Having enjoyed the novel The Grip of It by the same author a couple years back, I decided to pick up False Bingo on a whim. Typical with short stories collection, there are bound to be ones that resonant more than the others, but overall I'm happy to say the writing is extremely consistent: observational, frank, and razor-sharp at picking up unsettling details. While The Grip of It was unmistakably a horror story, False Bingo is less constraint by genre, ranging from thriller-esque scenario, character study, slice-of-life, to familiar drama, but all contain traces of eeriness and looming melancholy.

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Any Other: 3.5 stars
More of a mood piece. Really liked the setup, but its super short length didn't allow the story to build before the 'twist' came fast and furious—kind of wished there's more substance to it. Still a decent book opener though!

Delivery: 4 stars
Eerie imagery, a melancholic perspective on one's parent succumbing to dementia.

Strange Loop: 4 stars
Another mood-oriented piece, but I love the intentional pacing, very hypnotic.

The Principal's Ashes: 3.5 stars
Filled with dark humor and some quirky detail.. but I don't get the ending...

Don't Let's: 4.25 stars
Was loving this one! By far the most fleshed-out story thus far with amazing detail/character. The ending came way too abruptly when there was still so much room for development.

Get Back: 3 stars
I *get* what it was going for, but it became repetitive quickly. (amazing writing though!)

Pastoral: 3 stars
Interesting concept and execution, but not quite a story I connected with.

Loser: 4 stars
A complete narrative about an outsider attempting to fit in.

The Halifax Slasher: 4.5 stars
An instant favorite; took me two read-throughs to fully grasp it, but I like the twists and turns as well as an ending that's open for interpretation.

Bull's Eye: 4 stars
An immersive slice-of-life about aging and loneliness.

Half Dollar: 4.25 stars
Quietly sinister, feels like it could be an excellent prologue to a full-length novel!

Manifest: 4.25 stars
Outlandish and grotesque, packed with a lot of WTF moments—really liked this one!

Gladness or Joy: 3 stars
A series of scattered vignettes, while they were semi-interesting independently, as a whole I failed to detect a larger thematic connection. Felt like a filler.

Default: 3.5 stars
A mic-drop of an ending, but the mad lib beginning dragged on for far too long.

Maulawiyah: 4.5 stars
Quirky characters on a yoga retreat trying to find peace, featuring some great eye-roll moments.

Hunt and Catch: 5 stars
A perfect, effortlessly effective little story about a paranoid woman traveling home from work.

Under/Over: 5 stars
A very in-depth look at a dysfunctional sibling dynamic after a traumatic accident.

Kudzu: 5 stars
A bittersweet mother-daughter story with an unusual setting. I also learned so much facts about the plant kudzu, which I had absolutely no knowledge prior.

Trivia Pursuit: 4.5 stars
A couple trying to seek compatible people to hang out with, really enjoyed the dark humor with its conclusion.

Loitering: 5 stars
Honestly this collection really ended on a series of top-rated stories; this one was incredibly immersive and the ending was a pleasant shock to the system, it had an allegorical undertone to it.