I found R.H. Sin on Instagram and liked some of the poems he shares on there. So of course when I saw this on Netgalley, I wanted to read it. Unfortunately, I was left feeling incredibly disappointed. What first struck me about this collection is that often the way the stanzas are broken up are jarring. It interrupted the flow of them, but not in a way that came across as meaningful to me.

I also found that the language R.H. Sin uses sometimes was offputting. The imagery he created with some crude words and phrases came across as ugly. The topics he was discussing were ugly, but to see some of the same rude words again and again in his poems was frankly unsettling.

He covers topics from love, sexism, grief, and depression. I liked only a few of the poems. Reminders For Men, To Serve and Protect, We Do Not, and Either Way are some of the ones that stood out to me. I felt the messages in those poems were conveyed well and covered important topics. There’s one where Sin tells men to stop judging women, and to stop expecting things from women because women owe men nothing. There’s also one about racist cops.

My issue, however, is that this collection is pitched as including poems which “empowers its readers to seek the love they deserve”. A lot of the poems about finding the love you deserve seem to be directed at women. In fact, there are numerous poems which seem to judge and advise women about how to handle abusive or toxic relationships. I cannot tell you how angry it made me. One poem is about a girl whose mom was abused by her dad. The poem ends by saying that the girl is just like her mother. What a cold way to talk about abuse. The other poems about abuse urge the women to leave the men who abuse them. There's so much wrong with that statement because women often stay out of fear or begin to think they deserve the abuse, etc.

He also gives advice about what daughters should be taught by their mothers. Let me repeat this: Sin tells readers that daughters need to be taught the games men will play to get what they want so they know how to guard themselves. 1) Girls are constantly told what men will say and do to get in their pants. 2) Sin, why didn’t you write a poem about sons being told to treat girls with respect? By this point, I lost my patience for the book. Sin directs many of his poems about sexism towards women like it’s our job to guard ourselves rather than men’s job to stop their problematic behaviour. It seems like Sin was trying to discuss sexism to show how woke he is. He’s placed himself as a knowledgeable person who thinks he can give women’s issues a voice with his large audience. But if this is the kind of thing he’s going to be saying to his audience, I’d prefer he didn’t write poems about that topic at all. If you want to read good poetry about sexism and feminism, go read books by the many talented female poets.

"Planting Gardens In Graves" is a disappointing book. It boasts that it’s empowering, but I’m here to tell you it isn’t. I was a fan of his work from Instagram, but after reading this book I’m left feeling sad. The bad aspects of this poetry collection outweigh the good ones.

This is my first time reading r. h. sin but I’ve heard the name a lot and a co-worker has highly suggested him in the past and she hasn’t led me wrong yet in poetry suggestions. Planting Gardens in Graves is modern poetry at its best. Sin looks at both how relationships can be good but also in the ways that relationships are ugly. I appreciated the approach of not all love is great, not all love is healthy, and sometimes you can do better than what you have. Would definitely recommend to modern poetry fans,

I was so excited to receive this book, the authors other books where amazing but this one fell kind of short. Still an enjoyable read but not as good as his previous work.

I actually don't despise poetry, but it definitely isn't my favorite. Especially contemporary poetry. Still, I had higher hopes for this collection since R.H. Sin is a well known poet and I had previously heard of his work. There were some great poems that I really enjoyed at the beginning, but near the middle of the collection it began to get repetitive. For the most part all the poems seemed to be about the same main topic. They were over simplified and I didn't connect well with a majority of the poems even though I agree with him on almost everything. I ended up not even finishing it. The writing style and repetition just weren't for me. AT ALL.

*I received a free ARC of this poetry collection through NetGalley*

Somehow... I can't seem to warm up to contemporary poetry. Sin's collection is an extensive one and I loved the title as well as the minimalistic cover (just look at it!), but to me most of the poems sound like recycled run-of-the-mill text posts shared by teens on facebook. The major theme is breakup, but the patterns did get repetitive after some time, and I ultimately can't remember a single piece that stayed with me for longer than a minute. I'm sorry, but perhaps this one simply isn't for me.

