An unsettling and eerie collection of three short stories – the first (Nails and Eyes) was so much stronger than the accompanying two, but I was still hungering for a more powerful conclusion.

Told in second person, a young woman moves in with her formerly secret lover and his young child after his wife’s tragic death. The three year old puts on an obedient and simplistic air, but is aware of much more than she lets on. Meanwhile, the young woman can barely see what is in front of her face (both literally and metaphorically) as the walls slowly close in …

Each of the stories had interesting and distinctive character work and heavy tension, but flitted away a little too easily for my tastes. I wanted a little more to dissect, and weighter climaxes and finales. 

Overall though, I enjoyed this writing style and appreciated the shivers these stories left behind.

CW: death (parent), infidelity, injury, sexual assault, body horror, bullying, animal death, child abuse

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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)