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A review by justinkhchen
The Houseguest: And Other Stories by Amparo Dávila
2.0
2.5 stars
Turned out to be a little too subtle for what I was expecting, The Houseguest is a collection of well-intended, but ultimately derivative psychological horror stories.
It is at least thematically consistent, exploring the unexpected manifestation of our psyche, particularly in the category of anxiety, guilt, trauma, and paranoia. The collection is simply not memorable; while it definitely evokes the quiet dread similar to Poe and Shirley Jackson, nothing about them really stand out beyond being an above average imitation (perhaps it is a case of lost in translation?).
Would recommend exclusively for readers who enjoy moody, minimalist psychological horror.
Turned out to be a little too subtle for what I was expecting, The Houseguest is a collection of well-intended, but ultimately derivative psychological horror stories.
It is at least thematically consistent, exploring the unexpected manifestation of our psyche, particularly in the category of anxiety, guilt, trauma, and paranoia. The collection is simply not memorable; while it definitely evokes the quiet dread similar to Poe and Shirley Jackson, nothing about them really stand out beyond being an above average imitation (perhaps it is a case of lost in translation?).
Would recommend exclusively for readers who enjoy moody, minimalist psychological horror.