Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw (Re-Post)

It’s Spooky Season! Enjoy some of my favorite horror novels from the last few years.

Originally posted October 2021

Available October 19, 2021

CW: Suicide

This is a terrifying and chilling story that brings Japanese mythology to life. Set in an ancient mansion with a dark past, a group of college friends gather for a weekend of drinking and celebration. What should have been a joyous weekend celebrating the marriage of Nadia and Faiz turns into a gruesome nightmare when they awaken the spirits of the house.

From the cover, we know that we are in for a wild and horrifying adventure and Khaw does not disappoint. This is by far one of the scariest novellas I’ve read this year and I loved every single sentence. Khaw’s writing is quiet and almost delicate but packs a massive punch. The characters within are college friends who have grown both incredibly close and also far apart. Brough together for the wedding between two of them, stresses of the last year threaten to ruin the mood of the weekend but politeness and booze both help to smooth things over. It’s one friend’s massive amount of money that allows the friends access to such an ancient and haunted home, but it’s that same wealth that creates such friction between them. Our narrator Cat has recently experienced a mental health episode that may or may not be coloring her version of past events so her narration may or may not be reliable. And while the friends seem like such a close group-they were all gifted first class flights to Japan to stay in an ancient mansion that required government permits to visit, there is an unbearable tension between them. As their secrets unfold, the secrets of the house reveal a devastatingly dark history.

A horrifying, haunted mansion story that will chill you to the bones, Nothing But Blackened Teeth, is a must read for all horror fans. If you would like to add this to your collection, you can find ordering information here:

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Nightfire for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own. This post also contains affiliate links and as an Amazon associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases.

Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw

Available October 19, 2021

CW: Suicide

This is a terrifying and chilling story that brings Japanese mythology to life. Set in an ancient mansion with a dark past, a group of college friends gather for a weekend of drinking and celebration. What should have been a joyous weekend celebrating the marriage of Nadia and Faiz turns into a gruesome nightmare when they awaken the spirits of the house.

From the cover, we know that we are in for a wild and horrifying adventure and Khaw does not disappoint. This is by far one of the scariest novellas I’ve read this year and I loved every single sentence. Khaw’s writing is quiet and almost delicate but packs a massive punch. The characters within are college friends who have grown both incredibly close and also far apart. Brough together for the wedding between two of them, stresses of the last year threaten to ruin the mood of the weekend but politeness and booze both help to smooth things over. It’s one friend’s massive amount of money that allows the friends access to such an ancient and haunted home, but it’s that same wealth that creates such friction between them. Our narrator Cat has recently experienced a mental health episode that may or may not be coloring her version of past events so her narration may or may not be reliable. And while the friends seem like such a close group-they were all gifted first class flights to Japan to stay in an ancient mansion that required government permits to visit, there is an unbearable tension between them. As their secrets unfold, the secrets of the house reveal a devastatingly dark history.

A horrifying, haunted mansion story that will chill you to the bones, Nothing But Blackened Teeth, is a must read for all horror fans. If you would like to add this to your collection, you can find ordering information here:

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Nightfire for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own. This post also contains affiliate links and as an Amazon associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases.

The Inheritors by Asako Serizawa

Available July 14, 2020

The Inheritors is a beautifully written collection of connected short stories centered around a family through multiple generations and countries. Told from multiple perspectives, each with a distinct voice and style, The Inheritors is a fascinating look at how our actions can have an impact on future generations. Much of the book centers around the second World War and its effect on not only the citizens of Japan, but on the Koreans who were forced to work there by the Japanese. Family, love, grief and patriotism are all examined throughout the collection and some stories are more difficult emotionally than others. 

The story titled Flight was particularly impactful. Ayumi is sharing her memories, those she still has, of growing up and her first visit to America in 1911. The power of discovering a tomato for the first time. How her second tomato was discovered during her second pregnancy and the fear of Americans animosity towards people from Asia. Interspersed with her memories of raising her children and her marriage, are the ways her mind is betraying her. Names leave her first. She differentiates her daughters by their features, not their names. She doesn’t have those anymore. Ayumi recalls the difficulty of living in a country where you aren’t wanted. How she wasn’t able to communicate with her family back home because it could cause suspicion with the American government. The struggle to raise a family during the Depression. All the while, we are reminded that in the present, she doesn’t remember her children or their names. 

Many tears friends, many tears. 

Allegiance gives us Masaharu, a man who follows his wife to work and doesn’t understand why she’s working around so many soldiers. Their son is missing and the distance between them grows every day. In the next story, we hear her side of the story. As an old woman, she allows herself to be interviewed about her life during the war and how she was forced into acting as a “comfort woman.” The horrors that those women endured. The writing styles are drastically different between the two stories, creating a more powerful narrative. 

This was a fascinating collection of short stories and I highly recommend it. 

Want a copy for yourself? You can get one here:

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title.  All opinions and mistakes are my own. This post contains affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases.