Boris Krischel
My favorite of Stalenhag's books! It has by far the best story of the four I have read, a fascinatingly dark short story that it massively improved by the accompanying art. While the art is a lot darker, sometimes less interesting because of it, the combination with the strong story makes it fit. While sometimes with his books it feels like he draws art first, and then thinks of a story to vaguely connect the images, here it is the other way around.
It was alright, but I couldn't really get into it. I think one issue with the concept of escape room type settings in a book is that it is hard to visualize. You can't really grasp the puzzles well and lose interest in it. The story was alright, but most of the characters are extremely unlikeable. So in the end I didn't really care about how it ended.
Found the Hunger Games Trilogy in a second-hand section of a bookstore and decided to give it a shot. I had heard a lot of good things about it, especially that it is considered a modern classic. And I did really enjoy it! It reads very quickly, it is very easy to read. No need to reread section or reall think about things multiple times, so I finished it quickly. Of course the constant tension and good pacing helped too. I do think sometimes things went a bit too fast for my liking? Like, there are section that I found important and would have liked to linger on longer, but the story just moves so fast. But maybe that is just a thing of young-adult novels, I don"t read them often...
When I went into this book, I thought it would be a serious book about helping to quit social media. But it is just a weird fictional story about James Acaster's journey to quit social media and starting a sort of cult. I found it quite dissapointing, but maybe it was stupid of me to go into the book with the idea it would be serious? Thank go I like the humour of James Acaster so I could still somewhat enjoy it, but not at all what I was expecting.
This was my first Poppy Z. Brite book, and you can immediately tell there’s real talent here. Compared to a lot of horror books I’ve read lately, this actually feels well written. The pacing is strong, the atmosphere is great, and the character/world building at the start really pulled me in. It has this depressing, dreamy road-trip vibe where a bunch of lost people and vampires are all searching for meaning, connection, and somewhere they belong. You can definitely see why this became such a cult classic in gothic horror circles.
The characters are interesting and memorable, even if the whole thing feels very edgy at times in that 90s goth way. The biggest issue for me though was how normalized the incest and underage sex felt throughout the story. Horror obviously pushes boundaries, and I can handle disturbing content, but here it rarely even felt framed as wrong or uncomfortable. It was just kind of... there, woven into the relationships like it was normal, and that made parts of the book genuinely weird to get through.
Also, despite being a vampire novel, the horror mostly came from the bleak atmosphere and broken characters rather than the vampires themselves. By the final stretch it became a bit of a slog for me, but I’m still glad I finished it.
Man, I really love Elizabeth Bedlam’s writing. There’s just something so fascinating about her characters and the way she writes them. This was the first full-length novel by her that I’ve read, and I loved getting to spend more time with the main character and really sit with all her struggles.
Like in Bedlam’s other work, mental illness plays a huge role here, but it’s written with a lot of care and honesty. The main character feels messy and real, and it’s genuinely sad seeing how hard normal relationships and everyday life can be for her. The whole book has this uncomfortable, intimate atmosphere that really got under my skin.
Because it’s self-published, the edition I read had some formatting and editing issues here and there, but honestly I didn’t care much because the actual writing and character work were so strong.
I seriously can’t recommend Bedlam’s work enough.
I’m not usually a nonfiction reader, but I’ve always heard about McCandless’s story, so I finally picked this up, and I’m glad I did. His journey is fascinating and tragic, but also strangely hopeful. I’m not someone who likes hiking or disappearing into the wilderness at all, yet this book honestly made me understand the appeal. It captures the beauty and freedom of the wild, but also the harsh reality and struggle that come with it.
I liked how Krakauer mixes McCandless’s story with similar cases and his own experiences. It added a lot of context and perspective. Overall, a very compelling and emotional read.
This felt a bit like Saw, but with kids on a playground. Right away, I have to say the writing quality surprised me. In a genre where the prose can sometimes be pretty rough, Beauregard really stands out. The writing is strong, the characters feel real, and he actually dives into their emotions and motivations in a way that makes sense. I also thought he handled the child characters impressively well: smart enough to carry the story, but still believable as kids.
