Horror, Short Stories, Adult Fiction
Published : 2021
My rating : 4/5
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Body Shocks (compiled & edited by Ellen Datlow) is an anthology of short stories centered around body horror.
Body horror being defined as:
❝ …a subgenre of horror that intentionally showcases grotesque or psychologically disturbing violations of the human body…
~ wikipedia
i love body horror. if it’s well-written, you can almost feel it. so with that in mind, i was really excited to delve into this anthology.
as with any collection, there’s hits & there’s misses. some stories I didn’t even finish reading because i disliked the writing or it was too convoluted. others had me completely wrapped up in the story and left me wanting more.
overall, in my opinion, the good stories outweigh the not so good stories, so i can honestly say i enjoyed this selection and it checked (almost) all my boxes.
These are my top favorites (no spoilers)
○ Painlessness by Kirtsyn McDermott ★★★★☆ – 4/5
a woman, recovering from being ill, makes an unlikely friend in her neighbor who suffers from an astonishing ailment.
➤ my notes: MESSED UP, well-written, cool premise, twisty turny goodness
○ Subsumption by Lucy Taylor ★★★★☆ – 4/5
in the aftermath of an apocalypse, two survivors venture out of their bunker to find that the world has changed in a frightening way.
➤ my notes: slow start, decent body horror representation, reminds me of Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer
○ Welcome to Mengele’s by Simon Bestwick ★★★★★ – 5/5
Mengele’s is a special place to get your rocks off: the sex workers there, with the help of plastic surgery, take on the form of anybody you can imagine (celebs, famous people, etc).
➤ my notes: perverted, genius and messed up, a completely original idea
○ The Lake by Tananarive Due ★★★★☆ – 4/5
a teacher, wanting to restart her life, moves to a big house by a lake. she begins to change & obsess over the water.
➤ my notes: predictable but classic body horror, a pretty fun read
○ The Look by Christopher Fowler ★★★★★ – 5/5
a girl wants to be a model with the fashion guru Kit, but the modeling business is more deranged than she could have ever imagined.
➤ my notes: honestly fascinating, fucked, nice little underlying commentary on beauty & modeling
○ Spores by Seanan McGuire ★★★★★ – 5/5
a woman with severe OCD finds a concerning fungus inside her house, one that spreads quickly..
➤ my notes: this was my ultimate favorite story in the entire book, amazing writing, a bit sad, great realistic body horror
○ Tissue Ablation and Variant Regeneration by Michael Blumlein ★★★★☆ – 4/5
a surgeons detailed record of a purposeful operation on an old fellow, using no anesthetic.
➤ my notes: a lot of medical jargon almost made me stop reading, ending was worth it, well done
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i would recommend this book to any horror fan. take what you like, & leave the rest!
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thanks for reading !
♡
biblio goblin 