protean depravity

Hey everybody! I have been away a lot, this last month was a little busy and I was a little lazy, but I'll soon be back with new books and movies, so hang on. I just wanted to remind everyone that tomorrow is Halloween and that means the Final Girls Berlin* are celebrating Halloween at the City Kino Wedding with their best funny-scary short films, the screening of the disgusting cannibal movie RAW (2016) and a costume contest! You can find a list of their shorts - some of which I have discussed in the past - and the program here. So grab your cat ears and witch hats and see you there if you will!

Infuriated, devastated, exasperated, frustrated... Sometimes you'll read a book that leaves you with more emotions than you can list and you can deal with. Amanda Desiree's Bram Stoker shortlisted (for Superior Achievement in a First Novel) debut Smithy is the mother of those books. Even though I have finished this a few weeks ago, it so threw me off the tracks that I needed some time to collect my thoughts and especially feelings before writing a review. It’s not unusual for me to feel bewildered and my hate for humanity refreshed after reading stuff about what we, as a human species, are doing to animals and with which infuriating entitlement and ruinous normalcy we do it. Smithy , the story of a chimpanzee locked in a mansion in the early 70s for the purposes of a research experiment on the ability of apes to express themselves through sign language, spoke to that spot in me.

In my ever growing search for horror literature outside of the often formulaic and self-centered USA horror, I have often been bumping into really good books from Argentina which never fail to leave me impressed. This time it is shooting star Roque Larraquy's freshly translated work in which he explores themes such as exploitation or the limits of human ventures. 

Shall I believe my eyes or not, dear reader? A reading event at the Otherland Bookstore Berlin? The last time I saw something similar was, like, at least two years ago, so the pandemic is indeed coming to an end, I guess. Seriously, I'm so happy it's a horror reading, PLUS it's Mats Strandberg who is the nicest horror person in the world and the appointed Swedish Stephen King on top! I'd say don't miss this... Here's the Otherland's message: "Have some fine Swedish horror and delightful talks about pain and blood when we welcome Mats Strandberg, author of Blood Cruise , The Home and Die Konferenz (in German translation) on Friday the 13th ... ah ... no, the 23.09. at the Otherland. Don't worry, we mop up afterwards. The event starts at 8 pm and is for free, just drop us a mail so we know you're coming: service(at)otherland-berlin.de" See you all there!

The time for shorties has come again! I have actually tried to read a little more experimentally this past month - two short story collections, two first-time reads by authors, Ruth Ware and Matt Shaw, who are both madly popular in their respective fields mystery and extreme horror, two short novellas and finally a collection of BBC dramatizations of Agatha Christie's work revolving around her most sassy and fabulous inspector, Hercule Poirot. I did have a lot of fun, especially with the latter, so I hope you do too. Enjoy!

The real curse of womanhood, […] is that we never get to forget we have a body. On the verge of her 50th birthday, Mary has many problems: hot flashes, irregular menstruation, mood changes and ...ummm, hallucinations and voices in her head? Her GP thinks this is all normal for her age and dismisses her symptoms as by-effects of her impending menopause. But on top of it all she loses her dream job at a bookstore because it needs "fresh" faces, her rent gets a hefty and unaffordable raise and her allegedly dying aunt demands she come back to her hometown and take care of her, and that's just too much. When she leaves New York City for the desert town Arroyo, Arizona, she finds that not only do her hallucinations and the voice increase in intensity, she also starts auto-writing a book during phases of unconsciousness. That's a lot to take already but what does it all have to do with the almost religious obsession of the townsfolk with the desert and its best known citi...

Catriona Ward has the rare and a little eerie skill of rummaging around your soul and pulling out emotions you didn't know you had in that intensity in you. She then plays with that - like a cat with a mouse; misdirecting, leaving red herrings or genuine tracks for you to stumble upon in your quest to find out if and which character of hers is worthy of those strong emotions she just evoked. A kind of mindfuck, if you like. And I love it! I was burning to read Sundial after last year's ridiculously successful The Last House on Needless Street , which had me completely head over heels. I don't remember the last time I had so much joy (but also pain) reading a book and I couldn't wait to go again through a similar experience. This was my mindset.

Devastation from cover to cover... A story of a man who lost everything, became a monster and confronted bigger monsters - what a genuine adventure.

Hope you're all having a great summer despite the crazy weather... If you don't enjoy the weather, then I hope you at least enjoy the short reviews of my latest reads, here they are!