Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
The Dangers of Smoking in Bed
The Dangers of Smoking in Bed: Stories | Mariana Enriquez
Following the "propulsive and mesmerizing" (New York Times Book Review) Things We Lost in the Fire comes a new collection of singularly unsettling stories, by an Argentine author who has earned comparisons to Shirley Jackson and Jorge Luis Borges. Mariana Enriquez has been critically lauded for her unconventional and sociopolitical stories of the macabre: populated by unruly teenagers, crooked witches, homeless ghosts, and hungry women, they walk the uneasy line between urban realism and horror. The stories in her next collection are as terrifying as they are socially conscious, and press into being the unspoken -- fetish, illness, the female body, the darkness of human history -- with unsettling urgency. A woman is sexually obsessed with the human heart; a lost, rotting baby crawls out of a backyard and into a bedroom; a pair of teenage girls can't let go of their idol; an entire neighborhood is cursed to death by a question of morality they fail to answer correctly. Written against the backdrop of contemporary Argentina, and with resounding tenderness towards those in pain, in fear, and in limbo, this new collection from one of Argentina's most exciting writers finds Enriquez at her most sophisticated, and most chilling.
LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
review
Itchyfeetreader
post image
Pickpick

With thanks to @ju.ca.no who gifted me this which took me one step closer to #readingtheamericas23 it‘s a short story collection and as ever some are stronger than others. All are dark, some exceedingly so and the writing is sparse and kind of beautiful even when subject matter is macabre@and deeply disturbing . Not something I would have bought myself but a pick

ju.ca.no Glad it ended up being a pick! 4mo
39 likes1 comment
blurb
Yuki_Onna
post image
BookwormAHN Nice 🐈‍⬛ 5mo
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Awesome 🖊️ 5mo
Eggs You are a dedicated challenge catcher-upper👏🏻👏🏻 5mo
Yuki_Onna @Eggs Thanks *curtsey* Well, what can you do when you're away on a city trip for a few days without any free time? 😉 5mo
14 likes4 comments
review
AbstractMonica
post image
Pickpick

Finished this in a couple of sittings. A collection of horror stories mostly taking place in Buenos Aires. Really dark and disturbing, not for everyone. Read this mostly at night and got really spooked. Really “enjoyed” it, and appreciated that the author didn‘t drag the stories out. now I‘ve purchased two of her other books based on how much I loved this one.

The_Book_Ninja Yeah…I did the same🙌🏼 9mo
AbstractMonica @The_Book_Ninja I‘m glad you liked her short stories too! 9mo
12 likes2 comments
review
kwmg40
post image
Mehso-so

As I've not read many books by South American authors, I enjoyed the experience of reading these horror stories, mostly set in urban Argentina. However, the stories themselves were mixed. A couple were excellent and some were just unpleasantly disturbing.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Great progress!! 12mo
38 likes1 comment
review
Kazzie
Mehso-so

She is a good writer, but I found the stories to disturbing to really enjoy this collection. Sexually and intimately disturbing

review
CorgiBooks
post image
Panpan

A book that wants to shock you without needing to earn it, this short story collection repeats themes, names, content and disasters while cutting off the plot before most of the pieces have a chance to go anywhere. For the stylistic choices though I think the writing style works with the content.

I think this book would be better read slowly and in-between other works - reading it all together blends everything in way too much with itself.

review
CaliforniaCay
post image
Pickpick

I was curious about this one after seeing so many mixed reviews, and I see why. These stories all had creepy elements but the endings for almost all of them were very abrupt. I think maybe it was done on purpose to allow the reader to fill in those blanks. Sometimes the scariest part of a story is what we're lead to imagine, right? Almost a so-so but ultimately a pick because despite some gross scenes, it was entertaining throughout 👻

catiewithac Nice bookmark! 1y
CaliforniaCay @catiewithac thanks! Isn't it perfect? I got it at the gift shop of the immersive van gogh exhibit 🖤💀🖤 1y
Reggie Have you read her first collection? The tagged. Cause that one had some great stories mixed in with Argentinian history and culture. 1y
CaliforniaCay @Reggie I haven't read it yet but I stacked it! She has a bunch of other books in Spanish that haven't been translated yet, I'd like to read those one day too 😃 1y
61 likes1 stack add4 comments
review
The_Book_Ninja
post image
Pickpick

Like the best and most classic horror stories, it‘s metaphors of real life conditions like OCD, phobias, disease that make some of these stories unsettling. There‘s real supernatural stories too and they all sit side by side in this book. Not all the stories are properly rounded off but without fail they all have powerful imagery that will stick with me even if the stories don‘t. Enriquez‘s writing is easy flowing, evocative and darkly beautiful.

