LaRocca (They Were Here Before Us) has seen viral success with their shorter works, but their first full-length novel demonstrates their growth as a writer. A perfect example of how writers from historically marginalized communities, like Hailey Piper, R.J. Joseph, and V. Castro, are actively mining the horror of their personal experiences to create terrifying, original, and emotionally resonant works that speak loudly to readers.
LaRocca is selling his small press titles in larger press numbers, and this might be his best and most accessible work yet. It is a superior example of extreme horror, in the vein of the thought-provoking depravity of Agustina Bazterrica’s Tender Is the Flesh and Kathe Koja’s The Cipher.
The hype surrounding LaRocca is real. He is quickly emerging as one of the best authors at articulating the emotions of horror: feelings of disgust, unease, but also wonder that physically pulsate through readers’ bodies as they interact with his creations. Similar to the storytelling style and reading experience of the extraordinary work of Helen Oyeyemi and Samanta Schweblin or Naben Ruthnum’s Helpmeet.
A must-read for fans of body horror, epistolary novels, and depravity, this pulse-pounding novella is one that readers will surely devour in one sitting.