When a girl in one of the stories bangs her ceiling with a stick and yells at the rats in the attic to start paying rent, I felt Ito was at his most relatable.

This collection consists of some of Ito's earliest works. Each of the stories is a standalone this time, with none seeming to be continuations or related to each other. Some of them truly felt like early works, and didn't really grab me like some of his others have. Others really pulled me in and had that trademark Ito feel.

My favorites in this collection were the title story "Deserter," about a man seeking revenge on the Japanese army deserter he agreed to hide. Another was "Unendurable Labyrinth," where two friends find a mysterious group of ascetic Buddhist monks while hiking. Finally I also really liked "The Long Hair in the Attic," that had the aforementioned rat scene. It also had the most body horror of any of the stories in the collection.

Overall this was the least gory Ito collection I've read yet, so if you're unsure about the guy, this may be a good place for you to start. It isn't too gross, but still pretty spooky. ( )

Aside from the title cover story Deserter- BioHouse, Village of the Siren, Face Thief and Scripted Love were also pretty good stories in this collection. Certainly give it a try! ( )

"My feelings haven't changed. That was ages ago. And kids do that kind of stuff." ( )

A solid collection of short horror stories from a master artist that will leave you squirming with its gore and body horror. Many of the tales are pretty sparse, providing a simple and direct route to a chilling final image or thought. But the book closes strong with the title story providing the best twists and turns. ( )

A short story collection of wildly uneven story quality, with many ending up weirdly funny instead of truly frightening. But the art is, as always, impeccably creepy. ( )