2.5 - wanted more!

Now I understand why Charlie Bucket was tired of cabbage soup….
Great writing and enjoyed how quickly the atmosphere of the story was developed. I could see this being a great twilight zone episode.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC

You know when you start a book and you can tell it is going to be special? For me, I could tell CABBAGE by C.S. Fritz was going to be one of those books.
I adored this old couple right from the first paragraph. I was hooked, I knew that there was nothing bad that could happen to these sweethearts that their love couldn’t overcome.
But then…WEIRD HORROR BLOSSOMED FORTH and shot everything to hell. No more info, you don’t get anymore than that. This book is short and you don’t get all the answers. But I tell you what, that not knowing will pull you along in tension filled misery.

This book was definitely a plot I've never seen before. Blood sacrifice? Sure. A cabbage-ified horse and people? NEVER.

Easy to read, unique plot line and great descriptions of the surroundings which allowed me to create my own little world even if it was <200 pages. I love it as a short story but it has the potential to be a full novel, which in turn means this author definitely has ideas that could be 300> pages and not just short stories. I do feel that some of it was slightly rushed, that may be because they wanted to keep it really short, which is fine - but I kinda wish it was drawn out some more.

Star rating - 4 - unique plots, great writing style, visual, but missing a little something for me

An original new take on the be-careful-what-you-wish-for trope!

Cabbage is beautifully written and illustrated. Never has a head of cabbage or a garden been so creepy! The husband and wife in the story are well-developed and have interesting arcs which is all the more impressive considering the page length.

A must-read for anyone looking for an horrifying allegory exploring grief and guilt that reads like a Grimm’s fairy tale. I highly recommend this one to fans of body horror and Clive Barker.

This was a super quick, super weird, super dark read. It follows an elderly couple. The wife is sick and as they are trying to deal with this, weird things start happening in the garden. As it is very short I will not say anything more. This was my first time reading anything by the author, but I like his creativity and vivid descriptions. Recommended if you want a quick, unique horror read

I loved 'Cabbage' so much that I find it hard to put into words, but I'll give it a try.

The story delves into grief and the extreme lengths we go for our loved ones. I'm a sucker for grief-driven narratives where protagonists venture into forbidden territories, and 'Cabbage' encapsulates that beautifully.

The writing was immaculate; I felt an instant connection with Rosemary and Thomas, as if I'd known them my whole life.

My only nitpick is that I wish the story were longer so that I could have romped in the garden.

~

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank You to NetGalley, Albatross Book Co., and C. S. Fritz for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was more sorrowful than scary, a most eccentric tale told with an abundance of poetic prose. To be able to write of evil vegetation with a serious undertone takes a skill that is unique to this author. I can't wait to read more by C.S. Fritz, the narration feels tailored to my interests!

Never have I felt so unnerved whilst reading a book.
Though not my usual go to genre, I decided to give this a shot, and I definitely wasn't disappointed.
At first, I thought it was going to be a short story about a loving husband and wife making the most of the time they had left with maybe a little supernaturalness sprinkled in, but my god was I shocked by the body horror and weirdness of the way it panned out.
If you're looking for something that will make you think twice about the blessing of "miracles," and make you contemplate whether gardening is for you then look no further.
Would definitely read something like this again!

A short and succulent read, Cabbage by C.S. Fritz is perfect for horror fans new and old. On a picturesque farm, an elderly couple enjoys the little time they have left together by tending to their garden. After past traumas and current illnesses, they have long since stopped expecting miracles. But what if their little miracle just needs some time to grow?

“Do you think the seeds know they must die?”

What begins as charming and lovely quickly devolves into the creepy, bloody, eerie. The rising tension was very well done for such a short piece of work, and by the end I was filled with dread for what was to come. I would definitely recommend this one for fans of weird and surreal fiction, or those looking to dip a toe into the horror genre.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

oh boy does this suffer from length. I was intrigued by the idea but unfortunately this just did not hit. It's very fast paced and a lot of the background information is given in broken up quick tidbits. I definitely caught that the author was trying to explore themes of grief and suppressed anger but it wasn't really executed well. I couldn't get behind the rash choices that Rosemary was making because I had no background to go off for why, just snippets of something that caused her to harbor years worth of anger and hatred towards her husband. I understand people make stupid decisions on a regular basis in real life but the start of this was just ridiculous, because why would you just willing eat something that you have no idea how it came to be?

