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Short Stories – British Literature (northern England)

Short stories work well for experimentation, and that is just what Clark does here; most are speculative, some science fiction, some body horror, and many written in literary style with well-constructed characters.
Not all work – but that’s inevitable with the broad range she has attempted to cover. The best ones read wonderfully well, and help the reader realise that in experimenting to this degree, results will be mixed. So refreshing to see from a writer so early in her career.
There isn’t a lot in common between the stories, though many take place in the modern world, and all have a ferocity to them that demonstrates Clark’s imagination and bravery. I can’t think of another author doing that at present, and what’s more, she is from the north of England..

Amongst the best are..
Hollow Bones in which the narrator is recovering from a mysterious accident on another planet hundreds of years in the future. It features graphic descriptions of violence.
Shake Well concerns a 15 year old who orders a black-market treatment for acne from the internet, and her relationship with an older and abusive boyfriend.
The title story, She’s Always Hungry is set in a matriarchal village where men are repressed and subject to systemic violence and abuse.
and, Build A Body Like Mine which is about the narrator’s eating disorder, and her discovery of a destructive method of losing weight using a parasitic host.

My GoodReads score 4 / 5