Blood Red

The unnamed narrator of Blood Red describes the aftermath of her failed marriage in explicit, sensual detail, including bouts of trypophobia and a fixation on holes. The novel is a vibrant reminder of the narrator's physicality and interiority, and her autonomy to make choices and face the outcomes.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 192 pages
Publication date: 18 January 2024
Publisher: Cinder House

In a torrent of stream-of-consciousness fragments, the unnamed narrator of Blood Red recounts the aftermath of her failed marriage in explicit, sensual detail. She falls in and out of love, parties with her friends, skates around the city at night, does a lot of drugs, and gives in to her impulses. Her internal monologue is punctuated by bouts of trypophobia, an obsessive cataloguing of holes that empty, fill, widen, and threaten to swallow her entirely. Blood courses through her every encounter from periods, fights, accidents, wounds, sex, streaming to and from her fixation with holes. Blood is a vibrant reminder of her physicality, a manifestation of her interiority, a link to memories and sensations—until its abrupt absence changes everything.

Provocative and raw, Blood Red is a fierce portrayal of a woman navigating the grey-or red-zones of her uncertainties and paradoxical urges. A subversive grappling with what it means to wrest power over one's body, Blood Red revels in the narrator's autonomy to make choices and face the outcomes, no matter the scale.

The narrator's failed marriage is a central theme in Blood Red, and the aftermath of the divorce is depicted in vivid detail. The narrator describes her emotional state as "a mess," and her thoughts are fragmented and disjointed. She struggles with feelings of loneliness, depression, and anxiety, and her relationships with her friends and family are strained.

One of the most striking aspects of Blood Red is the narrator's obsession with holes. She describes them as "the enemy," and her internal monologue is filled with images of them. She tries to fill them with things, but nothing seems to work. She becomes fixated on the idea that holes are a threat to her existence, and she fears that they will eventually consume her.

The narrator's use of stream-of-consciousness writing style adds to the sense of chaos and confusion that pervades the story. The reader is given a glimpse into the narrator's thoughts and feelings without any clear structure or narrative arc. This style allows the reader to experience the narrator's emotional journey more intensely, but it can also be challenging to follow.

Despite the challenges of the writing style, Blood Red is a powerful and evocative story. The narrator's raw and honest portrayal of her emotions and experiences is compelling, and the reader is left with a sense of empathy and understanding for her. The story also raises important questions about identity, sexuality, and the nature of relationships.

In conclusion, Blood Red is a powerful and evocative story that explores the aftermath of a failed marriage in explicit, sensual detail. The narrator's obsession with holes is a central theme, and the story's use of stream-of-consciousness writing style adds to the sense of chaos and confusion. Despite the challenges of the style, Blood Red is a compelling and thought-provoking read that raises important questions about identity, sexuality, and the nature of relationships.

Weight: 180g
Dimension: 129 x 198 x 17 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781915368355