Lacerazioni

by Erica McKeen

Frances vive nel seminterrato di una casa condivisa con altre studentesse. È una ragazza silenziosa e riservata al punto che le sue coinquiline a volte dimenticano persino che viva con loro. Quando ormai manca poco alla sua laurea, Frances inizia a vivere episodi che la portano a mettere in dubbio la realtà stessa: non ricorda che la porta in cima alle scale del seminterrato fosse stata chiusa a chiave, eppure quando gira la maniglia, non riesce ad aprirla. Non riesce più neppure a distinguere tra i ricordi d’infanzia, che si fanno largo nel buio del suo isolamento, mentre i suoi sogni sono sempre più vividi. E poi c’è quel rumore, un battito insistente che proviene dalla parete della sua camera, sempre più violento, come se qualcosa stesse cercando di farsi strada attraverso il muro...
Con la sensibilità gotica di Mary Shelley e Shirley Jackson, Lacerazioni è un romanzo di formazione che si trasforma in un incubo, e dove il trauma prende forma e chiede di essere ascoltato. Un’opera prima che sfuma i confini tra realtà e immaginazione, esplorando senza compromessigli effetti devastanti della manipolazione psicologica e del gaslighting sulle giovani donne.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Canada, Book Club, Adult, Literary Fiction, Feminism

Paperback

First published September 6, 2022

Reviews

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m the author, so I highly recommend this book.

[frankie · Rating 2 out of 5]

very distracting feet stuff in this book lmao
not distracting me from anything well done or interesting or meaningful though

[alex. · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://tenor.com/6B83.gif

[Fern]

Is this a good, well written book? Yes. Did I enjoy it? Not really.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part of the novel was claustrophobic and creepy. Good by me. I thought the second part was a good setup for what the rest of the book could have been. But for me, it ultimately became too scattered in its ideas to really tie together into a cohesive theme or message. And the story itself while original and often intriguing didn't feel complete. There were many times I thought the story might be headed in a direction based on Francis' childhood experiences or the plot threads being added, but it didn't. It's not that events in the first parts of the book and the third part were unrelated, they certainly weren't. But after reading I wondered why we got so much specific and gripping detail about Francis' childhood while not much of it was applicable later. The middle section also had a few perspectives which were added and then entirely dropped out of nowhere. So in sum, this was an engaging read, but for me there were too many dropped plot threads and lack of cohesive theme for me to give it a higher rating.

[WickedReading · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone read this NOW

Vlog-- https://youtu.be/ddfLcIn31A0?si=AR_jv...

[Lavelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

will never stay in a basement ever ever ever, thanks erica mckeen!

[AFrolicInTheTomesXx · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay so holy shih. My weird lit/ feminine rage girlies are going to absolutely eat this up. I can’t believe it isn’t more known or talked about. I think partially that could be because it in itself is hard to talk about. So I get it it’s a hard sell. A woman may or may not be trapped in a basement and things get weird. So vague, I know. But I promise you it’s also so worth it. And so much more than that.

We have multiple generations of men and the ways they manipulate and gaslight women (even exploring this starting at a very young age), we have the idea that women are replaceable being discussed, we have toxic family dynamics, women’s story’s being controlled by men, and we have the way that impacts a young girl and the rage that forms. We have emotionally unavailable slightly sadistic mommy issues. I’m telling you it’s so good.

The first part is a coming of age story, and then the aftermath of that, and then well it just gets bonkers and hits the ceiling HARD.

Parts of it are truly hard to read despite seeming unassuming. It’s just done so well because her memories are innocent and childlike yet as an adult reading we can see what was clearly happening in her life and around her, and it definitely was not good.

The topics are hard and there are a lot of triggers, but wow the writing blew me away. I was never entirely sure where it was going but I definitely didn’t expect that. I wish I could tell ya but trust… it’s better to go into this blind. Just know it gets gory and wild and at least one man looses a peen. But I promise you it won’t be In the way you predict.

