Kathleen Keenan

Some of the short stories featured can be either a hit or miss. Amongst the read, my favorites were the 'Haunted Blizzard' and 'The Door', and everything else pretty much fell under the radar and nothing else stood out. They were uninspired and didn't drawn me in enough to immerse myself in the read. Overall, there's not much to rave about.

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This was a somewhat up-and-down read for me, but the stories that struck me as the stars of the collection were fantastic, and it's absolutely introduced me to some new authors who I look forward to following in the future. Full of atmosphere, fantastic writing, and concepts that kept me guessing/involved, the stars here absolutely made me glad I'd picked up the anthology. Some favorites included: "Iqsinaqtutalik Piqtuq: The Haunted Blizzard", "The Door" by Ann R. Loverock, "The Wildest Game" by Jay Bulckaert, and "Strays" by Repo Kempt.… (mehr)

Taaqtumi is published by Inhabit Media Inc., who (from their website) is "the first Inuit-owned, independent publishing company in the Canadian Arctic. We aim to promote and preserve the stories, knowledge, and talent of the Arctic, while also supporting research in Inuit mythology and the traditional Inuit knowledge of Nunavummiut (residents of Nunavut, Canada’s northernmost territory). Our authors, storytellers, and artists bring traditional knowledge to life in a way that is accessible to readers both familiar and unfamiliar with Inuit culture and traditions."

Anyway, on to the stories: As with any anthology, this is a bit of a mixed bag. There were a few that I quite liked, "The Haunted Blizzard" by Aviaq Johnston, "The Door" by Ann R Loverock, and "Sila" by KC Carthew, but the endings didn't work for me. But then near the end I really liked "Utiqtuq," which was about a pandemic and zombie apocalyse -- not a genre I usually enjoy, but this one was good. And the one that blew me away: "The Wildest Game" by Jay Bulckaert. I actually had a look of horror on my face as I read this first-person story of a cannibal. It was just masterfully executed. The kind of story that Stephan King might read and think "Wow, I wish I'd written that."

Taaqtumi includes a glossary of Inuit words for those who are interested.

Until I read the last few stories, I was ready to give this 5 stars for concept and production, but only 3 stars for the actual stories. But then a couple of the last ones I read were very good, and one was excellent, so in the end I'll give this 4 stars.

Recommended for: readers who like stories set in the Arctic, or who want to read Inuit literature. Squimish readers will probably need to pass this one up -- most of the stories include brutal descriptions of wild animals attacking humans and humans attacking wild animals. They are described as horror stories, so don't expect cosy mysteries and cute puppies.… (mehr)

Taaqtumi, which means 'in the dark' in Inuktitut, is a collection of nine short horror stories by Inuit writers, many of which include the frigid Arctic landscape as an integral character. I appreciated the exposure to writers new to me whom I might not otherwise have encountered, as well as the opportunity to glimpse a region foreign to me, both geographically and culturally. One tale, "Lounge," I could make neither heads nor tails of and, unfortunately, it was the longest in the book. I do recommend the rest, though! I selected this to fulfill the Read Harder category 'a horror book by an indie press.'… (mehr)