In Bliss Montage, Ling Ma creates eight masterfully complex and incredibly well written stories about trauma, immigration, and relationships.

In this collection, she plays with form and structure in extremely interesting ways. There are a few stories that blend together, but I think that is intentional. Ling Ma has characters resurface which grounds the surreal in reality.

I would highly recommend that you take your time with this collection and savor the madness within. Rush into it and you risk missing the subtleties within its pages.

Thanks to FS&G andNetGalley for the ARC!

This collection of short stories from author Ling Ma is odd, intelligent, and atmospheric.

I was especially moved by this collection's comments on immigration, Asian life, and womanhood. There were so many impactful lines and messages. At one point, Ma speaks about grad school as a thing one does to kill their time while they figure their life out and that sentiment is ~relatable~. I highly recommend this collection for anyone looking to sit with a strange genius.

I was so excited to get my hands on an ARC of Ling Ma’s new short story collection. Severance was one of the most unique books I had read and I loved the quiet but profound look at society.

This story collection is a blending of fantasy and reality, but all focus on female characters. My favourite stories were ‘G’ and ‘Returning’. ‘Returning’ especially was haunting as a wife goes with her husband to his fictional homeland and partakes in their weird tradition.

As with all short story collections, you can sometimes be left wanting more and I did feel like that. There were good moments but many of the stories I felt slightly disconnected from.

I think Ling Ma is doing something really interesting with storytelling and I will pick up anything she writes!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ling Ma writes in a way where she can effectively deliver her point. I have no problems regarding the stories, in fact, I enjoyed most of them, which is rare when it comes to a short story collection. But like in Severance, there was something about the author's writing that didn't seem to satisfy me. It all boils down to preference, I think. Nevertheless, this was a wonderful read and would definitely recommend this to anyone as it was very easy to get into!

After devouring Severance last summer, I have been eagerly awaiting Ling Ma’s next work. I can’t lie and say that I wasn’t saddened to discover that it would be a collection of short stories rather than a new novel, but one story in and I was hooked. Each piece builds a unique world, familiar but haunting. Unlike many other collections, all the stories feel connected, if not by another character than by the strange and dystopian (maybe?) landscape created. I know I received an ARC but I already can’t wait for what’s next from this author.

This is a group of stories seemingly disparate and disconnected but united in tone and theme: a narrator (always a young-ish woman (25-40)) is lost, adrift, or meandering, story narration is distant and cold, almost uninterested, the woman is haunted by something - 100 ex-boyfriends, the spectre of trauma, an old friend, an ex, the idea of returning home, a magical other dimension, her mother and memories, the idea of home.

What I loved about this collection was the imaginative, fun, and fresh story-telling - similar to how I felt about Severance, she uses her fictional narratives to offer up reflections and commentary that feel new and fresh to me. I also like the feeling flowing through all these stories - almost gothic in nature - something following, creeping, lurking, a claustrophobic and pressurized setting, sometimes gross and disturbing. All the stories feel autobiographical but some pack more punch than others - she addresses a wide range of topics here, race, gender, capital, immigration, motherhood, belonging. I loved Los Angeles, G, and Returning and I find myself returning to Office Hours and Peking Duck to see what other layers I could peel back. A great collection with some powerful points.

However, I do have one very strong complaint: because all the stories in this book have the same narrator's voice (and that narrator is always detached, unknowable (and therefore, undifferentiated)) they all blend in and bleed together. For instance, although one is supposed to be speculative fiction and the other not, I feel stories one and two could have easily been two parts of one story, written in reverse sequential order - they vibe that similarly. Although I really enjoyed Tomorrow, I was tired of this same voice over and over by the end of the book and I didn't enjoy it as much as I would have had it been the first story in a different collection.

I knew I needed to read this book because Severance was such a fantastic read for me. Ling Ma did not disappoint with these stories. The thing about short stories is that they have to be punchy or they’re not that’s exciting, and these ones delivered in punchlines. They’re all fantastical and somewhat silly at times, with just the perfect amount of reality sprinkled in. I absolutely devoured this collection and would read anything else this author continues to make for us!!

These were great, weird, and wonderful short stories! I liked all of them, but Los Angeles, Oranges, G, and Office Hours were my favorites. But again, they were all pretty special. If you like odd and magical short stories, this is the book for you! Thank you so much NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you SO much FSG and NetGalley for the ARC!

