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A review by owlyreadsalot
The Chrysalis by Brendan Deneen
2.0
This was just too much and not in a good way. I came into this story thinking it was going to be more of a spooky read I was looking forward to, but turned into something I don't really know how to explain. The thing in the basement is definitely not what anyone was thinking it was going to be, leaving the reader (at least myself) wondering why I put myself through this.
As I kept reading, there were moments that felt like this was going somewhere great, the scariness of the thing in the basement was upped, but somehow it suddenly went downhill. What a person does after being exposed to the darkness, an infinite awareness as it's put, seemed to be very extreme. And I say that, because once you find out what lies in that chrysalis, it doesn't seem to make any sense how the person affected ends up with their soul corroded as much as it is.
It would make more sense, if the thing in wait, were somehow explained to be more of an unnatural creature? Maybe not left all to the imagination. But, why that choice? Why make it what it turns out to be, when there is so much more that could have been done with the being that was built up for us? I'm not sure and doubt I will ever really know.
Along with that, the blame that was placed, the way things moved along, how it left my mind reeling from bizarre (makes no sense, what just happened?) moments. It all just kept the "did he really just go there?" thoughts going for chapters on end. But, I needed to finish this because I really thought maybe that ending, the truth about the chrysalis would make it all okay. In the end, it didn't do that at all.
As I kept reading, there were moments that felt like this was going somewhere great, the scariness of the thing in the basement was upped, but somehow it suddenly went downhill. What a person does after being exposed to the darkness, an infinite awareness as it's put, seemed to be very extreme. And I say that, because once you find out what lies in that chrysalis, it doesn't seem to make any sense how the person affected ends up with their soul corroded as much as it is.
It would make more sense, if the thing in wait, were somehow explained to be more of an unnatural creature? Maybe not left all to the imagination. But, why that choice? Why make it what it turns out to be, when there is so much more that could have been done with the being that was built up for us? I'm not sure and doubt I will ever really know.
Along with that, the blame that was placed, the way things moved along, how it left my mind reeling from bizarre (makes no sense, what just happened?) moments. It all just kept the "did he really just go there?" thoughts going for chapters on end. But, I needed to finish this because I really thought maybe that ending, the truth about the chrysalis would make it all okay. In the end, it didn't do that at all.