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In Dreams We Rot
FICTION LIKE A FEVER DREAM
A voyeur becomes the one being watched, terrifying beasts are stitched together, strange new insects appear, ancient sex gods rise, and an island on the brink of madness falls apart.
Betty Rocksteady's debut collection blends surrealism and horror, tearing apart tropes as words bleed and transform down unexpected avenues of nightmare logic. These twenty stories run the gamut from splatterpunk to somber. They're hot and wet and nasty, guaranteed to leave you with an unspeakable sense of dread.
A voyeur becomes the one being watched, terrifying beasts are stitched together, strange new insects appear, ancient sex gods rise, and an island on the brink of madness falls apart.
Betty Rocksteady's debut collection blends surrealism and horror, tearing apart tropes as words bleed and transform down unexpected avenues of nightmare logic. These twenty stories run the gamut from splatterpunk to somber. They're hot and wet and nasty, guaranteed to leave you with an unspeakable sense of dread.
190 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 18, 2019
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306 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
September 23, 2019
I got an advanced copy of this to review for Gingernuts of Horror, so you'll find my full review there. However, I did want to add a little something here...
Dreams are hard to capture on page. You might wake up in the middle of the night and fumble for a pen and paper, grasping at the last moments you remember. Then in the morning you look at what you wrote and none of it makes sense. Well, In Dreams We Rot, you don’t have to worry about any of that, because Betty Rocksteady did all of the hard work for you. In her first collection of short stories she has tapped into the secret well of nightmares to offer up a healthy serving of madness and heart, delivering one of the best collections of the year.
Rocksteady held back nothing with the 21 stories you’ll find here. She’s bared her soul for all and isn’t afraid of what’s exposed. There are stories about love, sex with skeletons, the death of children, the desire for what you can’t have, the urge to create, and cats. Each story has something that will touch you deeply, finding that place you don’t want to talk about and prodding at it until you have no choice but to face your thoughts and feelings. There are some things in here that make you question humanity, but also make you cheer on those that find the strength to deal with the terrible situations they find themselves in. It’s a powerful collection that could have come across as heavy handed, yet Rocksteady expertly navigates the concepts presented here to give us something that feels natural and poignant.
Dreams are hard to capture on page. You might wake up in the middle of the night and fumble for a pen and paper, grasping at the last moments you remember. Then in the morning you look at what you wrote and none of it makes sense. Well, In Dreams We Rot, you don’t have to worry about any of that, because Betty Rocksteady did all of the hard work for you. In her first collection of short stories she has tapped into the secret well of nightmares to offer up a healthy serving of madness and heart, delivering one of the best collections of the year.
Rocksteady held back nothing with the 21 stories you’ll find here. She’s bared her soul for all and isn’t afraid of what’s exposed. There are stories about love, sex with skeletons, the death of children, the desire for what you can’t have, the urge to create, and cats. Each story has something that will touch you deeply, finding that place you don’t want to talk about and prodding at it until you have no choice but to face your thoughts and feelings. There are some things in here that make you question humanity, but also make you cheer on those that find the strength to deal with the terrible situations they find themselves in. It’s a powerful collection that could have come across as heavy handed, yet Rocksteady expertly navigates the concepts presented here to give us something that feels natural and poignant.
February 10, 2020
4 to 4.5 stars for this feverish short story collection. Betty Rocksteady has a killer style all her own. She seamlessly meshes the surreal with that growing sense of wrongness that is always heading straight for a pounding collision. These stories are intense. It's amazing what she can do is so few pages.
My favorites were: "Something Is Coming," "The Desert of Wounded Frequencies," "Postpartum," "Our Feral Skies," "Dusk Urchin," "Elephants That Aren't," and "Crimson Tide."
My favorites were: "Something Is Coming," "The Desert of Wounded Frequencies," "Postpartum," "Our Feral Skies," "Dusk Urchin," "Elephants That Aren't," and "Crimson Tide."
October 16, 2019
I'll have an official review up soon, but for now I'll just say this is easily one of the strongest short story collections I've read in ages, if not ever. You should get this one immediately!