14 likes2 stack adds
review
AnneCecilie
post image
Pickpick

A short story collection where the stories is told by women and mainly focuses on ghosts. I didn‘t know there was this many different kind of ghosts and ways to interact with them.

sarahbarnes I‘ve had this on my TBR for awhile now. 2y
59 likes1 stack add1 comment
blurb
peacegypsy
post image

Trying something different.

35 likes1 stack add
review
Bookishgal71
post image
Mehso-so

I cannot remember why I read this - perhaps a Reese recommendation or maybe from Goodreads but it just never grabbed me. That said, it is a collection of slightly creepy short stories with a South American flavor.

review
IndoorDame
post image
Mehso-so

This was both my #Bookspin book and my first #FoodandLit title this month. This is a collection of unlinked short stories written by a single author, all with dark themes. I found it very uneven. A few of the stories were macabre and interesting, and really stuck with me, but more were just depressing, and were much closer to the superstitious than the supernatural. #BBRC Yeah Baby Monster

LibrarianRyan 🌟😁❤️ 2y
TheAromaofBooks Great progress!!! 2y
69 likes2 comments
blurb
IndoorDame
post image

I love waking up to new #BookSpin numbers!!! @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Yay!!! 2y
48 likes1 comment
blurb
kyraleseberg
post image

These are some very peculiar stories and I can't stop listening

mdemanatee Yes; I love her work so much! 2y
kyraleseberg @mdemanatee It is so unique and disquieting, I really didn't want to stop reading because I was too interested in what the next off-the-wall story would be! 2y
28 likes2 comments
review
sophies_little_library
post image
Pickpick

In Buenos Aires, the dead don't stay dead.
They return throughout this collection of
stories, which depict struggling, ill,
impoverished protagonists drifting through
haunting, surreal worlds. This is perfect for reading in small chunks; the tone is so consistent that it feels like variations of a theme, rather than distinct
stories. The translation is also excellent,
engaging and visceral. If you're a fan of Angela
Carter, you will love these.

tokorowilliamwallace Thank you for the comparative lit note! 2y
sophies_little_library I hope it was helpful! I always find short stories such a gamble - it‘s all about the style 2y
6 likes1 stack add2 comments
review
IselaKay
post image
Pickpick

Both a #Scary pick & a #HispanicHeritageMonth pick.

This book of stories is creepy, dark, has a macabre sense of humor, is erotic, and unsettling. There are ghosts, curses, supernatural occurrences, and disturbing obsessions. I like allegorical horror, but I felt like some of these lacked meaning and of the few types of books that I‘ve read that are similar, this is my least favorite. Still, the writing was good and I enjoyed it.

Recommend.

Cathythoughts Nice review! I have this one stacked already 3y
IselaKay @Cathythoughts thanks! It‘s a creepy one, perfect for this time of year. I‘d also like to read her other collection of stories, Things We Lost In The Fire, sometime soon 3y
6 likes2 comments
review
Bubblebelle
Pickpick

Wicked, dark, often erotic, always haunting little vignettes of horrors that feel both real enough to be believable but still outlandish enough to be fascinating.

review
Bubblebelles
Pickpick

I knew nothing about this book going in. I liked the cover art and I knew from the reviews on the back that it was dark, and that was it. I didn't even realise it was a collection of short stories until the second one! But I can safely say whatever expectations I could've had, this book would've surpassed them. It was masterful, and wickedly haunting- I had a very hard time putting it down.

