Penetralia

Penetralia by Jordan Krall
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Serial killer Philip and his nymphomaniac sister Elizabeth continue their father, The Plague Doctor,'s unholy experiments on hapless young men until a letter arrives. Daddy's coming home...

I've been reading bizarro fiction for a couple years now and I've learned Jordan Krall always delivers the goods. When I heard about Penetralia, I snapped it up. More akin to gore-horror like Edward Lee, Penetralia is some disturbing stuff. Philip and Elizabeth torture young men in the name of research, continuing their father's research in exchange for living in his house rent-free in his absence, all the while thinking of their upbringing by the Plague Doctor. What will they do when he comes home?

Penetralia is not for the weak of heart. There is lots of incest, deviant sex, torture, necrophilia, and disturbing imagery. Disturbing imagery other than the incest, deviant sex, torture, and necrophilia, I mean. Funny thing, if you strip all that stuff away, it's kind of a coming of age story, Philip and Elizabeth finally standing up to their father.

I'm not really sure how to rate it. It's pretty powerful but I can't say I actually liked it or enjoyed it.

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