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horrorbutch's reviews
1259 reviews
A Palace Near the Wind by Ai Jiang
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Disclaimer: I received an e-book copy by the author.
This fantasy novella explores the lives of the Feng people, their way of life and their land threatened by human expansion. To stop them, a bridewealth must be taken and Liu Lufeng is the last remaining adult girl in the family, the others having already been sent off. She plans to stop this once and for all by killing the king, but once she gets to the palace new revelations of who’s actually in power, she finds herself pressed to find a new and better way to stop this.
I really enjoyed exploring this interesting world, it has very fascinating world building, and particularly the Feng people are intriguing (although I would have loved to get some more time in their country so I could learn more about their way of life by itself and not just in comparison to the lives of the humans). I also liked the parallelism found to real life racism, with the ways the Feng people smoothen their faces by shaving off parts of their bark to the way some people use plastic surgery and skin bleaching creams to achieve more “pleasing” (i.e. closer to white-centric ideals) features. The themes of colonialism and man-made destruction of nature also played a big role in the novella.
The strongest aspect of this novella is the writing style, which is lush and detailed and really paints a beautiful picture of nearly every scene we are shown. This does sometimes make it feel a bit slower than you would expect from a story about killing a king, but I still enjoyed it very much.
There are also quite a lot of characters, and it was sometimes a bit tough to keep them all straight, since the story isn’t that long and you don’t get to spend a lot of time getting to know the various characters. In general Liu is the most fleshed-out character in the cast and a bit more detail could have helped the other characters stand out more. However, this is something that I hope will be fixed if there are other stories to come.
All in all, I really enjoyed reading this novella and if you like fantasy that explores the duality of destiny and choice and female MCs rebelling against oppression, I can recommend this story wholeheartedly.
TW: arranged/forced marriage, environmental destruction, forced eating of meat, murder, vomiting
Cecilia by K-Ming Chang
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The Drunk, The Gambler, The Lover by Ember White
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Disclaimer: I received an e-book copy by the author.
The Drunk (pronoun-less for the biggest part of the book) is an author, struggling with their work, the Gambler spends all his money gambling, not sure if he’s chasing a win or just chasing the thrill of the game, the Lover pines after girls. Their lives intersect at work and at home, they talk, they discuss philosophical topics, they depart, rinse and repeat. Each chapter portrays a new day and often the days blur together while reading.
The Drunk is a fascinating character, never being referred to with pronouns, but very clearly having some sort of gender dysphoria going on. The Drunk doesn’t care about appearance and even wishes to have a blank face, unable to be perceived, drinks and writes and works, but never finds any true pleasure in it. The Drunk is also disconnected from the people around them, always sitting on the sidelines, never crossing them and only interacting with the Gambler and the Lover. It takes a long time for the Drunk to break out of this shell, but any time she does, it feels like sunshine after a long winter, but it also hurts, like brightness does after having spent too much time in darkness. The finale was very satisfying and the unraveling of the character incredibly interesting to follow along.
This was not an easy book to read and if you are looking for a lot of plot or action heavy narrative you won’t find it here. But if you enjoy philosophical novels, novels with a narrator blurred in fog dissociating, and an interesting character study I can recommend this book. I enjoyed reading it.
TW: addiction, suicide attempt
Ace: What Asexuality Reveals about Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex by Angela Chen
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
Power to Yield and Other Stories by Bogi Takács
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Disclaimer: I received an e-book copy by the author.
I haven’t read a lot of Bogi Takács work yet, besides their short stories in Transcendent and Nerve Endings, which I think served me well as a preparation for the titular Power to Yield, so if you have also read these short stories you at least know what to expect from that short story. But this anthology collects a lot more stories and in fact most of them are quite different than the three I’ve mentioned already, which was something I really enjoyed.
As the summary promises this is a collection of speculative short stories that explore gender identity, neurodivergence and religion. It also often focusses on various forms of escapism, communication, connection and cultural differences. All of this definitely made it the perfect sci-fi story for me and I really enjoyed it.
I also found it very interesting to see how the various short stories connected, sometimes because they are set on the same planet (Eren), while others explored similar topics in very different ways and settings, such as the first two short stories which focus on communication with aliens and alienation, the next two being changed into a plant and how that affects connection, two more about being visibly different and being persecuted for that). My favorite short stories where An Errant Holy Spark, On God Friday The Raven Washes Its Young, Volatile Patterns, The 1st Interspecies Solidarity Fair and Parade and A Technical Term, Like Privilege, but I enjoyed all stories and I think your favorites may definitely vary depending on which forms of sci-fi you prefer.
Despite the similarities in concepts sometimes, the stories never felt repetitive either and I was engaged for the entire collection. All in all, a really interesting collection, that does really interesting things with sci-fi, portrays multiple marginalized characters in fascinating and intriguing ways and was a joy to read.
