I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Atrocities by Jeremy C. Shipp Published by Tor.com on April 17 2018
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 104
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: A surreal, Gothic nightmare of a story that beautifully explores the depths of grief and loss.
I didn’t know I was in the mood for a creepy, Gothic horror story until I picked up The Atrocities, and boy did it deliver! This is one strange story, but it’s so well written and has so many emotional layers that I highly recommend it to anyone who doesn’t mind their stories on the weird side.
The story is narrated by Danna Valdez, a woman who has just taken on a governess position at a bleak, crumbling mansion, as teacher to a young girl named Isabella. Immediately the reader is thrown into the strangeness of Stockton House, as it’s referred to, as Danna must navigate a horrific hedge maze filled with gruesome statues in order to get to the main house. Once there, she is met by the household staff: a maid named Robin, Raul the gardener, and the owners of the house, Mr. and Mrs. Evers.
It isn’t long before Danna realizes that her new charge, Isabella, isn’t quite like other little girls. As she struggles to fit into the weird and surreal world of Stockton House, the mystery of Isabella and her odd relationship with her parents is slowly revealed. But Stockton House is hiding some horrible secrets, and Danna is about to discover them, like it or not.
Reading The Atrocities felt like jumping down the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland. Shipp throws readers right into the weirdness on the first page and that weirdness never really lets up. I loved the descriptions of Stockton House, with its ornately carved banisters and dark hallways, its portraits of bleeding and twisted bodies adorning the walls, and right in the middle of all the horror, the occupants of the house go about their business as if it were all normal. The oddness of the house is attributed to Mr. Evers’ eccentricities, but even the house staff are pretty weird. Raul is tasked with keeping track of Isabella’s tutu-wearing pet guinea pig, who may or may not be real (seriously, I wasn’t sure), and even some of Isabella’s toys seemed to move on their own at times. Because the reader is never really told the truth about what’s going on, I decided to draw my own conclusions about these strange happenings.
What really made this story special, however, were the emotional themes that Shipp explored through his characters. I’m trying to avoid spoilers, but it’s hard because one of my favorite parts of this story is the way each character deals with their own particular loss. Let’s just say that both Danna and Mr. and Mrs. Evers have recently suffered tragedies and are trying to deal with them, and I loved that the house acts as such a perfect setting for all the sadness swirling around.
The story takes an even darker turn at the end, if you can believe it, so if you’re a fan of visceral horror, you won’t be disappointed. I think my rating would have been even higher if the ending had made more sense, but to be honest I’m not exactly sure what happened. (Some crazy shit, that’s for sure!) The action felt rushed near the end, which could be why that part of the story just didn’t come together for me.
Shipp has a talent for making the reader think one thing, and then presenting a completely different scenario that makes sense as well. I recommend this to lovers of Gothic and emotionally wrought horror who don’t mind some ambiguity in their fiction, and I can’t wait to read something else by this talented writer.
Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.
I was reading your review and still recalling my own experience – which summed up is that I’m also not sure what happened. This is a bit of a dark and twisted read. I enjoyed it and I’m thinking of reading it again before I write my review. That ending. Mind blown.
Lynn 😀
I’m glad I”m not alone in my confusion! And I agree, this is one story I wouldn’t mind rereading at some point.
My review went up today too and we had some similar thoughts. I enjoyed it as well and almost compared it to going down the rabbit hole but didn’t because I didn’t really like Alice – haha. I was also somewhat confused at the end and wish it had been a full length novel. You’ve read it so I’m sure you’ll understand. I want to know why it happened that way. What caused certain characters to do what they did? (trying to be vague here so as to not give anything away). My main problem with novellas is if I like them, then I usually want more story.
Barb (boxermommyreads) recently posted…A Dark and Gothic Tale – The Atrocities Review
I didn’t mind the length so much as the sudden turn of events at the end. I’m definitely going to have to do a reread at some point:-)
Now I want to read this more than ever!
I hope you enjoy it!
This sounds very dark indeed, but fascinatingly so, and the fact that it does not just explore terrifying themes, but also the depths of people’s souls, makes it even more attractive. Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…Short Story Review: TOUCHSTONE, by Sonia Orin Lyris
It’s a very layered story, which is a big reason I loved it:-)
Oooh I was looking forward to this one! I didn’t expect it to be on the artsy, weird side of the horror spectrum, so I’m very intrigued now.
It’s got a little of everything, I hope you get the chance to read it!
What a fascinating read – and thank you so much for a really excellent review, Tammy:).
Thanks Sarah, it was really different, and I’m so glad I read it
This sounds so good! I’m in the mood for another gothic horror and I love your description of “visceral” because that’s right up my alley! Although, I’m a little worried about the weirdness you speak of, I don’t do well with weirdness so here’s hoping it wouldn’t be too much to take 🙂
Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum recently posted…Book Review: The Oracle Year by Charles Soule
There might be a little too much weirdness for you, if you aren’t an Alice in Wonderland fan, this might be over the top weird
Oooh… this sounds really good!
Lisa @TenaciousReader recently posted…The Sunday Share – April 15, 2018
OK, you have me really excited to pick this one up. I was looking forward to an atmospheric read, but now I’m curious for what else is in store.
Had me grinning at your description of that ending. It does sound hauntingly amazing though. Dark and beautiful. This was definitely a wonderful review too! You definitely put this book on my radar now. Thank you for sharing! 😀
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