Thank you to NetGalley for the arc!

As someone who enjoyed Tender is the Flesh, I was shocked and happy I was approved to read this on NetGalley. Though I ended up rating them the same, I can say I liked Tender is the Flesh more.

Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird is a collection of 19 horror short stories. When I read collections like this, I really prefer when the short stories don't drag on. You might be questioning me on that, but some short stories really do feel like they go on forever. That wasn't the case here. A lot of important topics are explored in this collection, and I think the author handled each one well, for the most part. Some of the topics were explored in more than one story but in different ways.

There were some stories that I was not a fan of, such as: 'Roberto,' 'Hell,' and 'Architecture.'

I thought the first story, 'A Light, Swift, and Monstrous Sound' was an intriguing story to start things off. 'The Solitary Ones' gives off classic horror vibes and it was a great way to end everything.

Was very excited for this author's new book but unfortunately this fell flat. Only about two good stories in the entire book. Will not be recommending.

Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird is Nineteen nightmare stories you won’t be able to turn away from.

I absolutely loved how this collection kicks off. I was immediately sucked in. The author has such a unique way of writing horror. I can’t get enough of it.

I will say Agustina Bazterrica writing style is so beautiful and poetic that it can be a bit hard to understand. The middle stories in the collection were hard for me to get into. I feel like they went over my head.

Overall I had a fun time with this collection. I loved the first couple stories and the last two stories the most. If you love complex poetic writing with great horror thrown in then this book is for you.
3.5/5 Stars

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for sensing me an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Loved these short stories. Extremely scary sending chills.I enjoyed that each story was written in a different person. Each story had deep meaning that have stayed with me.

This collection was not only a quick read, but it really explored so many different aspects of horror in such a small amount of pages. I was so happy to read what the author of Tender is the Flesh had created after that incredible debut and this did not disappoint. If you are a fan of horror and short stories alike you should check this out. Thank you to the publisher for this e-arc.

I had really enjoyed Bazterrica's previous work, Tender is the Flesh quite a bit, however, I didn't feel like any of the stories really stuck or left an impression on me. I will continue to read whatever Bazterrica puts out in the future but I don't think this collection was for me.

"Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird" is a collection of good ideas without impact. I wish many of these concepts were removed to have their own developed individual novels because I believe they were interesting enough to hold their own. The other half (or more) of these stories were so boring that I almost couldn't finish. Compiling over 10 stories into one collection is a little overambitious and never satisfies me personally as a reader. In the future, I think I'll hesitate before applying for short story collection arcs and wait for other reviewers' opinions instead. I also found Bazterrica's writing to be quite wordy and unnecessarily tedious at times which made 5-page stories feel long. I enjoyed "Tender is the Flesh" so I could see myself reading from this author again.

Conclusively, I'm going to give this collection a 2.5.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this collection.

NINETEEN CLAWS AND A BLACK BIRD 🐦‍⬛
By Agustina Bazterrica

Those who are intimidated (or still recovering from) by Tender is the Flesh may fare well with this short story collection.

The writing is slightly different than Tender, but still very dark and heavy. The stories are all very odd and slightly uncomfortable, but occasionally dark humor lifts the dread.

If you like the strange, (denchers and suicide, a woman who will go to any lengths for a circular body, a man who thinks his partner is an alien, serial killing uber driver fetishist etc) this may be for you.
The stories are always interesting, some quite short. There is more enigma than clear explanation in most of the stories, and some are much stronger than others. Overall this is a solid (death-heavy) horror effort that made me hungry for another longer, fleshed out work. 😉

Good entry point for newcomers, and promise for what's on the horizon.

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for the advanced copy.

When I first started reallllly reading, I read a bunch of essays collections, but haven't read many since. Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird brought me back to my roots and reminded me how much I love short stories/essays.

I loved how concentrated each of these stories were. I wasn't left unsatisfied at any of them and I appreciated the fullness and vulnerability each provided. After reading only the first two short stories, I went to the bookstore and purchased Bazterrica's first book, Tender Is the Flesh because of how captivating her writing it!

My favorites were Roberto, Unamuno's Box and Earth, but all of them packed a punch and fully engrossed me into the story, even if it was only 3 pages long.

I received a copy of this book as an ARC. I truly enjoyed it. I remember her first book that I read, Tender is the Flesh left me thinking for a long time after. This one doesn’t have that same effect but I believe it’s the nature of short stories. I really enjoyed this because the short story format is good for giving you just enough information to keep you invested and keep the story mysterious. I enjoyed all the stories, there were not that I disliked but there was certainly some that stood out. The short stories I liked th most were actually towards the end of the book, with the one about the men going to meet up on a double date at a “concert” being one that made me want to find out what happens next. Overall, this was a strong collection of short stories and I look forward to reading more.

Some of the stories felt much weaker than others. I really enjoyed a few of them though. A LIGHT, SWIFT, AND MONSTROUS SOUND was my favorite, but I also liked Earth, and Anita and Happiness.

Wow. Just wow. These stories were very atmospheric, sent my imagination into overdrive, and left me unsettled. I loved all of them. I feel like I could reread these short stories multiple times and experience them differently every time. Truly a wonderful experience.