March 3, 2020
Rocksteady pens nightmares that crawl across the walls, nightmares that haunt, discover the dead buried, or how bout that something growing inside you... or that fear of drowning. Trust me you’ll want to Rot with these Dreams. Recommend!
Top Favorites:
-These Beautiful Bones
-Root Rot
-Lonely Hearts Club
-Larva, Pupa, Moth
-Crimson Tide
Top Favorites:
-These Beautiful Bones
-Root Rot
-Lonely Hearts Club
-Larva, Pupa, Moth
-Crimson Tide
January 28, 2020
Dark and imaginatively twisted . A solid 4
October 15, 2019
“Mom had probably heard me get home, but I stank of sweat and death. Rivulets of gore dripped down my sweatpants. Death is messy, but hey, so is life. “—From “Postpartum”
“I lay back down next to him, placed a hand on his chest, where my own waylaid heart burbled.” —From “Lonely Hearts Club”
IN DREAMS WE ROT, a collection of horror and weird fiction stories, is unsettling, bizarre, and captivating. My favorite stories are as follows: “Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet” features a feral cat colony and the human guardian who does their bidding. “Something is Coming” redirects the camera lens on a voyeur. In “The Botany of Desire,” unusual flowers act as an all consuming aphrodisiac. “Postpartum” gives life to a creepy craft project at a great cost. The childless woman in “Dusk Urchin” finds a surprise on the other side of her front door. In “Our Feral Skies,” a stray cat becomes part of the family in an uncanny manner. My top pick, “Lonely Hearts Club” explores an obsessive relationship that goes off the rails.
Many of the stories revolve around relationships, family, lost loves, pets, and a need for connection. Some of the protagonists begin the stories with the best intentions, while others unapologetically plan to destroy anything that gets in the way of their goals, but all of them come face to face with the unexpected. This collection is jam packed creepy goodness.
Thanks to the author for an advance reader copy for review purposes.
“I lay back down next to him, placed a hand on his chest, where my own waylaid heart burbled.” —From “Lonely Hearts Club”
IN DREAMS WE ROT, a collection of horror and weird fiction stories, is unsettling, bizarre, and captivating. My favorite stories are as follows: “Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet” features a feral cat colony and the human guardian who does their bidding. “Something is Coming” redirects the camera lens on a voyeur. In “The Botany of Desire,” unusual flowers act as an all consuming aphrodisiac. “Postpartum” gives life to a creepy craft project at a great cost. The childless woman in “Dusk Urchin” finds a surprise on the other side of her front door. In “Our Feral Skies,” a stray cat becomes part of the family in an uncanny manner. My top pick, “Lonely Hearts Club” explores an obsessive relationship that goes off the rails.
Many of the stories revolve around relationships, family, lost loves, pets, and a need for connection. Some of the protagonists begin the stories with the best intentions, while others unapologetically plan to destroy anything that gets in the way of their goals, but all of them come face to face with the unexpected. This collection is jam packed creepy goodness.
Thanks to the author for an advance reader copy for review purposes.
October 9, 2019
3.5 - While this started off great, it gradually declined. If it wasn't bizarre and gross, it was scattered and unsteady. Still, the good stuff was good enough I will look for her next release to read.
March 25, 2021
3.5 stars.
These stories are surreal, strange, fever dream like glimpses into a world of horror and grief. Some stories are deeply visceral and evocative, and some are vague, abstract tales of terror. As is the norm with anthologies, some stories were far better than others.
The Bones Beneath Their Feet, Postpartum and The Desert Of Wounded Frequencies were the ones I enjoyed the most. There are many fantastic stories in this collection, though a few did feel like they were trying a little too hard. I'm curious to see what this author does next.
These stories are surreal, strange, fever dream like glimpses into a world of horror and grief. Some stories are deeply visceral and evocative, and some are vague, abstract tales of terror. As is the norm with anthologies, some stories were far better than others.
The Bones Beneath Their Feet, Postpartum and The Desert Of Wounded Frequencies were the ones I enjoyed the most. There are many fantastic stories in this collection, though a few did feel like they were trying a little too hard. I'm curious to see what this author does next.
