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Also
Jasper Dodd's Handbook of Spirits and Manifestations by Nathan Ballingrud

Favorites so far:
The July Girls by Alison Littlewood
A Hinterlands Haunting by Richard Kadrey
The Surviving Child by Joyce Carol Oates
The Unwrapping by Terry Dowling

I'm about to throw a fit.

"Congratulations! You all have been specially selected for a very special sparkly civic service!! <3 <3

All your property has been requisitioned and we're kicking you out of our country now right NOW."

Oh my God they have the worst chemistry of all time why am I still rooting for them

The fantasy world is interesting and I am intrigued by the Ancestors and their mysterious, unreadable books but the romance plot here is so bad. It should clearly be a *VERY* slow burn, like multiple books slow burn, but suddenly we have the Cold Man in Finance falling for the Clumsy Nobody instantly. They've barely spent an hour together total at this point and I'm supposed to believe he's in love with her??

I don't think I've found every single character in a book to be so unlikeable so quickly.

Why in the world is the father so incredibly and purposely useless? Makes it clear he isn't even trying to work but has the audacity to ask for treats as if he thinks the family has an income. Refuses to contribute even when the children are nearly starved and start looking for work themselves.

From Dirty Wedding by Denis Johnson
"I know they argue about whether or not it's right, whether or not the baby is alive at this point or that point in its growth inside the womb. This wasn't about that. It wasn't what the lawyers did. It wasn't what the doctors did, it wasn't what the woman did. It was what the mother and father did together."

"That's why we get the chance to spoil our grandchildren, because by doing that we're apologizing to our children."

"I would rather be old than a grown-up. All grown-ups are angry, it's just children and old people who laugh."

"If you're standing on a small pile of shit, fighting for your one place to stand, God Almighty how you fight."

The importance of saying 'no'. This guy just didn't seem to understand that he didn't owe everyone anything. I think this is probably the result of the sexual assault he suffered as a child.

The main character is so pathetically weak and blames others for his misfortunes rather than taking responsibility for his own shortcomings. He is an addict, incredibly susceptible to suggestion and peer pressure, with no direction or vision for his life. Life is merely something to endure, or perhaps it is its own punishment in his eyes.

This is uncomfortable to read. It's like going to a party where everyone's a stranger and none of them are likeable. Everyone's so petty and inconsistent.

Ignatius has come to the conclusion that world peace can be achieved by using gay people to infiltrate the militaries of the world. They will be so caught up in cocktail parties and tailoring their uniforms that they shall have no time to make war. It's perfect.

Oh boy. His exchange with the hotdog vendor is next level.

Book for femcels? All the women who manage to get married did so by beguiling men, "taking them in" with their wiles. They aren't even good housekeepers. And it's not like Mildred wants to marry anyway! Certainly not. Men are helpless creatures without their maids - and any woman in their life is bound to become their maid. The Excellent Women, the spinsters, are simply too good for marriage evidently. Of course.

The heroine, Mildred, seems a little neurotic. I really find it quite strange how many people like to rudely impose upon her things they really ought to be doing themselves.

Wemmick continues to be my favorite. He is absolutely precious.

Casually invites Pip for a walk. Shows up suspiciously well-dressed. "Oh, look, a church!"
Goes in and takes gloves from his pocket. "Oh, look! Gloves! Let's put them on."
"Oh, look! My lovely lady and Aged Parent! Let's have a wedding."
I guess we might as well, eh?

The second half is much more what I was expecting the book to be. The first half? Confusion and character introduction and more confusion.

This book is so far nothing like I thought it was going to be. What is even happening why are we being compelled to have sex with ghost babies? Why is that a thing that is happening? Why can't we tell the story of what happened to these people, but instead have to dredge it up slowly with the help of a spiteful ghost toddler's interference in her mother's love life? What what what

Yoshimoto-san excels at showing the extraordinary in the ordinary. At stopping to reflect on life around you and appreciate the little things in a way that makes it seem those "little" things are actually what make life significant.

Also "Not Warm At All" ripped my heart out.

Wemmick is absolutely adorable. He made his city house into a tiny gothic castle complete with flag staff, moat, garden, and walking paths. And he takes wonderful care of his Aged parent.

Ouch. My heart.

One can skip to chapter 21, around page 389, with just a brief summary of the preceding pages without having lost all that much of the story. This work is really just too long-winded. But pretty good... once you're already 50% through the book.