thedustbunnyslibrary's review against another edition
4.0
One of the few anthologies I’ve actually loved enough to complete!
This transfixing collection is full of taboo, lust, hatred, disgust, wariness, torment/agony, dread, and any other discomfort you can conjure. The writing is flowery yet grotesque; so repulsive you can’t drag your eyes off the page.
Despite its charm, the vivid writing almost overshadows the stories themselves. Such stylistic writing can be distracting and sometimes feels as though the author put more effort into the words than into the stories.
Many pieces end abruptly, leaving us with unanswered questions. For some readers this might be unsatisfying, but I find uncertainty most effective in horror and appreciated this.
Like with any anthology, some works were better than others. A few of my favorites include: Empathy, Why I Ate My Wife, Notes on Coitus, The Young Man Who Hid His Body Inside a Horse, The Sex Machine, Sacrifice, A Contract, Blind, A Screw, and The Caregiver.
This was a haunting little book and I highly recommend it if you can stomach the obscenity.
CW: Sadism, animal abuse, child abuse/sex abuse, rape/sex abuse, torture, cannibalism, body horror, self harm, fecal matter/bodily fluids
This transfixing collection is full of taboo, lust, hatred, disgust, wariness, torment/agony, dread, and any other discomfort you can conjure. The writing is flowery yet grotesque; so repulsive you can’t drag your eyes off the page.
Despite its charm, the vivid writing almost overshadows the stories themselves. Such stylistic writing can be distracting and sometimes feels as though the author put more effort into the words than into the stories.
Many pieces end abruptly, leaving us with unanswered questions. For some readers this might be unsatisfying, but I find uncertainty most effective in horror and appreciated this.
Like with any anthology, some works were better than others. A few of my favorites include: Empathy, Why I Ate My Wife, Notes on Coitus, The Young Man Who Hid His Body Inside a Horse, The Sex Machine, Sacrifice, A Contract, Blind, A Screw, and The Caregiver.
This was a haunting little book and I highly recommend it if you can stomach the obscenity.
CW: Sadism, animal abuse, child abuse/sex abuse, rape/sex abuse, torture, cannibalism, body horror, self harm, fecal matter/bodily fluids
no_pal_al's review
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
timjones91's review against another edition
1.0
From a Swans fan:
Not worth the paper it’s written on, and I read it on a pirated PDF. Go figure.
Not worth the paper it’s written on, and I read it on a pirated PDF. Go figure.
dzengota's review against another edition
4.0
Easily the most grotesque and horrific writing I have ever experienced. And not for a single sentence does a single one of these stories let up. Nearly every sentence is a short and brutal "I" statement describing the hateful things the given character is doing or dreams of doing. The things described in the book often verge and cross over into the realm of the entirely absurd. But it doesn't matter because the book weaponizes your own head voice against you. By painting such horrific pictures in the first person, the visceral images lodge themselves in your brain and stay there long enough to feel like you imagined them. What a nightmare.
3rin_reads's review
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Pedophilia, Death, Animal death, and Incest
j_toasty's review
4.0
- B w/ sm dose, prevent desens
- Self title is the best one, meth binge in theatre good too, back half weakens out
- Wanted to inflame 🧠, worked out
bookishdoll's review against another edition
1.0
Aight yall, I heard about this one on booktok. I wanted to check it out myself but... I'm checking out. No way. There's something disturbing to me about writing this shocking stuff just to get a reaction. At least I hope this isn't a look into his mind. Either way, count me out.