BOOK REVIEW: THINGS HAVE GOTTEN WORSE SINCE WE LAST SPOKE by ERIC LAROCCA

Let me tell you why I think THINGS HAVE GOTTEN WORSE SINCE WE LAST SPOKE is probably the horror novella you need in your mentally disturbed life.

For starters, written on the back of the book in bold, uppercase letters are the words: “obsession, sadomasochism, death”. From the jump, the reader is warned about what they are getting into, but when one opens up to the first couple of pages, the reader is eased into a false sense of security with a simple chat room message about an apple peeler. Intrigued yet? This is an epistolary novella told through an exchange of emails and instant messages between two lonely women. What starts out as an intimate friendship between these characters develops into something more.

At this point you’re probably thinking: “Nina, nothing you’ve said about this book sounds out of the ordinary or appealing to my horror-loving self.” But you’ll get no more from me on the plot. That’s all I’m going to reveal about this brilliant work of Eric LaRocca. The rest you’ll just have to experience blindly as I did. But I will tell you, this is a story where the pacing has a momentum that picks up and gets rolling like a large boulder you can’t keep from charging down a steep, menacing hill. After a point, the dark and grotesque happenings I was experiencing on the page began to reveal themselves through my facial expressions as I started wincing, cringing, and defiantly shaking my head while screaming “Nope! Nope! Nope!”

This novella is for the brave reader who can stomach some pretty disturbing storytelling and triggering themes. I absolutely loved it in spite of my need to sit in front of a blank wall and try to register what I’d just read. I loved it so much, I will probably be recommending it to any sick soul who will listen. If you choose to pick this one up, it’s best read in one sitting. Give yourself an hour, hunker down, and brace yourself for pure dread.

(5/5⭐)