Sinophagia is a well curated celebration of Chinese Horror. While not every story landed for me, the project as a whole is intriguing, and Xueting Christine Ni put some absolutely fantastic work into the editing of this collection. 

Ni's editor introduction really sets the tone for how she approached collecting submissions for this, and talks a little bit about the state of Horror as a genre in Chinese literary circles at this moment. It was interesting backstory that I loved learning about - which is part of the reason we pick up anthologies like this, right? To expose ourselves to other cultures and trends we normally don't read. Ni also does her best to include a list of content warnings for each story, AND she has a brief write up reflecting on each story after you've read it. The editorial care in this collection is just fantastic.

What about the stories themselves? Well, like with any short story anthology or collection out there, some stories are going to work for you, and some are not. Sinophagia is no exception there. Some of the stories were duds, some were great, and many were simply okay. I wish I had liked more stories more enthusiastically, but I have to remember that I'm reading these through two filters: these are all translated, and I'm not personally familiar with the cultural factors that inform this type of horror (despite Ni's great introduction). 

Sinophagia is still a great short story collection to get your hands on if you want to expand and explore in your horror reading. 

Many thanks to NetGalley and Rebellion for the eARC to review. Sinophagia will be released on September 24th - just in time for spooky season!

There were a handful I didn’t like at all, but more than half that I did. There were a good few stories that have really stuck with me. I took my time reading this to allow each story to sink in and it was worth it. 

LOVE that this had content warnings for each story at the start. That must have taken ages to do but I really appreciated it. 

I deffo think this could have been separated into two books because some of the stories were really long and made this collection drag.
 
Here are my individual ratings for each story:

The Girl in the Rain 4/5

This was great story and was well told. There were parts of it toward the end that were a bit too tell and not show and I think it would have worked better to leave some things open to the readers interpretation. 

The Waking Dream 3/5

I liked the point this was making but I found the world building was lacking a bit which meant the point was a bit blurry.

Immortal Beauty 2/5

I didn’t really vibe with this one. I liked the editorial notes, but the story itself was lacking for me.

Those Who Walk at Night, Walk With Ghosts 2/5

This one was too long. It had the right vibes but there was too much happening outside of the main point and I found it distracting.

The Yin Yang Pot 5/5

I will surely never forget this story. Chuan honestly gets what he deserves…but it doesn’t make it any less horrifying lol

The Shaxiao 2/5

It had some interesting ideas but it wasn’t memorable imo 

Have You Heard of ‘Ancient Glory’? 2/5

This was ok but again I don’t think I’ll remember it

Records of Xiangxi 1/5

I truly did not care about this story 🥴 it was far too long!

The Ghost Wedding 2/5

I thought I’d enjoy this one more than I did. It was ok.

Night Climb 4/5

Short and sweet (or bitter!)

Could have done with a little bit more suspense, but overall a really good vignette.

Forbidden Rooms 4/5

This earned its length! It wasn’t boring for a second and I was compelled to stay awake to keep reading. It really made its point and I’ll think about it for a long while!

Ti’naang 4/5

Dammit I knew where this was going and it still hit hard. A LOT to explore here around mother x daughter relationships, women’s agency (or lack thereof) over their bodies and familial sacrifice. 

Huangcun 4/5

Another solid story. I liked the layers in this and there was a lot left open to interpretation which also liked! 

The Death of Nala 4/5

Oh :(

This could have used some more depth but overall it delivered.