October 21, 2019
Content Warnings: As can be figured with the synopsis, In Dreams We Rot is definitely NSFW. There’s a lot of extreme content here & I do not recommend for the faint of heart.
“In Dreams We Rot is like a fever dream” — where is the lie though? Story after story in this collection makes me feel as if I’m diving deeper into a hallucinogenic trip. Betty Rocksteady has an extremely imaginative mind & each of the stories in this collection are memorable & stick out. In fact, there’s a story in In Dreams We Rot that I wish I could forget.
In case you’re wondering which story that is, may I introduce you to These Beautiful Bones? What the what. It was beyond disturbing & I found myself cringing through the entire read. For someone who loves horror, this is not a bad thing whatsoever. The story was so bizarre, very pornographic & layered with so much gore. I probably will never read this story again, only for the simple fact that I can’t unsee what I read.
Other stories in this collection deserve comment and praise; however, doing so will take all day. Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet is a story that features a colony of 100+ cats. My kinda story, amiright? Something is Coming shows a voyeur become the voyeuree — yes, 100% made that word up & I’m proud of it. Postpartum is a story of a widow who starts creating her own creature through the bones of others. Every single story is completely different than the one before.
In Dreams We Rot is a wonderful collection to read when you’re really looking to be disturbed & have your bones rattled. Definitely not for the faint of heart, so if you have triggers & whatnot this may be a book to stay away from. But other then that, give it a read & let me know what stories gave you the creeps!
“In Dreams We Rot is like a fever dream” — where is the lie though? Story after story in this collection makes me feel as if I’m diving deeper into a hallucinogenic trip. Betty Rocksteady has an extremely imaginative mind & each of the stories in this collection are memorable & stick out. In fact, there’s a story in In Dreams We Rot that I wish I could forget.
In case you’re wondering which story that is, may I introduce you to These Beautiful Bones? What the what. It was beyond disturbing & I found myself cringing through the entire read. For someone who loves horror, this is not a bad thing whatsoever. The story was so bizarre, very pornographic & layered with so much gore. I probably will never read this story again, only for the simple fact that I can’t unsee what I read.
Other stories in this collection deserve comment and praise; however, doing so will take all day. Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet is a story that features a colony of 100+ cats. My kinda story, amiright? Something is Coming shows a voyeur become the voyeuree — yes, 100% made that word up & I’m proud of it. Postpartum is a story of a widow who starts creating her own creature through the bones of others. Every single story is completely different than the one before.
In Dreams We Rot is a wonderful collection to read when you’re really looking to be disturbed & have your bones rattled. Definitely not for the faint of heart, so if you have triggers & whatnot this may be a book to stay away from. But other then that, give it a read & let me know what stories gave you the creeps!
December 22, 2020
Betty Rocksteady has instantly become a new favorite. What a dark collection of stories. Raw, emotional and sexy. Yes, there is a lot of sex. In the about the author section it describes Rocksteady's fiction as body horror, weird sex and trauma. Yep, that's what you're gonna get.
June 13, 2025
Ever read a story and thought, 'that sounds interesting, I wish it was longer?' These aren't those. These stories are now like words put together that thought about being a story, lost the plot, and went home. It reads like a book of shower thoughts for the horror enthusiast. Not my cup of tea.
March 18, 2020
Wow! I feel like I’m a little late to the party on this one, but you know what, the collection is timeless so no matter. I’d seen it bouncing around on social media of course, but it wasn’t until I was catching up on Ink Heist and caught the episode from last November where Betty was talking to Rich about Boy Meets World of all things, that I decided I’d wasted enough time, so I picked it up and dove in.
And yes, wow. I love my horror… well, horrible. As horrible as possible. Full of eye twitching sex and crowbar to the head violence and those little edges that make you feel like having a shower if you didn’t know something wasn’t waiting behind the curtain to siphon out your brain through a straw and fry up your liver without proper medical credentials. Nothing wrong with psychological horror of course, but you can’t beat worrying that the concrete corner you’ve wedged yourself into might not be as impenetrable as you thought. These stories deliver that and more. Weird fucked up dreams, weirder fucked up sex, copious amounts of blood and pretty much every sort of bodily fluid pooling around bits of furry chunks both real and imaginary.
