sspaghettiboness's Reviews (138)

The twists felt very predictable and the gore was well written and fully thought out, I’d mind the warnings this book isn’t for anyone with a weak stomach. 

I found the main character wonderfully despicable and blunt about his despicable nature, something I truly enjoy, and at parts the writing had beats akin to Fight Club which I really enjoyed. The deeper meaning of it all was sometimes buried underneath the absolute wreckage of grossness but the plot stayed true to itself. 

The references to Japanese folklore were great. Was this book particularly scary? No. However, I really enjoyed the depth of the writing and word choice. It seemed like every single piece of prose was deliberate, not a single letter wasted. Sometimes, with novellas like this, I find there’s a lot of filler, but Khaw did an excellent job of moving the story with vocabulary, and I really appreciated it for that. But again, if you’re looking for a scare, I don’t think it’s here. However I was reminded of Eric Larocca’s You’ve Lost A Lot Of Blood, which I adored for similar reasons. 

I found the writing and prose to be extremely well crafted and fine tuned, however, there wasn’t any particular moment or line in this book that felt stellar. Usually, when I read, there’s at least one or two pieces that jump out at me and I write them down, but this book didn’t have that. It was also a little difficult to understand certain parts because I lacked the cultural context, more a criticism of me, but it is helpful to understand Japanese society and religion when reading this. I think if I’d known a little more, it would’ve made more sense. Overall it’s well written, but sort of bland. Quick read though, and the cover art is fantastic.