review
batsy
post image
Mehso-so

This surprised me, because I went into it expecting to fully love it. But while the first story really set the tone, & the following handful maintained that sense of dread, from the bizarre heartbeat story on I was less enamoured. I like my creeping horror to create a sense of unease & paranoia, & am less forgiving of, well, just a lot of gross stuff lumped in together. Enriquez is a superb writer in terms of addressing socio-political issues. ⬇️

batsy What I felt was a flaw in this collection, especially in the latter half of the stories, is that Enriquez had plenty to say about the world she inhabited: the legacy of corruption, rot, abuse, & violence, especially in terms of how it destroys the lives of women & children. But in the need to make each story "weird" or creepy, some of the weird/gross/horror elements felt tacked on & not organic to the story. That's my main issue with this. 3y
vivastory This is a time when the lack of gifs on Litsy is painful, bc I think you know that this would get an “Amen“ or a “Standing Ovation“ from me. Apparently this is her first short story collection & it def. shows I think. I will give her another chance, but I completely agree that several stories were ruined simply for the need to be gross or weird. I'm just so baffled that this one was considered for the MBI. Watch it win. 😂 What really (cont.) 3y
vivastory upsets me is that there is finally someone writing horror fic being considered for such a prestigious prize & it's such a bad representation of what horror can really be! I think that the equivalent would be to give Palahniuk a Pulitzer. Another issue with the collection that I saw another reviewer point out is that most of them are too damn short to be effective for any sort of suspense. They're almost like flash fiction. (edited) 3y
batsy @vivastory Hahaha! Yes, it really comes off as a debut—like good, weird ideas that didn't quite come off in execution. (I personally hated the heartbeat story & the ending was very predictable.) I think she's an intriguing writer though & will check out her other collection! Also, I'm not well-versed in horror but I like what simply gets under your skin & stays there ... Lots of people hate James' Turn of the Screw, for example, but I love it 😂 3y
75 likes5 comments
review
BookwormM
Pickpick

#BookerInternationalShortlist2021

Short stories still not my thing but I did enjoy Kids Who Come Back.

Interesting collection about the dangers and horrors in real life especially those facing women.

Warning some of the stories are very graphic.

review
rockpools
post image
Pickpick

I‘m really not a horror-reader, so I was putting this off (although I‘m not sure if it is horror - much of the horror is in the real-world elements). It took me a few stories to ‘get it‘, but once I did I was totally absorbed.

Her writing of fear and anxiety are on the mark, the feel of each situation is strong. And her portrayal of life for women/girls in Argentina was cutting & disturbing.

rockpools This may be the one from the #InternationalBookerPrize2021 that stays with me. An unexpected pick. 3y
Cathythoughts Great review! I wasn‘t drawn to this one , until now 👍🏻stacked 3y
Cinfhen What @Cathythoughts said 👆🏽💜 3y
See All 17 Comments
rockpools This is my first book finished for #NutsInMay and second on this month‘s #BookSpinBingo board. @Andrew65 @TheAromaofBooks Also, would this be appropriate for #Booked2021 #LatinxAuthor, or would that be more US-based authors? I‘m not clear on my terminology @Cinfhen @BarbaraTheBibliophage @4thhouseontheleft 3y
rockpools @Cathythoughts @Cinfhen Thank you - it‘s definitely out of my comfort zone! @Simona‘s review encouraged me to stick with it. It‘s icky though! 3y
Cinfhen Totally works for #LatinxAuthor 💕💕💕 3y
batsy Nice review! I'm only a few stories in but I'm pacing myself because she really can depict an undercurrent of fear/dread/anxiety that seeps into my day. 3y
TheAromaofBooks Great progress!!! 3y
youneverarrived Ohh I‘m intrigued by this now. Stacking! 3y
Andrew65 Well done 👏👏👏 3y
Simona Not a easy read for sure, but it is rewarding one! I‘m glad that you liked it. 3y
Reggie I‘m kinda shocked you read this but soooo happy. Great review! I still need to get to this one but loved her first collection. 3y
rockpools @batsy Yes! I read it at the weekend, so it wasn‘t sneaking into my trying-to-work head. It‘s unsettling. 3y
rockpools @youneverarrived I‘m slightly worried I‘m having a weird day, and overselling it terribly! I really hope you like it 😁 3y
rockpools @Reggie I‘m also a tad shocked!! I might leave her first collection for a month or two, though... 3y
Caroline2 Crickey that book cover gives me the creeps!!! 🤢 3y
rockpools @Caroline2 I‘m glad I read it on kindle, so I didn‘t have to face it ever! Also, can you believe I actually read the thing?! 3y
54 likes3 stack adds17 comments
blurb
rockpools
post image

Still going on the #InternationalBookerPrize2021.