Also, cats.
Cats, as any cat lover knows, are sinister. Alien. Predatorial. Biding their time while plotting world domination. And there’s a ton of cats in these stories. And bones. And art. Betty’s a fantastic artist and obviously had a lot of fun with it, though I’ll probably never look at elephants the same way ever again. So, pretty much perfect.
My favourites? I’m going to with These Beautiful Bones, where basement art takes on a sex life of its own, Root Rot where yeah, we’ve all had a bad hookup, but not THIS bad, Postpartum… having recently visited the Torrington Gopher Hole museum where they exhibit stuffed gophers in domestic environments I totally both get it and am scared shitless, and Larva, Pupa, Moth, where next time you think about scratching that itch, bring a hammer.
So if you haven’t picked it up, brave the quarantine apocalypse and hit your local indie bookstore, curl up under a monster proof blanket in front of a chimney searing fire with your cat, and prepare to be terrified.
https://the-seventh-terrace.com/2020/...
And yes, wow. I love my horror… well, horrible. As horrible as possible. Full of eye twitching sex and crowbar to the head violence and those little edges that make you feel like having a shower if you didn’t know something wasn’t waiting behind the curtain to siphon out your brain through a straw and fry up your liver without proper medical credentials. Nothing wrong with psychological horror of course, but you can’t beat worrying that the concrete corner you’ve wedged yourself into might not be as impenetrable as you thought. These stories deliver that and more. Weird fucked up dreams, weirder fucked up sex, copious amounts of blood and pretty much every sort of bodily fluid pooling around bits of furry chunks both real and imaginary.
Also, cats.
Cats, as any cat lover knows, are sinister. Alien. Predatorial. Biding their time while plotting world domination. And there’s a ton of cats in these stories. And bones. And art. Betty’s a fantastic artist and obviously had a lot of fun with it, though I’ll probably never look at elephants the same way ever again. So, pretty much perfect.
My favourites? I’m going to with These Beautiful Bones, where basement art takes on a sex life of its own, Root Rot where yeah, we’ve all had a bad hookup, but not THIS bad, Postpartum… having recently visited the Torrington Gopher Hole museum where they exhibit stuffed gophers in domestic environments I totally both get it and am scared shitless, and Larva, Pupa, Moth, where next time you think about scratching that itch, bring a hammer.
So if you haven’t picked it up, brave the quarantine apocalypse and hit your local indie bookstore, curl up under a monster proof blanket in front of a chimney searing fire with your cat, and prepare to be terrified.
https://the-seventh-terrace.com/2020/...
September 2, 2019
I have been waiting for a Betty Rocksteady for sometime now. I envy those coming to Rocksteady with no background knowledge at all, because her fiction is a standout in an ever-growing field of talented weird fiction writers. Rocksteady also has her own unique niche, an intersection of bizarre body horror, tragedy, and scenes so grotesque that one can't help but sense a bit of comedy.
There's an "over the top tastefulness" or a "literary grossness" to these stories. "Crimson Tide," "Dusk Urchin," "Post Partum" are sure to be classics.
There's an "over the top tastefulness" or a "literary grossness" to these stories. "Crimson Tide," "Dusk Urchin," "Post Partum" are sure to be classics.
March 9, 2024
A strong collection of weird horror stories, with some body horror, weird science, and feminist allegory. There are strong themes of grief, broken relationships, and coping mechanisms in the face of these. There are also many different takes on the fears and desires that can come from relationships, and twisting these into horror metaphors.
My standout stories were-
The Botany of Desire. A guy finds a flower growing out of his wall. He pulls it out and still has it in his hand when he arrives at his date. His date’s love of the flower grows along with the rest of the flowers that keep coming out of the walls.
These Beautiful Bones. This story actually creeped me out and has stuck with me. It’s about a woman who is staying in a remote, cheap rental after discovering that her husband has been cheating on her. The house has a smelly hole in the basement, and she discovers a pornographic painting hidden on the basement wall. The more she looks, she realises it’s some kind of cult thing involving knives. Her discoveries continue, and the uneasy feelings grow as she understands more, and the links with ecstasy and pain, and the journey through self mutilation. The ending itself isn’t as shocking as the journey through the third act.
