I received this book for free from the Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
We Can Never Leave This Place by Eric LaRocca Published by JournalStone on June 24 2022
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 106
Format: eARC
Source: Author
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The nitty-gritty: Eric LaRocca’s strange brand of horror is in full force in We Can Never Leave This Place, an emotional and at times upsetting glimpse into a young girl’s dangerous world.
If there’s one thing you can count on with an Eric LaRocca book, it’s to expect the unexpected. We Can Never Leave This Place is a strange, hallucinatory fever-dream of a story that makes you question everything when you get to the end.
It’s hard to give you a story recap, since this novella is more about emotions than plot, but here’s my attempt. Mara and her mother live in an unnamed, war torn country, barely able to survive as food is in short supply and it’s dangerous to even leave the house. When her father is shot and killed while out looking for food for his family, Mara’s mother invites a dangerous creature into the house in his place, plunging Mara into a living nightmare.
This is my first time reading a longer piece by LaRocca, having previously read and loved their short story collection The Strange Thing We Become. I enjoyed this novella, but not quite as much. For me, it was very light on plot and was more of a journey or coming-of-age tale revolving around Mara, but I never felt a sense of resolution at the end, so it left me a bit unsatisfied. Instead it felt like one strange encounter after another, as Mara is confronted with a succession of unwanted guests in her house, each one more dangerous than the last. The story is full of grotesque imagery and violence, which didn’t bother me at all because LaRocca has a penchant for body horror, but these elements felt more like set pieces than part of the story.
What I did like, however, is the emotional, disturbing relationship that Mara has with her mother. Mara is traumatized by her father’s death, and when her mother callously reveals a secret about him that she’s been keeping from Mara, their relationship shifts into one of emotional distance and neglect. There is heartbreak in the mother’s past, but unfortunately she’s taking that heartbreak out on Mara, which makes their relationship even sadder. Several odd characters invade their house, including a spider-like creature called Rake who is taking bits of the mother’s body in exchange for protection and the promise that he can bring Mara’s father back to life. Even though Mara is alarmed by Rake, her mother carelessly brushes away her fears. When other nightmarish creatures appear and threaten Mara, she realizes that their house is no longer safe, because the war, in a sense, has breached the walls.
LaRocca’s world is one of squalor, gunfire, bombs and death. The house where they live is barely a structure at all. Blankets cover doorways instead of doors. The floors are ankle deep in excrement due to broken sewer pipes, and poor Mara trudges through this filth as she moves from room to room. The one bright, colorful spot in the story is Mara’s red canary Kali, but otherwise everything else is described in shades of gray and black and heavy with sadness and fear. I loved the ambiance the author created with all these details, and it made the things that happen to Mara all the more poignant.
I’m so glad I had the chance to read We Can Never Leave This Place, and even though it’s not my favorite of Eric’s books, I love their contributions to the small press/indie horror market, which is so exciting these days. I’m very much looking forward to their next book.
Big thanks to the author for providing a review copy.
Even though this wasn’t your favorite of the author’s books it still sounds like worth a read. Unless the red canary dies. I don’t want that. But for real, Rake sounds very scary and yet I’m intrigued!
I’m glad I read it, and I’ll definitely read more of his books:-)
The book’s cover, with that image of what looks like a liquefying (?) body, did hint at horror indeed, but I think the more horrifying segments for me would be those where Mara’s house is described – I’m not sure I would be able to stand the depiction of those “ankle deep in excrement” floors…. *OUCH*
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…YMIR, by Rich Larson
Some of his descriptions are hard to read for sure:-)
It sounds like there’s a lot of ambiguity and meandering-ness in this book. I’m usually okay with that. I think I’d like this book, but yeah, it wouldn’t be for everyone. Great review, Tammy!
Priscilla Bettis recently posted…Review of 34 Orchard, Issue 5, Spring 2022
I think you’d enjoy it! Thanks Priscilla:-)
I have yet to try this author, I have heard he is has very strange books. 🙂
Ha ha very strange! But completely different from anything else I’ve read.
“Instead it felt like one strange encounter after another…” This reminds me of when I was younger and used to try to write stories based on my dreams. 🙂
It was actually very dreamlike in places:-)
It can be tough when the story or book doesn’t have much of a plot. Thanks for all your thoughts. I love this cover.
ShootingStarsMag recently posted…Queer Owned Businesses to Check Out
I love the cover too:-)
I am looking forward to getting into this even more now. I pre-ordered my copy back in April and I still don’t think it’s shipped yet, so hopefully it’ll get here soon! I’ve been really enjoying getting into LaRocca’s work more!
Jordan @ Forever Lost in Literature recently posted…The Friday Face-Off: A Father-Figure Role
I have another of his books I ordered and I can’t wait to check it out:-)
It has a creepy cover and sounds creepy, but will probably be a pass for me. Great review!
Lisa Mandina (Lisa Loves Literature) recently posted…ARC Review: Bad Things Happen Here by Rebecca Barrow
OMG that cover! Not sure this is one for me at the moment – although moods do change. The emotional and disturbing elements sound like they might bother me.
Lynn 😀
Lynn Williams recently posted…Friday Face Off : Epic – any book that fits into the genre