I don't think you could go wrong reading anything by Joyce Carol Oats.  The very feel of the stories; somehow you always know something isn't right.  My favorite story was the longest and the first.  A young woman finds out that her birth grandmother, whom she has no memory of meeting, has left her land in her will.  She has to return to learn about the past she has blocked out of her mind.  I think my favorite part would be the hectic, Alice in Wonderland style dialogue of her new found aunts.  They talk over and through each other in a head-sinning way, but give away more than she may think. 

The second story, was my second favorite.  A lonely, abused child and a feral, protective cat.  What could happen?  The third story breaks the pattern.  It's not my third favorite.  The ending redeemed it, but I slogged through the hard to look at story of a woman and her professors.  Strangely, the last story was one I liked when I read it but it doesn't stay with me.  Overall, I liked the gothic feel of the first story the most, but they all had a strong voice and a definite theme running through them.  Has it ever been safe to be young and female?

This is my first Joyce Carol Oates - I thought it about time to jump on the bandwagon and these short novellas seemed a good way to start. First I have to say her writing is beautiful. Regardless of the subject matter there is a soft musical quality in the words. It's a quietness that pulls you in closer to the words, making you feel them just a bit more. Personally I'm not sure that I agree with other readers that shelve this as horror, and even suspenseful I'm not sure about. Or maybe suspenseful fits because they are slow burning stories, but the emotion I felt most strongly was uncomfortable. The beautiful writing made me uncomfortable because I knew it was juxtaposed to the story content. I should have been relishing those beautiful words but I couldn't quite relax enough because I was leery of where the plot was going. Same thing with the pacing. Did I want it to go faster or slower? I was never really sure. Did I want to race to get to something disturbing or did I want to read slowly and maybe never reach that point. It was such an uncomfortable feeling. A bit haunting. And isn't this really the best fiction out there? The reads that make us question everything and keep us off kilter and out of our comfort zones? I think so.

Spooky and sinister, this was the perfect October/fall read and a great introduction to Joyce Carol Oates. Each novella was just the right length, and each story had a great mix of mystery and menace — sometimes at the hands of physical people (namely toxic men) and sometimes, maybe, perhaps something supernatural. These books have great atmospheres and settings — creaky New England houses, windswept landscapes, abandoned woody lots, musty college buildings. The collection is not so much scary as deeply unsettling and because of that the chill of these stories lingers.

it could be better, but okay

As a short-lived fan of Joyce Carol Oates, I was very happy to be able to read this book through Natgalley. There are four suspense / mystery novels that I liked, but I didn't think they were super good, which was a little disappointing because I was loving everything I read of this woman.

The first story, Cardiff, by the Sea, occupies almost half of the book (some 40%), and we accompany Clare, who gets a call from a lawyer saying that she inherited her biological grandmother's properties . As Clare did not know her birth parents and was adopted very early, she decides to go and see the inheritance to find out more about her fathers. Then she meets two aunts (a strange and less witchlike version of Hilda and Zelda Spellman) and an uncle who is also strange and some other strange people, in addition to finding out what happened to her family and why she hid in a cupboard under the sink when she was small.

In the second, Miao Dao, we see Mia, a girl who plays with the wild kittens and befriends one of them. And then strange things are going to happen.

In the third, Phantomwise, Alyce gets involved with two professors from her university and strange things happen.

And in the last, The Surviving Child,  we have Elisabeth, the new wife of Alexander, Stefan's father, the surviving child of his mother, a famous poet who killed his daughter and then committed suicide. And then you know: strange things will happen.

The best novels are the first two. I really liked the feeling of strangeness of the first, and I loved the ending, which leaves a huge doubt of what happened; and the second is very good overall. The third started well, in the middle it was very boring and dragged (it could be a little smaller, some things condensed), but the ending was very good. And the fourth was cool, but not amazing.

Not my favortie Oates' book, but I'm happy to read.

This creepy and fascinating collection of short stories is Oates at her finest. every one is thrilling and chilling-Highly recommended.

Cardiff, by the Sea was so good for my Haunting of Hill House, Ratched, Ruth Ware, B.A. Paris, The Conjuring love soul, I kept trying to slow myself down while I was reading it so that I could really savor the book. The book is a collection of novellas that are compulsively readable and definitely worth taking the time to really enjoy.

