Yea, I’m very confused with this book. For starters, there isn’t really a description for the book, so readers are going based on the cover and title. I went into this book thinking it would discuss the ugly side of beauty for women. It did that, but it also didn’t. This book proclaims itself as a horror, but it was more dark and twisted than anything.

The writing itself was very dark but fine, but I think the order of the poems could use some work. It would go from something very light to some very dark then from a comparison to Medusa to childbirth then back to something light. It’s safe to say that this isn’t really my kind of read, and I kind of regret choosing when I read it based off of my previous and current reads.

I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of dark poetry by a variety of women. Though these are the writings by authors who are identified as women in the horror genre, the poems represented here take a more abstract look and feel of horror. Beautifully constructed works address a myriad of themes, from gender norms and sexism to relationships and mental illness. Go into this collection ready to peel back the horrors that are part and parcel of being a woman. The authors offer a wide representation of what being female means. And there was a feeling of darkness and passion that pervaded throughout the entire collection.

Under Her Skin collects the strangest, darkest poems to create a macabre beauty. Once you start reading, you won't be able to stop.

If you love body horror and poetry, this is the collection for you. Grotesque and powerful, the descriptions are representative of femininity and the life of the feminine. How were are picked apart, cut open, and torn apart for culture, Society, government, and religion.

My only critique is the lack of organization. The arrangement felt kind of all over the place. the poems ranged From the empowering to the viscerally painful and all were intermixed with everything in between. I felt like there should have been a more cohesive order to their progression.

This was gorgeous. Seriously some of the best collection of poetry I have read in a really long time. Dark, graphic, unsettling. Really well done and relatable. I had a ton of favorites and a lot of this resonated hard with me.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC to read and review.

There has been a recent movement in horror writing to promote previously underrepresented voices, which should absolutely be encouraged and supported. Many anthologies have been put together regarding various voices in horror fiction, but little has been done with horror poetry, until now. Lindy Ryan and Toni Miller recognized the dearth of poetry anthologies championing women’s voices in horror poetry, and have edited Under Her Skin, which is a strong anthology and one that I hope is the first of many such anthologies.
What makes this anthology unique is that the well-known and award-winning women horror poets are almost all excluded from the table of contents. There are a few known Stoker and Elgin winners and nominees, but certainly not all of them. Furthermore, the known voices that are included are not given prominence in the anthology. In fact, no poet is given more than two or three poems in the anthology total, which means that the anthology is doing exactly what it says it’s going to do—display and promote the underrepresented voices in horror poetry, specifically those of women. This makes for a really diverse anthology and makes for a spectacular collection of poems.
The poems, themselves, are a mixed bag of all sorts of forms, styles, voices, etc. It’s clear that Ryan and Miller aimed to cast their nets wide to capture all facets of horror poetry in this anthology. The poems very much run the gamut of horror, from body horror like “Something That Needs Destroyed” by Linda M. Crate to the folkhorror of “These Men Are All One Monster” by Cassondra Windwalker to the monster horror of “The Last Woman” by Tiffany Michelle Brown. All of these poems, however, contain a socio-political theme that the editors seem to want for their book, which gives a sense of unity among the diverse voices. The curation of this anthology is really strong, and the editors should be commended for finding the necessary balance required in making a great anthology.
As with any anthology, reader personal taste will dictate success or failure. There were a few poems that weren’t as strong as others in this collection, and a few voices that could be developed further, but over all this was a tight collection, and the overwhelming majority of the poems were successful. On top of that, the quantity of writers, known and unknown, as well as the diversity of voices makes this all but required reading for anyone interested in the various directions horror poetry can and will take. This was a great collection and highly recommended reading.

Thank to NetGalley & Black Spot Books for the chance to read an advance copy of this in exchange for review.

I was immediately drawn to Under Her Skin as a horror anthology, particularly one that is meant to showcase the diversity of women writers, is my kind of thing. I loved the artwork, both the cover & the illustrations throughout. With the exceptions of WHAT THE DEAD GIRL IS TRYING TO SAY THROUGH WHAT'S LEFT OF HER MOUTH, PROSPERINE, SYMBIOTIC BEASTS & DRIRIMANCY (plus, I'm sure, a few others I have forgotten) I found most of the poems to be repetitive (there is only so many times I can read the word 'blood' or 'sinew' before they start to lose their effect). I can't help but feel that there must be more to my body than assault or body image issues. I found it reductive; perhaps the particularly similar pieces could have been arranged more so they're not directly next to each other, but seeing as so many of them seemed like that same poem I think that could be hard. I understand there is a theme, but a wider range of nuance could have been nice.

