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How Hot It Be in Hell
How Hot It Be in Hell descends into the hidden impulses people try to outrun—jealousy, obsession, violence, desire, and the quiet urges that twist a life off course. Each poem opens a door into a different human a lover’s fatal rage, a predator’s watchful hunger, a drunk stumbling toward chaos, a homeless man recounting the slow collapse of everything he held dear. Even the act of writing becomes a reckoning with the shadows that shape meaning, rendered through Drummond’s surreal imagery and genre‑bending voice.
As the collection deepens, the tone grows darker, more unflinching, until the final poem, HOT FIRE, tears past individual sins and imagines hell itself breaking loose upon the earth. Drummond blends romance, horror, mystery, and lyrical experimentation into a haunting exploration of how easily humanity slips toward ruin. The result is a compelling, fire‑lit journey for readers drawn to poetry that stares directly into darkness and refuses to look away.
As the collection deepens, the tone grows darker, more unflinching, until the final poem, HOT FIRE, tears past individual sins and imagines hell itself breaking loose upon the earth. Drummond blends romance, horror, mystery, and lyrical experimentation into a haunting exploration of how easily humanity slips toward ruin. The result is a compelling, fire‑lit journey for readers drawn to poetry that stares directly into darkness and refuses to look away.
95 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 18, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 27, 2025
How Hot It Be In Hell
by Audrey E. Drummond
I love certain poetry. This poetry is unique and satisfying. It takes on a life of its own. In only a page or two, it tells a story complete with atmosphere. A couple of poems were just so-so but the majority were 4-5 stars. Plenty of poems and a variety of subjects.
by Audrey E. Drummond
I love certain poetry. This poetry is unique and satisfying. It takes on a life of its own. In only a page or two, it tells a story complete with atmosphere. A couple of poems were just so-so but the majority were 4-5 stars. Plenty of poems and a variety of subjects.
March 30, 2026
How Hot It Be in Hell is a collection of 39 poems that helps you travel through various emotional landscapes. In my opinion, this book won’t resonate with you if what you expect is healing. But if you need artworks that picture your mental or existential pain the most beautiful way possible, then this collection is for you. If you are:
• Questioning your life and purpose
• Dealing with Gil or regret and destructive habits
• Suffering from emotional damage
• Struggling with dark turns in your life
This book is for you. The poems will tell you, “I see your pain”. They will even cry and scream with your soul.
But again, do not expect healing. Do not expect enlightenment. Just… Expect a clearer view of whatever feeling you may have. Expect a deeper dive into your wounds.
My reading experience was not the best since I didn’t come to contemplate any pain. As a result, I found some poems triggering, pulling me back into some painful, previous events in life that I was part of.
My Favorite Poems
• Is This Art
This one is the very first item in the collection. You can get an easy interpretation without having to look through all the imageries.
Starting with the words “I create” and followed by repetition of no. “Not spray, not clay, not brush, not glue”, paired with the starter “I create”, this poem features the emotion of someone doing something that does not follow common standards.
“Is this art?” = does it still count even when the way I do my work does not fit the common definition? You can see inner emotional noices of those who question their different ways of doing things. You can see doubts and fears of doing something that others think different.
• Better Days
This one is short, simple, and easy, too. The poem lives in a contrast pair of imageries, dirty glass and bright sun.
Someone is inside that dirty glass, looking out to see the sun shining so bright. Isn’t it also very easy to interpret? Isn’t it easy to get the capture of the emotion a depressed person? An emotion that is already going down to depression but not yet severe, an emotion that tells you when you’re depressed, everything outside your world seems to be wonderful. Looks like full of hope and happiness even if the truth does not match.
• Broken
This one is the most layered poem that documents damage, deeper damage, and total collapse without specifying a single event. Every line portrays layers of stages of being broken that happens gradually, a process of distruction that starts small and then expands into a long-term, unbearable misery. It clearly shows how any pain can get worsened over time.
What I found interesting is, this poem does not show any living figure. No human, no animal, no gloomy house, yet still presents the 4 stages of broken in the darkest way possible. If I were a poet, I would never have thought to write like this one.