Below you can find some further thoughts on each short story as well as trigger warnings, which are also provided in the book itself.
Four-Point Affective Calibration: A string of consciousness short story following a character as they are undergoing testing to measure their effectiveness in communicating with aliens. Interesting and exploring a variety of discriminations such as racism, transphobia and ableism as well as societal pressures regarding personal clothing choices.
TW: ableism, anti-muslim racism (mention), discrimination, violence
*FAV* An Errant Holy Spark: A really interesting story about a designed being, who has been abducted by somebody who wants to kill them, in a world where certain people (including said being) can communicate with aliens. For the most part we follow the memories of growing up from said designed being and get to know how they feel and think. I would love to read more about this world, I find the worldbuilding incredibly interesting and the way this short story is structured fascinating. Really interesting inclusion of religion and neurodiversity as well, I loved it.
TW: abduction, religious transphobia (mention), violence
And I Entreated: A Jewish mother is turned into a houseplant to gather intelligence as a spy. After her mission is over, no shapechanger can be spared to turn her back. As her kid’s bar mitzvah comes closer, she becomes more and more desperate to communicate with her family again. When a nonbinary translator is sent to their house to bridge the time until a shape-changer can be procured, things become interesting. I really enjoyed the overlap between their religious Jewish observance and the father not really understanding nonbinary identity and in particular how nonbinary identity can vary for different nonbinary people (seeing as his kid is also nonbinary). Reading this through the mother’s perspective (who cannot communicate with anybody but the translator) was really interesting!
TW: cissexism, transphobia
Folded into Tendril and Leaf: A heartbreaking story about two magic students and their teacher caught up in a war. I really enjoyed the use of plants and finding connection in nature. I also really liked the two magic students and the world that was presented here. It felt very rich. I also really enjoyed the dual POV included here to show both the thoughts and feelings of the intersex protagonist and the thoughts and feelings of their lover.
TW: injury, imprisonment, self-injury, war
The Third Extension: A very short story about strange beings making a life alongside humans and how gardening plays a role in fitting in. Would like to read more set in this world, so I can understand the rules governing this place better, but I did still find it interesting.
*FAV* On Good Friday the Raven Washes Its Young: An intersex protagonist feeds the ocean of a planet depleted by humanity. Their fellow humans on the planet do not appreciate their effort though, harassing them for being intersex instead. I really enjoyed the inclusion of Hungarian folk songs and rhymes, it made the story feel a lot more immersive. Very well written short story, heartbreaking to read though.
TW: acid attack, animal harm, cissexism, colonialism, environmental destruction, intersexism, street harassment, transmisogynistic language, violence
*FAV* Volatile Patterns: Two nonbinary (intersex?) investigators are hired to find out the source of magic running wild and causing havoc on an allied planet. I loved the combination of an intriguing magic system with the unexpected side effects of labor exploitation and cultural appropriation, and I really found the relationship between the two main characters to be very sweet.
TW: injury
The Ladybug, in Flight: A short story about a species of space ladybugs encountering a ship adrift in space and guiding it back home. Very sweet, quite short, but interesting and fun.
TW: injury
*FAV* The 1st Interspecies Solidarity Fair and Parade: In a world destroyed in the aftermath of an alien attack and later alien scavengers, a third party of aliens and their human interpreter are travelling through what used to be Hungary trying to connect people again. The story was really lovely and I enjoyed it a lot. It doesn’t paint a utopian picture of the world or pretend that just because people try to work together it will immediately work out, but still leaves the story brighter than when it started.
TW: antisemitism, cissexism, classism, injury
*FAV* A Technical Term, Like Privilege: One of the more horror-based stories here. A poor mage-in-training is trapped in a rental situation that bleeds him dry – literally. Not only does he have to pay rent with the little income he has from teaching beside his studies, but he also has to feed the rental beast, a creature that lives off his magic and drains his blood to get to it. And to top it all off, he is refused help from people fighting against mages, due to his (supposedly) “privileged” mage status, while ignoring the many ways he is disadvantages. I found it really interesting how this story played with ideas of privilege and autonomy and who actually holds the power in a specific situation. The ending was really satisfying.
TW: body horror, blood, cissexism, classism, injury
Power to Yield: The titular story here is also the longest, taking up 25% of the collection. In it a student develops a new abuwen, which is similar to the term special interest, but connotated positively, on a historical (but still living) figure. He was an important part in the fight for independence on this planet and is often talked about derogatorily for being a “Falkoner” (which I think refers to another neurotype, presumable something with low Empathy?) and often called a sadist. When she finds out he has found a way to tap into the system of their planet and make it stronger, ensuring all their survival, through causing pain and dissociation, she becomes obsessed with joining. Weird and strange and really, really intriguing, especially in its look at aroace kink, in particular BDSM and sadism, but also its inclusion of various neurodivergences and ableism between different neurodivergent groups.