Well narrated and engaging but my least favorite of Sin's collections so far.

Kinda had some problems with this collection. Some of the poems were fine, some were pretty dang good, and both of those camps were primarily poetry dealing with personal topics. The problematic poetry dealt with the topic of women being mistreated/being in abusive relationships and the like. I think that exploring that topic would be fine for a male author to do, possibly in one or two poems, but considering that a good third of the book is dealing with that topic made me feel like Sin was telling women how to live their lives in a way that I wasn't really comfortable with. It was like he was trying to tell women to be empowered and not be in bad relationships, and while I agree with the idea that women shouldn't bow down to negative situations like that, the idea of a man getting up on a literary pedestal and saying it over and over (in a way that was pretty tiresomely repetitive) really didn't work for me. Especially since he does quite a bit of self-congratulating as well, suggesting how great a guy HE is. I just think maybe he's the wrong voice to be expressing this idea.

Overall, many readers will probably find this collection quite enjoyable. But while several poems here stood out for their beautiful prose, I did find that others fell a little flat. Despite this inconsistency in quality though, for the most, these poems remain very relatable, especially for readers who have also loved and lost significant others. I would have liked a little more complexity and depth in the poems though. That being said, I would still recommend this collection for fans of this genre.

From the author of Whiskey, Words, and a Shovel, comes a new collection of poetry dealing with love, loss, heartbreak, and motivation/inspiration. The poems are short with some increasing in length. The wording is not too flowery or frivolous. They can be short and packed with a lot of thought and meaning. As the first work I have read from r.h. sin, I have to say I was not disappointed.
I did feel that some poems were a bit repetitive as if he just rearranged the words to sound different, but that was not always the case. Some poems were repeats, but felt different in a way.
I try not to read other reviews while conducting my own but I felt like this certain aspect needed some attention. One review mentioned romanticizing suicide.
"I loved you
But heaven loved you more
I needed you
But heaven needed you more
I lost you but gained an angel"
-r.h. sin
I can see why that person felt as if it was about suicide, but to me that wasn't the first thing that popped into my head. I connected it to deaths from forms other than suicide. I thought about my grandmother who died from natural causes. I thought of my cousin who died too soon from surgery complications that left him brain dead. It's all about perspective.
Personally, I did enjoy it and I would consider reading more works by r.h. sin in the future.

R.H. Sin has gained many fans over the last couple of years. His Whiskey, Words, and a Shovel sold out and copies were fetching quite a price. Sin made his name with short poems and used language to make words carry their maximum weight. Since the release of Whiskey, Words, and a Shovel two things have happened. First, there are collections of "poetry" flooding the market that are essentially cliches and platitudes, but nonetheless, have been readers professing love for poetry. This dilutes the work of Sin who actually uses language as a tool. Secondly, on this same note, Sin essentially writes on the same subject in all his books. That being said it does take several books before the writing seems to repeat. This is not bad in itself. It happens and sometimes it is very good. For example, AC/DC put out seventeen albums using the same three cords and was/is one of the most popular bands in rock and roll. Familiar subject matter is not always a problem; it just needs to seem fresh.

I do like that Sin keeps increasing the length of his poems. Also, he can bring new ideas into the mix. This collection works well for the fans of Sin's work and also for a newcomer. For the casual reader who has read one or two of his books with only moderate interest, there is really nothing new for you here. I do hope Sin expands his themes and continues to work longer poems. Like his work or not he certainly did create a market for himself.

Available February 6, 2018

R.H. Sin's poetry is modern poetry at its finest. Rather than beating around the bush and coating everything in sugar or floral metaphors, Sin is straight to the point with each of his poems, and packs a powerful punch within the pages of his poetry collections and this one is no different in any way, shape, or form. I would highly recommend this collection for people who are fans of his works, fans of modern poetry, and people just getting into poetry as well.

I was honestly so close to rating this 4 stars. So goddamn close.

You might not be able to tell from my Goodreads reviews, but R.H. Sin is not a new author to me. I used to have a physical copy of Whiskey Words & a Shovel II. However, I never got around to reviewing it because it was a very quick DNF and I sold it off as soon as I realised it wasn’t for me. I had hopes that this one was going to be different.

