A Hope in Hell: A Review of Mouths to Speak, Voices to Sing by Kenneth Yu

 

Book image from: https://www.penguin.sg/book/mouths-to-speak-voices-to-sing/

I enjoyed this collection of short stories very much. I love reading science fiction and horror. There was something in every story to delight in, from a heartwarming AI house program to a Lovecraftian tale of an unspeakable musician-monster to an epic short fantasy with sweeping, universal themes.

One of my favorites is Sampaguita Breeze, not just because it realistically portrays the impact of climate change in a third-world country like the Philippines, but also because it poignantly captures what hope looks like in the bleakest of situations.

In the end, that is what I take away from this collection of stories, an irrepressible hope that "one more good person" in this chaotic and cruel world can lend their support and be "a pillar of the world." (quote from another favorite, the titular Mouths to Speak, Voices to Sing). You don't have to be a sci-fi or horror reader to enjoy Yu's stories.

Addicted: A Review of The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan

The Strain by Guillermo del Toro
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I got addicted to this book. I found it randomly on the Internet. I think it was Facebook. I bought the eBook version immediately and was hooked.

I enjoyed it in the same way that I enjoyed World War Z. I am lured by zombie apocalypses and human plagues of massive impact. I loved the detective work going on and the World War 2 back story of one of the protagonists, Abraham Setrakian. I also liked Ephraim Goodweather, his character is complex enough to be interesting. Who I did like a lot was Vasiliy Fet, the rat exterminator of Russian descent. He's a man in his element.

The book's treatment of vampirism runs contrary to all the popular representations nowadays: shimmering vampires, glamorous, good looking vampires. None of that in this book. It's all blood and gore and alien appendages that rival the Cthulu of H.P. Lovecraft. I just love it. I'd forgive del Toro and Hogan for crossing into science fiction.

I should actually be working on a new course that I signed up for on Coursera.org. But no, I got sucked into this book. And I've already downloaded the next in the series, The Fall. And I'm sure I'll get the last book in the trilogy too. Aaargh. And when the TV series comes out, I'll watch it too, in the same way that I watch GoT episodes despite having read all the books. I am a fan.

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