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milloreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
ezismythical's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
sabrinakhen's review against another edition
Listened the the first story and it was terrible. Decided not to torture myself with anymore.
pensnfeathers's review against another edition
2.0
This is a difficult one for me to review, mostly because I almost never read collections of short stories. But this collection appeared in the NYT as a notable book of 2021, and was then given to me as a gift, so I went in with high hopes and expectations.
To get it right out of the way, I'll say this: While each of these stories are in one way or another distinctly sexual, most of them are not erotic. This is not a book of porn. It's not really a book of literary short fiction either. Rather, this feels to me like a collection of stories that are determined to present BDSM as some alternative to religion. A practice of ascension that only those who practice it could ever hope to understand. That isn't to say that sex can't be defining or revelatory, but for the most part this collection comes off a bit self-aggrandizing.
There were a couple of stories that I enjoyed. "Scissors," "The Lost Performance of the High Priestess of the Temple of Horror," and "The Voyeurs" all stand out. Funnily enough, these three stories come one after another in the second half of the collection. But the rest either didn't stand out to me, or stood out in ways that I didn't appreciate.
I give this collection a 2 out of 5. I don't know if that's fair. I don't know how to rate a collection of short stories. The three stories I mention above all get 4 out of 5, but the collection as a whole left me pretty distinctly disappointed.
To get it right out of the way, I'll say this: While each of these stories are in one way or another distinctly sexual, most of them are not erotic. This is not a book of porn. It's not really a book of literary short fiction either. Rather, this feels to me like a collection of stories that are determined to present BDSM as some alternative to religion. A practice of ascension that only those who practice it could ever hope to understand. That isn't to say that sex can't be defining or revelatory, but for the most part this collection comes off a bit self-aggrandizing.
There were a couple of stories that I enjoyed. "Scissors," "The Lost Performance of the High Priestess of the Temple of Horror," and "The Voyeurs" all stand out. Funnily enough, these three stories come one after another in the second half of the collection. But the rest either didn't stand out to me, or stood out in ways that I didn't appreciate.
I give this collection a 2 out of 5. I don't know if that's fair. I don't know how to rate a collection of short stories. The three stories I mention above all get 4 out of 5, but the collection as a whole left me pretty distinctly disappointed.
dylan_darko's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
jquellin's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
A short story collection of people exploring or indulging or discovering kinks. Overall it was an interesting read definitely one to do in chunks as it can be a bit much to read in one go.
san04's review against another edition
dark
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
gicalabria's review against another edition
2.0
adorei principalmente os contos de chris kraus e carmen maria machado, e o de brandon taylor também é muito bom. esses acabam saltando à página pela qualidade geral ser tão irregular e até as temáticas serem bem inconsistentes. senti que faltou edição (ou briefing?). se dependesse das que eu gostei, seriam 4 estrelas entusiásticas, mas a coleção como um todo é bem mediana.
ps a pessoa que escreveu a história sobre assediar a prima deveria estar na PRISÃO abram uma investigação federal agora……..
[li por recomendação de anya taylor joy e agora estou duvidando do gosto dela]
ps a pessoa que escreveu a história sobre assediar a prima deveria estar na PRISÃO abram uma investigação federal agora……..
[li por recomendação de anya taylor joy e agora estou duvidando do gosto dela]
krilves's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
2.0
this review is probably going to be unfair. I thought, when I picked this up, that it was a collection of non-fiction essays. that's my fault, for not reading the cover copy properly. once I started reading and realised it was fiction, I was already disappointed: not a great way to start something, but fine: I decided to stick with it and read it on its own merits.
and here's where it gets unfair: this is a literary collection which means that while some of the stories were good, they just...didn't really do anything. I can see some of them being used in school curriculums, they feel like the kind of short stories I was made to read in school and do homework about it. and it's unfair to judge a book for being something it's not, like, I *know* this isn't a collection of sexy stories. they're not meant to titillate. they're not erotica. they're literary. I just think I would have enjoyed it more if they were, because the literary-ness of the stories just kind of ruined the kink.
so anyway. this wasn't my cup of tea. I'm not sure I feel particularly enriched for having read this collection either. the last one especially was a huge what the fuck is this - not because it was kinky (it wasn't really) but because there were weird tangents about idk philosophy and shit that didn't seem to have any relevance to the story itself. it felt like literary wanking, which, to put it bluntly, is not my kink. ha.
and here's where it gets unfair: this is a literary collection which means that while some of the stories were good, they just...didn't really do anything. I can see some of them being used in school curriculums, they feel like the kind of short stories I was made to read in school and do homework about it. and it's unfair to judge a book for being something it's not, like, I *know* this isn't a collection of sexy stories. they're not meant to titillate. they're not erotica. they're literary. I just think I would have enjoyed it more if they were, because the literary-ness of the stories just kind of ruined the kink.
so anyway. this wasn't my cup of tea. I'm not sure I feel particularly enriched for having read this collection either. the last one especially was a huge what the fuck is this - not because it was kinky (it wasn't really) but because there were weird tangents about idk philosophy and shit that didn't seem to have any relevance to the story itself. it felt like literary wanking, which, to put it bluntly, is not my kink. ha.