TW: ableism, death, grief, injury, sadism, war
I haven’t read a lot of Bogi Takács work yet, besides their short stories in Transcendent and Nerve Endings, which I think served me well as a preparation for the titular Power to Yield, so if you have also read these short stories you at least know what to expect from that short story. But this anthology collects a lot more stories and in fact most of them are quite different than the three I’ve mentioned already, which was something I really enjoyed.
As the summary promises this is a collection of speculative short stories that explore gender identity, neurodivergence and religion. It also often focusses on various forms of escapism, communication, connection and cultural differences. All of this definitely made it the perfect sci-fi story for me and I really enjoyed it.
I also found it very interesting to see how the various short stories connected, sometimes because they are set on the same planet (Eren), while others explored similar topics in very different ways and settings, such as the first two short stories which focus on communication with aliens and alienation, the next two being changed into a plant and how that affects connection, two more about being visibly different and being persecuted for that). My favorite short stories where An Errant Holy Spark, On God Friday The Raven Washes Its Young, Volatile Patterns, The 1st Interspecies Solidarity Fair and Parade and A Technical Term, Like Privilege, but I enjoyed all stories and I think your favorites may definitely vary depending on which forms of sci-fi you prefer.
Despite the similarities in concepts sometimes, the stories never felt repetitive either and I was engaged for the entire collection. All in all, a really interesting collection, that does really interesting things with sci-fi, portrays multiple marginalized characters in fascinating and intriguing ways and was a joy to read.
Below you can find some further thoughts on each short story as well as trigger warnings, which are also provided in the book itself.
Four-Point Affective Calibration: A string of consciousness short story following a character as they are undergoing testing to measure their effectiveness in communicating with aliens. Interesting and exploring a variety of discriminations such as racism, transphobia and ableism as well as societal pressures regarding personal clothing choices.
TW: ableism, anti-muslim racism (mention), discrimination, violence
*FAV* An Errant Holy Spark: A really interesting story about a designed being, who has been abducted by somebody who wants to kill them, in a world where certain people (including said being) can communicate with aliens. For the most part we follow the memories of growing up from said designed being and get to know how they feel and think. I would love to read more about this world, I find the worldbuilding incredibly interesting and the way this short story is structured fascinating. Really interesting inclusion of religion and neurodiversity as well, I loved it.
TW: abduction, religious transphobia (mention), violence
And I Entreated: A Jewish mother is turned into a houseplant to gather intelligence as a spy. After her mission is over, no shapechanger can be spared to turn her back. As her kid’s bar mitzvah comes closer, she becomes more and more desperate to communicate with her family again. When a nonbinary translator is sent to their house to bridge the time until a shape-changer can be procured, things become interesting. I really enjoyed the overlap between their religious Jewish observance and the father not really understanding nonbinary identity and in particular how nonbinary identity can vary for different nonbinary people (seeing as his kid is also nonbinary). Reading this through the mother’s perspective (who cannot communicate with anybody but the translator) was really interesting!
TW: cissexism, transphobia
Folded into Tendril and Leaf: A heartbreaking story about two magic students and their teacher caught up in a war. I really enjoyed the use of plants and finding connection in nature. I also really liked the two magic students and the world that was presented here. It felt very rich. I also really enjoyed the dual POV included here to show both the thoughts and feelings of the intersex protagonist and the thoughts and feelings of their lover.
TW: injury, imprisonment, self-injury, war
The Third Extension: A very short story about strange beings making a life alongside humans and how gardening plays a role in fitting in. Would like to read more set in this world, so I can understand the rules governing this place better, but I did still find it interesting.
*FAV* On Good Friday the Raven Washes Its Young: An intersex protagonist feeds the ocean of a planet depleted by humanity. Their fellow humans on the planet do not appreciate their effort though, harassing them for being intersex instead. I really enjoyed the inclusion of Hungarian folk songs and rhymes, it made the story feel a lot more immersive. Very well written short story, heartbreaking to read though.
TW: acid attack, animal harm, cissexism, colonialism, environmental destruction, intersexism, street harassment, transmisogynistic language, violence
*FAV* Volatile Patterns: Two nonbinary (intersex?) investigators are hired to find out the source of magic running wild and causing havoc on an allied planet. I loved the combination of an intriguing magic system with the unexpected side effects of labor exploitation and cultural appropriation, and I really found the relationship between the two main characters to be very sweet.
TW: injury
The Ladybug, in Flight: A short story about a species of space ladybugs encountering a ship adrift in space and guiding it back home. Very sweet, quite short, but interesting and fun.