Postpartum. A mother of a toddler is in a depressed state after her husband died before the baby was born. Her life is a fatigued, meaningless hell of a screaming, stinking baby. Her mother pushes her to go walking and start a hobby. She starts taxidermy after finding a skull that doesn’t belong to anything she can identify. Her obsession spirals dangerously from that point.
Elephants That Aren't. An art student in her late-20s feels that she doesn’t have the skill to compete with all of her younger classmates, or the memory of her mother’s skills. Her despair and imposter syndrome leaves her exhausted and channels some imagery that she pursues, despite having no memory of drawing it, taking her down a dark path.
Dusk Urchin. A barren woman has been dumped by her husband after they couldn’t have kids. She’s visited by an elderly man from a neighbouring house and a young girl. He says the girl said she’s his daughter, but he doesn’t have a daughter. He doesn’t know what to do, particularly since she won’t stay dead.
My standout stories were-
The Botany of Desire. A guy finds a flower growing out of his wall. He pulls it out and still has it in his hand when he arrives at his date. His date’s love of the flower grows along with the rest of the flowers that keep coming out of the walls.
These Beautiful Bones. This story actually creeped me out and has stuck with me. It’s about a woman who is staying in a remote, cheap rental after discovering that her husband has been cheating on her. The house has a smelly hole in the basement, and she discovers a pornographic painting hidden on the basement wall. The more she looks, she realises it’s some kind of cult thing involving knives. Her discoveries continue, and the uneasy feelings grow as she understands more, and the links with ecstasy and pain, and the journey through self mutilation. The ending itself isn’t as shocking as the journey through the third act.
Postpartum. A mother of a toddler is in a depressed state after her husband died before the baby was born. Her life is a fatigued, meaningless hell of a screaming, stinking baby. Her mother pushes her to go walking and start a hobby. She starts taxidermy after finding a skull that doesn’t belong to anything she can identify. Her obsession spirals dangerously from that point.
Elephants That Aren't. An art student in her late-20s feels that she doesn’t have the skill to compete with all of her younger classmates, or the memory of her mother’s skills. Her despair and imposter syndrome leaves her exhausted and channels some imagery that she pursues, despite having no memory of drawing it, taking her down a dark path.
Dusk Urchin. A barren woman has been dumped by her husband after they couldn’t have kids. She’s visited by an elderly man from a neighbouring house and a young girl. He says the girl said she’s his daughter, but he doesn’t have a daughter. He doesn’t know what to do, particularly since she won’t stay dead.
February 17, 2022
For some reason Goodreads is being a dick right now so this is the third time I am trying to rewrite the same review and unfortunately it will be a little shorter than usual because I don't like to repeat myself lol.
Rocksteady is someone I haven't read before, or if I have it was in an anthology and I just didn't call her name. This was honestly one of the best collections I've read in a while!
I was a little suspicious of the funky font and design art within the pages as sometimes authors will go a little nuts with their book design to take away from shitty writing but that was definitely not the case here lol.
I can get down with a chick who can turn me on and disgust me simultaneously. A chick who is clearly obsessed with cats, despite they're slinky bodies and dead eyes. Someone who gets the darkest days of a new mother's experience and can twist it up into a Gorey pretzel of nastiness. I could hang with this chick, she can freak you out one second and write characters and scenarios that are highly relatable the next.
Read this book, before I spoil the shit out of every single story!
Rocksteady is someone I haven't read before, or if I have it was in an anthology and I just didn't call her name. This was honestly one of the best collections I've read in a while!
I was a little suspicious of the funky font and design art within the pages as sometimes authors will go a little nuts with their book design to take away from shitty writing but that was definitely not the case here lol.
I can get down with a chick who can turn me on and disgust me simultaneously. A chick who is clearly obsessed with cats, despite they're slinky bodies and dead eyes. Someone who gets the darkest days of a new mother's experience and can twist it up into a Gorey pretzel of nastiness. I could hang with this chick, she can freak you out one second and write characters and scenarios that are highly relatable the next.
