leilaniann's review against another edition
1.0
I really couldn't get into the author's writing style. There were a lot of good ideas in here, but the execution was off.
isosceles_kramer's review against another edition
5.0
Damn good author. This was my introduction to Laird Barron and I was thoroughly impressed. Every story seemed to get better and better, that's not always the case with short story collections.
afternoon9159's review against another edition
3.0
There were some gems here, but some stories felt like reclothed versions of others in the same collection.
_fallinglight_'s review
Starting the year with a dnf 😬 I just don't care, I'm not getting it, and reading this was worsening my brain fog.
btmarino84's review against another edition
I could listen to Ray Porter read literally any book, and he is perfectly suited for Barron's pulpy but elegant style.
shane_marble's review against another edition
3.0
Some good stories here that really suffer from being so similar. The best two are somehow *both* about old-time all-male hunting expeditions that encounter something terrible.
ninjalawyer's review against another edition
3.0
First, the good. The author is a master of story mechanics. The use of metaphor, pacing and characterization is pitch perfect. Characterization in particular is excellent, with main characters often given lengthy and interesting back stories that turn them into flesh and blood people.
But...I still don't think I would recommend. While the mechanics of the stories are excellent, the stories themselves share so many similar themes - the dark figure with forbidden knowledge, elder gods that pull humanities strings, hard drinking main characters, etc. - that they end up feeling a bit samey. Probably a full two-thirds of the stories end up with everyone but the main character dead, and he or she only left alive to tell the story of what happened. The feeling of "been there, done that" is even worse if you've read Lovecraft, whose stories feature many of the same themes.
I will give special mention to the last story of the collection. This one featured an author as the main character encountering people in the horror/scifi writers scene and eventually going to a reading with some friends, with the author they're going to see being a recluse. Naturally this recluse has dark and forbidden knowledge. The whole thing seems ridiculously self-indulgent, and is only made worse when one of the fictional books mentioned in the story is the title of the story collection that it appears in.
But...I still don't think I would recommend. While the mechanics of the stories are excellent, the stories themselves share so many similar themes - the dark figure with forbidden knowledge, elder gods that pull humanities strings, hard drinking main characters, etc. - that they end up feeling a bit samey. Probably a full two-thirds of the stories end up with everyone but the main character dead, and he or she only left alive to tell the story of what happened. The feeling of "been there, done that" is even worse if you've read Lovecraft, whose stories feature many of the same themes.
I will give special mention to the last story of the collection. This one featured an author as the main character encountering people in the horror/scifi writers scene and eventually going to a reading with some friends, with the author they're going to see being a recluse. Naturally this recluse has dark and forbidden knowledge. The whole thing seems ridiculously self-indulgent, and is only made worse when one of the fictional books mentioned in the story is the title of the story collection that it appears in.
trebel's review
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
aminererror's review against another edition
4.0
*4.5*
At the risk of coming off dramatic, this is the scariest book I’ve ever read. Maybe it hits at the exact stuff that disturbs me the most, or maybe it’s also just very gross, but holy this was such a visceral experience. These stories gave me legitimate nightmares. I love it so much. I will definitely be reading it again…just not any time soon. Time for a romance novel.
Once again at the risk of sounding dramatic, I am positive that one day i will look back on this book as one of the more formative story collections in both my writing and my taste.
At the risk of coming off dramatic, this is the scariest book I’ve ever read. Maybe it hits at the exact stuff that disturbs me the most, or maybe it’s also just very gross, but holy this was such a visceral experience. These stories gave me legitimate nightmares. I love it so much. I will definitely be reading it again…just not any time soon. Time for a romance novel.
Once again at the risk of sounding dramatic, I am positive that one day i will look back on this book as one of the more formative story collections in both my writing and my taste.
tyrshand's review against another edition
5.0
Most of the stories in this book are five star, for sure, and usually pretty chilling. I could read this all in one go because the impact of each had to be savored (shivered?) for a while so that each story affected me as it ought to. I'm definitely going to read more of Barron's work.