At the beginning, it was. Most of the poems were heartfelt and they had enough depth to differentiate them from mere sentences. Some of them were empowering. Others evoked deep consideration about the meaning of love. Y’know, things that poems are supposed to do. That all changed after I got to around the 100-page mark. FUCK.

The book very quickly dipped into ‘what the fuck’ territory. Nothing was sacred. The author romanticised suicide in a very cliche overdone way. 2 strikes in one. He praised himself as a ‘nice guy’ which has some very uncomfortable connotations.

Finally, his poems
derailed into mere
sentences.

And then ended. The depth was gone. The originality was gone. I was left with the same idea reiterated over and over. Not being facetious, but the entirety of the book’s second half could be condensed into one or two poems. R.H. Sin definitely did not need 100 pages to say what he did.

For cutting examples and a more in-depth analysis, please visit my blog here.

No Subtlety

men beg
for entry
then label women whores
as they exit

men chase pussy
then degrade women
for giving it to them

He’s saying the exact same thing in the two different stanzas. The first is more poetic. The second is just a reiteration of the first but in a slightly less poetic way, as though he thinks that the reader probably hasn’t understood the first stanza. Perhaps his books appeal more to younger demographics, but that doesn’t mean they’re idiots.

Short Sentences

they love pussy
but not the women
they get it from

Let’s change that into a sentence. Imagine that this appears at the end of a heart-wrenching article about gender equality and being taken for granted. They love pussy, but not the women they get it from. Now, which format has the most impact?

In my opinion, the sentence packs a lot more punch than the poem that R.H. Sin has written. That’s not good. Poetry and the structure of poetry is supposed to enhance meaning or send a message. This jarred structure may do it for some people but it is nowhere near as impactful as it is in prose.

Romanticising Suicide

i loved you
but heaven loved you more
i needed you
but heaven needed you more
i lost you but gained an angel

I completely understand that this might be a way that someone deals with the suicide of someone that they used to be close to. That doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s healthy – especially when written in a book that’s supposed to appeal to those who are depressed or feeling down. In the words of the Goodreads synopsis, this original volume celebrates connection, mourns heartbreak, and above all, empowers its readers to seek the love they deserve.

In my opinion, books that celebrate should not be celebrating the creation of an ‘angel’. There really isn’t anything about suicide that should be celebrated. Perhaps people can find peace in the idea that the one whom they loved is in a better place but it’s still pretty sketchy.

I Swear I’m A Nice Guy

it’s time for men to step up
or lose their women to men like me

Let’s get something straight first; I’m 100% for confidence. You feel good about yourself? Good. Having confidence in yourself is a wonderful thing and not vain as so many people perceive it to be. However, there is a time where one must look at oneself and consider if that confidence is completely well-founded.

This poem reminded me of r/niceguys. In summary, these are basically guys who complain about how no one is willing to fuck him despite being such a nice person. Of course, they really aren’t as nice as they think they are and may actually be bigger douchebags than the ‘assholes’ who actually have girlfriends. I believe that R.H Sin might be emulating one of these people, but doesn’t actually realise it.

He says that men will ‘lose their women’ as if we are possessions to be lost. News flash! We’re not. It could be a slip in grammar, but coupled with the whole ‘I’m better than all the other men out there’ attitude, this poem makes me uncomfortable.

In Conclusion. This book is a personal experience and some may have a great deal of trouble getting through some of the poems. This could be due to mental triggers or the short, blurry sentences. Having said all of that, the first half of the book did actually house some thoughtful poetry. Want my advice? Stop at around page 130. You’ll have read most of the original ideas in the book and will probably enjoy it. So I’m going to end on a positive note with a poem with beautiful imagery that I one hundred percent respect.

women with sharp tongues
cut through weak men
likes knives to bread

I feel like too much of R.H. Sin's work is repetitive. I feel like he could branch out more from just talking about being hurt in past relationships, especially since he's happily married now. I used to be a bigger fan of his, but frankly, his books are just so tiresome now. It's probably because I'm in a much better place now.