Read this book, before I spoil the shit out of every single story!
August 1, 2023
Thoughts
Some of these stories have left me feeling unsettled. There were some in here that really shocked me and were disturbing. But they were really good.
Some blurbed this book and said that it has things in it that are too taboo to write about, and that is true. This isn't going to be for everyone.
Like most short story collections there are some really amazing stories in here and some that didn't work for me. However, I still think this a collection worth reading because the good ones are really really good.
Some of these stories have left me feeling unsettled. There were some in here that really shocked me and were disturbing. But they were really good.
Some blurbed this book and said that it has things in it that are too taboo to write about, and that is true. This isn't going to be for everyone.
Like most short story collections there are some really amazing stories in here and some that didn't work for me. However, I still think this a collection worth reading because the good ones are really really good.
January 30, 2021
There's quite a variety of stories here. Some of them are wild, abstract and horribly visceral, others are a little tamer (but still brilliantly twisted and bizarre) and more emotional, but all of them manage to keep up a really unsettling atmosphere. I couldn't stop reading, even during parts which were incredibly uncomfortable and disturbing to read. I loved it. Will definitely be looking out for more by this author!
December 25, 2022
A truly fantastic collection of stories. Some were a little extreme for my personal tastes but they’re still great stories. Betty Rocksteady knows how to be quiet and eerie when the mood calls for it. She can also make scenes brutal, grotesque, and also at times a little arousing. Her descriptions jump off the page and you find yourself quickly drawn into worlds she has created for us the reader. This is my second book by Rocksteady and I am definitely a fan.
July 19, 2024
The coolest part of this collection is having a master of short horror fiction, Betty Rocksteady, reflecting on her journey in the Story Notes. She offers keen insight into where she was as a writer for each story, which in turn helped me better understand my own writing. And that's on top of having some incredible stories. Her conceits are simple but well-executed and her drawings take everything to the next level. One of my favorite writers!
March 1, 2024
WOW. I picked this up at a "weird" bookstore in the Northeast on a whim. I didn't regret it from the moment I started reading. Betty Rocksteady's stories are creative and unique in a way beyond proper description. Every story was unexpected and the writing was beautiful. I can't believe how good this book was. Read it.
December 24, 2022
a fantastic collection of some of the most bizarre horror you will ever read written by a wonderful author who knows exactly what she is doing.
July 24, 2023
It's certainly spooky
February 18, 2024
What an interesting collection! All of the stories were unique. I liked how some of them felt like you were in the middle of a dream with really no plot to go on. Some very creepy images in this collection.
December 1, 2019
Many thanks to Betty for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
In Dreams We Rot is a collection of short stories that include some very gruesome themes, dream-like or nightmare-like moods, and terrifying “what-if” scenarios. There is also a dose of erotica in this collection. The reader is exposed to a good mix of different dark themes. There are 20 stories total of varying lengths.
Betty’s writing tone is very inviting to me. It was easy for me to settle into the book and enjoy the ride. For the most part, the stories had a nice flow, and were easy enough to follow but not so easy as to be boring. There were plenty of shocking twists or dreamlike confusion in a story but I never felt frustrated or lost.
My favorite stories were “Love is Not a Handful of Seeds,” “Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet,” “This Narrow Escape” and “Language of the Mud.”
“Love is Not a Handful of Seeds” is the shortest story in the collection, I believe. It’s also the opening story. It’s a good one to start the collection with because it sets a tone of sadness, darkness and the inability to sometimes differentiate between reality and delusion. It was very easy for me to picture this beautiful story in my head. It made me excited for the stories to come.
“Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet” is a very unique story about a man named Harold who has dozens and dozens of cats in his home and yard. A woman from the local “Trap, Neuter and Release” group visits him to assess the animals and offer help in controlling the population. She wants to see the extent of Harold’s collection and he reluctantly agrees to show her everything. But she’ll soon find out she’s in way over her head. Very interesting concept, totally didn’t see it coming.