I would‘ve bailed after the first 2 stories, if not for @Simona ‘s review. These are classed as horror (I‘m not sure they are though), and it looks like every story will leave you hanging.

The next two I began to engage with a little more (although yuk!) and the one about the family with some form of inherited anxiety was disturbingly real.

You never know, I may even end up liking it.

squirrelbrain Good luck, hope it gets better for you! 3y
Simona Don‘t torture yourself just because of my review, that is more pressure that I can handle ... but I really think that this book is well rounded collection of short stories 😘 3y
45 likes2 comments
review
vivastory
post image
Mehso-so

I am always leery of the question “what was the purpose of this piece of fiction“ as I find it to be a disservice to reduce a narrative work to a didactic message, yet this question nags at the back of my mind like a dutiful aunt whenever I read a work whose primary, if not sole, objective is to shock. Enriquez, channeling her inner Palahniuk, really dialed into this tendency in a few stories, such as “Where Are You, Dear Heart?“ The narrator

vivastory of said story has an unusual fetish involving irregular heart rhythms. There's not a larger social or cultural commentary to be found here. Which is fine. Fiction doesn't have to be politically or morally instructive. Yet in a few pieces in Enriquez's work that did contain genuine social & political elements, they were cheapened at the very end by a twist that was wholly unnecessary. I am honestly baffled how this was longlisted 3y
vivastory let alone shortlisted for MB International. A forgettable short story collection that often feels like a poor man's Shirley Jackson.

3y
Reggie Nooooo I have this coming up. Lol 3y
See All 14 Comments
BarbaraBB That‘s clear. Unstacked 3y
TrishB Great review though. 3y
IuliaC Great rewiew! This seems to be the author's first attempt at writing short stories as it was published in 2009. I found the 2016 "Things We Lost in the Fire" better 3y
Tanisha_A Oooh! I have been looking out for this, 'cause it sounded weird. Let's see then. Nice review, though! 3y
batsy What @Reggie said! Lol. Trying my best to make my way through the shortlist. This seems like a tough collection to take in all at once so hoping to space out the stories. 3y
Simona I feel a little challenged because I wrote in my review that these stories have a basis in Argentinian history as well as commenting on the happenings of the present time. Of course, this is not true for all stories, but ... in the most stories is the author's ‘comment‘ on political events/the consequences of these events such as is disappearnce of people. Stories can also be interpreted as a stories that highlights the consequences ... 👇 3y
Simona ... of the so-called Argentina's Dirty War in the 70s ...most of the children in the story “Kids Who Come Back” are girls, and this story , as well as some others, highlights the major problem of violence against women and the ‘phenomenon‘ of their disappearance or as they call it in Argentina - femicide....👇 3y
Simona ... As the main thread, at least I understood this collection that way, is exposure of political brutality, sexual violence, social inequality and the helplessness of women - forcing them into some kind of disappearance. 3y
vivastory @Simona I meant to reply on to your comments sooner, but work was a bit hectic this week. I agree that there were a few pieces that spoke of the Dirty War & the issues that you mentioned. The longest work in the collection “Kids Who Come Back“ certainly did so. As did “Rambla Triste“. I liked the initial direction for both pieces, but I honestly hated the direction that Enriquez took them in. Part of the issue is that this was pub in '09 (cont.) 3y
vivastory @Simona & “Kids Who Come Back“ made me think of the tv series Les Revenants. I know this isn't entirely fair to Enriques as she pub the book prior to the series, but I was completely unaware that this was an older collection until recently. I'm not completely writing her off. I have her other short story collection on my TBR shelf & will give it a shot down the road, but I stand by my opinion that this shouldn't have made the MBI shortlist. 3y
Simona I admit that this year longlist was challenging, raising many eyebrows and questions about judges‘ decisions ... I felt same as you two years ago when The Testaments was shortlisted, and really pissed off when she won ... 3y
79 likes14 comments
blurb
vivastory
post image

Seriously contemplating DNF'ing. I very rarely DNF, but I have so far read a third of the book ( 5 stories) & the only one I even liked was the story I just finished. Which managed to fall apart in the last couple of pages. How in the world did this make the MB International shortlist?!! ETA: I'm adding #unpopularopinion after looking at other people's posts & the overall rating. Maybe I'll finish & rate it just to knock it down from a 100% 😂😈

xicanti I say you should bail. Even that‘ll bump the rating down. 3y
saresmoore Haha! I love the idea of rebellion with integrity. 😂 3y
74 likes2 comments
blurb
ju.ca.no
post image

