Hello all you lovely ghoulies. I am deeply sorry that I have been gone for such a long time.
It’s been a year, and that breaks my heart. There’s a lot that has gone on, in my defense…
I got married (yay!!!), as wonderful and amazing as that is, I was a DIY bride. I was my wedding planner and did ALL my own stuff. So, that on top of my full-time job and real-life responsibilities took up quite a bit of time. But I am now married to my best friend and soul mate and life is as bright as it can be.
I took a risk switching jobs that was an absolute nightmare. It stressed me out and robbed me of a lot of my time. At the end of the day, I didn’t have the capacity to read a ton or to take in content the way I wanted to. That job was a mistake, and it bums me out a lot…but you live, and you learn. It was an opportunity that I didn’t want to pass up and then always wonder what could have been. I risked it and DIDN’T get the biscuit. (Please don’t leave because of my dorky language arts joke) So, after 8 months of suffering I quit and found a new workplace and now we are here!
I do love this blog. I am so excited to be writing again. This blog started as part of my final project to finish my English and fiction writing degree. I put my blood, sweat and tears into building this damn thing. As I did that, it breathed. There was life put into it and passion. My artistic style, my aesthetic design, and my passion for writing. These things married together with my love of horror; it was perfect.
Then, as I was writing pieces and sharing my opinions of horror pop culture, I really wanted to keep it going and keep it relevant because I would like that opportunity to meet others who share my horror interests. I would like to put my writing out there into the universe, even if it isn’t in a story telling capacity.
Admittedly, I (most likely) drove my husband up a wall because I have had NO OTHER OUTLET for almost an entire year….so ALL my opinions on horror related books, stories, folklore etc. have just been forcefully shoved into his earholes against his will. That isn’t too fair to him. Having to listen to every one of my horror related rants for months, it can be a lot. I (almost) exclusively read horror. I keep up with popular shows and new movies. I revisit shit I love and will gladly have a conversation about whatever book, movie or bullshit I am into (lol). He likes horror, and he’s a saint so he listened and discussed. He did it gladly, but I think he deserves a little break.
SO, while this started out as a project, I fell in love with this space, and it meant something to me. I am sad that I have been gone so long and left it neglected with no new content, no explanation…but I am back, and I intend to keep it moving forward. I am planning and am going to have a commitment on how often I post new content. I am not sure of the details as of right now, but I will have that figured out soon. In the meantime, I have missed you, and I have missed writing. How about we talk a bit about a tiny book that packed a HUGE punch?
The Laws of the Skies, a novella by the French author Grégoire Courtois. This little macabre fairytale is only 148 pages long, but boy…what an effective piece of work this book is. I have a lot to say about this compact story, so buckle in my spooky little book lovers and let me take you on a horror book adventure!
First, I am a huge fan of isolation horror, and this ended up being right up my alley with a twist. It follows some adults, but mostly it follows children. **I am going to give a trigger warning; I know some people will not do certain horror elements with children. The children in this story are young, they are six. So, while it isn’t the most awful things you can think of or “extreme horror”, the book has graphic moments. There is some body horror and there’s just intensity to this story and gore…
SOOO, if you have firm boundaries with stuff like this, I suggest checking the trigger warnings for this book.
It’s pretty much the camping trip of your worst nightmares. A few (as in three) adults take several six-year-olds into the woods for a camping trip. Pretty much right away things start going awry. Shit goes sideways, quickly. I know at one point I was reading this book and was just shocked thinking “how can so much bad be happening all at once.”
One thing that really made this an interesting read was that there were certain points of the book that were disorienting for me, as a reader. And it made me stop and think because something didn’t make sense, or it was confusing, and I had to go back. I liked it though, it wasn’t something that was done so frequently that it was annoying, it was only a couple of times and it added something to the reading experience. It almost made me feel lost and disoriented in the woods with all these little children. I was trying to figure out what the author was doing to make that effect happen for the reader. There are a few points through the book where there wasn’t a notable break in the story before the point of view went from the middle of one character and their situation into the middle of another character’s actions and what they were doing. It was like an unprompted shift in the POV. (POV = point of view for those not familiar with my abbreviations) I think it was a stellar play on that literary tool. It was super effective!
There was also this moment, where the main teacher/chaperone had gathered the children for a story around the campfire. He started telling them this tale about a mouse who envies the birds because they can fly. The story he’s telling is in the fashion of the old Grim’s Fairytales. You know, the kind of awful ones with moral lessons that leave you wondering if the tale was actually from the horror genre and NOT a kids’ story. The bird goes on to tell the mouse about how he’ll never fly. And I don’t want to give it away in case this review actually entices you to go give this a read. (We HATES spoilers on this blog, so I will never write them without warning or making it obvious that they’re a head). I don’t want to spoil it, because the fairy tale is my favorite part of the whole novella. The story is weird, inspiring and horrific. This campfire story really adds to the quality of this novella.
I really could go on and on about this book, but this review is already getting long. I am sure you come to just read my opinion, to read a few things and see if it’s going to be a yay or nay for you. I know you don’t come here to read an academic length analysis paper! SO, with that in mind and being said I will wrap it up here.
As for the many wonderful things I have to say about this book there is one thing I have an issue with. The children in the story are young, we’ve established this. I feel like the way the author presented these children, these six-year-olds, was too mature. I think some of the dialog and actions of these kids aren’t believable. The author does put the characters in extreme circumstances, but there were a few moments where I was skeptical of a six-year-old to be capable of one thing or of another. In my opinion, it was only a few moments. I don’t think it was glaring and a problem through the whole story. It wasn’t something that ruined the book for me. I think it’s worth mentioning, because hey…we’re all about an honest review here. I like to give the good with the not-so-good.
So, long story short I loved this book. I am all about isolation horror and survive the night type stories so this was so far up my alley I’m not surprised it was a slam dunk. I would give it a solid 8/10. Honestly, sometimes I don’t love novellas because I feel like I am missing something or that there wasn’t enough action or SOMETHING. Sometimes I find myself reading novellas, liking them but wanting more. This didn’t feel like that for me. And I think that is a huge win because not everyone always wants to read a whole ass novel sized book. It’s nice sometimes to take a break and just be able to breeze through something more quickly. Plus, some people just might be too busy, and it’s easier to read something novella sized. This was perfect because it gives you more than a short story and less than a novel but you’re not missing any elements. You aren’t left needing more. This book made me cringe, it made me have to re-read things and go back. This story made me sad and there were moments where it felt hopeless. It was an experience. One of the better stories I have read this year. I 100% recommend it.
Did you read The Laws of the Skies? What did you think? Are you a fan of isolation horror, or do you have an opinion on kids in horror? I want to hear what you think! Leave a comment, come say hi! Follow me on here or on X. As always, thank you for reading my blog! If there’s anything you’re wanting me to check out or wanting to see on here. Let me know! Thank you again ❤
