A review by ericarobyn
This Skin Was Once Mine and Other Disturbances by Eric LaRocca

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

4.5

This Skin Was Once Mine and Other Disturbances by Eric LaRocca is a collection of horror tales that are sure to make readers squirm in discomfort. 

Not shying away from more difficult topics, we see elements of abuse in this collection so please tread lightly if that’s a trigger for you. 

As always, Eric has found a way to make each dark element intriguing, leaving readers hanging off of every word even if they’d rather turn away. Eric is just so darn talented with blending beauty and brutal darkness. 

Here are my thoughts on each tale – 

This Skin Was Once Mine –

Receiving a call to learn her father has died and that her estranged mother wants her to attend the funeral, Jillian (aka Jay) dreads returning home. Once there, she’s met with frustration from her mother’s nurse and surprise from her mother that she actually came back. 

Filled with tension and something dark lying just beneath the surface, we get glimpses into what’s going on here. Some of the horrors come to light, but many stay in the shadows.  

Seedling –

After receiving a call to learn his mother has died, this man goes to his father to comfort him. Their relationship had always been strained, but this time, they may have finally found a way to understand one another. 

Oh, the bit where the father practically forced the son to pay his last respects to his mother had me ready to rage! Telling people what they have to do to process grief will always be one of the most inappropriate things! 

Oh oh my gosh, that ending!! Was what was presented to us really happening, or were the events just grief gone sideways?!

All The Parts Of You That Won’t Easily Burn – 

When looking for the perfect knife for an upcoming dinner party, this man is shocked when the shopkeeper offers something other than cash for payment. This sparks immediate curiosity and arousal that the man can’t let go. 

This made me so feeble. I got a glass splinter in my finger once while working at HomeGoods and I’ll never forget how painful that tiny thing was! 

Prickle –

Deciding to play a game they had made up just one last time in case they never see each other again, readers soon learn this isn’t the type of game you would expect from two old men. In this game, they perform little cruelties on strangers. And this time, they go big.

My gosh, this one made me so uncomfortable! The world is such a scary place, the thought of this actually happening isn’t hard to imagine. Reading this while watching our four-month-old sleep made me want to go run into the room and cuddle him! That last scene is something else!

My Favorite Passages from This Skin Was Once Mine and Other Disturbances –

There’s nothing glorious or wonderful about being a survivor. Those that like to hurt other people know this for a fact. Perhaps that’s why they go out of their way to cause heartache, despair. Maybe they get their kicks out of knowing that someone will survive their desecration and will be forever marked by what they’ve done – permanently stained.
— This Skin Was Once Mine

Silence falls over the small room and threatens to undo the invisible tether that had fastened us for most of the evening. I can already see the wire beginning to fray.
— This Skin Was Once Mine

For as long as I could remember, my father and I had spent year after year torturing ourselves on either side of an invisible gate that seemed to eternally separate us.
— Seedling

But I knew full well how there was some unnamable urge rooted in every human being that compelled us to drag others into our suffering, our despair.
— Seedling

He knows full well once he crosses over the threshold, there is no turning back. There are no opportunities to end what he’s started once the dance has finally begun. A sharp pang of agony coils its way up his arm—a sudden reminder that tells him in no uncertain terms that the dance has already started.
— All The Parts Of You That Won’t Easily Burn

My Final Thoughts on This Skin Was Once Mine and Other Disturbances –

Give me all of the short story collections from Eric! Eric’s tales are always such a dark treat to read, and this collection was no exception.

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