4.5 stars rounded up. Sinophagia is a marvelous collection of many different voices. From traditional ghost stories to rural legends & urban psychological horror, this book will feed your thirst for the unknown. I found out about this collection almost one year ago when Xueting told me she had another collection coming out and I gasped with surprise when knowing it's gonna horror. Asian horror is another level, I tell you.

What truly made this collection of stories stand out was its ability to address various current social issues, many of which, although more pertinent to China, remain relatable worldwide. This relevance made the reading experience more engaging, as the horror elements were not gratuitous, but rather facilitated conversations about topics that impact many of us.

I love reading anthologies, especially if it contains stories by authors I've never read before. If I find a story I really like, I immediately scour the Internet to find the rest of their catalog.

In this case, all of the authors were new to me, and I have some great new reading to search out. While I know not everyone in this collection has other works translated to English, there was such a a wide variety of horror that there is something for everyone.

I wasn't able to quite finish the collection before my advanced copy expired, but I really enjoyed everything I read. I will probably buy the physical book so I can read the ones I didn't get to (and reread the ones that have really stuck with me).

This is a great collection and a really wonderful job done by the editor.

So many different voices come together to make this collection entertaining and diverse. Even just the introduction is an interesting read.

Sinophagia: A Celebration of Chinese Horror gathers fourteen horror stories by established and up and coming Chinese authors. Editor and translator Xueting Christine Ni also edited and translated 2021's Sinopticon: A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction. The main goal of her work in both her writings and translations is "to help improve understanding of China’s heritage, culture and innovation, and introduce its wonders to new audiences." *

And this collection is a welcome addition to the horror canon. Stories vary in length and source of horror. Some follow plots dependent on supernatural, ghostly or evil spirits very much in the gothic tradition ; while others reveal humanity as the true monster in deed or psychological manipulation.

Xueting Ni opens the book with an introduction about the process of gathering the stories and publishing them, while also speaking of the reception of horror writing in China. Before each story there are content warnings, and after each tale there is a short section contextualizing the story, explaining key elements that might not be as well known to Western readers or discussing the authors influences or biographical details.

While all the stories offer something, two standouts for me were:
- The Ying Yang Pot by Chuan Ge A young man reconnects with a past lover over a shared dish well loved by both, but finds that you can be trapped by old habits.
-The Girl in the Rain by Hong Niangzi Is the legend of what happens to a woman who uses a particularly colored umbrella true?

Recommended to readers of short stories, horror, tales of the strange or supernatural and gothic horror.

* Xueting Ni. "About Xueting Ni." Snow Pavilion. http://snowpavilion.co.uk/about-xueti... Accessed November 1, 2024.

Sinophagia was my introduction to Chinese horror. While I enjoyed the overall experience, this collection did leave me with some mixed feelings.

There was a disconnect between my expectations and this book's approach to anthology. Sinophagia follows each story with a discussion of cultural and historical context. These breaks were often insightful and made the story even more interesting, but they also interrupted the pace for me. The ultimate effect was that this anthology felt less like entertainment and more like academic study. Again, this was not inherently good or bad, but it just wasn't what I was expecting.

I also noticed that everal stories seemed to overexplain the horror. I'm not sure if this was a stylistic choice, an artifact of language differences, or simple coincidence.

While I struggled with some aspects of this book, I am very happy that it exists. These stories are creative, beautiful, and haunting. I hope to see more Chinese horror enter the international book community.

I'm grateful for the opportunity to check this book out for free. I'm leaving this review of my own accord.

I loved this! So many original tales, horror that is so different to the run-of-the-mill stuff! I can’t say what was my favourite but I devoured this in two nights! If you love original ideas, this is for you!

I always wanted to read the science fiction anthology by the same editor and used my chance to ask for the horror version.

For me the latter stories where more impactful as the first ones. Even as I liked the concepts I found some overtold and to long for a real horror factor. As I like untypical horror I hoped to get some new interpretations. And I got them in a way but often enough there was something missing even as I loved the ideas and concepts.

But some are still in my head and I think about the characters and twists so I think it is still a good collection.

