Monstrous Minds: Cannibalistic Loneliness is a collection of poems about the disturbing and the disturbed

 

 

Cannibalistic Loneliness: A Collection of Verse

Carietta Dorsch

Unveiling Nightmares, 2024

ISBN-13: 979-8893795424

Ebook, 71 ppg.

Buy link

 

 

Dahmer. Gacy. Bundy. Gein. These are the last names of some of history’s most notorious serial killers. If you ever thought it wasn’t possible to write a collection of poems about serial killers, then Carietta Dorsch is here to prove you wrong with her collection of poetry, Cannibalistic Loneliness: A Collection of Verse. These poems are not only about these and other murderers, but they also shed light on the monsters in their minds that drove them to commit evil.

 

I must confess, I had some serious misgivings about writing a review for this book, and only because there is a poem included written from the POV of Jeffrey Dahmer. However, my writing a review of this collection of poetry is not me approving of Dahmer’s crimes, glossing over them, or even glorifying what he did. My review is meant to serve as a shoutout about this book of great poetry.

 

Even so, I understand some people were probably wondering about Dahmer’s last thoughts before he was murdered. Who knows what they were? However, knowing Carrietta, who has been fascinated by serial killers for some time, I knew she felt compelled to write Dahmer poems for this book – a book containing poetry about monsters. And make no mistake, my opinion is that Dahmer was indeed a monster.

 

Aside from the Dahmer poems, I also enjoyed reading the other poems about both victims and monsters. It’s not so much the topics or the “stories” these poems tell, but a lot more about Carietta’s word choice and how she writes her poetry. I have read and loved her fiction, and this is the first time I have read her poetry. I’m so glad I did! The poems are well-written with good word choice and organization. Her poems just carried me away as I read them, drawing me further and further into the world of monsters and loneliness with the safety net of good writing for protection.

 

All the same, some of the things some of the poems say are empowering, especially with the poem “Because of Her.” And there’s also a warning, as she writes on page 21:

 

“So be careful who you trust and who you blame

Because even with monsters among us, we all look the same.”

 

These poems not only capture the horrors of the crimes committed by notorious serial killers but they also remind us all of the monsters these killers transformed into. They also mention some of the killers’ victims, memorializing them in their own way lest we forget.

 

Cannibalistic Loneliness is a collection of poems filled with monsters and the monstrous. From poems that shed light on the crimes of serial killers to verse pulsating with darkness and despair, Dorsch has written a collection that is sure to go down as one of the most unique and harrowing perspectives on crime and what may lurk within the shadows.

 

 

Five stars

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ghosts from the Past Haunting the Present: We Never Left is a spine-tingling ghost story of crime and revenge

 

We Never Left

Matthew Hollis Damon

Independently Published, 2023

Print book, 114 ppg.

ISBN-13: 979-8335929585

Buy link 

 

 

NOTE: This review is based on the 2023 print copy I bought from the author. The cover pictured is of the book I purchased.

 

TRIGGER WARNING: This story includes a rape scene as well as the use of the “N” word (the one related to racism).

 

 

Starting a new ghost story book is always full of anticipation. There’s the excitement over reading a spooky story, the chance to experience another author’s take on a ghost story and the wonder of how a story is told. Matthew Hollis Damon checked off all of those boxes when he wrote his YA supernatural horror novella We Never Left and the scares even lingered long after I finished reading this book.

 

** SPOILERS BELOW **  

 

For a YA story, it definitely met my expectations. The teen characters were fleshed out and realistic. I liked how one of the teens in the group, Naria, is a sensitive, and none of her friends mocked or acted weird about her abilities. There was just total support and encouragement.

 

The other character, Rowan, has dreams of stardom. He wants to make strides in the paranormal investigation TV show field, and he thinks filming an investigation at the very haunted Daughrity House is his golden ticket to TV fame. The other group members are not as motivated as he is, but they do share an interest in the paranormal, so they pretty much agree to participate in this investigation.

 

As I read the story, I wondered, what was it that attracted Rowan’s interest in this particular haunted location? Sure, it’s a location of mediocre fame in the haunt community, but what was it that made him decide that, yes, they were going to investigate this particular haunted house?

 

I started to wonder that even more when I learned of Rowan and Naria’s connection to that house. It’s scary that something like this was happening to the characters? I do believe in reincarnation, so I could see how it is possible, but for it to happen so strongly and so many times really added more scares to the story.

 

Another very frightening aspect of this story is how Naria is constantly pulled into the past as it happened at that house, and suddenly transformed into an historical role. This particular scene really had me on the edge of my seat:

 

“A gust of air blew through the house, making her sage stick brighten momentarily. Naria turned, holding the lantern out protectively and expecting something terrible behind her. But there was nothing there, just the empty hallway couched in shadow. To the right she could see kitchen counters, but to the left something had changed. Where the parlor furniture had been covered with white sheets before, she could now see an old-fashioned couch with ornate wood and cushions that looked like red velvet.

