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huckleberryrk's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Intriguing. For the depressed gay man in your life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol
Moderate: Death, Drug use, Grief, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Body horror
girlygirlreader's review against another edition
4.0
A creative retelling of queer romance. Each story had me coming back excited to move on to the next. Strongly recommend!
ngfsorensen's review against another edition
2.0
Zomparelli writes characters who live where depression and longing meet—and he writes them exceptionally well. This collection has some of the rawest depictions of gay hookup culture I’ve ever read. However, that’s really all the collection has to offer and each of the short stories begin to blend with the others and feel like different sets for the same story.
mnjesse's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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
3.5
swampopposum's review against another edition
5.0
I got a little confused keeping characters straight every now and then but ultimately this collection was witty, thought provoking, and queerly satisfying. I can't wait to see what else Daniel Zomparelli has to offer
cent's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
haleymadd's review against another edition
3.0
*I received advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Edelweiss and Arsenal Pulp Press*
I liked this book, but it wasn't what I was expecting. This book contains short stories all somehow relating to each other. I kind of got how they were relating to each other, but at the same time I really didn't I found some stories to be hilarious and others to be just not my type. Overall I liked this book, but I don't think this author's writing is for me. I'm happy I went out to read a different kind of book and this isn't a type I'm used to with short stories as the main concept of the book. I wouldn't recommend this book because it just wasn't a book I would recommend.
I liked this book, but it wasn't what I was expecting. This book contains short stories all somehow relating to each other. I kind of got how they were relating to each other, but at the same time I really didn't I found some stories to be hilarious and others to be just not my type. Overall I liked this book, but I don't think this author's writing is for me. I'm happy I went out to read a different kind of book and this isn't a type I'm used to with short stories as the main concept of the book. I wouldn't recommend this book because it just wasn't a book I would recommend.
cheye13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"It feels like all we ever do in this world is break each others' hearts."
This might be 5 stars on a reread, I'm mostly (pleasantly) stunned and confused. I picked this up expecting a short story anthology and instead got a fictionalized memoir-poem. I loved it, but I did actually want to read short stories, and this didn't quite scratch that itch.
It starts with absurdist stories in traditional form (Ghosts Can Be Boyfriends Too, Craig Has Very Nice Skin, etc), split regularly with some vignettes of grindr dates (Date: [username]). Around halfway through, the structure begins to dissolve – the "Date" interludes are sparser, stories begin to blend and merge, poetry verses interrupt prose. Yet it's in this inversion that I made more sense of what I was reading and found myself enjoying the book more.
The title is apt in the same way; near the beginning, it feels very on the nose. The stories are unpleasant, sad, "awful," the characters' flaws are glaring, uncomfortable, "terrible." Yet as narrative structure melts into meaning, the stories feel more genuine and honest – still heavy and sad, but more empathetic. By the time I reached the title story, the phrase meant something entirely different.
A beautiful book that took me completely by surprise. In definite need of a reread.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, and Car accident
Most are allegorical or metaphorical, often ensconced in poetic or figurative language, but occasionally slip into literal.jessferg's review against another edition
3.0
I don't know that I've ever had a one-word review before (and obviously I'm not starting now...) but I'm tempted to; "fractured."
Neither the stories nor the people in the stories are fully broken but neither do they constitute a whole; the stories are not quite a novel, the characters are not quite self-aware.
The writing itself, however, is entirely cohesive. It can be funny and profoundly sad, often strangely insightful in ways you don't expect. I found the most interesting stories to be the few that contain otherworldly creatures but the majority of the stories are solidly rooted in the world we know and don't suffer from it.
Because it appears that I'm currently doomed to reading a number of completely unconnected books that all end-up dealing in explicit sex, I will mention that this does have some sex scenes, none of which the average movie-and-TV-watching person should find offensive in 2018.
Neither the stories nor the people in the stories are fully broken but neither do they constitute a whole; the stories are not quite a novel, the characters are not quite self-aware.
The writing itself, however, is entirely cohesive. It can be funny and profoundly sad, often strangely insightful in ways you don't expect. I found the most interesting stories to be the few that contain otherworldly creatures but the majority of the stories are solidly rooted in the world we know and don't suffer from it.
Because it appears that I'm currently doomed to reading a number of completely unconnected books that all end-up dealing in explicit sex, I will mention that this does have some sex scenes, none of which the average movie-and-TV-watching person should find offensive in 2018.