Book Review: A Game In Yellow by Hailey Piper

A couple tries to save their relationship through… unconventional means that are, quite literally, out of this world.

Cosmic horror has never really been my thing, but it was really the characters that drew me into this read. The main character, Carmen, teetered on the edge of annoying me, but something about her situation made me feel bad. She was struggling with feeling disconnected, unable to be satisfied sexually by just about everything. And Blanca, her partner, who is desperately trying to please the one she loves, had me wondering why she was holding onto this relationship she wasn’t getting anything out of. Smoke was probably my favorite character because she was the one who kept everything real. She always told it like it was. 

Blanca finds Smoke, who is in the possession of a mind bending play: The King In Yellow. Anyone who consumes too much of the text are often driven mad, however, taken in doses, it is said to ignite passion and ecstasy. Since poor Blanca is committed to saving her relationship, she thinks that this may help Carmen with her issue. At first, everything goes as planned and we have lots of hot sequences. But, the allure of the play possesses Carmen to continue reading.

Smoke warned Carmen that the play ends up reading the reader and that’s where it gets you. There is a lot of text from The King In Yellow in the book and I admittedly had a hard time following what exactly was going on, but I was able to grasp enough to understand that Carmen was losing her shit. 

Apparently, The King In Yellow is real! Sort of… here is some information I found:

“-The King in Yellow is a mysterious and iconic figure in horror literature, introduced in Robert W. Chambers’ 1895 short story collection, The King in Yellow.

-At The center of the story, there is a fictional play, also titled The King in Yellow.

• The play is said to be a forbidden text, cursed to drive readers or viewers to madness.

• Its contents are mostly unknown, but it revolves around a doomed city called Carcosa, where strange cosmic entities, and the King in Yellow reside.

• The first act is supposedly mundane and harmless, but the second act reveals such horrifying truths that it destroys the sanity of those who experience it.

-The King in Yellow is a cryptic character associated with madness, decay, and forbidden knowledge.

• He is often depicted wearing tattered yellow robes, sometimes described as concealing a monstrous or inhuman form.

• He is a harbinger of chaos and despair, linked to cosmic horrors beyond human comprehension.

• His symbol, the Yellow Sign, is a recurring motif and a mark of his influence. Those who encounter it often fall under his control or experience terrible fates.”

Having some background makes it more interesting and gives a bit of insight into what Carmen and (maybe) other characters in the book experience and why. 

I’m not going to spoil the end for you, but it left me so mind fucked that I couldn’t even pick up any other book for a couple of days. I needed time to process.

All that being said, it was so good!

Until next time,

D. E.

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