 

She approached slowly, her lantern forming a giant black shadow wall inside the room. As she approached the entry frame, the shadows slowly spit more of the room and furniture into view. There were no covers on the furniture or on the floor, or anywhere in sight. Everything looked so antique, the type of stuff no one owned anymore. None of it even looked comfortable, just stiff-postured chairs and hard wooden arm rests.

 

The bookshelves were full, but she hurried across this room to the opening in the next wall, beyond which she could see the front door. “Fuck this house,” she muttered, waving her sage around like a maniac, because in her mind the sage was going to stop anything bad from happening.

 

“I need to leave,” she mumbled, grabbing the door handle and yanking. It didn’t budge. She found no locks, just a large keyhole on this side of the door. “Please let me leave,” she said to whoever might be listening.

 

Laughter filled the air behind her, and she looked up the stairwell, longer and wider than anything a normal house would have, but nothing like what you’d expect in a mansion of this size. Walking up the stairs were two men in old fashioned coattails, one in tan and the other in black.

 

“Hello?” she said, and both men swung around.

 

“Who’s there?” a familiar voice asked.

 

“Brody?” she asked.

 

Brody stepped down the stairs until his face came into the light. “Yes?” he said. His eyes registered distaste when he saw her. “What is it?”

 

“The other man stepped into the light beside Brody, and she saw it was Eric wearing the black suit and silly-looking hat.

 

“Eric! Oh, thank God—” she took a step toward them, and they both recoiled.

 

“It’s that new servant girl,” Eric whispered.

 

Brody nodded in recognition. “Ahh yes, so it is.” He smiled in a way that seemed unfriendly. “Come here, girl. Let’s take a look at you.”

 

“Knock it off,” Naria said, her voice edging toward hysterical. “Brody and Eric—I’m so scared.”

 

“What’s wrong, girl?” Eric said imperiously.

 

“Come and look in the ballroom!”

 

“She addresses us as if we were her equals—friends, even,” Brody remarked.

 

“We are friends,” Naria said.

 

“Friends,” Eric said with a laugh. “We’re certainly going to be.”

 

Brody’s voice was cold and deadly. “You presume a lot.” He lunged furiously down the stairs, and she stumbled back from the violence in his demeanor.” (Ppg. 46-49)

 

That’s not the end of that scene but I don’t want to spoil what happened next. All I will say is, Yikes! I was gripping the book as I read that scene, holding my breath as chills raced down my spine. It was really scary!

 

There are lots more frightening scenes in this book which I am sure readers will enjoy. Note the trigger warnings above; these two things in the story made me uncomfortable but I enjoyed reading the rest of the story. (And, no, that scene quoted above does not include the rape scene.)

 

We Never Left is a chilling story of past connections pulling us out of the present and how history will sometimes refuse to stay buried. A short story full of tense plot twists, horrifying surprises and shocking revelations, this novella is sure to creep out fans of ghost stories and leave a lingering sense of anxiety and dread al the way to the very last page.

 

 

Five stars

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I purchased this book from the author and this review is completely voluntary

Going to Another Dimension? There’s an App for That: The Cryptids is a horrifying and captivating story of invasion and infestation

 

The Cryptids

Elana Gomel

Crystal Lake Publishing, 2023

Print page length: 402 ppg.

Print ISBN-13: 979-8399873015

Buy link for Kindle

 

 

There are some stories that are hard to believe unless you experience it for yourself. Some stories just have that “you had to be there” element. Like a cryptid sighting, for example. As a scientist, Sharon is not entirely sure if she believes a story about a cryptid kidnapping a man’s wife off of a beach, but she keeps an open mind about it. She also considers ALL of the possibilities of what would cause someone to think that they saw a cryptid. A REAL cryptid.

 

And if it’s real cryptids you’re after, then that’s exactly what you will get in the novel The Cryptids by Elana Gomel. In fact, the second half of this book is full of them.

 

But before the cryptid actually makes its grand appearance, Sharon does some investigating. She meets the man who claimed he saw the cryptid, which they call a thunderbird, kidnap his wife – and actually gets into a relationship with him after the days pass and everybody assumes that poor old wifey is dead. And during this time that she has this relationship with this man, Lester Choy, she meets his adopted father, Malcolm Choy. I really liked the character Malcolm Malcolm is a very level-headed and intelligent person who Sharon has a sort of kinship with because they are both intellectuals who see the bigger picture of what is happening with this cryptid business.

 

But Sharon’s relationship with Les helps her to learn that maybe he’s the reason why cryptids are suddenly roaming free on Earth now, because of something he invented.

 

Something on his quantum phone that accidentally sends Sharon plummeting into that other world.

