This is an interesting one to review - The prose is bold and clear, the stories are grim vignettes which each leave you with an indelible image or impression, even if they don't necessarily have a satisfying ending, and the setting of the stories is fascinatingly grim - It all has a sense of extreme poverty and gothic despair, like the intersection of George Orwell and Edward Gorey.

I would find it hard to recommend to anyone I know, however, as this thing is *dark* - Take heed of the content warnings! It also leans very hard on my least-favourite gothic trope of dwelling on how ugly everyone is as a reflection of their character - I understand its function for setting the scene and putting us in the mind of the narrator, but it still feels unnecessary.

Content warnings: <sp> domestic violence, infanticide, rape, murder, unwanted pregnancy, child sexual abuse, definitely more that I'm forgetting </sp>