When I picked out The Atrocities, I was specifically looking for that creepy story that, while not giving me nightmares, gives my spine chills or gives me goosebumps. I have a hard time finding these stories, ranging from just the creepy to true horror, so when I get in this mood, 9 times out of 10, I'm disappointed. The Atrocities wasn't any different.

I think, maybe, that the parts that were intended to be scary weren't actually scary because the protagonist was so dull and emotionless that nothing seemed to be anything. Events would happen that would normally scare the shit out of a normal person and Danna would just shrug it off. She went through this story as if nothing affected her at all, even when she was apparently going through PTSD episodes. I found it difficult to feel anything for this story when apparently the characters themselves didn't feel anything. And it wasn't just Danna. It was all of them.

The plot didn't make up for the lackluster characters either. Events happened for no reason, and everything was set up so conveniently that Danna could just sit back and allow for it all to happen.  And when nothing seemed to affect her, this story didn't have much of a conflict to push it along. 

Also, nothing was answered at the end. The ending came about very abruptly, and there was no explanation on Danna's backstory, that was hinted throughout the novella, nor was there a solid explanation on Stockton House or the family. Nothing made sense.

Final Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Overall?
I have to admit that the story was entertaining enough to keep me reading. I wanted to find out what was happening and why, and see how the characters fared in this bizarre story. And while most of my questions weren't answered, it wasn't a bad story. Just confusing.

And badly written.

Would I Recommend?
It's a fairly quick read, so I wouldn't rule reading it out. But at the same time, I don't feel like I got anything from it. There just wasn't any emotion in the story, and that wasn't something I could handle.

Trigger warning for parental abuse, intense gore, and death.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2342568711?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1