I feel bad for this review asI don't usually like rating books from independent publishers too low, and I'm of course completely there in supporting marginalised communities, but this just wasn't my thing. All subjective, I guess & I hope others find joy in it.

Unfortunately this ended up being a DNF for me. I got about 65% through and it just wasn't what I initially expected. I did enjoy a few of the poems (particularly about body image) and I love the overall message and intention behind this book, however most of the poems went straight over my head or didn't have much impact on me. Maybe there were too many or maybe it felt repetitive after a while but there are none that stick out in my mind that made it worth continuing for me personally, which I think is a shame as I love the idea of this book.

Disappointing and downright terrible! I had high hopes but the writing here is lacking in almost every respect.

Rating - 2.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review!

This collection of poetry inspired by many classic horrors was gruesome and gory but included many beautiful passages.
Seeing such a variety of authors was so heartwarming and receiving a little snippet from each unique writing style was an incredible way to find writers that I really enjoyed. My only issue with this collection is that I found a few poems fairly repetitive! But overall, I definitely recommend it for horror lovers who have an interest in poetry or are intrigued in delving into the genre!

I didn’t love it and I didn’t hate it but it wasn’t super catching that I was able to read it quickly. It took me a month+. I wouldn’t NOT recommend it but it wouldn’t be my go-to

Thank you to Lindy Ryan, President of Black Spot Books, and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Poetry by women. Listed as body horror, but should be listed as heart horror. Touches on anything that ever broke a woman's heart. Beautiful, brutal selections by phenomenal poets. Trigger warnings all over the place, keep tissues handy.

First things first: the cover art is gorgeous. I want to have a hard copy of this just to hold it in my hands. Well done on that.

This collection is largely enjoyable. I didn't love all the poems, but liked a lot of them. I also found a few that were particularly resonating: "Harm," by Emily Ruth Verona; "These Men Are All One Monster," Cassondra Windwalker; "When the Witches Came Out of Us," Donna Lynch; "My Body, My Book," by Carina Bissett; "Every Morning,: Aimee Lowenstern.

The poems span different forms of open form, including prose poems. Finding a good, dark poem with lyrical delivery--when done well--is a rarity and there are a few gems in here.

Under Her Skin was an eery, horrific collection of poetry.

I enjoyed most of the poems. I really enjoyed how dark these were. There were a few I felt really stood out or really did not like, but I think that happens in most poetry collections. I liked that it was a collection written by several different women. It keeps the writing and stories fresh.

If you love poetry and horror, I really think you will enjoy this collection.

I received an eARC from Black Spot Books through NetGalley. All opinions are 100% my own.

“I need to go away from myself in order to heal. Be separate from my body, and the way skin makes me feel.”

What I found made this an addictive read was that each author and poet spoke of body horror in ways which were graphic, visceral, with beauty and with depravity. Within each of these dark verses and lyrical prose is a reflection on what body horror can be visualised as.I was constantly highlighting quotes as some hit home more than others.

There are some intimate graphics within the pages which blend in beautifully with the horror being revealed from word to word.

This is a memorable collection of works which I think a lot of people would enjoy reading.

I was given an e-ARC by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is an amazing collection of horror poetry. This is probably the best poetry book I have ever read and I fully intend on buying a physical copy when it is released. Some of these works are haunting, some thought provoking, some hit incredibly close to home and they are all beautiful. My some of my favourites were WE by Morgan Sylvia, Beautiful by L. Marie Wood, Words Unspoken by Mary Rajotte, Fingers of Feathers by Rie Sheridan Rose and Carnival of Suffering by H Grim. I would HIGHLY recommend this to everyone I know. There are some poems which allude to traumatic events, abusive relationships, eating disorders, body dysmorphia and sexual assault so be careful if any of these are triggering to you.

2.5/5 (rounded up to 3/5)

Oh boy. I really, really wanted to love this collection. I love body horror and women in horror, so I was hoping that this collection would become a new favourite of mine. Unfortunately, I did not find myself enjoying most of the poems within. I didn't dislike them by any means, mind you--just that I found myself somewhat bored or disinterested in them. Perhaps that is in some part to my tastes; contemporary poetry is not my first pick, so take that into account with my review.