I have to say right off the bat, I loved this anthology! It's absolutely great--every story there's something which I found enjoyment in. It's an excellent collection and fit exactly the kind of thing I look for when it comes to a book of spooky tales. What made it even more interesting was the specificity of each story being from a Chinese author. As a longtime fan of the base genre itself, in my experience Asian-inspired horror is some of the best that's on offer.

It's a genre which can be difficult to be a fan of at times, as there are so many interpretations of what constitutes good horror. There are those who think it's all about gratuitous violence and gore, ghosts, goblins, monsters; the possibilities are nearly endless. Personally I think it's more about the emotions elicited from the reader or viewer than the actual content of the story. If it's been hours or days since I've read a book or watched a movie and it's still got me questioning if I should turn out all the lights or leave a nightlight on, THAT is good horror. If it can actually creep or unsettle me long after the tale is done, that's power. And for this collection? There's a lot of exactly this kind of power.

You can really tell the level of care put into choosing what went in to this anthology too. It's mentioned in the introduction (which is well worth reading and actually important I feel), but it almost didn't need to be. Each story has its own vibe, its own purpose. Another thing I enjoyed was the editorial note at the end of each tale, which quantified a bit more as to the why it was included. I think it's important to realize what all goes into creating something like this and why it's a significant book. It's not just for enjoyment, but it's also about inclusion and acknowledging more than just the usual authors we think of when it comes to the books we enjoy. There are so many writers from all over the world, so many voices lost in the deluge of things we're bombarded with day in and day out. Which was another great thing about this collection: some are authors new to the craft and others who've been writing for ages, and all from different background both socially and geographically.

I give Sinophagia 5 stars out of 5, and even having already read it with a digital copy I intend to get a physical one for my shelf too.
Thanks for NetGalley and Rebellion for the ARC.

Sinophagia is a fantastic collection of horror short stories from a number of Chinese authors. Like any anthology, some of the stories were better than others, but overall this is an absolute treasure trove of horrifying tales. In fact, I think one of them, Forbidden Room, is my all-time favourite short story.

Highly recommended to any horror reader!

Thank you so much to Solaris for the eARC of Sinophagia!

I wanted to love this so bad but ended up DNF’ing it when story after story were all misses for me. I kept forcing myself to pick it up & getting nothing out of it.

With that being said, I do encourage you to pick this up if you want a horror anthology to read, as maybe it’ll work better for you! Also, the editor clearly loves the genre & put a lot of work into putting this together, as mentioned in the beginning note of the collection! There are also editorial notes after each story that really explains inspiration/background on each story.

It’s possibly that I’ll retry this collection in the future — but for now, I’m gonna have to put it down.

If you are looking for a spooky season read, this is definitely the book for you! Normally, I try to pick out my favorites from a short story collection to discuss, but honestly, I loved each and every story in here. Ni mentions in their introduction that they tried to ensure they hit every kind of little niche sub genre in horror and they truly did from absolutely bat shit crazy humans that are scarier than any ghost or monster to ghosts and monsters and even technology as a killer this is just fantastic.

What truly made this collection of stories stand out though is that many of them correspond to a current social issue, and while yes some of them are more relevant in China than in other countries they are still relatable. And that made the reading of this all the more enjoyable. It wasn't horror for the sake of being horror. Many stories were a conversation on topics that affect so many of us.

The other portion that I want to make special mention of is the introduction. I do read the introduction to every book I pick up that has one, and more often than not, they are a snooze fest. Ni's is brilliant. Knowing the reason this collection exists and how difficult it was to put together brought an extra layer into this collection, it gave me the opportunity to understand why a particular story was chosen for the collection before I even got into it. The fact that Ni includes a commentary on the authors inspiration for their contribution as well as just some interesting facts about the author really helped to make this one of the most cohesive collections of short stories I've ever read.


Overall, I definitely recommend it, Sinophagia would make a perfect addition to any horror readers' shelves!


As always, thanks to Netgalley and Rebellion for the eArc.

(ARC for review via Netgalley. Thank you, for providing me with a free copy of this book!)

