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A review by puzzledbooks
Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca
5.0
“My father used to have a saying when I was really little…At the end of each day, he used to ask me, ‘what have you done today to deserve your eyes?’”
I don’t often preorder books, but with the hype that has surrounded this novella the past few months, I couldn’t help myself.
I devoured this one in one quick sitting. I pause with even describing the plot, because I think going in blind (as I did) gives the proverbial coil a couple extra cranks.
The story starts off mundane enough with a Craigslist-style exchange between one woman, Agnes, and another, Zoe, about purchasing Agnes’s apple peeler, passed down from her grandmother. But even with this beginning hook, LaRocca puts so much between each line and provides so much depth, that even in the first few pages I was invested. Impressive.
What follows is then a collection of email and instant messenger exchanges, and then do you feel the plot begin to unfold. And wow - does it ever. It’s macabre and tense and yet strangely heartfelt at its core. I’m not often one for novellas but I see this one sticking with me for a while.
If you’re a horror/weird lit fan, I can’t recommend this one enough (or even if you’re not, if you have a tough stomach). With this one work, Eric LaRocca is definitely now on my list of instant-buy authors.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I don’t often preorder books, but with the hype that has surrounded this novella the past few months, I couldn’t help myself.
I devoured this one in one quick sitting. I pause with even describing the plot, because I think going in blind (as I did) gives the proverbial coil a couple extra cranks.
The story starts off mundane enough with a Craigslist-style exchange between one woman, Agnes, and another, Zoe, about purchasing Agnes’s apple peeler, passed down from her grandmother. But even with this beginning hook, LaRocca puts so much between each line and provides so much depth, that even in the first few pages I was invested. Impressive.
What follows is then a collection of email and instant messenger exchanges, and then do you feel the plot begin to unfold. And wow - does it ever. It’s macabre and tense and yet strangely heartfelt at its core. I’m not often one for novellas but I see this one sticking with me for a while.
If you’re a horror/weird lit fan, I can’t recommend this one enough (or even if you’re not, if you have a tough stomach). With this one work, Eric LaRocca is definitely now on my list of instant-buy authors.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5