Infurno

For my full review, story by story, you can go check it out here.

Throughout history, there's probably no subject more debated than what comes after death. From the Nirvana and Naraka of Buddhism, to the Elysium and Tartarus of Greek Mythology, passing through the Aztec's Mictlan, and everything in between; multiples texts, religions, and philosophers have all tried to come up with an answer to this question. Chief among these texts is Dante's The Divine Comedy, which tells the poet's journey through the three realms of Christian afterlife (Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory) while accompanied by two spiritual guides: Virgil, a master poet, and Beatrice, his one true love. Dante's work is so influential that it basically ended up becoming the basis of all modern depictions of these realms, and no part of The Divine Comedy is more well known than the first one: Inferno, the chronicle of Dante's journey through Hell, and the inspiration for this book.

Infurno is an erotic horror anthology by Thurston Howl Publications, and the first part of The Divine Clawmedy series (oh, the puns!). This anthology tells the story of Kyle and Terry, a gay couple living in Detroit, who end up traveling through the several circles of Hell while accompanied by Atha, a doe and their guide on this realm. Just like its source material, the couple meet several people on their journey and learn what it is they did to deserve being there. However, unlike its source material, they do so by reliving the events which led to their demise and damnation. Unsurprisingly, each of these is one story, each by a different author, and it is these stories which make up the bulk of the anthology.

Be warned that, given the themes and subjects of the stories within (bad people going to bad places for doing bad things), this anthology features depictions of such sensitive topics as rape, violence, torture, gore, murder, suicide, self-harm, racism, physical and emotional abuse, among many others.

The anthology has a strong start with “Blur” by Weasel, representing Limbo. As expected from the only “innocent” circle of Hell, the protagonist of this tragic story, Ely, a white lab mouse on the run after a life of prostitution, is moreso a victim of circumstances than of his own foil. Weasel's depiction of regret makes it easy to sympathize with our main character, and also heightens the sense of dread as the story goes on until its eventual outcome.

“Metal Hellth” by Ferric starts what I'd consider to be the better half of the book. The sole representative of Heresy, “Metal Hellth” deals with Justin, a lead singer from a metal band who ends up performing one last performance before a strange group of spectators. Brutal at times yet whimsical at others, Ferric's tone is a huge contrast with the rest of the anthology, though a welcome addition, indeed. This story quickly became my favorite the first time I was going through the anthology, though little did I know that that spot would get quickly taken away by...

...“In the Name of Science” by Allison Thai, first story of the seventh circle and the crown jewel of this anthology. Representing Violence Against Others, this story chronicles the live experiments done by Sorae, her father, and the team on war prisoners. Thai's cold and clinical tone, coupled with detailed descriptions of gore and the occasional images, really bring this story to life and hit the gross-out and horror with each passing experiment, each one more deranged than the previous one. If you had to pick any one story to read out of this anthology, make sure to make it this one; I'm sure you won't regret it.

Reviewing an anthology with different authors can be difficult, but, as a whole, the anthology, along with its framing story by Thurston Howl and the accompanying art by Drkchaos, fulfills its purpose in an acceptable manner; however, seeing it by its parts, you can see a few cracks appearing here and there. Stories that don't fit or would serve better somewhere else, the difference in quality and style between stories, and the overall cohesiveness of the anthology leave it with high highs and low lows; though that's to be expected when having to deal with so many authors for a single piece of work.

If you're looking for a wholesome, feel-good series, this is definitely not the book for you. However, if you're looking for horror, stories of debauchery and comeuppance, or are a fan of the original work, this anthology might be for you. With 10+ authors you're bound to find more than a few stories that make it worth the price, and it'll be a good warm-up for the next part: Purrgatorio (the puns...).