Book Review: Wearing Skin
By Elizabeth Suggs
Wearing Skin: 12 Devilishly Dark Horror Short Stories by Simon Paul Woodward is a quick horror read with some stories that’ll stick with you for a long time afterward.
Woodward has a way of bringing the reader into his world with every story. Some of these tales are remarkably different from each other, but it works. I’m going to focus on my three favorite stories, “Children of Ink," “Still Lives in Motion,” and “The Galilean Maneuver.” Woodward has other great stories, but these spoke to me the most.
“Children of Ink” is the strangest yet one of the most beautiful short stories I’ve ever read. In this world, art are living things. We explore different avenues of life and love. The story’s focus is on two tattoos who find each other on the bodies of a very dysfunctional couple.
While the tattoos fall in love with each other, the couple on which they live slowly cycles more out of control. It’s a story of love and loss. This is my favorite story, one I will definitely come back to reading over and over.
Another great story is “Still Lives in Motion.” This is about a man who lives in a world of isolation and emptiness. He creates a place to live in a mall, and he is happy for years until he realizes there’s something missing. Almost as if the universe hears his mind, a woman comes along. She is like him, enjoying isolation, living in this quiet world. Together they make a life for themselves.
This story feels very reminiscent of the life we lead now, living during a pandemic, despite it having nothing to do with a virus. I enjoyed this a lot.
The last story I’ll mention is “The Galilean Maneuver.” This is about a compulsive liar journalist who meets a female juggler. The pair are together for a small amount of time, and in that time, she uncovers his secrets. The writing is clever and concise. The ending was great.
Here are some quotes:
An effortless lie; a professional reaction. - “The Galilean Maneuver”
Taylor had a face like a crushed beer can and implosion wrinkles and folds of skin. - “The Galilean Maneuver”
The more he filled the space inside him with booze, the more real he became. -“The Galilean Maneuver”
The image of emotion in the heart of tears. - “The Anatomy of tears”
I feel her slide against me, body to body, ink to ink, and confusingly, even though we only exist into dimensions, I can feel her body’s curves. - “Children of Ink”
We make love across Eloise’s body: across her stomach and between her thighs, crushed in darkness on her back. - “Children of Ink”
Definitely check out Woodward’s anthology. You'll find something you love in here!
Elizabeth Suggs is the owner and founder of Editing Mee and co-owner of Collective Tales Publishing. When she’s not writing or editing, she loves to dive deep into books (the weirder, the better!), and she loves to take random long walks to unplanned destinations. Check out her recently released book Collective Darkness with eleven other authors. Buy your copy here: www.CollectiveDarkness.com