Genre: Horror, Romance
Pages: 15
Published by: Kitchen Witch Press
Published: October 12, 2020
Available on Amazon, Kindle
Disclaimer: I was given a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
I am so glad Hungry Business gets to be my first short story review! It is an absolute treat―pun intended! ―for the spooky season! Shush, it’s not Christmas yet…
Before I get into what exactly is so great about this short story, Hungry Business: A Gothic Story about the Horrors of Dating by Maria DeBlassie is well, a horror romance. In it, our main character is looking for a boyfriend, someone to keep her body warm. What complicates things is that her dates don’t have hearts―literally. They are zombies. And very much like a certain pandemic has proven to us, the world keeps spinning and people―even zombies―will keep living their lives, including going on dates. But what is this character supposed to do when too often, these zombies look at her with hunger in their eyes?
The (Very) Few Problems in Hungry Business
First, let me get these nit-picks out of the way.
“The things you do for love.”
―Page 2 (in ARC PDF)
Though it probably existed for a long time and is serviceable, the opening line is a bit cliché and makes for a worrying start―it’s even in Game of Thrones (episode 1 when…. You know what, I’m not going to ruin your day). (Yes, I do have a short story with a similar name, but trust me, I am cringing.)
The main character’s delusion that she is okay as things get progressively worse is also a little annoying.
The exposition is not crucial, in my opinion. I like having as little as possible to go on, and unless it’s absolutely necessary, I don’t want any world-building just straight-up explained to me. In fact, I have a feeling that if those moments were removed, the story would still make sense and the shape of the world would still be felt; short stories are quite forgiving in that sense. Though the world is clear and understandable, I think the story is made poorer as the exposition breaks the flow and pulls away from the character and her inner turmoil.
What I Loved about Hungry Business
I felt for the main character. That may be strange to say, seeing as the POV is in the second person―which is always awesome, in my eyes. I was in her shoes, fearing for her safety at every step. DeBlassie truly knows how to create sympathy in the reader and show the inner workings of a character’s mind.
The imagery!
“Instead, the fetid smell of bad breath and a grave-dirt stained body follows you up the stairwell.”
―Page 5 (in ARC PDF)
This is a horror and while nothing too scary happens, the grotesque is described in lurid detail. If you like zombie stories, let me assure you that it definitely hits that nerve.
Without ruining it, I will say that the ending is particularly satisfying. As someone who is often too scared to read proper horror and who doesn’t like most romances I read, it’s strange how much I like the ending. DeBlassie crafts a great many tribulations for the main character and ties it all in a pretty bow that has me sighing in relief. In the end, I smiled with the main character.
Last but not least, the zombies have such an interesting twist! Though it is not immediately evident, these zombies are unique in how they are created and this difference heightens the fear factor. Also, the way they are described was horrifying―but in a good way? Definitely terrifying and disgusting but a joy to read.
Hunger and Hunger
“The sparkly dress that made you feel so alive earlier feels like a neon sign now, welcoming hungry gazes.” ―Page 4 (in ARC PDF)
DeBlassie drops us straight into this world, where the men are hungry for the main character’s body. On its face, it’s a pretty easy comparison. Lust and hunger. But it’s more than just the men wanting her body―for eating. There is the implied consumption. The implied threat of the body being violated.
(Spoilers ahead. You may skip all the way to my rating to avoid them.)
It didn’t take me long to start drawing parallels between the grave dirt to keep down zombies and pepper spray any woman may keep in her bag―just in case.
That said, taking this metaphor to its conclusion, what does it mean if her staying cold could turn her into a zombie? (Because that’s how the contagion spreads.) By that logic, it almost seems to excuse consuming human flesh―rape―something that can easily lead to death in this world, because once they have become too cold, they become zombies and at that point, it is their nature. Even if they decide to subsist on animal meat, the hunger is there.
Also, the idea that not having a fulfilling relationship turns you into a rapist zombie is a bit… yikes.
I don’t think we are supposed to take it that way, but the longer I think about it, the stranger it becomes. I have never understood the hatred for zombies, vampires, or werewolves in most horrors. Yes, these creatures do terrible things. But in the end, that is in their nature. Why be angry at a lion for eating a gazelle? And so, even in this story, I can’t completely hate the zombies that chase after the main character.
Even as I understand that she is trying to keep the cold from settling in her, her even accepting to sit down with a zombie when she knows he can very well kill her makes no sense.
She can recognize zombies when she sees them. She carries grave dirt to stop them. And yet…
That is particularly frustrating because it puts me in the position of victim-blaming her. But what is the other option? Clapping when she goes on another date with another predator? Or getting angry at zombies for being zombies?
In any case, the metaphor breaks down. Because it is not the nature of men, IRL men, to rape, nor are rapists that pervasive in real life―or so I hope.
All of this leaves me unsettled. Maybe that is the point.
Contagion
Though a lot of stories around contagion these days are metaphors for the pandemic(s) we are currently living through, it’s not always the case. Here, it is not clear, because of the publication date, whether our real world is an inspiration for it, but I can see how it could be.
“Or maybe she knew they weren’t human, but also knew you wouldn’t agree to this double date unless she said they were. You fight off a wave of self-pity and nausea.”
―Page 4 (in ARC PDF)
There is something about deliberately risking your friend’s life for a night out that feels uniquely post-2020. Add on top of that the depressing slogan the world has accepted: Be Hungry or be food. Get contaminated or be subject to contamination. My stomach twisted reading that. I was right there with the character, feeling her dread at this world that had given up on itself, and with it, her.
My Rating?
Should you read this short story? Absolutely. It is gripping and horrifying, all at once. The issues I have with it are rather minor. Hungry Business is not only entertaining, but makes you think about diseases and how societies deal with them, loneliness in a world full of people, and the violation of the body so prevalent in the dating sphere.
I give it a solid 7/10.
About the author: Maria DeBlassie
Maria DeBlassie, Ph.D. is a native New Mexican mestiza blogger, award-winning writer, and award-winning educator living in the Land of Enchantment. Her first book, Everyday Enchantments: Musings on Ordinary Magic & Daily Conjurings (Moon Books 2018), and her ongoing blog, Enchantment Learning & Living are about everyday magic, ordinary gothic, and the life of a kitchen witch. When she is not practicing her own brand of brujeria, she’s reading, teaching, and writing about bodice rippers and things that go bump in the night. She is forever looking for magic in her life and somehow always finding more than she thought was there.
Link | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads | YouTube | TikTok
Vera Reviews & Writes 
Leave a comment