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darlaslays's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
There are 5 short stories, plus an introduction story and ending story that are even shorter. I enjoyed the spooky atmosphere and the relatable feelings of dread that each story highlighted in relation to these topics. The things that I’m afraid of that I recognized in the stories include the following:
Introduction: Darkness and the monsters that hide within it.
1. Losing family members until you are left alone by yourself as a result of uncontrollable external forces. Also, these events could have been avoided if basic instructions were followed.
2. Your husband is hiding something big from you and has skeletons in his closet. It haunts you and keeps you up at night when you’re trying to sleep. In this story, it’s a literal skeleton— more specifically, fragments of his ex’s corpse all over the house. It beckons you to do some digging on his ex and piece together who they were so it stops bugging you, but it makes everything worse when you find out all the nice stuff you have now was his ex’s so you just leave his ass instead of dealing with all this baggage .
3. Jealousy and wanting approval from others can make you do horrible things. You will be haunted by and suffer from the consequences of these actions.
4. Lying to others and deceiving them is an insidious force that causes you to lose yourself as you lose track of what is real. You don’t communicate in a straightforward way and hide things out of fear to your loved ones, so everyone gets hurt and confused in the end when the “truth” comes out.
5. Nobody knows who you really are on the inside, so who would notice if you disappeared or got replaced?
Ending: Your safety means that have to be hyper-aware and on guard at all times. You can avoid unwanted situations over and over again, but it only takes one wrong move from you for things to end badly. Especially if you follow the same routines and take the same routes over a long period of time.
Introduction: Darkness and the monsters that hide within it.
1.
2. Your husband is hiding something big from you and has skeletons in his closet. It haunts you and keeps you up at night when you’re trying to sleep.
3. Jealousy and wanting approval from others can make you do horrible things. You will be haunted by and suffer from the consequences of these actions.
4. Lying to others and deceiving them is an insidious force that causes you to lose yourself as you lose track of what is real. You don’t communicate in a straightforward way and hide things out of fear to your loved ones, so everyone gets hurt and confused in the end when the “truth” comes out.
5. Nobody knows who you really are on the inside, so who would notice if you disappeared or got replaced?
Ending: Your safety means that have to be hyper-aware and on guard at all times. You can avoid unwanted situations over and over again, but it only takes one wrong move from you for things to end badly. Especially if you follow the same routines and take the same routes over a long period of time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Child death, Stalking, and Death of parent
Minor: Domestic abuse
edenhoney's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, and Murder
blewballoon's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
A very spooky little collection of stories, greatly enhanced by the artwork!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Death, Blood, and Murder
hellsjerome's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
5 solid short stories for those into body horror, ghosts, and historical horror (?). Has almost a folklore vibe. Last one is my favourite.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Murder
tree_branch's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Murder
Moderate: Animal death and Death
Minor: Death of parent
bri_fabiano's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, and Murder
thoseoldcrows23's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I've wanted to read this for a very long time and I'm glad I finally got to it. I think I would have liked it more when I was younger, but even now it was a pretty good time. The art is great, and it was quite creepy. If you're looking for something short to read this spooky season, I recommend it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Blood, and Murder
casdelvo's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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? N/A
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Ableism, Child death, and Death of parent
bookcheshirecat's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
4.0
- This was the perfect graphic novel for Halloween! It's a collection of horror stories by Emily Carroll and I really liked her storytelling, it was haunting and creepy. The only complaint I have is that the stories all ended very abruptly before we could properly unravel the mystery and I was left wanting to know more!
- The art style is also absolutely stunning and my favorite part of the book! I love how the art adapts to the kind of story that is being told, I thought it was used very uniquely here. I definitely can see myself reading other works by this author as she's such a gifted artist!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Gore and Abandonment
ymziegler's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Good spooky book! If you're wanting a book that's more spooky-vibes rather than intense horror, this is a great option! Some stand out in my mind more than others, but that's account of my personal taste.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Murder