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ttodd86's review
2.0
A lot of readers have shared opinions about this book, some quite strongly. I would only add that I think Amelia Gray is an extremely talented writer. Her ability to set an atmosphere is as good as anyone writing. Taking what she establishes and then turning it on its head or shocking the hell out of it, however, is maybe something taken best in small doses and not in a collection. While some of the works individually are very impressive (and others, certainly, are not) taken one after the other caused me to start to glaze over a bit. I can't fully engage because I am constantly waiting for whatever else is lurking out in left field.
rahthesungod's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
geoffdgeorge's review
Read the thirty-eight short stories in this collection two or three at a time, in short bursts, between other books. Many of the shortest, oddest, most-open-to-interpretation ones wound up being my favorites. Among them:
"These Are the Fables"
"Gutshot"
"Labyrinth"
"The Swan As Metaphore for Love"
"A Contest"
"Christmas House"
"Thank You"
"Legacy"
The varied experimental, absurdist approaches and the often-truncated nature of the stories (some felt more like poems than narratives) reminded me of Donald Barthelme, in the best way. I found myself oftentimes jumping between emotions, laughing and sitting in ponderous, sober silence on the same page.
"These Are the Fables"
"Gutshot"
"Labyrinth"
"The Swan As Metaphore for Love"
"A Contest"
"Christmas House"
"Thank You"
"Legacy"
The varied experimental, absurdist approaches and the often-truncated nature of the stories (some felt more like poems than narratives) reminded me of Donald Barthelme, in the best way. I found myself oftentimes jumping between emotions, laughing and sitting in ponderous, sober silence on the same page.
hectaizani's review
2.0
I received this in a Page Habit book box way back when Page Habit was still a thing.
It's been forlornly waiting on the shelf for me to read it since then. I wish I could give it more stars because the story fragments are beautifully written and there are so many words, sentences, and whole paragraphs which are funny or poignant or odd or likeable for some reason. BUT, fragments are exactly what they are and I am not a short story person so when I receive what feels like the first few pages of a story that doesn't have any ending I just can't.
Of all of them Thank You was my favorite. It made me laugh.
It's been forlornly waiting on the shelf for me to read it since then. I wish I could give it more stars because the story fragments are beautifully written and there are so many words, sentences, and whole paragraphs which are funny or poignant or odd or likeable for some reason. BUT, fragments are exactly what they are and I am not a short story person so when I receive what feels like the first few pages of a story that doesn't have any ending I just can't.
Of all of them Thank You was my favorite. It made me laugh.
dakwall's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
travisclau's review
2.0
Immensely disappointed with this volume. I've heard so much about Gray's grotesque aesthetic and was looking forward to her outdoing Palahniuk's Haunted. To read reviews that describe her work as "a heart-shaker" or a "startling genre" of "exhilirating, creative" fiction seems extremely overstated. There is certainly macabre humor and fleshliness to her prose, and she has a particular knack for exploring the violence of human intimacy and perversity of domestic spaces. But I feel like most of the stories rely on a central gimmick (a grotesque turn of phrase, a disturbing event) to catch the reader off guard but ultimately stops there. "Visceral, fearless, and painfully true"? Sure. But is this work that actually challenges genre, form, and the intrinsic shock factor of the grotesque? I don't think so.
ncarter5069's review
4.0
Beautifully written at every page with a lot of bite to its bark.
Gray takes no prisoners in some of these stories, delivering repeated blows of gory shock, but in others, she's able to create an aura so mystical, you'd think she was a different author. On one page, she's a female author angered with men's predictability, and on the next, she's guiding her audience through a subconscious labyrinth like a prophetically deft fairy.
Gray takes no prisoners in some of these stories, delivering repeated blows of gory shock, but in others, she's able to create an aura so mystical, you'd think she was a different author. On one page, she's a female author angered with men's predictability, and on the next, she's guiding her audience through a subconscious labyrinth like a prophetically deft fairy.
grayfeathers's review
5.0
Rounding up from 4.5 -- I really liked this weird, varied, fascinating collection of micro- and short fiction.
kyledhebert's review
3.0
It's always hard to judge a collection of stories, especially if you devour it like I did this one. There's plenty to like in this batch of weird creepy stories that must mean something, but what they mean isn't always clear.