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esop 's review for:
We Can Never Leave This Place
by Eric LaRocca
A gut-wrenching tapestry of surreal horror.
Eric LaRocca masterfully weaves together this tale of Mara, a young girl whose father dies, leaving her and mother to fend for themselves in a harsh, war-torn world where danger lurks behind every corner, both inside and outside. LaRocca's strengths lie in creating a permeating feeling of dread. The reader is dropped into Mara's point-of-view where things may not be as they seem, but whether that is due to her unreliable narration or due to the uncertainty of the world itself, you can never be sure.
The sense of atmosphere in this novella is overwhelming. Mara's home is constantly flooded with sewage and the place seems like it's falling apart. With every page, every paragraph, every little word, LaRocca conjures vivid images of this house to the point where you can practically smell the ankle-deep sewage Mara has to wade through.
It's a deeply claustrophobic story where we're stuck in this rotten house, unable to venture outside where it may or may not be even worse, which goes hand in hand with the themes of generational trauma and abuse. Tying the story's themes directly into the setting in such an intense and effective way helped drive home that feeling of dread, of feeling unable to escape and break these cycles.
This is not a story for the easily squeamish, filled with the aforementioned sewage, insects, and a smattering of gore. But I found the character of Mara to be highly compelling, and LaRocca's grotesque yet beautifully imagery captivated me from the first page to the last.
Eric LaRocca masterfully weaves together this tale of Mara, a young girl whose father dies, leaving her and mother to fend for themselves in a harsh, war-torn world where danger lurks behind every corner, both inside and outside. LaRocca's strengths lie in creating a permeating feeling of dread. The reader is dropped into Mara's point-of-view where things may not be as they seem, but whether that is due to her unreliable narration or due to the uncertainty of the world itself, you can never be sure.
The sense of atmosphere in this novella is overwhelming. Mara's home is constantly flooded with sewage and the place seems like it's falling apart. With every page, every paragraph, every little word, LaRocca conjures vivid images of this house to the point where you can practically smell the ankle-deep sewage Mara has to wade through.
It's a deeply claustrophobic story where we're stuck in this rotten house, unable to venture outside where it may or may not be even worse, which goes hand in hand with the themes of generational trauma and abuse. Tying the story's themes directly into the setting in such an intense and effective way helped drive home that feeling of dread, of feeling unable to escape and break these cycles.
This is not a story for the easily squeamish, filled with the aforementioned sewage, insects, and a smattering of gore. But I found the character of Mara to be highly compelling, and LaRocca's grotesque yet beautifully imagery captivated me from the first page to the last.