This is weird horror at its finest. Incredibly unsettling and strange in the best ways.

You get a strong sense of unease and foreboding from the first page and that just grows as the story unfolds. The only downside for me is that because it is a short story, you don't get a chance to get to grips with the characters, which means that the wife's sudden transformation was really jarring and didn't seem to work.

You also don't get all the info, but in this case I really think it works. What happened to Anna? How was it the main character's fault? Not knowing genuinely makes this story creepier.

This was a great short read between more in-depth books and was a lot of fun.

This was weird and I loved every bit of it.

As a gift to his wife Rosemary, Thomas creates the garden of her dreams. But one incident involving blood and cabbages opened up a door of unnerving mystic. Is it a miracle? Or a curse?

A very detailed concept with fantastical elements. I like that the whole thing was short and abrupt, I think that the book accomplished its purpose, it gave me the creeps and I think I'll stay away from Cabbages for a while. Haha.

I had guessed the ending but it didn't take away the terror I felt when the fate of the characters were sealed. That last page was utterly terrifying.

Thank you Albatross Book Co. & Netgalley for the ARC!

This is such an interesting short story! I love that it takes gardening (including planting cabbages) to the absurd to explore themes like grief, life and death, resentment, and letting go.

It's only 46 pages, but it's written really well, and even though I didn't make a deep emotional connection with the characters, this felt very unique and well done for what it is.

I have to admit I very rarely read short stories, and especially not one of this genre. My knowledge of horror/gore in books is very limited, so I didn’t really know what to expect going into this. It was so hard to rate this because it felt like just as I was getting into the story, it was over. That’s probably indicative of me not having the span for short stories as much as full-length novels. However, I still have thoughts about this, positive ones too

I think the only reason I didn’t put this higher than a 3-star rating is because of the fact that the story ended before I was able to connect with it and the characters. It felt cut short and I wished it was a little longer, but that’s a personal preference.

The thing that I loved most about Cabbage was its beauty. Holy shit, the writing was so good and so lush. The garden, the vegetables, the soup, and the monsters — all of the descriptions were so incredibly well written. The purple cabbage being at the center of this story was so random it worked in the kind of whimsical way this story unfurled.

As for the ending, it left me so unsettled in a good way. It was so abrupt and I was so engrossed in the story at that point and just needed to know what would happen next. And then it was over !! Wow, a gorgeous tale and just stunning imagery. It wasn’t my typical taste, hence a personal disconnect, but this book is really good for the genre it captures.

When I read Cabbage yesterday morning, I thought “Welp, that’s going to give me nightmares,” and then it actually did. That’s not something that has ever happened before!

In this short horror story, an elderly couple discovers a miracle in their garden, but is it truly a gift, or is it in fact a curse? It’s somehow both charming and frightening, and the entire last page gave me the chills. C.S. Fritz is a fantastic artist, wordsmith, and I haven’t read any of his other horror books (yet!), but if this one is any indication, he’s also a master of incredible imagery. His descriptions of… literally everything were *chef’s kiss* so when I woke up from that nightmare I knew my own brain had nothing to do with it - it was all Fritz’s fault.

When (not if) you grab this book, grab your headphones too, because it includes a QR code to a Spotify playlist curated by Fritz himself that you can listen to as you read. I don’t typically listen to music while reading but this was such a novel idea, I had to give it a go and I was immediately happy with my decision. The playlist is absolutely perfect. It fit the tone of the story so well, and though I finished the book before the it was complete, I always felt like the music matched up well with what I was reading. Fritz made a playlist for another of his books, A Fig for All the Devils, and I can’t wait to listen while I read that one too!

I’ve always been a bit selective when it comes to my favorite books, but I’ve had the very rare and highly-sought after Book Adding Ceremony and Cabbage is now on the list. Time to buy a physical copy!

Many thanks to @netgalley and @albatross_book_co, from whom I received this eARC in exchange for an honest review. Cabbage is already out. Go get it! 🥬

#Bookstagram #Books #Cabbage #NetGalley #CSFritz #AlbatrossBookCo

3/5
Wow I was not expecting this at all. The story was so intriguing and I couldn't put it down, it helped that it was a short story. I loved this concept and think it was executed so well.

My only complaint is I wish it was a bit longer I wish I just had more of the story. But totally understand that the mystic around it is how much is given. If this author ever came out with a collection of short stories I would definitely pick it up so quickly.

Would recommend this to anyone who wants a bit of horror without the traditional blood and gore. I was thoroughly entertained and am glad that someone took such a fresh look at what is scary about our world.

I was drawn to this book by the cover. Once I started reading, I could not stop. I was intrigued by the storyline. It was not what I was expecting in a good way. The horror aspect of this story is one that slowly creeps up on you.

Instantly, I felt an emotional connection towards Rosemary and her husband. You could feel the love he had for his wife in the way that he cared for her. He did so without complaint.

The mystery that is the garden is one of amazement and horror. Still undecided on if I would want a garden like this or not. All I can say is that I did not see the ending coming. I do want to check out more books by this author.

This was my first horror read and I enjoyed it up until I got to the end; a bit sad. Surely, the devil shows no mercy.
I’m curious about Rosemary and Thomas’ past lives and their child, Anna.
I would have loved for the story to be longer; it was a nice read anyway👍
P.S. The cover is attractive.

A quick enjoyable read, with good pacing and imagery.

Although the story feels familiar to me, and I would like more backstory on what happened to Anna, it was enjoyable with a satisfying ending.

I absolutely loved this story. The prose was gorgeous and it felt like I was living and breathing every moment described. The story was short, under 100 pages but suffered no pacing issues. My only need is for more backstory with what exactly happened with Anna in the past. That missing info would make this a full 5 stars for me.

Thank you netgalley for this short story. I really loved the cover so i wanted to read this one. Definitely a quickread and i really enjoyed it. It had great weird elements to it and good main characters and im always a sucker for stories that have to do with floral/garden in fantasy elements its always been want of my favorites. I do wish this story was a little longer just because the concept was really great. Very detailed as well and good writing.

Overall this was a well written horror/fantasy short story. The author manages to conveys both characters of grief extremely well in a short period. The chapter images really made the garden miracles more life like and realistic for the reader. Would definitely read more of these authors works. :)