So, the flow starts by mentioning tragedy after tragedy experienced by the unnamed (referred to as it) with such strong, visual imageries. Since this poem comes with interesting layers, I will try to break down what happens to “it”, as far as I know from my reading and interpretation.
First off, it was hit by a truck, cracked with tiny lines. = It was hurt so badly, and the wound/crack lingers/stays opened.
And then, it broke further in the rain. = There comes the second layer of pain to carry.
And it is now in pieces at night, waiting to be scattered by the wind. = Now that life keeps pressuring with more wounds, it splinters into shame. Shame that creates feelings to disappear at the end of the day..
• Flinging Shit
Another simple, short, and easy-to-interpret poem. Again, appease with a clear message to see that I don’t have to throw snippets of its imageries.
This time, it’s taken from an angle of a frustrated yet hopeful, creative soul. Frustrated because they know once something is made and thrown to the world, it is not always be remembered. And hopeful, hoping that there idea/creation remains in people’s memory.
• In The House of Flies
This poem feels so excessive right from the title. Flies are used to picture place that’s far from clean, followed by other imageries like sticky lips from the fruit, uncontrollable laughter, red juice everywhere and more, it all captures how overly spoiled with pleasure can turn into something chaotic, messy, and even loss of control. When reading the full poem, you get the clearest few of unstoppable madness and impulsive habits without awareness.
• Fountain (a Prayer)
First time reading this poem, it threw me off guard. I was confused, not knowing what the whole thing really means.
Someone has a whole bunch of quest, and something is addressed as fountain. This fountain is expected to wash their mouth and keep them young and brave. What???
But instead of being stuck on the fountain imagery, you can start your interpretation from the request. Wash their mouth, keep them young and brave. It probably means a cleanse from worries and anxiety of whatever is going to happen. It can also mean to keep them tough and courageous enough to face the future. So this poem is captured from a heart that wants to be filled with strength and courage to fight against their fears. And the thing, the comforter, has to reach and fill them from a higher place just like a fountain.
• Questioning your life and purpose
• Dealing with Gil or regret and destructive habits
• Suffering from emotional damage
• Struggling with dark turns in your life
This book is for you. The poems will tell you, “I see your pain”. They will even cry and scream with your soul.
But again, do not expect healing. Do not expect enlightenment. Just… Expect a clearer view of whatever feeling you may have. Expect a deeper dive into your wounds.
My reading experience was not the best since I didn’t come to contemplate any pain. As a result, I found some poems triggering, pulling me back into some painful, previous events in life that I was part of.
My Favorite Poems
• Is This Art
This one is the very first item in the collection. You can get an easy interpretation without having to look through all the imageries.
Starting with the words “I create” and followed by repetition of no. “Not spray, not clay, not brush, not glue”, paired with the starter “I create”, this poem features the emotion of someone doing something that does not follow common standards.
“Is this art?” = does it still count even when the way I do my work does not fit the common definition? You can see inner emotional noices of those who question their different ways of doing things. You can see doubts and fears of doing something that others think different.
• Better Days
This one is short, simple, and easy, too. The poem lives in a contrast pair of imageries, dirty glass and bright sun.
Someone is inside that dirty glass, looking out to see the sun shining so bright. Isn’t it also very easy to interpret? Isn’t it easy to get the capture of the emotion a depressed person? An emotion that is already going down to depression but not yet severe, an emotion that tells you when you’re depressed, everything outside your world seems to be wonderful. Looks like full of hope and happiness even if the truth does not match.
• Broken
This one is the most layered poem that documents damage, deeper damage, and total collapse without specifying a single event. Every line portrays layers of stages of being broken that happens gradually, a process of distruction that starts small and then expands into a long-term, unbearable misery. It clearly shows how any pain can get worsened over time.
What I found interesting is, this poem does not show any living figure. No human, no animal, no gloomy house, yet still presents the 4 stages of broken in the darkest way possible. If I were a poet, I would never have thought to write like this one.
