The Girlfriend Game

Antosca’s scalpel dissects love, family, and illusions of morality in this brutal and often uncomfortably sexual collection. Combining scathing horror and psychological realism, these 12 vivisections of the inhuman condition marry stinging social commentary with psychological horror on the altar of obsession. Voyeurs, nymphets, and everymen plunge into viciously seductive revelations ignited by undeniable impulses. In “Rat Beast,” a young boy’s depression results in Kafkaesque transformation. In the title story, an erotic game descends into forced cuckolding. Romance is stripped of Hallmark sentimentality as two strangers indulge hate and lust in “Sofianne.” A woman who works as a decoy to entrap sexual predators questions her relationship with her boyfriend in “Predator Bait,” while “Winter Was Hard” exhibits the cold emptiness of revenge. “Soon You Will Be Gone and Possibly Eaten,” the least effective entry, features aliens abducting “the most beautiful” people in the world. Horror’s expected icons are replaced by neighbors and families, with relationships being the monsters. A minimalist style blurs lines between victim and victimizer, challenging readers’ moral compasses while tempting them to enjoy the carnage. This literate, thoughtful horror will inspire long-lasting unease. (July)