This was a very enjoyable collection of horror short-stories by contemporary Chinese authors. Naturally, some stories caught my attention more than others, but given the diverse amount of stories included that is not really a surprise - ghosts, marriages with the dead, legendary monsters, chances are high that something that will strike your fancy will be there. After every story, the editor /translator provided some background information about the topics of the stories and how they relate to Chinese society and culture. I thought that was a very good choice and there were quite a few things I could learn. In general, I felt there was a lot of thought and care put in the translation and compilation of this collection.

I am convinced that horror, meaning what we find unsettling and maybe intriguing at the same time (after all there has to be a reason why many choose to read scary tales right?), is something very subjective. Therefore, the stories I enjoyed the most, might just be okay for others and vice versa. For me, my definite highlight was 'Records of the Xiangshi' by Nanpai Sanshu, a novella about a group of soldiers hunting a monster deep in the mountains. Of course, there were also others I really enjoyed, but that one was my favorite for sure. I now have quite a few new authors that I want to check out and read more of.

If you like horror and want an interesting read for the upcoming spooky season, I highly recommend giving this a go!

This kind of compilation is daunting for an editor, how to do a survey of horror fiction in China right now, what do you choose to be representative, give a flavour of the scene, and try to cover a billion people and a massive country of countries? This job is made much more difficult, as editor Xueting Christine Ni explains in the excellent introduction, when the genre itself is discredited itself in China, the online and popular consumption on horror had been tainted in the last fifteen years by gratuitously gory content heavy on sexual violence, The word horror in itself put off collaborators. Pair this with the taste of your editor (again she is very open about the kind of horror she likes) and that could lead to a bit of a moribund collection. Luckily this is not the case here, potentially because I also share some of that taste (there is in the back end of the book a successful search for the Chinese Gothic).

The tales are heavy on folklore in places, a number of them rely on history repeating itself, or the "village that wasn't there" kind of narrative - the most successful of these is also a wonderfully foodie deconstruction of Yuanyang hotpot whose made-up mythology has already seeped into modern folklore. That is also a theme here, that of urban legends, or inverted folklore actually coming true (or in the case of Huangcun, a village invented for a horror story turns out to be real). Urban nightmares are not neglected, and spinning off of actual news stories for content (the idea that people are buying cheap suburban apartments to intern their dead relatives as the leases are longer than in the cemetery). Thematically the editor suggests that Chinese horror is less likely to be a cautionary tale, and that is true here - there are a few whose twists catch out an immoral protagonist but they are not that common. There is a more journalistic feel to many of these, which suggests that these things just happened, a different but effective form of horror.

There is sometimes a contradiction in horror anthologies like this which I got in the similar Japanese-themed one from Rebellion, which is that dichotomy between horror playing on the realistic, everyday fears and scenarios, and an anthology of foreign fiction being automatically othering. I think the editor has squared that circle nicely, not least around the modern set stories which play well in globalised world, but even the spookier ones set in a past that a tourist might come across. As with any anthology, it is a mixed bag, but even the tales I liked least had something of interest to them, and the good ones are very good.

I’ve read a variety of translated literature from China, but this was going to be my first dip into Chinese Horror. When I think about Chinese Horror, my brain immediately goes to one of the older movies with the jiangshi, or hopping vampires. We watched a couple of them in the Horror club when I was in university. They were entertaining, but a little campy, however, I wouldn’t have considered them to be particularly scary.

I wouldn’t really consider myself the biggest fan of the Horror genre, however, I keep on going back to it with the hope that something will either scare me or capture my attention in some way. I have to admit to being very rarely creeped out and this collection wasn’t really any different, but I quite enjoyed this collection as a whole.

Something that I really appreciated was that each story was accompanied by an editorial notes to help clarify anything that may have been lost on a western audience member. Some terms or bits of history won’t be familiar to all readers, but it is clear that Xueting C. Ni wanted to help readers embrace each story as much as she could.

