Review Summaries

• Its experimental style and its uneasy stories of death and collapse are received favorably. The sharpness of the prose and its ability to keep the weirdness alive are its main strengths.

Reviews

• A superb collection

  Kathe Koja is a master of the short story form and this collection of thirteen tales showcases her unique talent across a variety of genres. At the risk of being hyperbolic, to say that her prose is elegant, haunting, seemingly effortless, and heart-wrenching would be selling it embarrassingly short, as readers of her other works in longer form can likely attest. As soon as I finished this book, I immediately picked up THE CIPHER and can't wait to dig in as I feel like I've discovered a new favorite author even though I read UNDER THE POPPY years ago. It's hard to pick a favorite, but some of the standouts for me in VELOCITIES were "At Eventide," "Road Trip," "Fireflies," "The Marble Lily," and "Pas de Deux" and I have to stop myself there to keep from listing all thirteen. If you are a fan of Koja's work or just a student of great literature and want to see someone who has mastered her craft at the highest level, make sure you read this book.

• I'm addicted - my new fave author

  Where to begin? My book reviews are usually short and to the point, since I like to review everything I read and simply don’t have time to review at length. However, Koja’s collection deserves so much more than a few short sentences. This is the first work I have read by her, but it certainly won’t be the last. I have to admit to being smitten. I read the whole collection in just two sessions, and even read three of the stories twice, and aloud, since they have that lyrical quality that demands to be heard, not just read in silence. Original, unconventional, inspirational: Koja crawls into the attic space of your mind and stays there. In fact, it’s as if she’s always been there, speaking to you from your subconscious, that place where nobody is invited. It’s difficult to say which stories are my favorite, since I loved them all, but I will attempt to do so. I’m also aware that I don’t wish to give spoilers, so here we go... At Eventide: for the way in which the woman overcomes past adversity, those seemingly insignificant details which are actually of great significance. Anyone who has suffered trauma should connect with this story on a personal level, and if you haven’t, then all it takes is a bit of imagination, a wander into that realm of dreading the worst. Baby: for evoking connections - “...sometimes I let my feet leave the patio, just a few inches, just balancing there on the railing, in thin air...” and the creepiness of Baby in opposition to the love and devotion she feels towards the doll. Road Trip: written in second person POV, which demands the reader imagine himself as the MC. And that description of the accident! Short, succinct, the way in which all logical thought deserts you in such moments. And the guilt, and how is it possible to deal with something so immense? La Reine D’enfer: evocative of old theaters, Victorian music halls, but in an non-glamorous way, warts and all. And the way in which Koja plays with the magic of language in this story – superb! Throughout the collection, the words, phrases, sentences, bring a musical quality to the work and a sense of movement, too, which is why they deserve to be read aloud. This is not just a work of fiction; this is a performance on a page, a textual dance, and I can’t wait to of her work.

• Engrossing Read

  I will admit I didn't fully understand a couple of the stories from this collection, but that didn't keep me from enjoying reading them. Maybe if I read the book more than once, I would gain a better perspective. The varied settings in place and time all seemed very authentic. I kept feeling like I was there.

• Kathe Koja Transcends Tropes

  Any critic who doubts the value of intelligent and compassionate Horror must read Kathe Koja. Her work has evolved beyond even the outstanding relevance of THE CIPHER, BAD BRAINS, and SKIN, exploring now the further reaches of Speculative Fiction. Above all, she reminds us that depths of meaning can be found under often-deceptive surfaces.

• Started with quite an interesting bang

  Such a promising first few stories then spiralled into complete pretension. I couldn't even get through the last six shorts. Very disappointed.

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