Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes

It was good. All slow burns but worth it in the end. I would re read it again on a crisp autumn day

I found myself lost in the first story "A sliced apple" feeling like I was looking at true communications and back and forth conversation between two strangers. This is what initially got me to purchase this book. It's such a strong start to the trio of stories. Strong imagery, good detail, and words are strung in such smooth poetic conjunction that it feels like something beyond fiction. I will admit, I am a fan of horror of all types but some of the descriptions do hit in the area of being a bit too vile. If you're the squeamish type, this isn't for you.The two other stories contained are not as strong with the telling, characters are well developed, three dimensional in a sense that I swore I've met people like them in my day to day, but they lack in ways of substance. There's a religious aspect in the first two stories, which in the first one was a bit gruesome so again, if you're squeamish, not for you. In the second story it's an integral part to the overall tone even though in the second story I have some questions on the logistics of how a character commits a key part of the story one handed. This is in no way downplaying the enjoyability of the novel, I read it in a single day and started on some of LaRocca's other works. I'd say give it a read, if you're into body horror and being sucked into a book for a day, this is a read for you.

Really odd stories. I like the last one. Definitely for an adult.

I've been binging on LGBTQIA+ horror for a while and this book, specifically THGWSWLS. While it's not quite as relevant in the second story, if at all, I adored themes of loneliness and a yearning for companionship, of which I am very familiar with on a personal level. Definitely a re-read!

In his afterword for Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes, a collection of three novella(ish) stories, author Eric LaRocca comments that the thread binding these stories together is relationships and what we get out of them - and, to no small degree, the struggles for power and control that can arise from these connections. In the title story, which follows the correspondence of two women whose relationship becomes a test of dedication and obsession, it's about the lengths people will go in the name of "love"; in "The Enchantment," a Shining-esque story about a couple struggling with their connection and their faith in the wake of a horrible incident, it's about what matters most between people and choosing those priorities; in "You'll Find It's Like That All Over," it's about the glee that comes from forcing people into situations out of fear of losing connections through breaking social norms. In all three stories, LaRocca absolutely nails the shifting sense of power and control in each pairing, from the spiral into insanity of the first tale to the petty cruelness of the last. What’s frustrating with almost all of them, though, is a sense that all of the stories are suffering because of being too short - that the descents and spiraling are truncated in ways that make them feel less plausible. Is the final outcome of “Things Have Gotten Worse” horrifying and disturbing? It is…but it also feels like it happens far too quickly, with characters making jumps that feel bigger than they should be willing to take. That same issue impacts all of the stories, whether it’s the couple in “Enchantment” feeling like we’re missing some beats to the power struggle of “You Know” hinting at a deeper connection that’s left frustratingly vague. I loved the interpersonal dynamics here, and LaRocca has a knack for the sense of people pushing each other slowly but inexorably into dangerous territory; in the end, though, all of them feel like some of the necessary tissue was left on the cutting room floor, and it makes all of the strong parts a little weaker.