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jackbifrost's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
a dark exploration of grief wherein an elderly man gifts his terminally ill wife the garden of her dreams and horror ensues when it provides her with everything she has ever wanted. interesting imagery and beautiful illustrations but due to the nature of the short format everything happened very quickly and i wished i understood the characters and their motivations better. i just felt like there was a sudden switch in characterisation without warning but it was still an interesting read nonetheless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Grief
books_and_heels's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
ivyinthepages's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
3.0
Rating: 3.7 leaves out of 5
-Characters: 3/5
-Cover: 5/5
-Story: 3.5/5
-Writing: 5/5
Genre: Horror
-Horror: 2/5
Type: Ebook
Worth?: Yeah
Hated|Disliked|Meh|It Was Okay|Liked|Really Liked|Loved
This was more sad than horror though it was pretty scary. At then end of the book I was so heartbroken and scared, it really did play on one of my fears.
-Characters: 3/5
-Cover: 5/5
-Story: 3.5/5
-Writing: 5/5
Genre: Horror
-Horror: 2/5
Type: Ebook
Worth?: Yeah
Hated|Disliked|Meh|It Was Okay|Liked|Really Liked|Loved
This was more sad than horror though it was pretty scary. At then end of the book I was so heartbroken and scared, it really did play on one of my fears.
witchybibliophile85's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
fleurhoplof's review against another edition
dark
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"Cabbage" by C.S. Fritz could be placed somewhere between the witch's vegetable patch in "Rapunzel", Roman Polanski's "Rosemary's Baby", the plants born from Vendredi's sperm in Michel Tournier's "Vendredi ou la vie sauvage" or the legend that children come from cabbages. "Cabbage", a dark and poetic fairy tale, will appeal to those who have read "Helpmeet" by Naben Ruthnum.
Thomas, Rosemary's husband, has only one desire: to make his wife Rosemary, who is suffering from pancreatic cancer, happy. To this end, he tends a magnificent vegetable garden where he plants his favourite flowers as well as cabbages. When he breaks a vial of blood on the vegetable, it seems to magically grant wishes.
This is a subtle tale of loss and mourning, but also of life itself and its many transformations. The writing is poetic and gripping, and makes me want to read more of the author's work.
Although I wasn't always captivated by the quotes between the chapters, I loved the cover as much as the Spotify playlist!
Thank you to NetGalley and Albatross Book Co. for this wonderful discovery!
A definitive 5/5 !
Thomas, Rosemary's husband, has only one desire: to make his wife Rosemary, who is suffering from pancreatic cancer, happy. To this end, he tends a magnificent vegetable garden where he plants his favourite flowers as well as cabbages. When he breaks a vial of blood on the vegetable, it seems to magically grant wishes.
This is a subtle tale of loss and mourning, but also of life itself and its many transformations. The writing is poetic and gripping, and makes me want to read more of the author's work.
Although I wasn't always captivated by the quotes between the chapters, I loved the cover as much as the Spotify playlist!
Thank you to NetGalley and Albatross Book Co. for this wonderful discovery!
A definitive 5/5 !
menastarr's review against another edition
4.0
⇢ 4.4 ★
thank you to netgalley for the ARC.
if you enjoyed the films "annihilation" or "mother!", get your hands on this short story immediately. i was enamored by this story. in horror, i am a firm believer that the "nature's revenge" trope is criminally underutilized. fritz did a STELLAR job at this. i was listening to the curated playlist the author included with the story, and it gave me chills the entire time i was reading. it's a quick read-- i finished it in one setting. i quite literally could not put this one down. i think this would be a superb A24 film, or even a short film. the poems implemented into the beginning of each chapter were right on point with each chapter's theme. the artwork between each chapter was stunning as well.
fitz does an excellent job at creating atmosphere. in the beginning, you are following along with the lives of this objectively wholesome older couple. the wife has stage four pancreatic cancer, and her dying wish was for her husband to plant her a gorgeous garden. however, you can literally feel this overwhelming sense of dread as the storyline progresses. the playlist the author provides in the book was SO perfect for each scene. it's my understanding fitz has another book, "a fig for all the devils", and i 100% plan to get my hands on it as soon as possible. the author's writing is gorgeous and haunting.
