{"id":3125,"date":"2023-07-25T01:00:59","date_gmt":"2023-07-25T06:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/?p=3125"},"modified":"2024-12-01T21:50:32","modified_gmt":"2024-12-02T01:50:32","slug":"book-things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke\/","title":{"rendered":"Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"book-329\" class=\"bdb-book-info\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book_thingshavegottenworsesincewelastspoke.png?fit=250%2C400&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke\" class=\"alignright\"\/><strong>Title:<\/strong> Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke<br \/><strong>Author:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/author\/eric-larocca\/\">Eric LaRocca<\/a><br \/><strong>First Published:<\/strong> <span content=\"2021-06-01\">June 1, 2021<\/span><br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/publisher\/weirdpunk-books\/\">Weirdpunk Books<\/a><br \/><strong>Pages:<\/strong> 102<br \/><strong>Genre:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/genre\/horror\/\">Horror<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/genre\/lgbtq\/\">LGBTQ<\/a><br \/><strong>Format:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/format\/ebook\/\">Ebook<\/a><br \/><strong>Source:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/source\/purchased\/\">Purchased<\/a><br \/><strong>Rating:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/rating\/3\/\"><span class=\"bdb-font-awesome-star-wrap\"><i class=\"fas fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fas fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fas fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"far fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"far fa-star\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/57876868-things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/addtogoodreads.png?ssl=1\" align=\"left\" border=\"0\"\/><\/a><br \/><br \/><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong> <p>Sadomasochism. Obsession. Death.<\/p>\n<p>A whirlpool of darkness churns at the heart of a macabre ballet between two lonely young women in an internet chat room in the early 2000s\u2014a darkness that threatens to forever transform them once they finally succumb to their most horrific desires.<\/p>\n<p>What have you done today to deserve your eyes?<\/p>\n<strong>Get the Book:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3TQcNGZ\" target=\"_blank\">Amazon<\/a>\r\n<hr \/><\/div>\t\t<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n\t\t\t{\n\t\t\t\t\"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\/\",\n\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Review\",\n\t\t\t\t\"datePublished\": \"2023-07-25T06:00:59+00:00\",\n\t\t\t\t\"description\": \"Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke\",\n\t\t\t\t\"publisher\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Radical Dreamer\"\t\t\t\t},\n\t\t\t\t\"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/book-things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke\\\/\",\n\t\t\t\t\"itemReviewed\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Book\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"author\": [\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t{\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Eric LaRocca\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/book-database\\\/author\\\/eric-larocca\\\/\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t],\n\t\t\t\t\t\"isbn\": \"1951658124\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"numberOfPages\": 102,\n\t\t\t\t\t\"publisher\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Weirdpunk Books\"\t\t\t\t\t},\n\t\t\t\t\t\"image\": \"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/book_thingshavegottenworsesincewelastspoke.png?fit=250%2C400&ssl=1\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"datePublished\": \"2021-06-01T00:00:00+00:00\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.goodreads.com\\\/book\\\/show\\\/57876868-things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"genre\": \"Horror\"\t\t\t\t},\n\t\t\t\t\"author\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Jamie\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/\"\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t, \"reviewRating\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Rating\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"ratingValue\": 3,\n\t\t\t\t\t\"bestRating\": 5\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t\n<h2>Review<\/h2>\n<p>I picked this book up some time ago, not knowing a thing about Eric LaRocca, but the title and the cover were captivating. I\u2019ve been slow to get to it, and since then, this story has exploded on social media, catapulting LaRocca into mainstream popularity. After reading and loving two of his other works, I decided it was time to give this short story a read and see what all the fuss was about. Maybe I had just been spoiled by the other books that I had read, but I found <strong>Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke<\/strong> to be only <em>okay<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>I was a fresh teenager in the year 2000, terminally online, socializing daily on message boards and AIM. People\u2019s online and offline lives were not nearly so interconnected back then, and it was harder to know much about online friends, and I liked that this was presented well here. Even so, how quickly the women\u2019s correspondence went from surface level to bizarre pushed the limits of my suspension of belief. This is certainly a story about mental health and needless cruelty; the story about the two brothers was especially ghastly. Even as someone that reads extreme horror that story was too nauseating for me to stomach.