So, the flow starts by mentioning tragedy after tragedy experienced by the unnamed (referred to as it) with such strong, visual imageries. Since this poem comes with interesting layers, I will try to break down what happens to “it”, as far as I know from my reading and interpretation.
First off, it was hit by a truck, cracked with tiny lines. = It was hurt so badly, and the wound/crack lingers/stays opened.
And then, it broke further in the rain. = There comes the second layer of pain to carry.
And it is now in pieces at night, waiting to be scattered by the wind. = Now that life keeps pressuring with more wounds, it splinters into shame. Shame that creates feelings to disappear at the end of the day..
• Flinging Shit
Another simple, short, and easy-to-interpret poem. Again, appease with a clear message to see that I don’t have to throw snippets of its imageries.
This time, it’s taken from an angle of a frustrated yet hopeful, creative soul. Frustrated because they know once something is made and thrown to the world, it is not always be remembered. And hopeful, hoping that there idea/creation remains in people’s memory.
• In The House of Flies
This poem feels so excessive right from the title. Flies are used to picture place that’s far from clean, followed by other imageries like sticky lips from the fruit, uncontrollable laughter, red juice everywhere and more, it all captures how overly spoiled with pleasure can turn into something chaotic, messy, and even loss of control. When reading the full poem, you get the clearest few of unstoppable madness and impulsive habits without awareness.
• Fountain (a Prayer)
First time reading this poem, it threw me off guard. I was confused, not knowing what the whole thing really means.
Someone has a whole bunch of quest, and something is addressed as fountain. This fountain is expected to wash their mouth and keep them young and brave. What???
But instead of being stuck on the fountain imagery, you can start your interpretation from the request. Wash their mouth, keep them young and brave. It probably means a cleanse from worries and anxiety of whatever is going to happen. It can also mean to keep them tough and courageous enough to face the future. So this poem is captured from a heart that wants to be filled with strength and courage to fight against their fears. And the thing, the comforter, has to reach and fill them from a higher place just like a fountain.
March 1, 2025
I won a copy of this in a Good Reads giveaway!
Though I had a difficult time finding the flow for a lot of these poems, the ones that I was able to I did enjoy! I did see that a lot of these poems were rewritten at least once or twice, just to note, and I think I liked the ones with the darker themes the most out of all of them.
Out of the works, the ones I liked the most were Harlem B.J. Tough (I LOVED the additions of the story as it really gave the character depth), How Hot it be in Hell parts 1 and 2 (they were written really fun and creatively! And I really liked the accents given to the characters!), and Hot Fire (it's a general theme I like lol)
Overall, it was an all right read! The poems I liked, I REALLY liked, but the ones that I couldn't find the flow of just didn't resonate with me at all
Though I had a difficult time finding the flow for a lot of these poems, the ones that I was able to I did enjoy! I did see that a lot of these poems were rewritten at least once or twice, just to note, and I think I liked the ones with the darker themes the most out of all of them.
Out of the works, the ones I liked the most were Harlem B.J. Tough (I LOVED the additions of the story as it really gave the character depth), How Hot it be in Hell parts 1 and 2 (they were written really fun and creatively! And I really liked the accents given to the characters!), and Hot Fire (it's a general theme I like lol)
Overall, it was an all right read! The poems I liked, I REALLY liked, but the ones that I couldn't find the flow of just didn't resonate with me at all
March 5, 2025
I used to read a lot of poetry but it kind of dropped off my radar. I was pleasantly surprised to see one of my wins was a poet. Although it can be a fast read, an intermittent read with just open to a page and read, it can also be read slowly taking the time to absorb the words, grasp the meanings, read them out loud and enjoy the sound of your own voice. I liked it!
- [ ] Disclaimer - I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway.
- [ ] Disclaimer - I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway.
March 6, 2025
I’m not a fan of straight rhymes in contemporary poetry. It’s hard to get right. I do think there’s an audience for this type of poetry. It’s just not my taste.
Want to Read
May 29, 2025I never received it
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews