PanThe New York Times Book ReviewHer stories are paeans to the almighty joke, both what it accomplishes and what it precludes, often at the expense of anything substantial ... Up to the moment it would be unforgivable, her characters crack wise from the same arsenal, their charm depending heavily on your sense of humor. (I’ll admit, it’s not mine) ... Having a laugh is one of life’s great pleasures, but sometimes you crave more. Heiny’s stories hint at something truly ripe for comic fiction: Her characters have a nagging fear of getting old.
Izumi Suzuki, trans. by Sam Bett, Daniel Joseph, and Helen O’Horan
RaveThe New York Times Book ReviewFunnier, more electric and more hit-and-miss. I like it so much better [than Terminal Boredom] ... Suzuki’s narratives might contain B-movie silliness. They also have the hypnotic power of a bender. Just look at the time — you’ve suddenly finished them all.
Amelia Gray
PositiveThe RumpusAnswering questions is very much the domain of most mysteries, particularly ones rooted in realism. Literary realism, this is not. The mystery of Franny’s death is the MacGuffin of the book, the tool for examining greater dramas of grief and the uncanny. It’s a bold move to have central plot points—titular plot points, even—go unresolved, and that audacity is thrillingly mixed with moving scenes of grief and horror. Coyness about plot in deference to the beauty and urgency of people’s thoughts is exactly what excites about Amelia Gray’s fiction. With Threats, she’s found a way to use suspense and do what she wants with it.