౨ৎ TRIGGER WARNINGS
ᡣ
thank you to netgalley for the ARC.
if you enjoyed the films "annihilation" or "mother!", get your hands on this short story immediately. i was enamored by this story. in horror, i am a firm believer that the "nature's revenge" trope is criminally underutilized. fritz did a STELLAR job at this. i was listening to the curated playlist the author included with the story, and it gave me chills the entire time i was reading. it's a quick read-- i finished it in one setting. i quite literally could not put this one down. i think this would be a superb A24 film, or even a short film. the poems implemented into the beginning of each chapter were right on point with each chapter's theme. the artwork between each chapter was stunning as well.
fitz does an excellent job at creating atmosphere. in the beginning, you are following along with the lives of this objectively wholesome older couple. the wife has stage four pancreatic cancer, and her dying wish was for her husband to plant her a gorgeous garden. however, you can literally feel this overwhelming sense of dread as the storyline progresses. the playlist the author provides in the book was SO perfect for each scene. it's my understanding fitz has another book, "a fig for all the devils", and i 100% plan to get my hands on it as soon as possible. the author's writing is gorgeous and haunting.
౨ৎ TRIGGER WARNINGS
ᡣ
booktalkcorner's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
This was such a quick and unique read and I absolutely loved the premise! The story was unsettling and weird in the best way, and I really think it was made for this type of (short story) format.
Unfortunately, the writing itself was weak and the pacing took me out of the story a little bit, as many of the characters’ choices felt incredibly abrupt. I wish certain scenes had been expanded upon to eliminate this reading whiplash.
Overall, I enjoyed the premise, and the imagery was incredible. I also really liked how the author tied various quotes into the narrative — I found that they added an interesting layer of nuance that can sometimes be missing in short stories simply due to their length.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Unfortunately, the writing itself was weak and the pacing took me out of the story a little bit, as many of the characters’ choices felt incredibly abrupt. I wish certain scenes had been expanded upon to eliminate this reading whiplash.
Overall, I enjoyed the premise, and the imagery was incredible. I also really liked how the author tied various quotes into the narrative — I found that they added an interesting layer of nuance that can sometimes be missing in short stories simply due to their length.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
lexisbookishburrow's review
3.0
<b> Story summary: </b>
Thomas’s wife Rosemary is at the end of her battle with cancer and he builds her a beautiful garden for her to enjoy. After an accidental spill the garden seems to come alive and starts granting Rosemary’s wishes each day.
<b> My thoughts: </b>
This was a quick read, only taking about half an hour to finish and I enjoyed it for the most part. I liked the story and the chapter art was super cool. I’m always a sucker for art in novels and this one was well done. I love how cabbages were incorporated in each one. While I liked the art, I wasn’t a fan of the poems that followed after every chapter. They didn’t feel like they fit the story and seemed more like it took away from it. Also there were SO many similes in this short story. And look, I get it. It’s a short novel but with how excessive it was it didn’t make the story flow well. But every paragraph and almost simile after simile with no breaks? I ended up getting annoyed.
The story itself was good, though predictable, but the usage of the garden and the details on the vegetable beings was creative and unique. I enjoyed the story overall and it made for a nice quick read.
Thomas’s wife Rosemary is at the end of her battle with cancer and he builds her a beautiful garden for her to enjoy. After an accidental spill the garden seems to come alive and starts granting Rosemary’s wishes each day.
<b> My thoughts: </b>
This was a quick read, only taking about half an hour to finish and I enjoyed it for the most part. I liked the story and the chapter art was super cool. I’m always a sucker for art in novels and this one was well done. I love how cabbages were incorporated in each one. While I liked the art, I wasn’t a fan of the poems that followed after every chapter. They didn’t feel like they fit the story and seemed more like it took away from it. Also there were SO many similes in this short story. And look, I get it. It’s a short novel but with how excessive it was it didn’t make the story flow well. But every paragraph and almost simile after simile with no breaks? I ended up getting annoyed.
The story itself was good, though predictable, but the usage of the garden and the details on the vegetable beings was creative and unique. I enjoyed the story overall and it made for a nice quick read.
roguefairy's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
finalgirlkate's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I absolutely loved this. It’s a super short novella, read it in under an hour
This novella covers grief and sacrifice, and what we’re willing to do for the ones we love. It’s so surreal and creepy, and the Spotify playlist makes this SO much more eerie. I will definitely be rereading this one again.
This novella covers grief and sacrifice, and what we’re willing to do for the ones we love. It’s so surreal and creepy, and the Spotify playlist makes this SO much more eerie. I will definitely be rereading this one again.