In the first book, the spotlight novella, we meet a disconnected young academic. She’s adopted and kind of a loner. Really, she just seems to lack verve for life. But, when she comes into an unexpected inheritance, she starts to learn for the first time in her life where she came from, and why she has such a hard time forming human connections.

The last three stories are just long enough to keep the ready thinking while the stories unfold in unlikely ways. Oates’ writing style is impeccable, even poetic at times. And while formal, still, someone very approachable.

If you love a good, dark, spooky tale. If you love a mystery that kind of still somewhat remains a mystery after the last page, this collection is for. Not every mystery can be quickly tied up with a bow. And sometimes, figuring out the mystery, leads to a much bigger one.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Grove Atlantic for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my review. This one is out now! Perfect for curling up with under a blanket on a dark and stormy night.

What a great collection.. four novellas, suspenseful with a sense of dread, nothing bloody or gory just eerie!
Great time of year to read this!

Previously this year I also read the author’s Night.Sleep.Death.the Stars, and loved it!
I will be looking for some additional works of hers to read!

Thank you to Netgalley and and Grove Atlantic for the ARC!

This is a short story collection and also the first book I read by Joyce Carol Oates. I cannot say I disliked it, but I am not moved by this either. The writing style is impressive, the literary quality of Oates’ world is obvious and outstanding. However, I will have second thoughts on whether to read any of her books in the future and here is why: The first story in this collection is “Cardiff By the Sea” is about a young woman who finds out that she inherited the fortune of her biological grandmother and that her biological parents died in an unusual way. The suspense is very strong and keeps you reading and reading. The portrayal of the two aunts are fantastic and the atmosphere creeped me out. However, the story ended in such a rushed, vague way that it left me so dissatisfied. 2-stars!
The second story Mia Dao is about Mia who adopts a wild cat and tries to adapt into her new life as her father leaves and there is a new stepfather in the house. Again, there are vagueness in the story and I did not feel particularly connected with Mia. 3-stars!
The third story Phantomwise is the strongest one in this collection, following Alyce who gets involved with her lecturer and another old professor, only to be abused by one. The violence against women is portrayed strongly here, underlining both psychological and physical abuse. 4-stars!
The last one is The Surviving Child. The story follows a woman marrying a man whose famous poet wife committed suicide whilst killing her own daughter, too. So the guy has a surviving son and the new wife lives in the same house where the first wife killed herself. The surviving child is disturbing in a way that you feel the quality and presence of Oates. 4-stars!
All in all, Oates is a great author for sure and plays an important role in the literature world. However, I just need more from a story, more satisfaction in terms of endings.
Thanks to NetGalley and the Mysterious Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have been a huge Joyce Carol Oates fan for years, and I eagerly look forward to every single one of her new releases. Cardiff, By the Sea did not disappoint. I particularly loved the suspense in Phantomwise: 1972.

I have mixed feelings on this one. The book is a series of four creepy, suspenseful novellas centering on men’s violence against women, 

The first story was awful. Slow, dragged on and ultimately, I didn’t understand the ending. It’s too bad that one was first as the remaining three stories were much stronger. 

The remaining three stories cleverly conveyed the terror and menace posed by predatory men. The stories took on issues of consent, harassment in school, abusive spouses, and predatory teacher-student relationships. They illustrated the creeping, often insidious nature of violence against women. 

Thought-provoking read about the terrors in plain sight. I hovered between 3.5 and 4 stars. The first story was the longest and weakest. But the remaining stories are worth a read.

There was a strong, overpowering sense of foreboding in each of the novellas. Each dealt with a woman who was marginalized in some way and left to question her worth, her existence, her sanity. This heavy, uncomfortable feeling sat on my shoulders through all the pages. I found myself having to remind myself to take a breath and then to exhale, and then to shake my head and then to stare off into space. 

The reviews I have read have been completely accurate and articulate.

I have little to add except several quotes from the four novellas that highlight my impressions and describe my reactions to Ms. Oates extraordinary writing:

“To be orphaned is to be never in the right place”

“Is this home? A I in the right place now?”

