analinus's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
booksandbulletjournaling's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
zoemooremix's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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? Yes
3.75
yasminnnali's review
4.0
Majority of the stories were insanely wild actually. Like seared into my brain wild. One fully made me uncomfortable, whilst one had me dying. One or two probably were forgettable but as a theme of empty rooms and homes was spot on.
jonathanvdh's review against another edition
3.0
Schweblin is een kundig schrijver die niet veel nodig heeft om een sfeer neer te zetten en spanning op te bouwen. Inhoudelijk lijken de zeven huizen in deze bundel inderdaad behoorlijk leeg, maar wie hier en daar wat aan het behang peutert, vindt af en toe nog ergens een verborgen kamer.
elisegarrett's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- 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
4.0
theinkwyrm's review
2.0
Honestly, I probably shouldn’t rate this book because I really don’t think I’m smart enough to understand what Schweblin was trying to do with these stories, so I just rated it on my enjoyment, which was pretty low. Each of these stories was uniquely unpleasant and depressing and I just did not enjoy my time with this book (although as with all translated literature, it’s hard to tell if it was the translation at fault or the actual stories).
shanviolinlove's review
4.0
My third time reading Samanta Schweblin since becoming enraptured by her eerie novel Little Eyes and her more frustratingly narrated novel Fever Dream. This collection of short stories contains that same imbalance, commonplace characters in commonplace settings who do or perceive unusual things. The end result is chaos, disillusion, panic.
By far the strongest story in this collection is the longest one, "Breath from the Depths." No spoilers, but the pacing in this story as it unravels detail after detail is precise, precarious, and signature-Schweblin unsettling. I had a harder time feeling satisfied with some of the other stories, a trend I'm noticing in some contemporary Latin American short stories in that they end mere pages after they begin, introducing a plot and then wrapping up the story before even teasing out a climax. It's hard to get invested in characters or storyline when the stories are so abrupt, some of them more like snippets. Still, I do like the mystery that Schweblin's brevity lends: she deliberately leaves teasing unanswered questions in her stories. You get a glimpse of a strange world before you're pulled out of it, and you can only take whatever you had the chance to catch.
By far the strongest story in this collection is the longest one, "Breath from the Depths." No spoilers, but the pacing in this story as it unravels detail after detail is precise, precarious, and signature-Schweblin unsettling. I had a harder time feeling satisfied with some of the other stories, a trend I'm noticing in some contemporary Latin American short stories in that they end mere pages after they begin, introducing a plot and then wrapping up the story before even teasing out a climax. It's hard to get invested in characters or storyline when the stories are so abrupt, some of them more like snippets. Still, I do like the mystery that Schweblin's brevity lends: she deliberately leaves teasing unanswered questions in her stories. You get a glimpse of a strange world before you're pulled out of it, and you can only take whatever you had the chance to catch.
dirtbagdemimonde's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
The longest story did a good job building interest and had some serious gothic lit vibes. I think this would have hit harder for me if I was more in the mood for short stories.