WTF is The Gatherings?
Celebrities, politicians, and other prominent figures put together The Gatherings, an event to be held worldwide promoting global peace. When a friend invites Emily to one of the gatherings in a secluded apple orchard, she obliges. Sure, she is an introverted writer, but the world is so fractured that The Gatherings are something even she can get behind.
Everything is great until the dancing begins. Then it happens ...
In most apocalyptic tales, the end comes by way of viral plague, world war, or robot invasion. Never in a million years could Emily imagine it would be this way.
Well folks, I've never read something like this before. Actually, I’m not even sure I understood everything I read; it was just that weird. And that’s what really sticks out to me. I love when stories feel fresh and original, not just another play on something that has been done before. I’ve seen very few stories bring that to the forefront, like Bunny by Mona Awad and The Vegetarian by Han Kang. Not that this novel is anything like those, but what Jeremy Ray has done with his work reminds me of those authors’ efforts.
Looking into the story, it’s quite a nail biter. It’s bizarre and frantic, with our main character very quickly having to deal with this budding (heh) apocalypse. It is just short enough that you can indulge in it once and finish it out and then try and process what the hell you just read. Tons of body horror is thrown at you, and you’re left with your imagination to make sense of what any of it means. Loose ends leave the story and your wanting to know where all of them lead to. And worst of all: the ending leaves you completely in the dark of what comes next. I love ambiguous endings, and so I very, very much loved this ending. It reminded me much of the way Bird Box by Josh Malerman leaves off.
So, WTF is The Gatherings? I don’t know, but I would say reach for it the next time you want a quick horror story that will leave your brain scrambling for answers. And then hit up the author and tell him to write a sequel. As a team, we can force him too (I’m totally kidding).
Thank you to the author, Jeremy Ray, for sending this short story my way.
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