A review by emilybold
Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca

dark fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I went into the book knowing what the premise was, however it ended up being very different in tone compared to how I have heard it been described by others. At times I found the writing a bit hesitant to indulge in the weirdness of the novella, especially as it is so short, it needed to pack a punch. I was really rooting for this book throughout, and still would absolutely recommend it as an absurd, surreal psychological horror, it is still an exciting and unnerving premise, even if the writing shies away from that at times. Overall I thought it was an imaginative cautionary tale for the age of the internet, but could have benefitted from more risks from the author. 

spoiler review time! Firstly I am undecided about the format of the book. I feel this format served both as a help and a hinderance to the story in many ways. In terms of how it helped, I think it was a good attempt at immersive fiction, and I also really enjoyed how it read like a play script. Everything felt very immediate, which I thought was in-keeping with the idea of everything being instant on the internet. It also drew me in as a reader, at first, as there is no emotional context for anything these characters are saying, and leaves it to you to imagine how they are sitting at their computers and what type of people they are. But equally, this lack of emotional context makes it difficult to ground yourself in the story. It reads like a play with no stage directions. As much as stage directions aren't often that exciting, it usually gives you some context to play with or against. Ways I think the format could have been utilised better would be if we could see conversations between the characters and other people, just so we had some emotional context, but also some context of idiolect; do the characters change their language depending on who they're talking to? Having that base might have given the book some more contrast in terms of how Agnes becomes so isolated in her relationship with Zoe. Perhaps, if we had seen some emails from her boss, or we saw how Zoe contacted the bank the novella would have felt more rounded. At the beginning of the novella, the narrator pops in to explain where the text was taken from, and I think this technique could have almost served as some sort of stage direction, which would have grounded the dialogue more I think. I felt the authors note at the beginning should have been used more throughout the novella, or completely cut, so we are only working with the text the characters are seeing. I feel the format of the book will be the real make or break for people. Even though not every horror needs a sense of catharsis to be seen as complete, I felt that this book was a little shaky within that. But it was a bold attempt nonetheless, and for that this book and the author do earn my respect.
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