Agustina Bazterrica's Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird: Stories is the latest English language release from the author of the captivatingly disturbing Tender is the Night. Gathered here are twenty short stories of horror, humor, unnerving events or narrators, absurdity or some combination of all of the above.

Ably translated by Sarah Mosses, the stories go many different places, but all feel like snippets from other worlds. There are some common themes and like any short story collection, most stories have a central moment where things shift or end with an abrupt twist and many of them revolve around death.

A few stories I found particularly resonant, summarized below:

- Perfect Symmetry - A man who knows an assassin has him marked prepares a perfect meal
- Teicher Vs. Nietzsche - Man versus animal for the glory of soccer.
- The Continuous Equality of the Circumference - A women obsessed with circles seeks to become one.
- The Solitary Ones - A women travels home at night, alone.

Bazterrica is a talented author and I look forward to seeing where her muse leads her next.

These are all such interesting and spooky stories! Horror can take you down multiple paths, but these are legitimately all spooky. Some are unsettling and will stay with you. The majority of the stories are short but impactful. There were a couple that did not quite hit the same high mark as the others, but if you like horror or you like short stories, these are worth your time.

I haven't read many horror books, and I don't often read short story collections. However, I am so glad I read Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird, and I would recommend this to everyone even if these aren't your preferred genres. I enjoyed all of these different short stories. Some of them stood out more than others, but I thought all of them were intriguing. Some were way more disturbing and haunting than others, and my favorite has to be Teicher vs. Nietzsche.

Tender is the Flesh was the book that got me into the horror genre, so I was very excited to receive an eARC of Agustina Bazterrica's new book thanks to netgalley.

This book is everything I love about horror. These 19 stories are haunting and beautiful. I haven't read anything like it before. Highly recommend!

This is such an interesting and unique set of short stories. Each story is told with such detail and is meant to make you feel uneasy or simply say "what the fuck is happening". Every story is weird, so if you enjoy stories with wild tales that make you question everything, this collection is for you! The first 5 stories along with the last 2 stories were the ones i enjoyed. For the ones in between, I couldn't really tell if I iust didn't understand what was going on personally, or if you weren't meant to know what was going on at all. I think these stories could be interpreted in different ways, and in that sense this short story collection is very much a piece of art. This collection fell flat for me because I enjoy stories where I don't have to interpret what is going on, but I could if I wanted to. It seems like this collection wants you to work to decide what is happening, which I know is what a lot of people look for in short story collections, it's just not for me.

I really tried and could not get completely I to these stories. The first half flew by but the second half I really struggled. I don’t know what it was that I could not get into. The writing was great and the stories were interesting but I just struggled. I’m perplexed with myself for this one. I got this from NetGalley.

This collection of horror stories has a way of holding onto you tight just when you want to pull away. When you finish it, you’ll want to cleanse the palette, because you must, but you find your heart is still racing & that you can’t or at least not yet! Stay a while. Sit in awe of the whole reading experience: the macabre, the freaky, the dark humor and the stories you have a need to go back to.

Reading this book really makes me want to read Bazterrica’s first book! And I will!

Death is very much a central theme in this book and suicide and the macabre so it’s definitely not a book for the lighthearted.

The following stories left a strong impression on me:

“Candy Pink”
“Anita and Happiness”
“Dishwasher”
“Teicher vs. Nietzsche”
“The Continuous Equality of the Circumference”
“Mary Carminum”

There were several stories I felt I liked just enough and then there were others I didn’t get and those were usually on the shorter side or were a little too abstract for me to get right away.

This short story collection is on the dark, horror side of the spectrum of fiction and I liked it knowing that going into the reading experience.

Thanks so much to Scribner and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this short story collection.

3.5 stars. Like most short story collections, I enjoyed some of these stories more than others. The ones I enjoyed most were "A Light, Swift, and Monstrous Sound," "The Wolf's Breath," and my favorite, "The Slowness of Pleasure." 

There are a few themes that ran through the book: death/suicide, child molestation, and observation/gaze being the most obvious to me. However, what unified these stories to me was not the morbid topics they explored but the surreal yet specific descriptions they contained. Bazterrica writes such vivid imagery that even though some of these stories were so surreal I had a hard time understanding what was happening, images from them have stuck with me. The writing is so atmospheric in some of these stories I got chills. 

And yet, after reading some of these (maybe around half of them) I felt duped-- like I was strung along with this beautiful imagery and then it just got really weird and ended, or in some cases the ending felt obvious in a way that detracted from the tension that had built. There were a few bangers, for sure, but I wanted more. 

Another thing I liked about this collection was that, unlike many short story collections, I didn't feel like the stories bled together. They each felt unique, even reading them back to back in a couple of sittings. 

Overall, I enjoyed reading this but I wouldn't say it's on par with Tender is The Flesh. I think readers who enjoy surrealism and experimental horror will enjoy this. Specifically, readers who enjoy the short stories of Leonara Carrington, Amparo Davila, and Samanta Schweblin I think would love these. I am still eager to read what Bazterrica writes next, I think their longform fiction is just more up my alley!