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tianaaaa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I don't understand why people are complaining about how disgusting it is - you picked up a horror book, what did you expect? The book explores themes like the patriarchy, capitalism and unusual creatures in unsettling detail.
My favourite chapters was:
The head - a creature being made from the leftovers of a woman's toilet and it invades and ruins her life
The embodiment - A women who got pregnant despite taking birth control and was told that she would have to find someone willing to be the father in order for the baby to be alright and healthy however she is too late and just gives birth to something that is sort of described as a massive blood clot. Interesting take on societal pressures and how a child not having a father figure may not be normal whist also showing pressures of a single mother.
Cursed Bunny -Very interesting an satisfying to read. A greedy business eventually gets teared to the ground because of the sheer amount of rabbits eating documents.
Scar - The longest chapter in the book being about 52 pages. I was sort of confused about the ending but it sort of gave the meaning where a monster doesn't need to be horrifying to indity, sometimes it can be disguised as a man. The chapter itself is quite sad but it's action packed so it's still a gripping read.
Least favourite:
Ruler of the winds and sands - a princess tries to help a prince with his curse but gets stabbed in the back, a story about self discovering. I just thought it wasn't as interesting as the others and just seemed as a cliche fairytale.
Goodbye, My love - Sort of reminded me of a black mirror episode as it was a sci-fi horror. Basically, a woman has 3 robots in her house but the first one no longer works so the woman wants to have her replaced by another and so she tries to order another. However, the other 2 robots help the old robot and they just stab the woman because they explain how they don't like being replaced. Whilst I didn't hate this chapter, I did find it quite underwhelming and I just thought it wasn't very unique.
There are other chapters but this review would be too long to write about every one. In my option, not every chapter was interesting and just did have that cliche plot which made it a less unique and gripping read however Bora Chung still managed to cover a variety of genres such as greed, patriarchy and abuse in a unsettling but also sometimes humous way.
Minor: Body horror, Incest, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Excrement, and Murder
mementomoriiv's review against another edition
The stories are really well written with interesting premises. Some are just emotionally draining.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
vixenreader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Grief, and Gaslighting
Minor: Miscarriage, Suicide, Vomit, and Stalking
Be aware that there is characters slowly dying, hunger, starvation, c-sections, blood clots, mob violence, financial struggles, mentions of Nazism, and destruction of cities and families.the_other_yvonne's review against another edition
Graphic: Body horror, Incest, Sexual violence, and Pregnancy
cider_lover's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Gore, Incest, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Minor: Murder
sauvageloup's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
pros:
- they're definitely gripping, and the writing style is sparse but clear and evocative, with the descriptions being vivid.
- the stories felt self contained and satisfying overall, even as many ended in tragedy.
- the last book of short stories I read, i struggled to jump from one story to another, maybe because they were so different and by different people. this one wasnt like that at all, and i had no problem reading straight through, pretty much.
- i liked the variety in length and themes of the stories, from birth horror, to supernatural, to fantasy fairy tale and modern criticisms on feminism and capitalism. i think i mainly read very on the surface and didnt look hard at metaphors and such, a reread might help me see this more.
- I liked the sheer imagination though and how Chung makes you care for characters who often arent even given a name.
cons:
- the first two stories especially, but a lot of them overall, were pretty horrible and graphic. they did their job in making you feel things! but it reminded me too much of just horrible nightmares and intrusive thoughts and I wouldnt read those two again.
- I also felt there was generally a lack of hope in the stories, but that's personal taste I guess.
overall, well written and gripping but too horror for me and dont think I'll seek out more of her work, but I might reread this in time.
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
sneakysophster's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Excrement, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy
rlhreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Cannibalism, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
aish_mh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
3.75
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual violence
noodelydia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Incest, Rape, Sexual violence, and Suicide