Overall, this collection was really successful for me. I loved diving into Chinese Horror in this way and the editorial notes I think will make it really successful for people who have even less knowledge of China than I do. I will say that it did make me miss China and my friends there, but perhaps I’ll see them again. It also made me miss Chinese food, but that’s nothing new. I’ve had cravings everyday since I left. I hope that a lot of horror fans pick this up, particularly those that like supernatural horror, like me.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an eARC of this collection, however, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating: 3.5/5⭐
Review:
✨This review is really tough to write because I have a lot of thoughts on this anthology.
✨Growing up, I’m not familiar with the horror genres in any medium. I do watch and reads horror stories but not frequently,
✨However, as someone born and raised in Malaysia, I’m quite familiar with Malaysia’s horror stories (I do listen to horror penglipurlara (storyteller) on YouTube. But, the downside of this is I only associate horror with spirits, ghosts, and black magics.
✨I’m interested in Sinophagia because of Nanpai Sanshu. But Sinophagia as a horror anthology as whole, it’s a blank slate actually.
✨When I’m reading the introduction by the author, I’m really grateful for the effort in making this anthology.
✨However, when I’m starting to go through and read these stories, I kind of realize the challenges faced by the editor based on my reading.
✨Truthfully, in terms of spine-chilling, none of the stories managed to really truly creep me out. I’m sorry. But, I’m still enjoying a lot of these stories.
✨I saw most of these stories as horror mixed with other genres. And for most of them, for me, they kind of lean more towards other genres. Yet, based on the information from the introduction, I do understand if the horror stories need to be mixed with other genres to balance them out, or some kind of camouflage?
✨In terms of the stories, it is inevitable to like some of the stories only. Surprisingly, the story from Nanpai Sanshu is not my favourite. My reasons are it is quite long and for me, the story may get more attention from readers that are fans or who are familiar with Daomu Biji universe and tomb-raiding stories.
✨My favourite is Night Climb by Chi Hui . This is because it reminds me of the horror story that I listened to on YouTube, but of course only in terms of the feelings only, the plot of that story is different. Short but punchy, and I kind of relate with the protagonist in terms of body measurement.
✨From this anthology, I learned there are various types of horror and I’m much more interested in horror books now. For me, this anthology suits readers who are beginners in reading horror because it is not too disturbing, but still triggering.
✨I actually want to read more of these authors’ works, especially their full length works. I’m not sure if any of them is available in English translation.
✨Lastly, my opinion on what is the scariest thing in the world still does not change. It is the human heart.
✨Thank you to Solaris (@solarisbooks) and NetGalley for this ARC! This review is voluntarily written by me.

Sinophagia is a fantastic story collection that time and time again subverted my expectations and kept me wrongfooted over what was going to happen! Having not read much Chinese literature going into the book, I really enjoyed how many stories went in unexpected directions, and didn’t rely on the tropes I’ve become used to in the western canon. The opening story ‘The Girl in the Rain’ is a perfect example of this, and sets the tone for the book wonderfully in that regard.

I thought the standard of stories in Sinophagia was pretty high overall, and demonstrated a fantastic range of horror subgenres throughout. It’s quite hard to choose a favourite when the quality is high across the board, but I think Huangcun stands out particularly for me for its fantastic gothic atmosphere blended with elements of Chinese history. There were of course a few stories I didn’t really connect with, though this is generally true for me when I read short story collections.

Sinophagia was a very interesting window into horror writing from a culture with a very different relationship to the genre. Not only did I enjoy the collection of stories it had to offer, but I feel like I’ve learned something too! The book doubles up as a little cultural history of Chinese horror, with each story finishing with a notes section providing a bit of social commentary and public impressions of the horror genre in China. I thought this was a fantastic addition to the collection, and was a clever way of helping the reader appreciate the genre alongside the stories.

"Sinophagia" is a fantastical horror anthology that thoughtfully brings together a diverse collection of stories and authors. The settings range from urban to rural, highlighting the stark contrasts between each environment and allowing readers to explore how changes in setting shape themes of fear and survival.

I especially appreciate the editor’s introduction, which explains the current landscape of the horror genre in China—something I was unaware of! The challenges of assembling such a collection are evident, and the focus on a wide range of voices adds to my admiration for this publication.

As with any anthology, not every story will resonate with every reader, but I believe most will find at least one story to admire. My personal favorite was “Immortal Beauty” by Chu Xidao. The prose is vivid and conjures striking images that juxtapose beauty with horror. I love how the story subverts traditional storytelling by reclaiming a woman’s narrative, rather than merely presenting her through a male lens.

