Reviews

Burnt Tongues by

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Chirp Audiobook

CW: Animal abuse, suicide, eating disorders, sa

Foreward by Chuck Palahniuk, the stories are supposed to be transgressive fiction. Most stories were just average, but there were a few standouts.

First, I have to admit to not understanding the story, Lemmings. I have no idea who the narrator is & why his brother has so much power. I feel stupid. Also, the last story on the audiobook ends with loud music that drowns out the last sentence & I have a feeling that sentence is very important.

The story that elicited the strongest emotion from me was, Charlie. It was so horrible and I cried so much. The story of a little boy who was so jealous of his younger sister he did something unforgivable.

My favorite story started as a joke. I was reading, thinking, “what is this pretentious bullshit?” Then, I started to really like the story & came to the conclusion that I like pretentious bullshit & that’s that. I should reread The Secret History. What can I say, I like a little romance in my horror.

The shorts ran all over the place, I wouldn’t rate any of them badly, and I don’t regret reading any of them except maybe the one about the girl who had a story to tell. Many of these made you feel a little smarter from reading them, but only a couple will stay with me for a long time.

anianneooh's review against another edition

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4.0

Dark, darker, darkest.

katepowellshine's review

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2.0

A decent collection, but don't expect most of these stories to actually be transgressive. Some were, but some were merely sensationalist, and others verge on boring. Perhaps I wouldn't have found any of them boring had the copy on the back of the book been so eye-rollingly over-the-top. I should have known better. Don't get me wrong, though; I enjoyed many of these stories.

tcgarback's review

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4.0

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Critical Score: B+
Personal Score: B+
Reading Experience:

dateinprague's review against another edition

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dark funny tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

blives2dance's review against another edition

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4.0

Live This Down - 4.5/5
Charlie - 4/5
Paper - 3/5
Mating - 3/5
Melody - 2/5
F for Faker - 5/5
Mind and Soldier - 3/5
Ingredients - 5/5
The line forms on the right - 5/5
A vodka kind of girl - 3/5
Gasoline - 4.5/5
Dietary - 5/5
Invisible Graffiti - 4/5
Bike - 2/5
Heavier Petting - wtf did I just read 4.5/5
Engines, O-rings and Astronauts - 4/5
Lemming - 3.5/5
The routine - 4/5
Survived - 2/5
Zombie Whorehouse - 5/5

jessiraemorton's review

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4.0

Like most short story collections, Burnt Tongues has a couple of misses, but overall, it was a great read. Zombie Whorehouse, Bike, and Heavier Petting are probably my three favorites, because they push expectations and still make relevant social comments. Some of the other stories were shocking/gruesome but didn't seem to make a larger point. Even those stories were fun because the writing was good and the subject matter was pretty far out. Personally, I think transgressive fiction works best as satire or social commentary so those stories which seemed to be working on that level were much more enjoyable to me. Other horror fans may enjoy several of the other stories just for the content.