengerikan adalah hidup & kita masih harus bertahan sampai akhir.
sebagai pembaca juga, aku akan menuliskan review disini :
1. ‘Kelinci Terkutuk’ adalah pembalasan dendam akan suatu hal di masa lalu yg sulit utk dilawan. jadi, dipilihnya cerpen ini sbg judul buku memang cocok utk menarik perhatian pembaca. aku suka dg konsep cerita bahwa pembalasan dendam jg akan menyakiti diri sendiri.
2. buatku, ‘Si Kepala’ menjadi cerpen dg tema kritik sosial kpd orang² dg kuasa lebih atas seseorang. selama membaca, aku agak ngeri membayangkan sosok kepala & meski aku sempat memprediksi ending cerita, kisah ini ‘ngeri’ dg pertanyaan sosok tsb.
3. ‘Menstruasi’ tidak semengerikan yg aku kira krn fenomena ini pernah tjd kepadaku sbg perempuan, tapi tentu saja tanpa drama & akhir cerita yg mengejutkan semua orang. aku rasa, isu menstruasi wanita tdk menjadi hal yg tabu agar tdk terjadi miskonsepsi spt yg disampaikan cerpen ini.
4. ‘Jari-Jari yang Dingin’ membawaku ke tempat yg cukup horror sekalipun aku baca cerpen ini di siang hari. all about the feels, i must said. this is straight up giving you chills.
5. ‘Perangkap’ membuatku marah-marah seharian dan mengutuk perilaku tokoh fiksi yg minim akhlak, wah pokoknya silahkan baca sendiri & petik moral value-nya.
6. ‘Selamat Tinggal Cintaku’ adalah kisah fiksi ttg robot & manusia yg aku yakin beberapa dari kalian tahu ini akan berakhir dimana tapi krn ini horror, iya ini cerita cinta yg seram.
7. ‘Bekas Luka’ adl satu-satunya cerita yg membuatku merasakan mixed feeling. sejujurnya, saat membaca aku agak bosan krn cerpen ini lbh panjang dr yg lain & kisah ini juga mengingatkanku dg novela 'The Ones Who Walked Away from Omelas' dr Ursula K. Le Guin, sangat mengerikan juga menyedihkan.
8. ‘Rumahku Istanaku’ bikin emosi dan aku bersimpati dg tokoh wanita disini, selamat berjuang utk kehidupan yg lbh baik. semoga kamu kuat sampai akhir.
9. ‘Penguasa Angin dan Pasir’ terkesan seperti dongeng tapi dg tokoh² & plot yg lebih realistis. tokoh wanita disini, juga hebat.
10. ‘Reuni’ adalah cerpen yg menjadi favoritku dan tiap² perenungannya terasa dekat dg rumah, karena senyatanya yg mengerikan adalah hidup & kita masih harus bertahan sampai akhir.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Cannibalism, Sexual violence, Vomit, Rape, Sexual harassment, Trafficking, and Miscarriage
Minor: War
honeyvoiced's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and Torture
Moderate: Vomit, Ableism, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Confinement, Mental illness, Incest, and Suicide
slimepuppy's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
A mixed bag of great, okay and mediocre short stories. Sometimes the stories hit the mark and sometimes they don't, but the author at least tries to bring something new with each story... most of the time, that is. Goodbye, My Love was boring, had an overplayed plot and a narrator devoid of any life or charm.
Reunion was incredible, and definitely the best way to end this collection, despite being the most normal of the stories.
Best stories: The Embodiment, Cursed Bunny, The Frozen Finger (the only one genuinely creepy), Home Sweet Home and Reunion (so so sad!!)
Worst stories: Goodbye, My Love (it's been so overdone 😴) and The Head (the ending ruined it for me)
The rest is either okay or just not worth mentioning.
Reunion was incredible, and definitely the best way to end this collection, despite being the most normal of the stories.
Best stories: The Embodiment, Cursed Bunny, The Frozen Finger (the only one genuinely creepy), Home Sweet Home and Reunion (so so sad!!)
