A review by ericarobyn
We're Not Ourselves Today by Lydia Prime, Jill Girardi

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

5.0

We’re Not Ourselves Today by Lydia Prime and Jill Girardi is a collection of thirteen amazing pulp horror tales jam-packed with creatures, darkness, and a bit of fun.

Are you ready to unlock new fears such as looking underneath ice or the sound of frogs croaking?

My gosh, I had so much fun with this collection! I truly loved each and every tale and couldn’t wait to see what each author was about to bring next!

So many of these tales gave me a pit in my stomach while reading, while others had me chuckling a bit. Most stories though, had me chilled and ready to turn on a light! And it certainly didn’t help that I mainly read these while feeding my infant son during his overnight wakeups!

My top favorite tales include:

• Hunger by Jill Girardi
• Little Pig by Lydia Prime
• Lab Rats by Jill Girardi
• Hazel Hill by Lydia Prime

Per usual, here are my notes on each!

Introduction –

Kicking things off with a letter from Aisha Kandisha, Head Librarian at Kandisha Press, readers are immediately shown what the book’s tone will be!

I am obsessed with collections that begin with a character teeing up the tales! 

The Letter by Lydia Prime – 

When receiving a letter addressed to her son, and told not to open it until the time comes, this pregnant woman can’t help but be curious. In trying to open it, she unleashes something horrible. But wait, it gets so much worse. 

Oh my god, this was so difficult to read being still too close to pregnancy. That ending though! Oh, my heart. 

The Ecstasy Of Gold by Jill Girardi –

A thief thinks he’s found the perfect target one evening at a concert, but what he steals has unusual consequences.

Oh, I love a good tale with an object like this! I was so curious to see what would happen next every step of the way! That last line though, phew! 

South Dakota by Lydia Prime – 

Discovering that her doppelgänger lived underneath the ice of the lake, Dakota is determined to break her free. But of course, setting her free comes with a terrible cost. 

This was so eerie! You just know things aren’t really what they seem from the very start, and the author does a killer job dropping in more hints that lead us into the darkness. 

The Garbage People by Jill Girardi – 

A family that lives on a garbage dump are tasked with doing the jobs that no one else wants. Little do the townspeople know, that this family takes care of another very important job. If anyone does learn about this secret job, then it’s already too late. 

My gosh, this one has some wild body horror! What an action-packed tale!

Monster Mashed by Lydia Prime – 

Watching a rerun of a cooking show, these children become ravenous. Luckily their grandpa has a meal waiting for them in the kitchen. 

This one starts out so calm and innocent but when the first horrific element appears, it’s a wild ride from then on! 

The Wet Dream by Jill Girardi – 

While boating one day, this young girl is berated by a man so badly she wants to sink into the water and never return. There’s a legend that says the lake takes one person every year and in her embarrassment, she wouldn’t mind being that person. But the lake has its eyes on someone else. 

Oofh, this one made me so uncomfortable! There were so many moments that could have been avoided… but the sunburn scene really got to me. Why didn’t anyone wake her up sooner?!

Sadie by Lydia Prime – 

Haunted by a terrible nightmare that bleeds over into her wakeful hours, this woman suddenly has an insatiable hunger. 

A quick and uncomfortable tale! What a fun creature short story!

The Roiling by Jill Girardi – 

After a hostile takeover, these people are just trying to survive their new normal. 

I live across from a pond… I’m so not looking forward to when the frogs come out this year!

Lunation by Lydia Prime – 

Promised a drug that will make their transition pain-free, everyone is so desperate for help, that they don’t think twice. Even the kids…

Oofh, this one hit me hard. The desperation to avoid pain is something, but the poor kids. 

Hunger by Jill Girardi – 

Running from her gangster fiancé this woman finds herself renting a room in a place with some odd residents. Desperate for work to eat and continue paying rent, this woman is given a kindness. But was it actually kind? 

Oh, this one had me so anxious! It was clear something was up, but I did not see that coming! This was so darkly fun! 

Little Pig by Lydia Prime – 

Seeing shadows and fearing “the spot” in her place, this woman is absolutely terrified of the nighttime. Try as she might to convince herself she’s just half awake and seeing things, things just get more and more terrifying.

My gosh, the anticipation and dread of what could be coming next!! The author does a killer job putting you right in the character’s shoes. The scene where the character slowly looks up at the ceiling had me holding my breath! 

Lab Rats by Jill Girardi – 

Conducting various experiments to aid in her research, this woman is determined to show the world what she has unlocked in these rats. But her methods are sporadic and they’re starting to catch up to her.

This was so unsettling! I loved that as a reader we slowly see how dark and intense the situation is while at first glance, everything seems normal. But my gosh, the wound and the final scene had me questioning everything! I loved this! 

Hazel Hill by Lydia Prime – 

After being sent to a halfway house, this woman is upset to see that her hallucinations have lingered. But soon, she’s forced to realize that she wasn’t just seeing things…

While this one had the fun and terrifying horror element, it also had the very real-world troubling issue of addiction that will just break your heart. 

My Favorite Passages from We’re Not Ourselves Today –

He couldn’t afford a ticket, so he sat on his bike and listened to the music outside the gates. He tried to enjoy the songs he’d loved all his life, but he also felt that old heaviness in his heart—a naked want that pumped through his veins even in the most festive of times.
— The Ecstasy Of Gold by Jill Girardi

One couldn’t see the precarious tilt of the porch, or the grime on the curtains sewn by Grandma Maighréad. She’d died thirty years ago, but her yellow curtains still hung in the windows, year after year, holding on. Surviving, like the rest of the O’Malleys.
— The Garbage People by Jill Girardi

Despite all my efforts, no one wanted to hire a girl with an obvious checkered past. It was as if any potential employer could look at me and see the trouble looming in my future.
— Hunger by Jill Girardi

As the sun set, the six-foot shadow-being grew, stretching across the walls; slinking its way back through my mind. Existing of pure darkness—blacker than the deepest pit—it crept to the corners of my eyes; taunting me.
— Little Pig by Lydia Prime

It’s two in the morning. I could have sworn I felt someone breathing on my face.
— Little Pig by Lydia Prime

April was always a strange month, sometimes appearing wonderfully sunny, defrosting the ground just enough for flowers to peek out from beneath the harsh earth. Other times, it seemed as if winter would never leave—its chilling whispers stretching beyond the unreliable prophecies of the rodent oracle.
— Hazel Hill by Lydia Prime

My Final Thoughts on We’re Not Ourselves Today –

Horror short story fans, you need to grab this collection right away! Just be warned, you’re going to want to read through as quickly as possible as you won’t want to wait to see what comes next!