I enjoy a lot of Junji Ito's short story works because of how fleshed out they feel. This book only had 8 stories, so all the stories got the time they needed to really capture your attention. I don't feel like the stories had any kind of connecting factor to fit in a collection together. Each story was it's own sub-genre of horror. The following will be a short spoiler-free review of each story and the corresponding rating.

1. Futon ★★★½

This was the only one of the stories that felt way too short. All the other stories in this collection were 15-20+ pages, while this one was under 10, 2 of those being a spread of creepy imagery. The concept itself is pretty basic but I enjoyed it, I just wish it was even just a few pages longer.

1. Haunted Wood Mansion ★★★½

I didn't really understand this story. While it started off with a pretty interesting concept and was pretty fast paced, the ending left me wondering. Nothing was really explained as to what was going on.

1. Tomio ★★★★

This reminds me older English horror stories. This story was so chaotic and I love it for that reason, there was never a dull moment while reading this one; other than maybe the underwhelming ending.

1. Lingering Farewell ★★★★★

I wouldn't even consider this story horror, it's just a supernatural drama, but I love the tropes used within the story so much. This is the one story from this collection that I would love to read as a full length manga.

1. Dissection Girl ★★★★

This was probably the most eerie story. I don't know what it was about it, but the expression on Ruriko's face the whole story gave me chills. The pacing was perfect and I really liked the characters. If this had a bit more to the story, I could see this being a really popular one shot.

1. Blackbird ★★★★½

I was so intrigued by this story. It became horror towards the end, but throughout the telling of the story, I was more trying to decode the mystery. If you are someone who likes an eerie atmosphere in your horror, this one is for you, Junji Ito nailed the atmosphere in this one. It feels like walking through a cold foggy forest during the middle of October.

1. Magami Nanakuse ★½

Don't even ask me what this story is about, I don't understand it at all really, the little bit I do understand just isn't interesting.

1. Whispering Woman ★★★★

I feel like I've heard this story and I don't know if it's because I've seen some Junji Ito anime adaptation with this story or that it's similar to English horror stories. With that said, I still really enjoy this story. It was pretty predictable but the story was thrilling and I wanted to know what would happen next and how the situation would change with every plot development.