I liked “This Narrow Escape” because it symbolizes how someone feels when life becomes too mundane, too stifling. I really rooted for the main character as her world became more and more oppressive. It was one of the “quieter” stories of the collection and I thought it was lovely.
“Language of the Mud” was creative as hell. A teenage girl’s estranged father just disappears into the ground, right before her eyes. She can hear his voice and the voice of a few others, trapped far beneath the ground. She doesn’t say anything because no one would believe that the ground just swallowed him up, but she became obsessed with that spot in the yard. Very interesting story.
Some stories had themes or events which made me cringe, they were so heartbreaking. That’s not meant to be taken negatively, because I don’t believe any topic is off limits when a person is trying to express themselves. I was just shocked by or grossed out by some of the stories and left a little rattled.
There was one story in the book called “The Taste of Sand on Your Lips” which was actually a collection of fifty-five, 55-word stories. That was a very neat concept. And while I couldn’t really understand all of what was happening, the mood was very dark and foreboding and she very cleverly unwrapped entire scenes of the story within 55 words. It’s pretty cool.
As with any collection, there were some stories that didn’t have much of an effect on me. The writing quality was there, but just wasn’t for me. Some of these were “Dusk Urchin” and “Lullabies from the Formicary.”
Overall I think this is a very strong collection of short stories, and the wide range of genres within this collection should appeal to all sorts of readers. Betty is a talented writer full of new and interesting horror concepts.
In Dreams We Rot is a collection of short stories that include some very gruesome themes, dream-like or nightmare-like moods, and terrifying “what-if” scenarios. There is also a dose of erotica in this collection. The reader is exposed to a good mix of different dark themes. There are 20 stories total of varying lengths.
Betty’s writing tone is very inviting to me. It was easy for me to settle into the book and enjoy the ride. For the most part, the stories had a nice flow, and were easy enough to follow but not so easy as to be boring. There were plenty of shocking twists or dreamlike confusion in a story but I never felt frustrated or lost.
My favorite stories were “Love is Not a Handful of Seeds,” “Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet,” “This Narrow Escape” and “Language of the Mud.”
“Love is Not a Handful of Seeds” is the shortest story in the collection, I believe. It’s also the opening story. It’s a good one to start the collection with because it sets a tone of sadness, darkness and the inability to sometimes differentiate between reality and delusion. It was very easy for me to picture this beautiful story in my head. It made me excited for the stories to come.
“Tiny Bones Beneath Their Feet” is a very unique story about a man named Harold who has dozens and dozens of cats in his home and yard. A woman from the local “Trap, Neuter and Release” group visits him to assess the animals and offer help in controlling the population. She wants to see the extent of Harold’s collection and he reluctantly agrees to show her everything. But she’ll soon find out she’s in way over her head. Very interesting concept, totally didn’t see it coming.
I liked “This Narrow Escape” because it symbolizes how someone feels when life becomes too mundane, too stifling. I really rooted for the main character as her world became more and more oppressive. It was one of the “quieter” stories of the collection and I thought it was lovely.
“Language of the Mud” was creative as hell. A teenage girl’s estranged father just disappears into the ground, right before her eyes. She can hear his voice and the voice of a few others, trapped far beneath the ground. She doesn’t say anything because no one would believe that the ground just swallowed him up, but she became obsessed with that spot in the yard. Very interesting story.
Some stories had themes or events which made me cringe, they were so heartbreaking. That’s not meant to be taken negatively, because I don’t believe any topic is off limits when a person is trying to express themselves. I was just shocked by or grossed out by some of the stories and left a little rattled.
There was one story in the book called “The Taste of Sand on Your Lips” which was actually a collection of fifty-five, 55-word stories. That was a very neat concept. And while I couldn’t really understand all of what was happening, the mood was very dark and foreboding and she very cleverly unwrapped entire scenes of the story within 55 words. It’s pretty cool.
As with any collection, there were some stories that didn’t have much of an effect on me. The writing quality was there, but just wasn’t for me. Some of these were “Dusk Urchin” and “Lullabies from the Formicary.”
Overall I think this is a very strong collection of short stories, and the wide range of genres within this collection should appeal to all sorts of readers. Betty is a talented writer full of new and interesting horror concepts.
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