Body horror is very difficult to do well, especially in the restricted space of a poem. Good body horror, for me, requires subtlety, time, and careful construction so it doesn't tip over into the realm of camp or absurdity (which fully has it's place, of course, but for the most part this collection seemed to have a more serious vibe and thus I judge on that). Most of the poems in my opinion missed the mark, For example, 'Smile' (a poem which tackles the topics of heavy social expectations placed upon women to look beautiful even when sick or dying) uses the Glasgow smile; however, because it's so short, no tension, anxiety, or exhaustion is built, leading the actual mutilation to fall flat. Most of the poems struggled with the same, either failing to build tension at all and jumping straight to the body horror or trying to build up to the body horror but not quite making it.

There were a few poems I did like--'It Hurts When I Breathe', 'Acceptable Femme', and 'My Body, My Book' among them, which are what saved the collection for me. Ultimately, though, I can't say that this collection scratched my body horror itch.

3 stars (coming out April 5th, 2022)

**Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.**

<<< WARNING! These poems can get extremely dark and graphic. I DO NOT RECOMMEND this for anyone struggling with mental health, depression, suicidal ideation, self-mutilation, etc. Please check the trigger warnings below before reading. >>>

Pros
+ collection of horror poetry by women (cis and trans) and non-binary femmes
+ the poets are from all around the world including Canada, England, France, Ireland, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland, South Africa, and the US
+ the poets are diverse, including BIPOC, physically disabled, and neuro-atypical rep
+ themes: death, destruction of the body, nature as bolstering or destructive force, the impact of the male gaze, pressure on women and femme bodies to look a certain way, pregnancy, grief of lost self, rage against men/patriarchy, ocean/sea as change/transformation, the relationship between mothers and daughters
+ words nearly every poem had: rot, blood, decay, skin, bones
+ fav poems:
Morgan Sylvia - "We"
Mercedes M. Yardly - "It Hurts When I Breathe"
Jennifer Crow - "With Blood"
Emily Ruth Verona - "Harm"
Cassandra Windwalker - "These Men Are All One Monster"
Atonia Rachel Ward - "Proserpine"
Tiffany Michelle Brown - "Winnow" & "The Last Woman"
Dalena Storm - "Outside In"
Marge Simon - "Symbiotic Beasts"
Annie Neugebauer - "Pieces"
Tiffany Morris - "Regeneration/Collapse"
Brianna Malotke - "Lilies Left for Mom"
Juleigh Howard-Hobson - "I Begin to Become Numinous"
Patricia Gomes - "Clam Baskets Returned"

Cons
- While I really liked 15 of the poems (above), the remaining 72 out of 87 were a mixed back. Some were forgettable. However, most of the other 72 I found to be over-the-top, cliche, or cringey. Many of these poems reminded me of how I felt as an angry teen (and I probably would have LOVED this collection then). I could certainly feel their emotion coming through, but it didn't work for me as far as a work of poetry went.
- I can only give 3 stars despite loving 15 of the poems because liking 15/87 poems is only a 17% connection. I wish the collection would have been further curated.
- I think a content/trigger warning before the poems would be appreciated by people who may be struggling with topics brought up within the collection.

TW: body horror, body mutilation, skin cutting, blood, gore, skin picking, death, suicide, attempted suicide, rape, castration, amputation, corpses, rotting flesh, murder, sex, sexual violence, gaslighting, partner abuse, toxic relationships

TW: gaslighting, rape, abusive, beauty standards

*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:Black Spot Books presents its inaugural Poetry Showcase, featuring the best in never-before-published dark verse and lyrical prose from the voices of Women in Horror. Edited by Lindy Ryan and Toni Miller, the inaugural collection features work from Bram-Stoker award-winning and nominated authors, as well as dozens of poems from women (cis and trans) and non-binary femmes in horror.
Release Date:April 5th, 2022
Genre:Poetry
Pages:300
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

What I Liked:
• The editor's note in the beginning
• How relatable the poems were
• That cover 😍

What I Didn't Like:
• Some of the poems lacked the emotional punch that others had

Overall Thoughts: Writing poetry is such a difficult thing to do. To express your emotions and heart onto paper, but then to have people read it and understand the meaning behind it all, near impossible. I wish I could understand the low ratings but poetry is subjective. You either get it or you don't.

I thought this was a really good collection of poetic stories. Each one spoke in a voice that was understandable but each author and you can understand clearly the things that bothered them about themselves, and about this world

Final Thoughts: If you enjoy poetry that balances between the world of political and, religious, and female standards, you'll love this one.

I’m not sure this is what I was expecting going into this one, but it wasn’t this. Some of the poems weren’t for me, but I did enjoy many of them! The writing is dark, filled with so much rage and feminist themes. And can we take a moment to appreciate the cover?!