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bardic_llama 's review for:

The Bug Collector by Wrath James White

2.0

challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

(Review has spoilers in it)

The book revolves around Joey who takes stealthing to the next level by attempting to catch every STI known to man and makes it the FMC, Tina’s problem. Tina, who then spends the entirety of the book torturing him while demanding he explains this paraphilia of his to her
I wasn’t able to suspend disbelief w/ how overkill the descriptions of both his/others’ STI symptoms and Tina’s torture were

Torture examples/quotes;

(Chpt. 2) Tina ruptures his nutsack w/ her stiletto heel and then proceeds to blowtorch it via a charcoal burner
“Blood, semen, and some yellow and green liquid the consistency of phlegm splattered her toes, my inner thighs, and splashed down onto the concrete floor. A gangrenous stench like rotten eggs and putrefied flesh wafted up from my crotch.”
(Chpt. 6) Tina removes the muscle from his chest to the point that his heart is visible and Joey still doesn’t die from that
“Still holding my nipple like a vice, she began sawing at my pectoral muscle, cutting deep, separating pectoralis major from pectoralis minor. The blade bounced over my ribcage like a xylophone as she removed my chest muscle like she was fileting a fish.”
“When she was done removing the muscle, I could see movement behind my ribcage and realized I was witnessing the rhythmic thump of my own heart. Once again, darkness rushed in to save me from the pain and horror.”
(Chpt. 9) Tina finally takes him out after sodomizing him w/ a lead pipe, pouring metal from melted down chess pieces down his urethra

STI Symptoms examples/quotes;

(Chpt. 1) “My nose had been lost to syphilis several years ago. Only an unctuous chasm moist with snot remained in the center of my face.”

(Chpt. 2) “My nose had rotted off months ago, and my lips were so blistered and poxed they bore a greater resemblance to two pinkish sea anemones than anything that should have been on a face.”

(Chpt. 3) “Labia so riddled with herpes they looked like fried pork rinds coated in hot sauce.”

“...the herpes sores sprouting like pomegranate seeds up and down the base of his cock.”

(Chpt. 7) “As soon as I slid down her sticky pink underwear and saw the glistening slick custard of curdled semen and vaginal fluids, a malodorous greenish yellow discharge I was certain was infected with trichomoniasis, I licked it from the fabric greedily, shuddering with excitement to consume the rot within her.”

Tina is also just a flat, stereotypical character. She’s a black, female prostitute who was sold to men by her mother at 11yrs old to fund said mother’s drug addiction. And then was rescued from her pimp by her white boyfriend. And is the only character whose accent is written out. Idk if misogynoir is an apt descriptor for this all but it sure feels like it.
- (Chpt. 2) “What the fuck kind of sick white boy shit is that? And why you talkin’ all fancy and superior wit’ all those big words and shit? Tryna act like you ain’t just say some nasty-ass, perverted-ass, triflin’ and disgustin’ ass shit!”
- (Chpt. 8) description of Tina’s pimp; “Tall, cocoa butter brown, shaved head, looked like an NBA player in black alligator shoes with dark shades on. His name was Johnson. On the street, they called him “Long Johnson” because he was, like, six-foot seven and because he had a nine-inch dick.”
There’s bits and pieces that oddly enough feel like the author is inserting his personal beliefs into the story where it’s either out of character or simply feels weird
- (Chpt. 3) “I realized this was just my own misogyny speaking…That was certainly not very enlightened of me…” This is from Joey’s internal monologue while he’s being tortured. He doesn’t show any traits of being a feminist throughout the entirety of this book. Also even if you give a shitty character a few good qualities, it doesn’t negate the shittiness
- “Films like those wouldn’t fly in today’s touchy-feely world, but they were common in the seventies and eighties. But this one–this one was by far the worst.”
- (Chpt. 6) “I have always despised vulgar colloquialisms like eating pussy.”
- (Chpt. 7) “That’s not an orgy. That’s a gangbang. An orgy would involve more than just one woman, unless the guys were fucking each other too. If they were all just fucking you, that’s a gangbang.”

And lastly, wtf was that ending? Her deciding to do the same shit as Joey but it’s justified b/c she’s going to use it against shitty husbands despite hating Joey for that exact same thing the past 9 chapters

Content Warnings