I also enjoyed the afterwords provided by each author, which offer valuable context for Western readers new to Chinese literature. Overall, this is another fantastic release from Solaris! If you enjoy this anthology, I highly recommend “Sinopticon: A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction” from the same publisher.

Thank you to the authors, Solaris, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Horror anthologies are like a mixed bag—some stories will chill you to the bone, while others may not land as hard. That's just the nature of the beast. Sinophagia lands in the middle - it contains a refreshing variety of stories, and a few of them really stand out for their inventive scares and atmospheres that linger long after you've put the book down.

A major highlight is the inclusion of stories showcasing Chinese perspectives on horror,. The cultural influences add a distinct flavor. It’s clear that Chinese horror taps into different fears than what I'm used to and it's a good thing.

Of course, as with any anthology, not every story hits the mark. Some feel predictable or lack the punch you expect from a truly great horror tale. But that’s the trade-off with collections like this—you’ll find a few gems, some so-so entries, and maybe one or two that don’t quite leave an impression.

Overall, the anthology is worth a read, especially for the unique stories that explore lesser-known cultural horror traditions. The diversity of voices here elevates it beyond your typical collection, even if not every piece is a home run.

From cover to contents: I loved this! ❤️‍🔥
Plus how perfect is that title, SINOPHAGIA bringing to mind visuals of a ravenous devouring of the other, recalling gods and monsters and supernatural entities, as well as a phonetic simile in Sinophobia, reminding the reader that mankind is more than capable of being the most terrifying monstrosity imaginable. In a time of much division and dehumanisation, anti-Asian racism heightened in the wake of the recent global pandemic, this anthology seeks to celebrate the diversity of stories written by Chinese writers with a focus on its local horror literature.

Any anthology is only as strong as the quality of works included, a reflection also of the editor in charge of curating the final selection. Editor and translator Xueting Christine Ni has done a fantastic job in putting together and translating a wide-ranging collection of entertaining horror literature, diverse in terms of locale and focus, with authors of various age and backgrounds, from the emerging to the more well-known. The collection explores the different regional mystiques and concerns, both rural and urban from North to South, all entwined with the specific landscapes they are born from. In such a large landmass, it is only natural that there will be a multiplicity of stories, commonalities still traceable through overlaps in folklore and cultural beliefs, alongside the relative singularity of a modern state and all that entails.

Moreover, editor-translator Xueting C. Ni makes a point of showcasing the various styles and genres in Chinese horror literature, from homages to existing literary traditions to more contemporary social horrors - essentially, translating China. In her curation, she also endeavours to include a number of female writers to open up perspectives beyond a mainstream dominated by established (often male, not uncommonly misogynist) voices. I thoroughly appreciated her brief, insightful commentary at the end of each story, highlighting each writer and the inspiration behind their stories, whilst also contextualising each story in the genealogy of Chinese horror traditions and within Chinese literature more broadly.

If horror literature is a gateway to a society’s anxieties, then this reveals the many interior concerns of the young and old, from misogyny and violence against women, to the twin stresses of urbanisation and lack of economic support in rural communities, to the effects of isolation and marginalisation on mental health, to the unbearable love between parents and their children, and just the universality of how people choose to treat one another on a personal and societal level. There’s also a sense of collective memory being carried forward in these stories as a whole, whether through harrowing experiences of war and historical struggles, or through imagining stories born from a shared cultural heritage where the spirit world is honoured in a way that changes over time and circumstance, not always in synchrony across regions and communities.

A fantastic collection of strange tales and spooky stories that were fun and insightful, fantastical and melodramatic, poignant and just downright spine-chilling - a catalogue of riches! Some were creepier than others, but that is of course also dependent on what is likely to get under each reader’s skin! It seemed to go from strength to strength, I thought, until that final, impactful shortest of stories - certainly the one that most made me want to hurl the book away! 🙈❤️‍🩹

I had the best time reading this and will miss my (probably unwise lol) nightly ritual of ending the evening with one of these stories! Definitely a copy for the shelf. Thank you so much @solarisbooks @netgalley for the reading copy!