Chasing Whispers

I tend to find the word evocative ridiculously overused when it comes to describing writing styles but in this particular case, I think it really is the most fitting word. Bacon has a unique and highly stylized literary voice and while it can be challenging to read it's also satisfying and if you let it her writing will leave you with strong feelings that will far outlast the time you will spend with her stories.

It's not full-on horror or full-on sci-fi though elements of both are present in the stories as well as strong fantasy elements, the term afro-irrealist really is the best way to describe the genre of this collection (when a book tells you what it is sometimes it really is best to believe it and this book really knows what it is). I'm telling you this because I want to reinforce that notion that you really have to let go of the expectations you might have about this book based on the genres it is listed under in order to let it be what it is and to let it impress you with it.

I almost didn't read this book because of the introduction but, ultimately, I decided I wasn't about to judge a book by an intro that wasn't even written by the author herself and I'm glad I resisted my knee jerk reaction to an intro that came across as very judgy. I'm adding this here in case someone who is about to make that mistake comes across my review, the stories aren't judgy and they really are new and unique the intro isn't just being boastful.

I received a review copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.