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m not the type of reader that needs to like characters. I love unlikeable characters, but I found myself feeling apathetic toward the two main characters. Part of it could be the epistolary format; both of their characters were so thinly drawn that I didn\u2019t feel any emotional impact during key scenes. I don&#8217;t know if perhaps that was the aim, being that they are both strangers on the internet. It is less the case today than before, but being behind a screen adds a layer of separation between a person and the people they encounter online. Growing up, I\u2019d often be admonished by family that the friends I was talking to online were not \u201creal\u201d people, and therefore any friendship or feelings I had toward any of them was equally not \u201creal.\u201d While there is less anonymity on the internet and prejudice against the use of the internet for social engagement has lessened, I don\u2019t think that view of \u201creal\u201d and \u201cnot real\u201d has changed at all. But the desperate need to feel connected to someone is a theme that is keenly felt.<\/p>\n<p>In some ways, it kind of surprises me that this is the one work that has become the most well-known, knowing what I do now about how good the rest of LaRocca\u2019s catalog is. At the same time, I\u2019m not surprised because this short story focuses heavily on shocking scenes and stories, so I can understand the appeal. Even so, this one wasn\u2019t quite for me. I was never bored while reading, and I finished it quickly, but I wasn&#8217;t blown away either.<\/p>\n<h2>Quote<\/h2>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;There&#8217;s something <strong>Godlike<\/strong> about holding something so small\u2014something that solely <em>depends on your kindness<\/em>, your generosity. I had never thought about <em>hurting<\/em> something before. <strong>Until now<\/strong>.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<h2>Content Warnings<\/h2>\n<span class=\"ubb-spoiler\"><a class=\"ubb-view-spoil\">View Spoiler &raquo;<\/a><span style=\"display: none;\" class=\"ubb-thespoil\">Animal Death, Death, Infanticide, Manipulation, Offensive Religious Themes, Suicide <a class=\"ubb-hide-spoil\" style=\"cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;\">&laquo; Hide Spoiler<\/a><\/span><\/span>\n<h2>About the Author<\/h2>\n<div class=\"ubb-about-author\">\n<h3>About Eric LaRocca<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/author_ericlarocca.png?fit=200%2C200&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignleft ubb-about-author-photo\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/author_ericlarocca.png?w=200&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/author_ericlarocca.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Eric LaRocca holds an MFA in Writing for Film and Television from Emerson College. His fiction has appeared in various literary journals and anthologies published in the US and abroad such as Stiff Things and Year&#8217;s Best Hardcore Horror, Volume 2. He is also the author of several plays that have been developed and produced at theaters across the country including, Gadfly Theater Productions, Hartford Stage, La Petite Morgue, and Love Creek Productions. He currently resides in Cambridge, MA.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ubb-author-links\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ericlarocca.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Website<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ejlarocca\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Twitter<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/author\/show\/7134334.Eric_LaRocca\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Goodreads<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3XKFq9G\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Review I picked this book up some time ago, not knowing a thing about Eric LaRocca, but the title and the cover were captivating. I\u2019ve been slow to get to&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3124,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9],"tags":[70,1723,69,2229,3638,4601,4320],"book-author":[1210],"book-illustrator":[],"book-series":[],"book-publisher":[],"book-genre":[],"book-source":[],"book-format":[],"class_list":["post-3125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-review","tag-american-literature","tag-epistolary","tag-lesbian","tag-parasites","tag-splatterpunk-award","tag-toxic-online-relationships","tag-would-you-still-love-me-if-i-was-a-worm","book-author-eric-larocca"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book_thingshavegottenworsesincewelastspoke-header.png?fit=1080%2C540&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3125","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3125"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3125\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20383,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3125\/revisions\/20383"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3125"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"book-author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-author?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"book-illustrator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-illustrator?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"book-series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-series?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"book-publisher","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-publisher?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"book-genre","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-genre?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"book-source","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-source?post=3125"},{"taxonomy":"book-format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-format?post=3125"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}