The Viewless Dark

by Eliza Victoria

When Anthony found Flo dead, locked overnight in one of the reading rooms of the university library, he knew it must have something to do with Mary. Mary Prestosa, fourth year graduating Philosophy student, whom they had been investigating. Mary, who surprised her roommate one night by suddenly standing up from her bed, throwing the windows open, and jumping down, headfirst, to the dormitory grounds below. Mary, whose memory marked the trail of mysterious deaths and bizarre occurrences that followed her own fateful the fifth-year Computer Engineering student who prowled the campus on all fours, thirsty for blood, believing he was a wolf; the revelation of an all-girls’ satanic cult; the demonic possession of a fourth-year student from the Department of Psychology; and now—Flo, dead.

The students traced it all to Mary. They believed Mary didn’t commit suicide. They believed Mary tapped into something dark, and released it, and was consumed.

And Anthony was determined to pry out the truth.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Fantasy

56 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 9, 2012

About the author

Eliza Victoria is the author of several books including the Philippine National Book Award-winning Dwellers, the novel Wounded Little Gods, the graphic novel After Lambana (a collaboration with Mervin Malonzo), and the science fiction novel-in-stories, Nightfall. Her fiction and poetry have appeared in several publications, most recently in LONTAR: The Journal of Southeast Asian Speculative Fiction, The Best Asian Speculative Fiction, The Dark Magazine, The Apex Book of World SF Volume 5, Fireside Fiction, and Future SF. She has won prizes in the Philippines’ top literary awards, including the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature. Her one-act plays (written in Filipino) have been staged at the Virgin LabFest at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

Reviews

[Neil Franz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite being just a novella, The Viewless Dark delivers what a paranormal-horror should be like. Dark, creepy and disturbing. Add that its ability to make your heart aches because of the characters and the thoughts, ideas and feelings this book is holding on its words.

The Viewless Dark is a well-written novella. It's a story of Flo and her death and everything that branches with it. It's a story of what you believe in and not, a story of uncertainty, faith, melancholy, satisfaction, the mystery of life and death. This novella is dark and grim in a way, not just literally but figuratively and emotionally.

Told in backwards, the careful revelations of what lies ahead has been properly executed. My anticipation does not wavered down as I trudged my way to find the answers to my questions.

And what I've found out in the end broke my heart.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Original post at One More Page

So I read The Viewless Dark around October, because it was supposed to be a horror novel and the best time to read a horror story is during Halloween, right? I was kind of wary, though, because I'm not a fan of anything scary, so I made sure I read this in broad daylight.

The Viewless Dark is about Anthony's friend, Flo, who was found dead in the university library. He knew his friend's death had something to do with Mary, who committed suicide some time ago, and whose death Anthony and Flo were investigating. Here we see what really happened, and what Anthony knew about Flo that no one else knew and what exactly Flo had been going through the night before she died.

Of course I ended up reading this at night, anyway, because I need something to lull me to sleep. And even if I read this in broad daylight, I still felt creeped out every now and then with the story. I liked how the story unfolded from the death of Flo and into flashbacks that pointed just to how exactly Flo ended up that way to what happened to Anthony's family. I liked how vivid the setting was and how sufficiently creepy the "possession" they set up, until the final twist in the end which undid everything I thought I knew. And then Eliza wraps it up in a different way, giving it a poignant, almost hopeful ending.

I'm pretty sure I'm just chicken, and other friends might not think that this is as scary as I thought it was. But even so, I have a very good feeling that some of my friends will like this book just as much as I did. :)

[Catherine Walder · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't know what to expect when I started reading this, or maybe I did, being familiar with Eliza's penchant for pleasant surprises. I usually have trouble finishing a story these days but this just kept me reading as soon as I started. As a reader, you are taken on a viewless adventure. You won't see what's coming. Eliza Victoria is one kick-ass, readable poet. That is the best compliment I could think of about her prose. The clarity of her writing makes the reader immediately imagine the scenery and immerse herself in the story. The flashbacks didn't bog down the story, in fact, it just flowed and you hardly notice they were there at all.