Bliss Montage is a collection of eight short stories exploring womanhood, the complexities of race and immigration, romantic and platonic relationships, loneliness, and more.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I appreciate the fact that the stories are creative, yet understandable. While I can’t write pages and pages on the meaning of each one, I still feel like I was able to walk away from each story without being completely confused or out of my depth.

My favorites were actually the first two: “Los Angeles” and “Oranges.” I absolutely loved the author’s creative choices in the first story. “Office Hours” is an honorable mention for sure. As a recent college grad, the commentary was spot on. The magical-realism aspects completely bring the book to life and add another layer of mystery and enjoyment.

I don’t have many critiques. Sometimes the stories felt very similar in tone or narration. It’s like you’re supposed to be following different people, but sometimes they all feel the same. My other slight complaint is that some stories didn’t do much for me. I say slight because I really don’t think it matters. In a short story collection, I feel like some will speak to you and others won’t. And that’s okay (to me)!

If you’re looking for a unique book that will make you think, then I think this would be an awesome choice!

I have mixed feelings about this one but I normally do with short story collections. Some were better than others of course. They are an amazing author, no doubt about that!

I was really excited to read an ARC of this since Severance is one of my favorite reads! Overall I really loved this collection of short stories and some stuck out to me more than others! While I enjoyed the surreal elements of some of the stories, I did find that the mix of some stories being bizzare and others being plausible made this collection feel a little less cohesive. Either way, I plan to purchase a hard copy of this when it is released to re-read in the future!

BY: WILLIAM SHAW
ISSUE: 11 JULY 2022

The term “bliss montage” was coined by film theorist Jeanine Basinger. It describes the brief intervals of happiness permitted to leading ladies in the old Hollywood genre of the “woman’s film”; it is “a woman’s small piece of action, her marginal territory of joy.” This cinematic term may at first seem an odd title for Ling Ma’s often bleak and decidedly literary debut short story collection, but the bliss montage is an expressly temporary state of affairs, the snatch of pleasure claimed before a puritanical narrative brings things crashing down around its recipient. Ma has identified “compromised pleasure” as a key theme of the collection, and the sense of brief and vivid joys set against a darker, more unsettling backdrop can be keenly felt throughout the book’s eight stories.

http://strangehorizons.com/non-fiction/bliss-montage-by-ling-ma/

Thank you Farrar, Straus, and Giroux and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. IYKYK, my reviews are always honest.

SYNOPSIS

An anthology of short stories set in the future covering intergenerational trauma, race, sexuality, and relationships (platonic and romantic).

MY OPINION

What a quirky lil collection of short stories. Let me be clear: THIS IS NOT FOR EVERYONE. If you enjoy literary fiction that explores heavy topics and having your mind folded like a fortune teller, grab this. If you're more a thrillerhead or a romcom reader or a regular of the smut saloon, do not pick this up. You will despise it.

Okay, now back to this gem. I honestly don't know how to describe some of the elements of this story so I'm just going to call it "make believe" LOL. Some of it was just wild... like the baby arm hanging out her pucci while pregnito in Returning. Some of it was beyond my understanding, like Yeti Lovemaking and Office Hours. Some of it was funny, like the husband only speaking in $$$$$$ in Los Angeles. All of it was unique.

Beware, the narrator's voice doesn't change across the different stories, so it might all get mushed together if you read it in one go. I love that type of disinterested, dispassionate, detached voice, so I was vibing heavily the entire time. Others might want some more variety.

Like [book:Bad Fruit|59046469], Ling Ma deftly tells the age-old tales of how East Asian values impact family dynamics, specifically, how women show love and how they navigate traumatic events.

LET ME GET PERSONAL REAL QUICK: Reading books like Bliss Montage and Bad Fruit always makes me feel closer to my mother who emigrated from the Philippines to Canada; I understand why she acts the way she does. And I understand that there will always be a chasm between us given her background, her journey, her perspective on life.

All in all, a beautiful and thought-provoking read. If you are of East Asian descent (including Filipinos in here... controversial, I know) I think this will resonate with you on a different level. Still a good read for anyone of any ethnicity.

PROS AND CONS

Pros: wonderfully written, extremely creative and unique, powerful storytelling, nailed how cultural values impact relationships

Cons: some stories were beyond my understanding but that's on me bc I'm a dummy

BTW if anyone read this and knows what the fk was happening in Yeti Lovemaking, pls slide through my DMs lmao.

