This is a nasty, kinky, strange, gruesome book, and I mean that in the best way possible. There is a horror book out there for everyone, and this one isn’t necessarily for the quiet horror crowd…although they should read it because it’s great. LaRocca wrote a unique book, and that’s rare. Between the format and the content, Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke is a literary tapeworm that will dig into your brain and make you squirm for a while. There might even be times where you want things to be over, which is something that often happens to readers when reading Edward Lee or Ryan Harding novels, but once it’s over, you’ll find yourself wanting more, and that’s LaRocca’s greatest triumph. Grades: Part Dennis Cooper’s’The Sluts’,part David Cronenberg’s’The Brood’… Eric LaRocca’s’ Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke‘is a masterpiece of epistolary body horror.”– Max Booth III author of We Need to Do Something Richard says Weirdpunk’s newfound success is surreal. “I keep telling people that we hit punk gold, as that's what it's jokingly referred to when punk albums sell 20,000 copies.” This was a big disappointment, mostly because I had seen how many people loved the first and titular story of the three published in this collection. It's certainly the best story here, but sadly that isn't saying much. Some horror walks you down a dark corridor, where there’s whispers and laughter, sobs and screams. Other horror starts down at the end of that corridor, where there’s a door that opens on to you don’t know what. Read this, and then decide where Eric LaRocca has left you. Not that it matters. There’s no way out.” - Stephen Graham Jones, author of The Only Good Indians and My Heart is a Chainsaw

Eric LaRocca's superb collection Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes is cutting edge horror with pristine writing sharp enough to slice open your skin. Strongly recommend." -Ray Garton, author of Live Girls and Crucifax AutumnI thoroughly hated Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and yet, it only went downhill from there. While the events were quite extreme, it all seemed very realistic in the sense that things like this could really happen.

Sophia was made for him. Her perfect husband. She can feel it in her bones. He is perfect. Their home together in Arcadia Gardens is perfect. Everything is perfect. I guess that’s what makes people do horrible things – they think whatever they’re doing isn’t nearly as bad as what somebody else will do. My Final Thoughts on Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke This is a beautifully macabre tale about surviving your childhood and as an adult how those ties that bind are hard to break, but if you don’t sever those binds they’ll drag you down into the undertow of despair. There is a marvellous scene in this story involving some particular Golden Arches and a decision that is made, and I just love how LaRocca splices the mundane with the brutal and the innocuous - this scene is made even more horrific because of the simplicity it is written in and just LaRocca’s observations! Dark and brilliant.He writes stories that captivate your mind to the point where you don't care how weird it is, you must keep reading. You MUST. Failing to finish is not an option. That is where he rises above most weird fiction that I've read. It's so exciting to discover an author like this just as he's making a name for himself. I can't wait to read what he writes next! In the final story, A man has trouble standing up for himself due to a longtime habit of politeness that has been deeply ingrained in his psyche since childhood.

And in November, Weirdpunk is accepting submissions for an upcoming anthology titled Stories of the Eye, edited by Sam Richard and Joanna Koch. They’re seeking horror stories “that explore the complex relationships between artists and models. Go beyond the male gaze. Show us the queer gaze, the disabled gaze, the un-colonialized gaze, the intergalactic gaze.” There is no happily ever after to be found here. These stories are bleak, powerful, and ugly, showcasing the darkest side of human nature. What is actually happening (although Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke cannot be labelled as “Torture Porn”) are new techniques in audience immersion. Constant franchises and ridiculous kill counts have cheapened a genre that relies on audience participation in a way that most other genres do not. LaRocca, through their construction of their novella, shows a deep insight into this ongoing debate and is instinctually correct to bring it into the written word. My Response to the Novella

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I'll Be Gone By Then - This story is the perfect example of that old saying, you don't know what you've got until it's gone. Don't take the ones you love for granted. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this collection. I’m rounding up from 4.5 stars. Comparing this story to the earlier ones is kind of somber. I can't say much without giving anything away, but it does put you in a difficult situation.

Give me all the Queer horror you can shovel into my TBR pile. It doesn’t have to be the sole focus of the story, even just a wee mention of a queer coupling or small inclusion of queer culture and I’m happy. Without giving anything away I will say that all three stories have a reoccurring theme but each story is unique in its own style which shows the author has a lot of range. This is my first read by the author and I am very impressed by his writing. I loved how each story evoked a strong emotion in me and I loved how each story was vastly different. The author managed to keep my interest piqued and had me dying to learn what would happen next. When I started reading this, I was confused and very intrigued. Not knowing what was going on or what to expect was thrilling. The further I progressed in the story, the more darkness surrounded me. This is what true dark obsession is like. It really begs the question of how far would you go to please the one you love?That's bad enough, but then the story's writing is also terrible. It's some of the most amateurish writing I have come across in a published book, in a long time. I could be wrong, but it reads like a detailed film treatment, badly rewritten to novella format. The writing is dull as dishwater, structurally boring and repetitive, very uninspired.