Honestly the idea for this was really interesting and I think had it be written to be longer and explored to the full extent it would have been more interesting and the weird/creepy/horror vibes could have been more present. The outcome was sure weird, but not make me scared or worried weird, like I wasn't feeling any way at all while reading this and that's something I look for horror, maybe I don't understand the genre much but I want to feel something when I read it.

The playlist is pretty much the only thing I liked about this, but I honestly missed it the first time I opened the file up, but its a great creepy vibes playlist and I can appreciate that.

Cabbage is a horror short story about a man and his dying wife who discover their cabbage garden produces “miracles.”

This story had an interesting premise and was a quick read but overall I felt the plot and writing were lacking. The wife very quickly goes from just wanting to eat stew by her garden to committing homicide. I would have liked to see more build up. I also think this would have benefited from additional editing.

*Includes use of uncomfortable language "confined to a wheelchair" instead of wheelchair user.*
This was short and creepy but I felt like we didn't get the full story. There was one element that wasn't fully explained in relation to "an accident" which left me feeling slightly unsatisfied.
I liked the dynamic between the husband and wife and how that changed in this story.
Overall I enjoyed this but I didn't love the way the story wrapped up.

Gorgeous little horror novella, fun little ideas. Basically an overgrown short story that worked so perfectly i feel it deserves that. thanks for the arc.

A great short story that kept my interest.

I would recommend this short horror story to anyone interested in indie horror authors or to those who garden, simply because this story's setting involves gardening. I'll be reading more of C.S. Fritz's work in the future.

Thank you to Albatross Book Company and to NetGalley for providing this story in exchange for an honest review.

This is a novella/short story and is a really quick and interesting read, I read it in one day. There wasn’t a lot of depth to it but I think that’s expected when the work is so short. I liked the body horror element and that Fritz took something as innocuous as gardening and made it disturbing. Cabbage has great descriptive writing and beautiful artwork in between the chapters!

Firstly I would like to thank C.S. Fritz , The Albatross Book Company and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of ' Cabbage ' to review .

This is the first book by C.S. Fritz I have read and I went into it completely blind . In all honesty it was the cover that drew my attention to it . I am always looking for new and quirky reads and the cover was certainly attention grabbing .

Although the story is short I was astounded by just how impactful it was . It became apparent right from the start just how much thought had gone into every word and sentence . Although categorised as horror it felt more like a beautifully written traditional folklore tale . Imagination poured from every page and the illustrations, quotes and poetry strategically placed only made the tale more of a delight to read.

I don't want to give away any spoilers , as I personally feel that this should be a book to be experienced first hand . Whilst the story is about grief and there is a foreboding sense of doom throughout , the author certainly knows how to portray strong emotional connections between characters .

It was a delight to read .. meaningful and artistic and almost whimsical . One of my favourite short story reads of the year so far .

#Cabbage #NetGalley.

A creepy short story perfect to get you in the mood for Halloween. The descriptions are the highlight of this book. With so few words the author vividly portrays the horrors from the garden. Read in one sitting.

Story summary:
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.

My thoughts:
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.

A horror story about cabbages? Sign me up!
This beautiful short story is about an old farmer who gifts his dying wife the garden of her dreams. After an accident with a blood bag the garden starts to provide more than just caggabes.
If there's one story i could name as a "cozy horror" it would be this. I was never shocked to my core. Overall just a lot of spooky eerie vibes, mixed with the couple dealing with the certain early death of the wife.
Considering this is a really short story I wasn't expecting to connect to the characters and well - I didn't -. What I did deeply enjoy though, were the descriptions of the garden. Like it made me dream of having my own little paradise.
In the end I really liked this story, a little too short in my opinion. Wished for even more descriptions of the garden. More floweryness.
But I guess I should be careful about what I wish for ;)
3/5 Stars

This was soooooo much fun to read. In the vein of SyFy creature features but actually funny and well done. Loved the art style too.