On the same page: Intoxicatingly surreal novels set in an unusual universe

This July ’s collection of narratives is all about the wacky, the unsettling, and stories that are just down-right odd.

From disturbing but artsy horrors to a quirky contemporary novel, the uncanny universes these surreal tales are set in will draw you in with their mysteries and keep you hooked with nightmarish imagery sure to disturb you for a good while. But be warned – you might just be left with more questions than answers.

I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Iain Reid

Ever felt that niggling feeling, that something is just not quite right? Iain Reid’s debut novel embodies that feeling – no wonder it’s an international bestseller, leading to Netflix original movie. With creepy farmhouses and a long night’s drive through a snowstorm, this intensely unnerving tale is the stuff of nightmares.

Jake and his girlfriend are visiting his parents in their farmhouse in the remote countryside. Things start to get worryingly strange when they arrive; his parents are welcoming but there’s just something off about this whole experience.

What follows is a frightening examination into the human psyche as the novel unravels into complete insanity with gripping twists you’ll never see coming. Pro tip: Pick up the audiobook while you make your way through this novel to have a more chilling experience.

I’m Thinking of Ending Things is available on Book Depository.

Fever Dream, Samantha Schweblin

We’ve all experienced a fever dream or two in our lifetime – intensely vivid nightmares leaves one particularly unsettled even after the dream fog has lifted.

Translated from Spanish into English for the first time, Samantha Schweblin’s hypnotic novel takes inspiration from Argentina’s toxic agrochemical consumption, using surrealism to shine light upon a current worldly issue.

This weirdly fascinating novel details a conversation between Amanda, a dying woman, and a young boy named David. As she lies feverish in a hospital bed, David sits by her bedside, whispering into her ear about worms infiltrating her body.

Amanda replies with stories of her own, recounting her recent days of going on vacation with her young daughter to a small countryside town. Their dialogue reflects a plunging disconnect from reality, paralleling the unceasing eerie tension that grows with each turn of a page.

Fever Dream is available on Book Depository.

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Convenience Store Woman, Sayaka Murata

How do I become ‘normal’? That is the question that has plagued 36-year-old Keiko Furukura all her life. In this quirky and surprisingly heartwarming tale, Sayaka Murata tackles the heavy topic of conforming to social standards, digging deep into the ostracization of folks who don’t necessarily fit exactly into the mold of what is deemed normal.

Keiko has never once fit in. Since birth, she has been cast aside by her friends and family for simply not being like the rest of them – until she started working at the Hirromachi branch of Smile Mart. Finding comfort and normalcy in the routine of the store, she follows the store’s manual to the tee, from the expected mannerisms to how to dress.

After 18 years as a happy convenience store worker, however, people around her start to pressure her to move on from her current job and find a husband. Equal parts morbid and comical, Keiko’s unusual story will resonate with you in ways you won’t expect.

Convenience Store Woman is available on Book Depository.

Things We Lost in the Fire, Mariana Enríquez

Argentina is the playground for this macabre short-story collection. In 12 tales, Mariana Enríquez explores Argentina’s underbelly of inequality, violence, and corruption whilst giving grace to grotesque imagery and manic narratives that surface from such an unstable premise.

Spanning genres from magic realism to traditional horror, each story presents a slew of painfully human characters against the unrelentingly gruesome backdrop of a ravaged Argentina.

In one tale, we follow a group of three young friends determined to distract themselves with drugs and pain in the midst of a government-enforced blackout. In another, a group of women sets themselves on fire in protest of domestic violence.

Things We Lost in the Fire is available on Book Depository .

Uzumaki, Junji Ito

If you’ve been thinking about dipping into horror manga, Uzumaki is the perfect place to start. The small fogbound coastal town of Kurouzu-cho is cursed. Shuichi Saito, the withdrawn and gloomy boyfriend of teenager Kirie Goshima, reveals that the town is haunted by uzumaki, the hypnotic spiral.

A showcase of Junji Ito’s signature art style – body horror – it’s filled with madness, mutants, and murder, the bodies of the residents of Kurouzu-cho get increasingly mangled by the spiral curse as the plot progress.

Each chapter is more deranged than the last – schoolboys turn into snails, a man so obsessed with spirals he becomes one, and a particularly grotesque tale about umbilical cords set in a maternity ward. You’ll never look at a spiral the same way ever again.

Uzumaki is available on Book Depository.

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This article was first published in City Nomads.