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effaly's review against another edition
1.0
Just weird and not the good kind of weird. The very poor and flat writing wasn't helping matters. When I reached the second story in which a woman had to die, because she didn't return a man's affection, I DNF'ed it.
cryingcowboy's review against another edition
4.0
This feels like walking through a building that has long been abandoned, but as you pass by every room you’re struck with the history and horror that happened there.
seinhi's review against another edition
3.0
musique concrete was really great and definitely the highlight! i think there was a lot of promise especially in the 2nd half of the book and it's premises but it didn't really go anywhere interesting. too often the stories felt way too similar to each other to the point of monotony, thankfully amparo dávila is a beautiful writer and the way these stories flowed was good enough to keep me engaged till the end :)
ruthscott's review against another edition
I really need to stop picking up short story collections - they just don't work for me
justinkhchen's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars
Turned out to be a little too subtle for what I was expecting, The Houseguest is a collection of well-intended, but ultimately derivative psychological horror stories.
It is at least thematically consistent, exploring the unexpected manifestation of our psyche, particularly in the category of anxiety, guilt, trauma, and paranoia. The collection is simply not memorable; while it definitely evokes the quiet dread similar to Poe and Shirley Jackson, nothing about them really stand out beyond being an above average imitation (perhaps it is a case of lost in translation?).
Would recommend exclusively for readers who enjoy moody, minimalist psychological horror.
Turned out to be a little too subtle for what I was expecting, The Houseguest is a collection of well-intended, but ultimately derivative psychological horror stories.
It is at least thematically consistent, exploring the unexpected manifestation of our psyche, particularly in the category of anxiety, guilt, trauma, and paranoia. The collection is simply not memorable; while it definitely evokes the quiet dread similar to Poe and Shirley Jackson, nothing about them really stand out beyond being an above average imitation (perhaps it is a case of lost in translation?).
Would recommend exclusively for readers who enjoy moody, minimalist psychological horror.
arielapakan's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
soggyoatmilk's review against another edition
The voice of these stories falls flat for me, maybe because it’s a book in translation… I’m not interested in finishing this book. Boring, half-written, vague. There were minimal passages (sentences, actually) that stood out to me as “good”.
lottie1803's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
tom_caldarera's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25