It’s bloody and disgusting in parts, though not as extreme as I expected going in. Honestly, the weakest part for me was the overall concept and main storyline, but the characters and the writing make it work.
I’m not exaggerating when I say this might be the worst thing I’ve ever read. The writing is incredibly sloppy, grammar and spelling mistakes everywhere, sentences that barely connect, and no real flow at all. And the content itself is just plain bad. It reads like an edgy kid trying to be as shocking as possible without any actual skill or thought behind it. It’s so ridiculous and poorly written that it’s impossible to take seriously.
How this ended up on the r/ExtremeHorrorLit starter pack is beyond me.
My first book Fitzek, and it was great! He really knows how to pull you in from the start, really gets you interested quick. A fascinating mystery to be solved here, told very well. Many twists and turns, and several plot twists, and while I thought the final plot twist was quite predictable, it didn't hurt my reading experience whatsoever.
I usually enjoy splatterpunk and was looking forward to this one; it’s pretty popular and the premise sounded promising. But honestly, it didn’t do much for me. Yeah, it’s gruesome, but nothing super shocking or wild. The gore kind of just happens without much emotional impact, and the characters didn’t really pull me in.
You can tell it was written fast (10 days apparently), and it shows. It’s not terrible, just kind of forgettable, and not very well written overall. Definitely not as intense or memorable as I’d hoped.
I absolutely loved this. The world is disturbing and extreme, but it’s not just shock for the sake of it. The story hits hard. Even without the brutal setting, the stuff the main character goes through is genuinely emotional. I actually got tears in my eyes at one point, which almost never happens with books.
I really enjoyed this one. I’d heard pieces of Greek myths before through movies or random references, but never the full stories. Mythos does a great job filling in the gaps and giving everything proper context. Stephen Fry tells it all in a super clear and funny way. It’s informative without ever feeling dry.
Definitely recommended if you’re even slightly curious about Greek mythology.
What can I say that hasn’t already been said? It’s a must-read. The themes still feel disturbingly relevant, and the world Orwell built is just so bleak and believable. I expected it to go in a different direction, so the ending completely caught me off guard, and it hit hard. One of those books that sticks with you long after you finish.
A really solid collection. Like most anthologies, some stories hit harder than others, but the highs are very high and make it absolutely worth picking up. There are a few here that really stuck with me, and overall it’s a strong showcase of body horror done in different ways. Definitely recommended if you’re into the genre.
I just finished Carnal Surgery, a collection of eleven Edward Lee stories, and it was a mixed bag... but mostly great. “The Seeker” was my standout: a surreal journey to a twisted town that slowly ratchets up the weird, and that ending stuck with me. Other highlights: “Hands” delivered a solid twist and genuine tension, “The Blurred Room” felt deeply satisfying, and “Death, She Said” and “Goddess of the New Dark Age” were unexpectedly thought-provoking.
Some stories like “Please Let Me Go” and “The Order of Nature” felt standard; fine, but forgettable. And yes, the writing quality and editing are hit-or-miss, some sloppy dialogue and rough edges here and there. But nothing was bad enough to ruin the experience, and there wasn’t a single story I actively disliked.
Overall, the collection is brutal and bizarre, but it’s also got some real kicks.
This was my first Edward Lee book and my first dive into splatterpunk... and it’s a brutal introduction. It starts out disgusting and never really stops. The plot is wild: a billionaire tries to offend God by orchestrating the most horrific acts imaginable. It’s repulsive, extreme, and clearly meant to push every boundary it can find.
I can respect that it tries to give all the depravity a purpose, but it’s not a fun or humorous read; it’s just disturbing. The characters don’t have much depth, and the editing is honestly a mess in places. Still, the sheer extremity and weird concept stuck with me. I didn’t enjoy it in the traditional sense, but I’m glad I read it.