amih's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Self harm
Moderate: Suicide and Transphobia
solliereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
My favourites/standouts were - as seems to be popular from the reviews - Kids Who Come Back, as well as Meat, The Lookout Tower and Where Are You, Dear Heart?
I would strongly recommend checking out the warnings other reviewers have included for this book, as I likely haven't included all of them, but I would absolutely recommend adding this book to your to-read pile if you're interested in dark horror with twist endings.
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Blood, and Child death
Moderate: Alcohol, Gore, Rape, Transphobia, and Cannibalism
ava_lanche's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Hailing from impoverished slums, trafficked children haunt the streets; raped and murdered girls reappear in silence; mothers curse their daughters; girls are possessed and scarred yet no one believes them. Crushed rib cages and torn entrails – anatomical obsessions turn bloody. Here, what is not said is the most powerful.
As with most collections of stories, some pieces are stronger than others. Many of these stories feel a little... unfinished. Some endings are unsatisfactory, which is such a shame, as most of the premises are unusually creative and thought-provoking.
However, "The Well", "Where Are You, Dear Heart?" and "Rambla Triste" were definite highlights. I also liked "The Cart" and "The Kids Who Come Back".
The stories work well together, and create a Buenos Aires that is filled with danger – physical, mental and paranormal. The poisons of the city has taken on a ghostly shape, and the repercussions are felt mostly by the women, whether it's their bodies or their minds that are marked by violence, and whether the sins are committed by people or by ghosts.
Graphic: Transphobia, Self harm, Addiction, Sexual harassment, Rape, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Body horror, Gun violence, Drug abuse, Child death, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Murder, Medical trauma, Death, Alcoholism, Trafficking, Suicide, Sexism, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual violence, Violence, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Gore, and Excrement
librarymouse's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Copious references to and depictions of bodily fluid didn't necessarily add to the horror, but made reading this a bit disgusting.
Graphic: Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Excrement, Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Sexual content, Cursing, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Addiction, Body shaming, Cannibalism, Suicide, Transphobia, Blood, Child death, and Self harm
Moderate: Abandonment
woolgatherer's review against another edition
2.5
Graphic: Gore, Self harm, Cannibalism, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Trafficking, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Suicide, and Transphobia
Minor: Drug use and Alcohol
kjboldon's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Chronic illness, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Transphobia, Blood, Death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Self harm, Pedophilia, Vomit, and Trafficking
wiley_coyote5's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Death
Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Transphobia, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Torture
This is a dark, heavy book. Each story is about awful people, doing selfish things and getting punished for it.borangeade's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
Graphic: Murder, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Pedophilia
Minor: Xenophobia and Transphobia
msteasam's review against another edition
3.5
Overall an interesting and unsettling collection.
Moderate: Body horror and Addiction
Minor: Drug abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Cannibalism, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Transphobia, Child death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Rape, Child abuse, Death, Self harm, Trafficking, and Excrement
gracieyue's review against another edition
3.25
I think The Dangers of Smoking in Bed was overhyped to me from seeing it on BookTube. I find a lot of books that people say are "so fucked up" to ultimately let me down in that respect. I don't know if I just consumed way too much horror content as a child which desensitised me, but I was immediately disappointed after cracking this one open. I wish that this prior expectation didn't exist because this book's strengths are moreso in atmosphere and subtle horror, and mixing in the everyday urban and suburban. I enjoyed seeing the settings of the book, mostly Argentina and Spain. When I think of this book, I think of concrete streets filled with cigarette smoke.
I was glad to see that this book was older than I thought - it was first published in Spanish in 2009 and only translated to English in 2021. This actually makes me excited to read the other works by Mariana Enríquez, her other short story collection Things We Lost in the Fire (2019) and her novel Our Share of Night (2022) because I see a lot of potential in her writing and I'm hoping she's taken her strengths from Dangers and improved on them.
Moderate: Child death, Death, Trafficking, Adult/minor relationship, and Transphobia