hmf5089's review
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
shawn_of_the_read's review
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
rpmirabella's review
5.0
I really don't know how many times I can say it. Kyle Winkler is an important writer, with a seemingly unlimited imagination. The weirdness of these stories is not there for the sake of weirdness, though it is fun, and nutty, and surreal, but it is also hooked to the emotional lives of the people in these stories. It's a special writer who can create a character in your mind within the first few lines of a story (Homebody), or tackle the brutality of our time without falling into sentimentality or preaching (Geshmak). My favorite story here is the mysterious, wildy imaginative, sorrowful Last Night With Cicely. But really, each of these tales offers their own glowing satisfaction. If you're coming here for the weird, you won't be disappointed, and you might be frightened or freaked. But there's real pain in OH PAIN, and real life.
misterkyle1901's review
dark
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
bookcadaver's review
5.0
OH PAIN has managed to wiggle it’s way into my top five short fiction books. I was not expecting such a weird, melancholic and bizarre read, but I’m absolutely wowed by the effort that Winkler has put into this book.
There’s twelve extremely well written and vastly different stories in this collection. The thing with a collection of short stories, personally, is that some are a huge hit or miss, or some really fall flat. Not with this book. This book had such engaging plots, ideas that I would never have dreamed of, and I’m impressed with how much imagination has gone into them.
There were three particular stories in this series that I honestly want full novels on.
- And Lo! It Was Thursday In Ohio
- Teratology
- Smudge the Head
Teratology was probably my favourite out of all of them. I don’t put spoilers in my review, but this is a story you really don’t want to miss. I read it twice before continuing with the other stories because I was absolutely infatuated with it. It was beautifully harrowing. It managed to hit my morbid fascination with humans who become monstrous, and I don’t mean humans who do evil things and become classed as ‘monsters.’
Kyle Winkler is an author I’ve had on my list to read for a while now and I’m shook at his writing and the ability to pull you into his works so quickly. I recommend every story in this collection, which is rare for me, but damn, this is a brilliant series of weird fiction and I’ll be praising this to the trash angels for a good while.
Thank you to Kyle for sending me a copy for an honest review.
BLOG | INSTA | TWITTER
There’s twelve extremely well written and vastly different stories in this collection. The thing with a collection of short stories, personally, is that some are a huge hit or miss, or some really fall flat. Not with this book. This book had such engaging plots, ideas that I would never have dreamed of, and I’m impressed with how much imagination has gone into them.
There were three particular stories in this series that I honestly want full novels on.
- And Lo! It Was Thursday In Ohio
- Teratology
- Smudge the Head
Teratology was probably my favourite out of all of them. I don’t put spoilers in my review, but this is a story you really don’t want to miss. I read it twice before continuing with the other stories because I was absolutely infatuated with it. It was beautifully harrowing. It managed to hit my morbid fascination with humans who become monstrous, and I don’t mean humans who do evil things and become classed as ‘monsters.’
Kyle Winkler is an author I’ve had on my list to read for a while now and I’m shook at his writing and the ability to pull you into his works so quickly. I recommend every story in this collection, which is rare for me, but damn, this is a brilliant series of weird fiction and I’ll be praising this to the trash angels for a good while.
Thank you to Kyle for sending me a copy for an honest review.
BLOG | INSTA | TWITTER
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