Everything the Darkness Eats

so this is hard for me to write because eric truly is one of my favorite authors so i'm going to focus more on what i liked but first the things i didn't like.

this book did not feel like an eric book besides the prose. it felt like this was trying to be forced into a “normal” novel format, and eric and their stories, work better, written not in a traditional way. this book was also incredibly slow for most of the story which really dragged it down.

despite that i did love the prose as usual, and i think those who think his writing is “pretentious” may enjoy the writing in here more. i also loved loved loved the characters. i really resonate with them even though they were men and i truly cared about them. i also really liked the way their stories connected together but i do thing there could have been more throughout the rest of the story to make the transition of the connection better.

lastly, i loved the themes. one of the primary themes in the novel is the darkness of humanity and the lengths people will go to in order to achieve their desires, regardless of the cost. the characters in the book are driven by their own motivations. and the story shows the devastating effects of unchecked ambition and the desire for power. this is intertwined with the exploration of hatred and bigotry that lurks beneath the surface of society. this story exposes the dangers of intolerance and prejudice, particularly towards marginalized communities. It portrays the impact of hate crimes and how they can escalate into something much more sinister.

This book was the first I have read from Eric and this is dark horror. There really is no let up from the darkness in the book. Saying a book is dark might not be too good for most books but for horror fans it's kinda what we crave.

I read it without knowing too much about it and was thrilled at every word. I don't think this book is for everyone it is very bleak and it heads towards the end. Probably best to get a lighter book ready for when it's finished. Just know this book is true, disturbing horror

I've only read a few of Eric LaRocca's short story collections and I absolutely loved them, so when I saw their novel go up for request, I was super excited to read it. As someone who almost exclusively reads via audiobooks, I can figure out very early if I'll like the narrator or not. I've listened to a few books narrated by André Santana before and I really enjoy his narrations! His voice felt right for these characters. But with all that being said, I didn't love this book as much as I've loved Eric's collections. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the overall plot, but ti wasn't as fast paced and action packed as I was expection. Even though all of the characters were behaving in ways that I would never, I really enjoyed seeing how they deal with the things they go through. I love Eric LaRocca's writing and that's really what saved this for me. I will always read anything Eric writes and I'm so excited to see what they write in the future.






Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for providing me with an Audiobook copy to review

This felt like two half-conceived short stories stitched together for the sake of making something long enough to publish as a book.  Two parallel storylines that suddenly meet up in the last 10% of the book. Some of the ideas were interesting, but fell flat and didn't recieve their due. There were references to Sandman and Needful Things that could have been very compelling but did not deliver.

There were several depictions of extreme violence and homophobia (check the trigger warnings before reading!) that did very little for the story or character advancement, didn't get much treatment and, in the end, were hand-waved away without any real follow-up. This felt to me like a version of trauma porn and not at all helpful.

Whatever the author's intent, I couldn't find it in these pages and it was disappointing enough that I won't be looking for more of their work.

The narration of the audiobook is well done and a pleasant listen.