 

After recovering from the terror and shock of being in another world, Sharon is able to ground herself and start to think logically. “She got to her feet. So here it was, the plan. She had to find Dis. How? She had no idea. But the notion that she had a goal cheered her up. And then there was the marvel and beauty of this alien wilderness, which she now allowed herself to soak up. She had fantasies of exploring Mars, Narnia, and Middle-earth as a child; now her fantasies were coming true. The land was both achingly beautiful and depressingly empty; both familiar and strange. She had left the wetlands behind and was walking toward the misty mountains. Now she was passing through the parkland, dotted with clumps of trees, many of them beginning to change color, the gorgeous wine-red, dark-rose, and gold of the foliage vivid in the bright sunlight.”

Sharon is a scientist at heart and while trying to wrap her brain around the situation she was in, she is also able to be the scientist and study her surroundings, observe and take it all in for the purpose of understanding it better. She and her former lover, Mark, share this kind of thinking, for they are both scientists. No matter how impulsively they want to turn away from and not see what there is going on in that world, they force themselves to observe, so that they can learn and understand. Still, it’s hard for her to accept seeing things like frogs with human faces and dog-faced cats.

 

As I read about Sharon’s explorations, I was very impressed with just how creative it was. The author must have worked very hard in creating this world. It is certainly well-written and very well done. I also felt she did well in creating a cryptic method of communication which Sharon must decipher when communicating with the heads on the wall in one room and the Rat-King in another room. 

 

The scene where Mark is with the king and queen was unnerving. While on one hand he is repulsed by it, it also helps him to understand better what is happening.

 

The story unfolds to the point where the grand scheme of things is revealed in all its glory, thanks to the logical thinking of our scientists. They realize that all of this is not just about the quantum phone opening a doorway for Mothmen to get through; it goes beyond this. Something is trying to conquer all of humankind. Mark witnesses for himself what would ultimately transpire if that doorway continues to exist. And having seen it myself through this part of the book, I’ll definitely pass!

 

There are things about humanity that this being fails to understand, such as the human’s capacity to be deceptive and the lingering rage of a woman scorned. These are things that cannot be erased, and certainly one of the things which definitely comes back to haunt a character later in the story.

 

The thing that both Mark and Sharon point out is that self-consciousness, self-awareness, is what makes us human. To lose this is to lose our humanity. To surrender to the whims of an evil entity is akin to surrendering to slavery. Doing so would mean for us humans that there is no self-identity, there is no autonomy. Only lives would be lived according to the rigors of another sentient being. In essence, all of humanity would be lost.

 

Yes, the being in charge of that other dimension does try to imitate life in our world, as well as copy the intricacies of animal and human behavior — perhaps in an attempt to make its world attractive to the humans in this world and easier for them to adapt to life there, but it only continues to fail in its attempts. Frogs with human faces, cannibalistic humans with wrong anatomy and creatures that are a blend of two or more animals. Even the anatomy of the Mothmen is incorrect! Whoever gave it the instruction manual for creating humans and animals on Earth must have been studying life in a different dimension because it certainly isn’t this one. 

 

The climax of this story is awesome! I could just picture the whole thing happening. It’s amazing. The whole story is absolutely amazing and I highly recommend it! I absolutely loved the story’s resolution, too. My favorite quote from that part of the book: “A redeemed sinner is always more interesting than a spotless saint.” Which of the two shall make peace with what they went through remains to be seen, but at least they have a better understanding of each other, and of the world they share.

 

Reading this novel was not just escaping into the world of fiction but also exploring and learning about theories and ideas. The discussion about the noosphere (and just how much it can impact our world, especially through our dreams) gave me a lot to think about and it compelled me to explore these ideas and thoughts further online. I also liked how the mirror test is explained to readers, its fallacies in determining self-consciousness are explored, how good of a test it can be to see if a human is really indeed a human and even how the mere mention of it can allow those in certain fields of research explore its usage to gain further insight. And, finally, I also liked how, in this story, the Oneiroi (not to be confused with the mythological Oneiroi) can use dreams to interact and communicate with humans. It had me wondering just what other creatures from that dimension can do the same since the noosphere continues to exist, as well as any others the characters in this story may not know about or would expect to do so (I think the hint at the end is a pretty good indication!).

 

The Cryptids is a frightening tale of otherworldly monsters infesting our world in the first stage of a planetary takeover by something much more evil and monstrous bent on destroying humanity. Intelligently and insightfully written, it is a novel that will keep readers guessing, wondering and thinking about where the story will go next. The many surprising twists and turns offer an entertaining and captivating read, and it is a novel sure to withstand the test of time.  

 

 

 

Five stars

 

 

 

Disclaimer: I purchased the Kindle version of this novel from Amazon and this review is completely voluntary.