Scissor Sisters

I received a copy of this Audiobook from NetGallery with the approval by Brigids Gate Press. This is my honest review of "Scissor Sisters" by Rae Knowles, April Yates.

I would like to shout from the roof tops in Brooklyn so everyone can hear how much I loved this collection of short stories. After the first story I was eager to read the next and the next and so forth. I am not part of the LGBTQ+ community, but I am very well versed in dark horror, historical horror, and realistic horror. These stories had it all. It had so many different types of horror and worked off the horror that the LGBTQ+ community knows all too well. The stories and symbolisms, kept me on the edge of my seat. Every aspect of taboo was discussed is various different forms and the result had me walking away haunted by the pain the authors wrote about.
This book is my first 5 star read of 2024 and I don't do that lightly. Though, when you can grip me so tight in a story I miss my subway stop, obviously a high rating is deserved. I feel like I cannot speak more highly about this book of stories. I have told my best friend about it and I want to hand it to every horror fan I know because the horrors in this collection are so tangible it needs to be felt by all.
I am not sure what else to say other then to run to your local bookstore on January 23rd and grab yourself a copy! I know I will!

Dive into the wicked world of "Scissor Sisters," where sapphic villains take the stage in 21 tantalizing tales curated by April Yates and Rae Knowles. This anthology promises stories of horror, lesbians, and erotica – a perfect potion for those who like their stories as twisted as Maleficent's horns. Let's unravel this anthology of villainous delights!

Pros:
🌟 Five stars for a scintillating anthology that's like a wicked cauldron brewing tales of sapphic intrigue. It's practically a villainous tea party!

😈 Love the sapphic, horror, dark, and erotica themes – it's a feast for those with a taste for the macabre. Like a dark chocolate truffle, each story is deliciously sinful.

📚 I love the inclusion of Lagniappe – it's like getting an extra bite of a sinister cupcake in this literary dessert. A delightful bonus to an already bewitching collection.

🔍 Some of my favorite stories in the anthology are: "You Oughta Be in Pictures" by Anastasia Dziekan, "Modern Art Cursed, Mixed Media" by Hailey Piper, "Conversations with Roe" by Alex Luceli Jiménez, and "Ungrateful Dead Things" by Alyssa Lennander. They're the stars of this villainous cabaret.

In conclusion, "Scissor Sisters" is a wickedly enchanting anthology that stitches together the diverse talents of sapphic storytelling. Whether you're into horror, lesbians, or a touch of erotica, this collection has it all – like a potion crafted by a coven of literary sorceresses. A standing ovation for these wordsmiths! 👏📚

Disclaimer: A heartfelt thanks to NetGalley and Brigids Gate Press for this ARC. All opinions are as uniquely twisted as a Maleficent plot twist. 🖤📖

This is an anthology that tackles a very wide range of topics through a broad range voices and stories: Dark histories, of radium and watch-making, injustice, vengeance, haunting, pain and suffering for art, the darkness behind those who are seemingly put-together, pristine, but calculating and clinical. What happens when the dead is brought back to life.

There are stories that subvert expectations and turn tropes upside down, that depict physical manifestation of trauma as a person, toxic relationships, love as consumption. There are tales that criticize traditional societal expectations of women, breaking down concept of the nuclear family as ideal and standard, emphasizing the violence of men, the sacrifice of mothers for the sustenance of their children.

A few of the stories center around art and the act of creating art as a risk in and of itself, of art and obsession. These tales reimagine fairy tales mixed with bleak realities, undressed, explore what it means to be broken, the meaning of sin and lust—the way it consumes, liberates, is weaponized, becomes salvation; the allure and violence of desire.

Overall, SCISSOR SISTERS is beautiful, dark, erotic, and chilling.

Favourites:
— "Gladys Glows at Night" by Hatteras Mange
— "You Oughta be in Pictures" by Anastasia Dziekan
— "Modern Art Currse, Mixed Media" by Hailey Piper
— "Buckskin for Linen" by Mae Murray
— "The Turner House Heritage Tour" by Caitlin Marceau

This book was devastating, beautiful, and horrific wrapped up in a pretty little bow.

Every single story had its own horrifying moments, and even its own breath taking moments.

I can’t exactly pick a favorite because I loved each and every single one in their own way. I loved how every story seemed to have a beautiful flow, but they were all so different and unique.

I think after reading Merciless Waters months ago and now Scissor Sisters, I’ve found a new love for sapphic horror.

Many of these stories sent chills down my spine, some gave me goosebumps, quite a few had some gore in them (which I loved), and some left knots in my stomach.

I highly recommend this anthology, especially to anyone who loves beautifully horrific but often devastating sapphic love stories.

5/5 Horror that will have you breathing hard from both fear and pleasure.

Anthologies are notoriously hard to review because some stories hit harder than others, but not here. Every single story does something to push, subvert or explore the genre of horror and Sapphic intimacy. What I especially love about the short story format of horror, is the authors quickly and skillfully build a world, create an emotional (and usually explicitly sexual) connection between characters, edging us with fear and then leaving us at the climax with no aftercare.

I love that all of our main characters are women and that every story is utterly unlike the last one. Our women are vengeful spirits, snuff film-makers, cannibals, murderers, evil scientists and monsters; but they're also juxtaposed by being deeply loving (to the point of obsession), incredibly intelligent and fully aware and in control of their actions.

Here are a few of my favourite stories and quotes:

"I only dream in shades of red. It looks like abstract art. Pollocks and Rothkos. Or like red chrysanthemums blooming, spreading their petals wide. I think it's the memory of the contents of the inside of my skull splattering against my eyelids." - You Oughta Be in Pictures by Anastasia Dziekan

"She couldn't decide on the more intriguing fantasy: how the woman would look roasting over a spit of rolling in the sheets in her bed." - Gingerbread Red by Chloe Spencer

"No, based on her cry of pleasure, she quite enjoyed the pierce of [character name]'s fangs in her throat and her climax was untampered by the stead flow of her blood." Oubliette by L.R Stuart

The story that stayed with my long after I finished the book was Buckskin for Linen by Mae Murray, about residential schools and the indigenous children taken from their homes and forced to attend. Mae Murray showcases indigenous revenge, joy and heritage on the backdrop of the horror of the residential school system. I loved it.

This book is best read in a house with feet, while skeletons with glowing eyes watch you approach the steps to the front door with your gift, bleeding through the sheet it's wrapped in as it gently moves in your hand.