bismuth_baby's Book Journey

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC!

A truly weird (in the best possible way, mind you), atmospheric eco-horror that follows a post-collapse community that relies on a sentient root system.

The true miracle was how Caleb Sierra was able to accomplish so much world-building and character work into so few pages! The novella starts right off the bat by throwing you into the world and displaying its horrors. Was I expecting it? No. Did it catch my attention? Absolutely! The story than continues by fleshing out the world and its characters while giving you the promised horror through the facets of religion, gore, and sentient plants that don't seem to be a fan of human hubris.

My only wish for this book was that it was a little longer! We get multiple POVs throughout this story (many of them unlabelled) and, while each character did have a distinct voice, it made things a little confusing as a reader. I feel like giving each character a bit more time would allow us readers to better understand them as individuals, as well as how they fit into the greater world.

In the end though, this book was a fantastic read that I truly could not put down. I would recommend it to readers who love weird horror that makes you go WTF and are itching for some unique commentary on the anthropocene and religion.

Trigger Warnings! body horror, character death