“Please help me. I am so lonely. Please”

Thank you NetGalley and The Mysterious Press for a copy.

Depression is hell. I'm normally an upbeat chick. I think so anyway. But, I do have bouts of depression that take the wind outta my colorful sails. In this state, consider me the equivalent of flotsam and jetsam. Yep. That's me - good Ole Flotsam. I don't even have the energy to be jetsam. Just a flot, flotting about. When I'm in this dead zone I try to stick to light reads - mood boosters. What to do when I begin a book, cheery as Mary Poppins, and depression strikes? Once I become as dreadful as Bloody Mary, well, there's no turning back. I blame the reading material for this unfortunate turn of events. I hate to fault Joyce Carol Oates for my recent black mood. We usually get on rather well. To be fair, I was chomping at the bit for publishers to approve my NetGalley request. Once I got the go ahead I dove right in. I was a happy girl. I like novellas and short stories. Ya get so much bang in one book, right? Listen, it fell apart for me with the first story, CARDIFF BY THE SEA. So, there's this woman hankering to discover her roots. She ends up at an old creepy home of even creepier great aunts. Had this been an audio version, I would have plugged my ears and sang lalala. Their conversations  were Irrational (with a capital I) and nonsensical. Clare, the woman seeking her biological beginnings, is a thirty+ woman of intelligence. She becomes a fainting, blabbering idiot in the presence of the not-so-great aunts. Honestly, I was hoping the aunts would poison her and the story would end, yet it drones on. The conclusion? I haven't a clue. Written really odd. She sees things. She doesn't see things. They're there but not. A few moments of suspense that led me to believe maybe I'm the crazy girl for not enjoying a story by JCO. 

Next story, MIAO DAO. A bullied young girl finds comfort in a bevy of stray cats, one in particular. Nope. I'm a cat lover. I have two Ragdolls that offer me immense comfort. Scientifically, it's proven that cats can lower blood pressure and assist with their person's anxiety levels. Lets just say that my sweet fluffalumps did nothing to improve my faltering mood during this story. Again, just odd. 

PHANTOMWISE is the third story. I've got nothing intelligent (or stupid) to say. I skimmed through it. If it had a yearbook title it would be "MOST UNLIKABLE". 

And, finally...THE SURVIVING CHILD. Maybe this hit too close to home for me. My youngest child died at the tender age of eight. My grief almost took me with her. At this point in the book, my depression had reached its peak. I finished what was supposed to be a suspenseful, psychological thriller-esque. However, it was either my mindset (i started in a skippity-doo-da mood) or this clearly missed the mark. 

Don't get me wrong. I dig Joyce Carol Oates. I own plenty physical copies of wonderful books she's written. I just didn't mesh with this dark novella. It was, dare I say, kind of flaky. Glad to have it behind me. Had this not been an ARC, it's safe to say I would've DNF'd at the sea. 



*E-copy courtesy of Grove Atlantic and NetGalley.

This is quintessential Joyce Carol Oates. The stories are exquisitely written, yet they leave you with no sense of a happy ending or of troubles being conquered. I find that Oates' work in the past 10-15 years has delved more into the unsatisfied side of life - everything is not happiness and light or happy endings (not that her work ever was, but it seems darker to me). There's a rawness and an energy to her writing that makes it so believable that one sometimes has to set down the book.

A must for fans.

Each novella in this collection by Joyce Carol Oates is well crafted. While all four stories have elements that initially seem a little unreal, or a little trippy, the threats faced by the narrators are very real. At no point is the safety of any of these women guaranteed, which means the “suspense” touted on the cover is more like a sense of crawling dread. These stories fit well together, taking different angles on a similar theme.

“Cardiff, by the Sea”
A woman receives a call that she’s inherited a house from her previously unknown biological family. Her family greets her warmly, but there’s ambiguity in every scene—are they welcoming, or are they dangerous? The writing is extremely vivid, but the ambiguity remained no matter how well I could visualize each scene or hear each line of dialogue. I admire the construction of this story for how well it kept me off balance.