Not a book I thought I’d love this much but here we are. Def want to keep up with this author.

CW/TW: gaslighting, mommy issues, SA, mention of rape, eating disorders, depression, child abuse and possible CSA mention, body horror. And probably more.

[Madz · Rating 4 out of 5]

McKeen created a very atmospheric, soul dissolving story. Tear is dark, tear is visceral, tear is budding with discomfort and repression.
I did enjoy McKeen's writing style- so detailed and subconscious. However, at times I found Tear to drag on a bit and by the end I found myself ready to come to a close.
Overall this was an intriguing indie read that definitely didn't help my depressive state.
// 3.5 rounded up

[Lancen Davis Harms · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can definitively say the title is pronounced "Tear" and not "Tear".

This book made my skin crawl and drained the blood from my face: everything I wanted. What a stellar debut horror novel! A gurgling, curdling, wail of rage–a missile orbiting a blackhole–made that much more poignant by flashing back to a childhood that just might feel eerily familiar. The words Erica writes are so masterfully vivid it's as if I read fully illustrated sentences. Lonely, uncomfortable, and cold until a spark flies and ignites the gasoline you didn't even realize the book had been soaked in from the beginning. Fans of Shirley Jackson, Mary Shelley, and Junji Ito should immediately check this one out... IF THEY DARE!

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

"How can you wake yourself from dreaming? thought the monster. It's as difficult as dying."

[Gareth Boyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off, I want to say I am honoured to have had the privilege of being taught by the author of this novel in my first year English literature courses. It brought me great joy and excitement when I found out she was writing her own story.

‘Tear’ is a book I have never read before. It’s not at all like books you would expect in the modern day by modern authors such as Elin Hilderbrand (not to insult her work). This is a work of art - one that I’d expect to be studied in a class just like the one McKeen taught. It promotes intense thought and leaves the reader with many questions - questions that they have to answer themselves. ‘Tear’ is definitely a novel that requires a second read to pick up on narrative clues, symbols and motifs that provide the reader enough to develop their own answers.

Horror, in this novel, is not what you expect. It is gory as it is sexual; haunting as it is beautiful. This horror is organic—breathing and living within every character. The story is broken up into three parts - each being completely different from one another. McKeen uses these parts as novellas that tell different stories that connect to eachother harmoniously. It is episodic but flashes back to old moments with callbacks to something that someone said thoughtlessly before and now holds great meaning. These moments don’t happen too often, but when they do it causes a lightbulb to go off and the threads of the narrative become complete.

This is definitely one of my top reads of the year. Congrats to Erica for crafting a stunning debut.

5/5.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story gripped me from the beginning. The imagery conjures up scenes from movies like Ring (or the American equivalent, The Ring). As I read this, I often found myself wondering- is this a nightmare I’ve had before? There is a lot of rage packed into each description of various creepy things. I felt like I could smell that basement.

I also found myself thinking back on a book I haven’t read in a long time, The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood. There are some comparable themes here I think.

Give it a 5/5 because it was complex, weird, and sometimes funny. An excellent read as we head into the spooky season, or for anyone who likes to be a little scared.

[Misha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll need to read this at least once more to pick up on everything McKeen has incorporated in this. You can tell someone who taught literature for a while wrote this, and I mean that in the best possible way. The three part structure with completely different POV characters and completely separate events was a really interesting approach to slow, creeping horror, and I really enjoyed this book.

[Molly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly, this just wasn’t my kind of book. It started out super intriguing. Great world-building. But as the supernatural and horror elements came in, it just start to lose me. I can acknowledge that, for its audience, all of that was probably great. And I wouldn’t hesitate to pick up McKeen’s next book.

[Jillian Wertzberger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Made me feel physically unwell I loved it

[Erin Talamantes · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Gen · Rating 5 out of 5]

gorgeous, stunning, disgusting
the writing was 10/10

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

|| TEAR ||
#gifted/@invisibooks
✍🏻
A dark, gritty, macabre, I couldn't put this down!

