I had already read and loved Man, Fck This House so I was excited to read the other short stories. They were all just plain fantastic. Brian Asman is a master of the short story.

I’ll be honest—Man, Fck This House (And Other Disasters)* had me with the title alone. It’s bold, it’s chaotic, and it hints at exactly the kind of unhinged horror-comedy ride I was hoping for. And let me tell you, it absolutely delivers.

This book is like moving into a haunted house with a middle finger raised the entire time. It’s fast-paced, messy in the best way, and completely self-aware. From the jump, you know you're not in for a slow, atmospheric creep-fest. This is more like if a haunted house story got drunk, screamed at the walls, and then punched a ghost in the face.

The protagonist has such a sharp, cynical voice that you can’t help but root for her—even when things go completely off the rails (which they do, spectacularly). It’s not just about hauntings; it’s about what happens when you're already at your limit, and then the house decides to make things even worse. There’s something cathartic in how the story leans into chaos without losing its grip on character or stakes.

I also appreciated how the book balances the absurd with some surprisingly sharp emotional beats. It’s not trying to be profound, but somehow, it still manages to land a few punches to the gut between all the blood, mayhem, and supernatural weirdness.

What a fun collection of short stories! While my favorite was the first story that lends its title to the book, I found them all to be highly enjoyable. Perhaps it’s my bias for the first story, but I felt the later ones (particularly Razor Bill) to be less engaging, but that’s not to say the story was bad by any means. I tore through this collection in a single day. Asman does an excellent job of creating tension within the limited pages. Part of that is also due to not adding a single sentence or detail that was unnecessary to telling the story, which I can really appreciate. A very good read and I hope to add this to my physical library when it gets published!

This was a pretty decent read, but I think the earlier stories were definitely stronger than the later ones. My favorite was The Hurlyburly!

Thank you Brian Asman, Blackstone Publishing, and NetGalley for the ARC!

Fast paced and wild ride from start to finish! I thought this was a good read and really enjoyed it! Thank you NetGalley and publisher for early arc of this book!

3 stars

I had read the opening novella in 2022 and, at least for now, entering the ISBN number bring up the same book, even though this volume has six short stories included. For me “The Tire Swing” was the stand out short story. These were overall good.