Worst stories: Goodbye, My Love (it's been so overdone 😴) and The Head (the ending ruined it for me)
The rest is either okay or just not worth mentioning.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Car accident, Cannibalism, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Incest, Murder, Violence, Pregnancy, Suicide, Torture, and Vomit
paperbackacademie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, Murder, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Body horror, and Incest
geraldinerowe's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
An eclectic mix of short stories here. Some are like folk tales, others are like a weird dream the author has written down. You'll find something different and something to enjoy here, although for me none of the individual stories stood out.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Excrement, Physical abuse, Suicide, Vomit, and Violence
ghast's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Body horror
Moderate: Sexual content, Death, Suicide, Child abuse, Grief, and Vomit
Minor: War and Incest
hedsek's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
It's difficult to rate this book, as some of the stories were hard for me to understand without understanding their cultural context. Sometimes I felt like I wasn't able to get at any deeper meaning to some of the more gory stories, which left me with the feeling that things were just done for shock value (which is probably wrong). The concepts and ideas in this bundle are really intriguing and some of the stories do get stuck in your head quite a bit because they are so unique and make you uncomfortable for quite some time after reading them.
The first two stories are very gory, and I don't think they give a very good impression of the rest of the bundle so don't stop reading if you dislike those two. The other stories can be gory as well, but I feel like they have more to offer aside from that. 'Snare' (definitely horrifying in its own way) was my favourite, and the last three stories are a good read as well.
I'm personally not really a fan of the writing style as it can get a bit repetitive, but it's also not offensive and it reads pretty easily.
The first two stories are very gory, and I don't think they give a very good impression of the rest of the bundle so don't stop reading if you dislike those two. The other stories can be gory as well, but I feel like they have more to offer aside from that. 'Snare' (definitely horrifying in its own way) was my favourite, and the last three stories are a good read as well.
I'm personally not really a fan of the writing style as it can get a bit repetitive, but it's also not offensive and it reads pretty easily.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Death, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Pregnancy, Excrement, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Blood, Incest, Medical content, Murder, Rape, Sexual violence, and Suicide
Minor: Ableism and War
charleyroxy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Can a book be diabolically good? I am not sure but I will submit that it can be. Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung and translated from Korean by Anton Hur is an upcoming release from Honford Star (15 July) and is just that kind of good. This collection of ten stories ranges from fairytales to absolute horror and the gamut inbetween. I am in awe of Chung's talent as a short story author and look forward to reading more of her writing one day. With it's subtle and not so subtle critiques of patriarchy, capitalism, and humanity itself it really has so much to offer and the translation is flawless. While I enjoyed the titular Cursed Bunny, Reunion and Goodbye, My Love a lot, my favourite was The Frozen Finger. The story immediately thrusts you into the aftermath of a car crash and from start to finish it was everything I want from a short story. I felt the intensity, the panic, the confusion, everything! I would absolutely suggest pre-ordering this one and, if in the UK, directly from Honford Star. Don't miss this one.
As an important note, I will include a list of content warnings below because it is long. If you are squeamish about bodily fluids you won't make it past the first story. There is gore, abuse, animal cruelty, suicide, and more so be prepared. I loved finding this quote of Chung's from an interview about her writing to give you an idea:
"I don’t feel scared at all when writing horrific or gory scenes. I think it’s because my intention is more to imagine what an ordinary person wouldn’t do or wouldn’t react to, of that twist in the character’s behavior. Aside from making up a fun plot, you’ve got to make the unusual reactions of your characters believable if you want to convince your reader. I think the power of writing is in this ability to make the reader believe. I wanted to see how far I could push that in my writing. That’s all I was trying to do, and it’s amusing to me when people say my characters scare them."
As an important note, I will include a list of content warnings below because it is long. If you are squeamish about bodily fluids you won't make it past the first story. There is gore, abuse, animal cruelty, suicide, and more so be prepared. I loved finding this quote of Chung's from an interview about her writing to give you an idea:
"I don’t feel scared at all when writing horrific or gory scenes. I think it’s because my intention is more to imagine what an ordinary person wouldn’t do or wouldn’t react to, of that twist in the character’s behavior. Aside from making up a fun plot, you’ve got to make the unusual reactions of your characters believable if you want to convince your reader. I think the power of writing is in this ability to make the reader believe. I wanted to see how far I could push that in my writing. That’s all I was trying to do, and it’s amusing to me when people say my characters scare them."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Excrement, Gore, Pregnancy, Torture, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Car accident, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Murder, and Suicide
Minor: Incest, Rape, Self harm, and Sexual content
While there is not a miscarriage exactly, in The Embodiment there is a scene that would be quite triggering to those who have had the experience.
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