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A review by emmdashed
Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca
challenging
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I should have looked at the Content Warnings for this one lol 😬
It's probably not the Grossest Book Ever but it's up there and it features Very Graphic Animal and Child Cruelty/Death. And there are some other really gnarly moments of just nasty stuff. And some cringey sexting.
Ultimately I am still not sure how I completely feel about this book. It was both extremely easy to read and extremely difficult to read. You want to know what happens and it's so short you can just inhale it but at the same time the images it paints are disturbing and I found myself just really bummed and grossed out. I think it crosses the line at points into being 2 Edgy 4 U so like.... that's certainly a choice. I found myself wondering what is the point what are we saying why this story. But also I read the whole thing so ???
I think it could either have been longer so we could get more into the characters and why they behaved the way they did. Or it could have been shorter and excised some of the unnecessary anecdotes (like honestly the Little Christ and the Priest and the Cat moments added literally nothing apart from being ~edgy and disturbing ooooo~). The length that it was was just awkward.
Some more spoiler heavy thoughts below:
I honestly could somewhat buy Agnes' immediate devotion to Zoe. It was 0-100 real fast, but it seemed like she was the victim of a lot of emotional abuse in the past, even more than she described. Unfortunately that kind of trauma sometimes leads victims to unintentionally attach themselves to more abusers. (This is not trying to victim blame, abuse is a fucked up cycle that can ruin lives). It almost felt like a Cult Initiation story with this vulnerable woman being caught by this leader and the mentality/lifestyle Zoe offered her?? Not sure where I'm going with it but ???
I was more bothered by the speed at which the Tapeworm grew like... it takes weeks not days. Especially for them to get that big. But maybe I'm just pedantic.
Also.... I feel bad for Agnes' roommate while all this nonsense is going on like. Your roommate is keeping rotting meat and eating it like that would stink up the house at the very least. Besides all the other weird behavior lol.
TLDR: idk this was a weird one and I can't say if it's good or bad. Bummed me out but I've been thinking about it for days. Blades of Glory says it best.
"Nobody knows what it means but it's provocative. It's gets the people going."
It's probably not the Grossest Book Ever but it's up there and it features Very Graphic Animal and Child Cruelty/Death. And there are some other really gnarly moments of just nasty stuff. And some cringey sexting.
Ultimately I am still not sure how I completely feel about this book. It was both extremely easy to read and extremely difficult to read. You want to know what happens and it's so short you can just inhale it but at the same time the images it paints are disturbing and I found myself just really bummed and grossed out. I think it crosses the line at points into being 2 Edgy 4 U so like.... that's certainly a choice. I found myself wondering what is the point what are we saying why this story. But also I read the whole thing so ???
I think it could either have been longer so we could get more into the characters and why they behaved the way they did. Or it could have been shorter and excised some of the unnecessary anecdotes (like honestly the Little Christ and the Priest and the Cat moments added literally nothing apart from being ~edgy and disturbing ooooo~). The length that it was was just awkward.
Some more spoiler heavy thoughts below:
I was more bothered by the speed at which the Tapeworm grew like... it takes weeks not days. Especially for them to get that big. But maybe I'm just pedantic.
Also.... I feel bad for Agnes' roommate while all this nonsense is going on like. Your roommate is keeping rotting meat and eating it like that would stink up the house at the very least. Besides all the other weird behavior lol.
TLDR: idk this was a weird one and I can't say if it's good or bad. Bummed me out but I've been thinking about it for days. Blades of Glory says it best.
"Nobody knows what it means but it's provocative. It's gets the people going."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and War
Moderate: Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Lesbophobia, and Dysphoria
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
Not sure about the severity ratings but I tried to put as many of these as I can. I cannot stress enough that this book gets r o u g h. The animal and child death stood out particularly to me but other bits might bother other people.