TW: injury
*FAV* The 1st Interspecies Solidarity Fair and Parade: In a world destroyed in the aftermath of an alien attack and later alien scavengers, a third party of aliens and their human interpreter are travelling through what used to be Hungary trying to connect people again. The story was really lovely and I enjoyed it a lot. It doesn’t paint a utopian picture of the world or pretend that just because people try to work together it will immediately work out, but still leaves the story brighter than when it started.
TW: antisemitism, cissexism, classism, injury
*FAV* A Technical Term, Like Privilege: One of the more horror-based stories here. A poor mage-in-training is trapped in a rental situation that bleeds him dry – literally. Not only does he have to pay rent with the little income he has from teaching beside his studies, but he also has to feed the rental beast, a creature that lives off his magic and drains his blood to get to it. And to top it all off, he is refused help from people fighting against mages, due to his (supposedly) “privileged” mage status, while ignoring the many ways he is disadvantages. I found it really interesting how this story played with ideas of privilege and autonomy and who actually holds the power in a specific situation. The ending was really satisfying.
TW: body horror, blood, cissexism, classism, injury
Power to Yield: The titular story here is also the longest, taking up 25% of the collection. In it a student develops a new abuwen, which is similar to the term special interest, but connotated positively, on a historical (but still living) figure. He was an important part in the fight for independence on this planet and is often talked about derogatorily for being a “Falkoner” (which I think refers to another neurotype, presumable something with low Empathy?) and often called a sadist. When she finds out he has found a way to tap into the system of their planet and make it stronger, ensuring all their survival, through causing pain and dissociation, she becomes obsessed with joining. Weird and strange and really, really intriguing, especially in its look at aroace kink, in particular BDSM and sadism, but also its inclusion of various neurodivergences and ableism between different neurodivergent groups.
TW: ableism, death, grief, injury, sadism, war
Quallen haben keine Ohren by Adèle Rosenfeld
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The Scales of Seduction by Rien Gray
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A really interesting retelling of Greek myth, following the last living Basilisk Petra, hiding in her human form to survive as the last of her kind. After being granted surgical intervention by followers of the goddess Cybele to make her body her own, she sets out on a quest to reclaim Perseus’ armaments from his grave in Medusa’s lair. Unlike Perseus’ however, she has no interest in harming Medusa to please the Gods.
I really liked both the journey to get to Medusa’s lair and the erotic parts that happened afterwards. The writing was poetic and lush and I felt transported into the world during Petra’s journey and I found it very interesting to read about the arduous path she traversed to finally encounter Medusa. The erotica afterwards was simply delicious, and with a big focus on reclaiming your body (both from past sexual violence in Medusa’s case and from the fear of being different and othered as a trans woman and a basilisk in Petra’s case). If you like your erotica dark, yet touching, brutal, yet tender and featuring some gorey body modifications as healing and reclamation of yourself I can just recommend this short novella to you! I also really liked how incredibly detailed Petra’s character and backstory was. If the author ever decides to write more with her as a main character, I would love to read it. I also really enjoyed getting to read Medusa's story interpreted as about a traumatized lesbian reclaiming her sexuality, that was beautiful.
The ending is a bit abrupt and I think if it had been a bit longer, it could have been more satisfying still, but all in all I really enjoyed reading this story and especially loved to see some trans butch rep in lesbian erotica!
TW: body horror, body modification (both willingly and for gender euphoria and self-inflicted but viewed as mutilation as a protective measure), dysphoria, gore, injury, lesbophobia (minor), self injury, past sexual assault, past suicide and suicidality, transmisogyny (minor), trauma around fertility and infertility
I really liked both the journey to get to Medusa’s lair and the erotic parts that happened afterwards. The writing was poetic and lush and I felt transported into the world during Petra’s journey and I found it very interesting to read about the arduous path she traversed to finally encounter Medusa. The erotica afterwards was simply delicious, and with a big focus on reclaiming your body (both from past sexual violence in Medusa’s case and from the fear of being different and othered as a trans woman and a basilisk in Petra’s case). If you like your erotica dark, yet touching, brutal, yet tender and featuring some gorey body modifications as healing and reclamation of yourself I can just recommend this short novella to you! I also really liked how incredibly detailed Petra’s character and backstory was. If the author ever decides to write more with her as a main character, I would love to read it. I also really enjoyed getting to read Medusa's story interpreted as about a traumatized lesbian reclaiming her sexuality, that was beautiful.
The ending is a bit abrupt and I think if it had been a bit longer, it could have been more satisfying still, but all in all I really enjoyed reading this story and especially loved to see some trans butch rep in lesbian erotica!
TW: body horror, body modification (both willingly and for gender euphoria and self-inflicted but viewed as mutilation as a protective measure), dysphoria, gore, injury, lesbophobia (minor), self injury, past sexual assault, past suicide and suicidality, transmisogyny (minor), trauma around fertility and infertility