Now horror is not a genre I reach for often but this was my kind of horror! Influenced by Frankenstein, TEAR originally caught my attention because of the fantastic cover, labeled a horrifying bildungsroman, a reclamation of female rage. Sign me up! McKeen's evocative prose immediately crept underneath my skin. This is unsettling and disturbing. Written in three parts, with flash backs to Frances's childhood it kept getting more surreal and metaphorical. The lines of real and unreal blurring. Themes of trauma, memory, mental illness, female rage, femininity, and monstrosity crawling out of the pages. If you enjoy a slow burn horror like The Haunting of Hill House or The Yellow Wallpaper definitely pick this up!

For more of my book content check out instagram.com/bookalong

[Matt Milu · Rating 1 out of 5]

In the beginning, why didn’t she just break the basement window and climb out to safety? 1 Star ⭐️!

[Dessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Came for the pans labyrinth vibes and got out-pans labyrinthed!! In a very real way I absolutely never knew where this book was going next, which was sometimes a delight and sometimes a horror. Big body horror warning and I mean BIG. I think if we zoom way out this novel is a metaphor for the oft-violent process of becoming a person when you’re a girl — all the ways you shape yourself on purpose or by accident, and all the ways the world shapes you, too, whether gently or harshly. But if we zoom right in we can see this book was Not Really For Me and that’s ok!!!

[Yana Sig · Rating 5 out of 5]

You had me at feminist surrealism/horror. Knowing London and having walked in those same streets just made this 100x creepier (if even possible). I loved this and enjoyed how fleshed out Frances’ backstory was. The overall descriptions were so vivid and I was racing to finish this book! Can’t recommend enough and I will definitely be looking out for more of the author’s works.

FYI: for lovers of Mona Awad’s Bunny, read this!

[Rosaria Battiloro · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,75 ⭐️

non sono neanche sicura di cosa ho letto davvero, ma di certo ho apprezzato.

[Abby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the writing in this book. Loved the voice. Loved the atmosphere. Absolutely great. But this was not a five star book for me because ultimately I didn't really know what was going on the whole time. I assume there is a lot of symbolism that I just missed because I am pretty much blind to symbolism so the overall story is basically nonsense to me. But I loved reading it! Fun nonsense.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t know how I felt about this, might change my rating once I sit with it for a bit.

[Ryan Schellenberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

God damn. An absolute trip of a book. Intense, tragic and tremendously visceral.

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is how you write a horror novel. I’ve been in a reading slump for months, and I devoured this novel. The last section is certainly strange, but fleshes out the metaphor for lost innocence. Incredible read!

[Amy LeBlanc · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was super fortunate to receive an ARC of Tear for a blurb. Here’s what I thought of this amazing debut:

“Is Frances James sleeping or dead? Is she trapped in one of her grandfather’s macabre stories? Did her childhood best friend imagine her into existence? McKeen’s debut is a story about stories: a scratching sound emanates from the walls, doors are suddenly and unexpectedly locked, a tree grows around a baby rabbit’s skull, and a young woman wiggles her toes to remind herself that she is real. Tear is a startling novel about monstrosity, femininity, and embodiment that leaves us with the impression that the most uncanny spaces—and the ones we should be most frightened of—are the homes we live within. With Tear, McKeen shows a unique and striking voice that will haunt readers long after they’ve turned the last page.”

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first two parts of the book definitely had me hooked but unfortunately I found it harder to get through part 3 (the monsters POV). The author did a great job of creating a chilling and spooky tone.

[Kate McDougall Sackler · Rating 1 out of 5]

It took me so long to read this because I had such a hard time getting into it. Ultimately I would describe it as Lady Frankenstein’s feminist rage. But the Frankenstein, feminism and rage doesn’t manifest until the last 1/4 of the book. The first 3/4 is a tedious lesson in patience as someone’s psyche slowly deteriorates. Give this a pass.
2024 reading challenge- a book by an author from Canada, Australia, or New Zealand (Canada)