Strawberry Smoothie, a good book, sun and reading time - what better way to start into the weekend💙

The book so far is quite unsettling and weird - which I absolutely LOVE! I‘m enjoying it a lot and am a bit sad, that I will finish it quickly😅

Tanisha_A All the good things in this photograph 3y
ju.ca.no @Tanisha_A 💙💙💙 3y
61 likes2 comments
blurb
ju.ca.no
post image

I bought this book because @Tanisha_A posted it in her Instagram Story😅 I‘m easily influenced. The cover looks so cool, and the book itself sounded brilliant as well. Can‘t wait to dive right into it after work today!

Cathythoughts Great picture 👌🏻 3y
batsy It's a fabulous cover! 3y
Simona ... all of that above-mentioned and also great short stories 👍 3y
Tanisha_A Lalalalala 3y
49 likes4 comments
review
Simona
post image
Pickpick

Twelve short stories and I really liked them all, except one. They are dark, twisted and gripping... They aren‘t shocking/disturbing just to cause some shock, they have base in history, superstitions, as well as they ‘commenting‘ Argentinian today‘s society. Definitely treat for short stories lovers. #InternationalBookerPrize2021

rockpools I‘m curious. Which one did you not like? 3y
Simona @rockpools The last one - The Dangers of Smoking in Bed. I don‘t know why I didn‘t like it, because I do think that that story is perfect for thematic conclusion of the collection. 3y
52 likes1 stack add2 comments
blurb
mdemanatee
post image

Books purchased (that are currently published) so far in 2021.

TheLibrarian You have such self control! 3y
mdemanatee @TheLibrarian I‘ve tried! We‘ll see what indie bookstore day will bring. 3y
24 likes2 comments
quote
Bertha_Mason

"Two very tall Scandinavians were drinking beer beside them, speaking a strange language full of the letter "a.""
-"Rambla Triste"

review
mdemanatee
post image
Pickpick

Finally got my finished copy! It works in interesting conversation with Things We Lost in the Fire while inviting us to new, unsettling worlds. Here our characters are often the actors of the danger. Themes of coming of age, and that being stilted are explored.

These are not safe stories. And they don‘t tie things up neatly. Rather, they often take us right up to the emotional precipice, and end a beat before we know if we fall off the edge.

review
Lupita.Reads
post image
Pickpick

I‘m still honestly a shook I took this all in with curiosity and appreciation. I think about the why of it and what I think is to blame is the writing! It‘s accessible & grabbing while not being overly punishing.

52 likes3 stack adds
review
mdemanatee
post image
Pickpick

If you want to be spooked by something other than the world around us for just a bit, pick up this collection! https://youtu.be/Guxjif_elq4

15 likes1 stack add
quote
mdemanatee
post image

At least there‘s a new Mariana Enriquez collection.

12 likes1 stack add
review
ephemeralwaltz
post image
Pickpick

These are sophisticated socially-conscious tales of pure unsettling macabre and cotidian horror. Stories about sexual fetish, family tragedies, cursed neighborhoods, jealousy gone too far, and personal ghosts. Set against contemporary Argentina but very aware of the country's history, Enriquez is a new voice for me. She uplifts the female body and its status of unknowable, unreachable, unpredictable. (Translated from the Spanish by Megan McDowell)

ephemeralwaltz Out January 2021! 3y
ju.ca.no Sounds good😍 I‘m going to start it today😄 3y
ephemeralwaltz @ju.ca.no how was it? I lent it to a friend the other day and they absolutely loved it! I hope you enjoyed. Hugs 💕💕 3y
ju.ca.no @ephemeralwaltz I‘ve enjoyed it a lot😍 it was uncanny and unsettling but in a good way! I was very much intrigued and loved most storys ☺️ 3y
37 likes4 comments
blurb
ephemeralwaltz
post image

Afternoon all set up ✨
I am reading waaaaaaay to many books at the same time these weeks. I'm in a slumpy mood but I'm hoping to finish some of them soon to be able to move on.

Sleepswithbooks I have “Missoula” in my Pandemic TBR basket currently. 4y
45 likes1 comment