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akira_outofthegravity's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Make it past the first and second story and you will reach gold. A beautiful anthology discussing trauma, revenge, love, greed, guilt, with a mix of sci-fi and horror to really emphasise the themes.
I really loved the stories, I loved that despite everything it wasn’t all doom and gloom. There were some happy endings within it all.
My top three stories have to be:
1. Cursed Bunny
2. Home Sweet Home
3. Snare
But to be honest I loved all of them bar the first two.
I really loved the stories, I loved that despite everything it wasn’t all doom and gloom. There were some happy endings within it all.
My top three stories have to be:
1. Cursed Bunny
2. Home Sweet Home
3. Snare
But to be honest I loved all of them bar the first two.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Blood, Grief, Car accident, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Incest, Mental illness, Suicide, Medical trauma, and Abandonment
perfectplaces's review against another edition
5.0
“Life shrinks into a trap made up of a shimmering moment in the past, a trap where they endlessly repeat that singular moment when they were surest of being alive. That moment is short, but long after it has passed, good times as well as bad slip like sand through their fingers as they meaninglessly repeat and confirm their survival.”
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just so good. every story in here was like wow. wow. i’m in shock. i can’t even pick a favourite.
mind the trigger warnings! there are a LOT and each story has different ones but i’ve tried to tag the most significant.
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just so good. every story in here was like wow. wow. i’m in shock. i can’t even pick a favourite.
mind the trigger warnings! there are a LOT and each story has different ones but i’ve tried to tag the most significant.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Gore, Incest, and Suicide
Moderate: Confinement, Rape, and Excrement
sarahsbooklife's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-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? Yes
4.0
This book is filled with some strange but interesting and entertaining stories. Some are horror, thriller, sci-fi, magical realism and pure fantasy — each one unique.
Definitely give this book a read if you enjoyed Kim Jiyoung Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo or Lemon by Kwon Yeo-Sun.
Definitely give this book a read if you enjoyed Kim Jiyoung Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo or Lemon by Kwon Yeo-Sun.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Violence, Blood, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Death, Incest, Infidelity, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Murder, Pregnancy, and War
Minor: Animal death and Slavery
mmccombs's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
I completely understand why this has made it to the international booker short list! Each of these stories immediately grabbed me by the throat, and just when I thought I knew what was going on/where it was going to go, I’d be jerked in a totally unexpected direction. Despite each story being fairly drastically different in content and style (we’ve got horror, we’ve got fables, we’ve got sci fi!), you can still tell that they’re in many ways linked. They’re all so clever and well written! I really loved all of these stories, but I’d probably say Cursed Bunny and The Head were my favorites. I came for the cover and have stayed for the stories, I could see myself coming back to read these again!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Incest, Miscarriage, Torture, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Excrement, and Car accident
Minor: Suicide
charleyroxy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Can a book be diabolically good? I am not sure but I will submit that it can be. Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung and translated from Korean by Anton Hur is an upcoming release from Honford Star (15 July) and is just that kind of good. This collection of ten stories ranges from fairytales to absolute horror and the gamut inbetween. I am in awe of Chung's talent as a short story author and look forward to reading more of her writing one day. With it's subtle and not so subtle critiques of patriarchy, capitalism, and humanity itself it really has so much to offer and the translation is flawless. While I enjoyed the titular Cursed Bunny, Reunion and Goodbye, My Love a lot, my favourite was The Frozen Finger. The story immediately thrusts you into the aftermath of a car crash and from start to finish it was everything I want from a short story. I felt the intensity, the panic, the confusion, everything! I would absolutely suggest pre-ordering this one and, if in the UK, directly from Honford Star. Don't miss this one.
As an important note, I will include a list of content warnings below because it is long. If you are squeamish about bodily fluids you won't make it past the first story. There is gore, abuse, animal cruelty, suicide, and more so be prepared. I loved finding this quote of Chung's from an interview about her writing to give you an idea:
"I don’t feel scared at all when writing horrific or gory scenes. I think it’s because my intention is more to imagine what an ordinary person wouldn’t do or wouldn’t react to, of that twist in the character’s behavior. Aside from making up a fun plot, you’ve got to make the unusual reactions of your characters believable if you want to convince your reader. I think the power of writing is in this ability to make the reader believe. I wanted to see how far I could push that in my writing. That’s all I was trying to do, and it’s amusing to me when people say my characters scare them."
As an important note, I will include a list of content warnings below because it is long. If you are squeamish about bodily fluids you won't make it past the first story. There is gore, abuse, animal cruelty, suicide, and more so be prepared. I loved finding this quote of Chung's from an interview about her writing to give you an idea:
"I don’t feel scared at all when writing horrific or gory scenes. I think it’s because my intention is more to imagine what an ordinary person wouldn’t do or wouldn’t react to, of that twist in the character’s behavior. Aside from making up a fun plot, you’ve got to make the unusual reactions of your characters believable if you want to convince your reader. I think the power of writing is in this ability to make the reader believe. I wanted to see how far I could push that in my writing. That’s all I was trying to do, and it’s amusing to me when people say my characters scare them."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Abortion, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Suicide, Car accident, and Murder
Minor: Incest, Rape, Self harm, and Sexual content
While there is not a miscarriage exactly, in The Embodiment there is a scene that would be quite triggering to those who have had the experience.