“Miao Dao”
I hesitate to say this is my favorite story of the collection because the narrator’s stepfather is so absolutely, skin-crawlingly disgusting. There’s a dinner scene in which he turns toward her after ignoring her all day that made me jump in my chair. JCO might be the only author to make me feel genuine fright from such a small gesture—she has an unerring sense for exactly which adjectives to use at every moment. The young narrator is harassed at school and at home, only finding respite when caring for a band of feral cats. She adopts one, Miao Dao, and comes to see the tiny cat as a kind of friend and protector. A very thin ray of optimism helps balance the story, and a little hope goes a long way in this collection.

“Phantomwise: 1972”
This story was the most difficult to read because it lacks any shred of optimism. The college-aged narrator sleeps with a TA, gets pregnant, and spends more and more time with an old poet. As much as the narrator tries to see him as harmless, the reader knows he is not. I’ve read a few books and stories by JCO, so I knew this story might go to a dark place, but the violence exceeded what I was prepared to read. Even the joy of reading a well-written story didn’t soften the experience of this one.

“The Surviving Child”
In this story, the narrator marries a man whose first wife killed herself and one of their children. His late wife was a poet, and lines of her poetry are sprinkled through the story, giving her a ghostly presence. In some ways, I was reminded of Rebecca—the new wife living alongside the memory of the old and walking on eggshells. The writing is sharp and lively in all four novellas, but the poetic interjections distinguish this story from the others and fit well with JCO’s style. Unlike the others, too, the threat to the narrator isn’t immediately clear, so the suspense isn’t waiting for the axe to fall, but rather in trying to see where the axe is hidden.

Taken as a whole, it’s an excellent collection even as the subject matter is difficult.

Rating: 4.6

NB: This book was provided for review by the publisher, Grove Atlantic (via NetGalley).

There's no question that Oates is a gifted writer.  Her descriptions and characterizations are superb.  These stories are unusual and compelling.  My favorite is the title story which evokes a sense of mystery and unease.  It felt like an old fashioned gothic mystery.  I must admit I was surprised by the ending which, for me, was a 'wait, WHAT?!' moment.  I'm still not sure how I felt about it.

The other stories didn't feel quite as 'finished' as the first but they were still enjoyable to read.  This book is an interesting addition to Oates body of work

Reading Joyce Carol Oates just makes me want to read more Joyce Carol Oates. So this little treasure collection of four novellas satisfies that need in me. Once I’ve finished the first, there are three more to devour! Oates is masterful at keeping one guessing. So skilled, never obvious, always surprising. This is a wonderful and satisfying read—a place to escape the real horror that is going on in our world, allowing me to hide out in fiction/mystery. And now I’m off to read more Joyce Carol Oates!

This is a collection of 4 short stories, though the first (and best) one takes up almost half the book. I really enjoyed the first story, Cardiff, by the Sea, and would have been thrilled to have an entire book with those quirky sisters. Even though the subtitle of this book is "Four Novellas of Suspense," I can't really say that they were all that suspenseful and a couple of the later stories were pretty depressing. 

Overall, great writing and a ton of amazing female characters.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Grove Atlantic/Mysterious Press for gifting me a digital ARC of the short story collection by Joyce Carol Oates.  4 stars for creepy stories that will leave you wanting more!

This book contains 4 short novellas all revolving around creepy, mysterious happenings to the female subjects of each story.  The first was my favorite - a young adopted woman gets a call that her biological grandmother left her an inheritance in Cardiff, Maine.  She travels there, stays with her two very eccentric great-aunts, and tries to investigate the past she knew nothing about.  There is the story of Mia, a teenager who is uncomfortable with her body and the attention it receives.  She only finds comfort in an abandoned lot overrun with feral cats.  Another story has a quiet college student  taken advantage of by a professor and in other ways by an elderly poet.  The last story involves a young woman about to move in her fiancé's house where a horrible tragedy took place leaving his son as the only survivor.

Each of these stories have twists that you won't expect, even though the ending may not be totally as fleshed out as you may wish.  That's always why short stories aren't my favorite genre but - Joyce Carol Oates!  Her writing is so beautiful and you won't be able to resist this collection.  You will find yourself caring about each of these female protagonists and their stories.

