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shawcrit 's review for:
Brain Damage
by ShintarÅ Kago
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was my first experience reading Shintaro Kago and it will definitely not be my last. These four stories are all gut punches combining the grotesque, weird, and horrific to great effect.
In the first story, a group of identical young women wake up together in a locked room and have to figure out what's going on.
In the second story, a woman wakes up in a cell-like apartment and things feel off...I won't say anything more about this one as it would be too spoilery, but the concept behind this one was the most interesting and original to me.
In the third story, a high school-aged girl investigates disappearances in her neighbourhood while dealing with her creepy grandfather (this was the grossest and most uncomfortable story).
In the fourth and final story, people are showing up dead and mangled in their cars, but the police cannot find the cause.
Each story starts by establishing a sense of the uncanny, where some things are just a bit off (love it). The tension builds and builds, leading to grotesque endings that will stick in my mind for a while. Overall, this was a captivating, genuinely discomfiting read. Four stars because the last story was least effective to me, at least until I got to that final haunting image (I think he was going for a bit of absurdist humour here but it didn't land for me).
Thanks for the ARC!
In the first story, a group of identical young women wake up together in a locked room and have to figure out what's going on.
In the second story, a woman wakes up in a cell-like apartment and things feel off...I won't say anything more about this one as it would be too spoilery, but the concept behind this one was the most interesting and original to me.
In the third story, a high school-aged girl investigates disappearances in her neighbourhood while dealing with her creepy grandfather (this was the grossest and most uncomfortable story).
In the fourth and final story, people are showing up dead and mangled in their cars, but the police cannot find the cause.
Each story starts by establishing a sense of the uncanny, where some things are just a bit off (love it). The tension builds and builds, leading to grotesque endings that will stick in my mind for a while. Overall, this was a captivating, genuinely discomfiting read. Four stars because the last story was least effective to me, at least until I got to that final haunting image (I think he was going for a bit of absurdist humour here but it didn't land for me).
Thanks for the ARC!