This is the kind of book you hesitate to read if you know what some of the themes are earlier on as they make you question things such as personal happiness – even if you're quite happy and content with your life you begin to ask, is this enough, am I doing enough for others, etc. There's the question, and the attempt to answer, the mystery of life, and death, but that's just one area. I wouldn't really recommend it for reading when you're feeling depressed. But for the excellent writing alone, I highly recommend this book.

Well, now I wonder what happened to my frayed copy of A Separate Peace back in the Philippines...

[Kristel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love how Eliza Victoria can offer me something different from all the Pinoy books I've read. I could attribute it to chance, because I picked up her first book, a science fiction called "Project 17" and followed it up with this horror novellette. Still, it's a different reading experience! The Viewless Dark is eerie and creepy and dark (obviously) as it tackles the story behind Anthony and Flo's investigation on Mary's suicide, as well as the other events/circumstances that followed after it. I love how Eliza weaved Anthony and Flo's backstories during their investigation, because I get to see the contrast of their personalities in handling the weight of their emotions brought about by their respective pasts. Also smart of her to use a male narrator, because the tone would have been different if it was a female friend of Flo's (if she has friends, that is. hehe). The climax is stunning and the ending is bittersweet, making me realize that ghosts and evil are living within us; it only depends on our consciousness if we want to make it real.

[D · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I think what makes Eliza Victoria's fiction so fascinating and easy to relate to--no matter how fantastical, or horrific as this novella is--is the fact that her work is always rooted in human emotion. At the very surface, The Viewless Dark is about curses, murder, and the wrath of gods. Peel those layers back and it is about the comfort of knowing what happens in the Afterlife. A question of what happens after we die. And a question if there is something other than this existence.

[Monique · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because The Viewless Dark is included as one of the stories in the compendium Unseen Moon, which I have read last year, I will direct you to my marginalia for the latter book. CLICK!

[li · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is so GOOD. I wish it was longer though. But anyway, this is the second book of Eliza Victoria’s that I’ve read and I must say, she continues to surprise me. (Although the first book I’ve read is actually more recent).

Victoria was able to give the readers that mysterious yet haunting vibe of the story. I haven’t read much horror/mystery/thriller kind of books and maybe this is the sign that I should read more. The writing, the flow of the story, the mystery, the backstories. All of them were truly amazing. I really love this!

So what Flo experienced was real. She had second thoughts after seeing Sammy and Janice, but Mary gave her proof. It was real.

Real.

[Jane Marga · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one dives deeply into what Eliza Victoria is good in delivering: mysteriously haunted, sci-fi, almost mythical, and paranormal (if that makes sense with that mishmash of genre) that is woven and intertwined smoothly with the characters' perspective and setting. I revel the words built up and created into sentences every time I read it.

Moreover, there's something strong in its message about a life lived and/or taken as a choice. I wish I could savor more, but the crisis faced will always be considered a good turning point for me.

[Jeng · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book I've read by Eliza, and as was the first time, I was engrossed by the writing. She has woven tales of shapeshifting, occultism and the power of human emotions and curiosities very well.

[Midge · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story's intensity was properly built up, even though at times the plot toys with your feelings. Ugh. I got a good amount of chill out of it but then I'm the kind of person who's easily spooked. Overall, it was a short, good read, and the ending was satisfying.

[angeline · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is like a punch in the gut, what interests me the most is the mystery in it, especially flor. good god, she reminds me of alaska. sorry for the brief messy review, i'm still trying to compose my thoughts. overall, this is a worth-read, i love it.

[Riezee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the premise, the writing. Some ideas are misplaced, I think.

[Shed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's a quaint novella that packs a punch. It follows the story of Flo, the events that led to her death, and the struggle of her friends to make sense of it all.

A real page turner. It took me less than 30 minutes to finish the whole thing. I devoured it like a freshly cooked shanghai. Yum.🤤

[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok but I found it anti-climactic