Wildly different and entertaining stories. My favorites were the final two in the collection, "Pecking Duck" and "Tomorrow". Not every story totally worked for me, but the ones that did I found incredible. I love the authors ability to incorporate sci-fi elements into any type of story without making it feel unnecessary. Every scenario feels plausible, no matter how removed from reality. I can't wait to continue reading her work.

I couldn't bring myself to finish this book. Not to say that it isn't any good (it is fantastic). This was more of a "right person, wrong time" kind of situation. I loved Severance by this author so I was super excited to read this. Maybe I'll give it another try in the future :(

Working at a mostly used bookstore, I try to curb my spending by waiting for books on my TBR to appear in the used stock at the store, versus ordering it new. This is why I've yet to read Ling Ma's Severance despite it being one of my most anticipated reads. I think it's a testament to her writing quality that it has yet to appear. Ling Ma has mastered the art of showing, not telling. She uses vivid, poetic language to articulate even the most abstracted of concepts. The main through lines of the collection were abusive or unhealthy relationships and the tribulations of being an Asian immigrant in America. As an Asian immigrant that was seen her fair share of abusive relationships, I felt these stories to my core, an almost eerie amount that it felt like holding a mirror to my life. At times the endings felt too abrupt, but it's to be expected of a short story collection and do not fault the book on that. I just want more, need more.
Needless to say, I have just ordered Severance.
Many thanks to NetGalley and FSG for a copy of this beautiful book for review.

when i read severance by ling ma last year, the story occupied my mind for weeks. so when i saw this new title with its gorgeous cover i rushed to get my hands on these stories. normally i shy away from short stories as im always left wanting more, but overall i really enjoyed this collection even with each story’s abrupt ending. my favorites being oranges, peking duck, and tomorrow.
ling ma is a fantastic writer and expert at telling stories about ordinary life and relationships woven with magic and elements of fantasy. what i loved so much in severance was the eerie feeling, the uneasiness, and bliss montage didn’t disappoint here. however what i did struggle with was how similar each of the narrative voices were. after reading a few stories in one sitting they started to blend together in my memory. it felt like the same person was narrating each story, maybe this was deliberate but i would have liked a little more variety. looking forward to reading more from ling ma in the future 3.5/5

I adored these stories! Unusual, bizarre stories with edgy characters, these sometimes specualtive fiction stories have the perfect dose of magical realtism and reality. Loved them! I'm going to circle back and read her novel, Severance.

Thanks to FS&G, NetGalley and the author for the ARC.

Sharon
The Writer's Reader
https://thewritersreader.wordpress.com/

Every story in this book is a triumph!! The second story in the collection, “Oranges,” is a sequel of sorts that I never knew I needed and that held me in total suspense while reading. Other stories—about friendship and a drug that makes people invisible; about an unexpected pregnancy in a “country on the decline . . . [where] everyone expected to die in debt, and had learned not to mind”; about living with 100 ex-boyfriends and a husband; about rituals of renewal in fictional countries—are just as captivating and wonderful. All of these narratives, scenes, and images are in service of capturing the way we _________ now. Ling Ma is one of the most talented writers alive. I already can't wait to read this again.

I have yet to read Severence (been on my tbr for sooooo long), but when I saw this on NetGalley, I had to request it, as I have only heard good things about Ling Ma.

You know when something feels and looks so human, but is just a little off, making it extremely weird and unsettling? That is what some (and my favorite) of Ling Ma's stories in this collection feel like. The first story is about a woman having her 100 ex-boyfriends and is the story that wanted me to read this collection in the first place. It did not disappoint. The stories just get better from the first one; "G" is about the last of a female friendship, and the influence of a drug that makes you invisible (insane but also one of the best stories in my opinion)."Homecoming" is about a woman going back with her husband to his home country, to experience a cultural tradition. All the topics Ma writes about: domestic abuse, mother-daughter relationships, drug addiction, etc., are relevant to anyone and everyone, but her personal writing style and twist create a whole new world.

The only qualm I have is that while these are short stories, they seem to blend together. Is it the same narrator throughout? Is this one life, or multiple? Who am I reading about? Is this confusion a creative choice by Ma? This unknown may just add more to Ma's weird, satisfying, and thought-provoking collection.

Overall, it's a well-written and interesting short story collection. Is this the only book I have finished this month? Yes, becuase I have been in a reading slump and for this book to bring me out of it says a lot.

I will definitely be picking up Severence soon.

Thanks, NetGalley and Farrar, Straus & Giroux for my ebook review copy.