I’ve been holding onto this one to read in October for the spooky atmosphere and horror vibes. It doesn’t disappoint. There are four short stories that are different lengths. The first one is the Cardiff story and centers around an adult woman who had been adopted as a child at the slightly older age than usual adoptions, close to 3 years. She doesn’t have much memory of her family and doesn’t know the circumstances of her adoption but has been curious. One day she receives a phone call from an attorney who is acting as the executor in her birth-grandmother’s will and estate. At first she is not sure if she is interested in following her curiosity and seeing what the family is like but she decides to go to Cardiff and check it out. When she arrives, she is immediately thrust into the care of her aunts, who are a bit eccentric. She also has an uncle who comes into the house periodically. The mystery begins to unravel as to why she was adopted and what and why she is receiving an inheritance. 
The overall themes throughout all the stories are some of the different yet similar ways that women can suffer at the whims of the men in their life. This theme unfolds differently in each story. In the second story about young Mia and her broken family life, present her with an opportunity to care for and develop a love for feral cats living near her home. Over the years, we follow her family and the changes that occur as well as the constants. 
Story three centers around a bright young woman who is studying to become a poet. She meets a slightly older teaching assistant/tenure track teacher who challenges her academically but who she develops a relationship with leading to a difficult situation. She can’t seem to resolve the relationship or other issues and finds herself under the spotlight of attention from a highly respected visiting poet whom she can learn a great deal. She becomes attached to him as well. 
The final story was my least favorite, although still good. It focuses on the surviving son of a murder/suicide and how his life unfolds following such harrowing experiences. 
Each story has different strengths and I enjoyed them all with the first three grabbing me the most easily. 
I adore Joyce Carol Oates and her writing style. She has great and difficult/dark central themes for each story that have an overall theme for the collection that is based on various ways women suffer at the hands of men. I think she does a terrific job of bringing in dark themes with family dramas and moving stories and a clear unifying theme. 
Highly recommend. 

#CardiffByTheSea #Netgalley #GroveAtlantic #MysteriousPress

I’ve been a fan of Joyce Carol Oates for a long time, so I was very excited to be approved to read this ARC, which I read immediately and have just finished on the release date. 

JCO has a very distinctive writing style, which can take time to get used to and may not appeal to everyone. I know I had a hard time reading my first JCO novel about 13 years ago, but I was glad I persevered as I consider her one of my favourite writers now. That said, I haven’t loved every novel of hers that I’ve read and I think I actually prefer her short fiction, which tends to be quite dark and a bit creepy.

Cardiff, by The Sea comprises four novellas and as I mentioned are very dark, as her shorter fiction tends to be. The novellas are not equally weighted – a frustrating thing about eARCs is not being able to see how long is left in the chapter – the titular novella is 43% of the book, Miao Dao and Phantomwise: 1972 approximately 20% each, and The Surviving Child the remaining 16%. 

The strongest story by far is Cardiff: a young woman, adopted at an early age learns of an inheritance from her biological grandmother. She travels to Cardiff, by The Sea, Maine, to find out more and meet members of her biological family. It doesn’t sound especially suspenseful and sinister, but it is! I couldn’t help but think of American Horror Story as I read this – I could totally imagine this story on the show (especially as Great Aunt Elspeth with her ‘preposterous flamelike hair’ was made for Frances Conroy to play). The ending was a little ambiguous, at least to me (welcome to reading JCO) but despite the confusion this story gets a firm 5 stars from me. 

Miao Dao: I didn’t know where this story was going to a long time: a girl feeling marginalised and victimised bonds with a feral cat. Again, there’s a little bit of ambiguity in the ending. A good story, but I’m not sure if it was all necessary to get to where it ended up. 4.5 stars.

Phantomwise: 1972: The weakest in my opinion. I found myself wanting this one to hurry up and finish. And what is a Kinch? 3 stars.

The Surviving Child: A woman becomes stepmother to a young boy after his mother killed herself and his little sister. Is the house haunted? Or is she? Another story that had me thinking of AHS, this time of the Murder House season. 4 stars.

Unmistakably JCO, this novella collection is a great pre-Halloween read. Great stories with just the right amount of creepy! A high four stars (lowered by the last two stories).

Thank you #NetGalley and #GroveAtlantic for the ARC.