The Buzz...About Books

Though Mother's Day has come and gone, it's never the wrong time of year to acknowledge the absolute B-movie, grindhouse, gore fest, horror show that is becoming a mother.

Pregnancy is a turbulent time to say the least: hormonal changes, forgetfulness, brain fog, running to the toilet every morning and randos wanting to fondle your stomach in public. When you factor in precarious access to employment, healthcare and reproductive rights and a (potentially) unsupportive or abusive partner, pregnancy is no walk in the park.

Psychologically, pregnancy can call into question everything a woman knows about herself, including her gender, sexual identity and role in the home, relationships and at work. It is a vulnerable time, and therefore, sets the stage perfectly for a tale of horror—or at the very least, some psychological suspense. 

Gird your occupied or unoccupied loins: I'm about to describe some pretty gnarly pregnancy scenarios depicted in both literature and film. If that's not your cup of ice chips, stop reading now!

Of course, we have to start with the absolute pinnacle of pregnancy horror that is Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin. Published in the late 1960s while second wave feminism was gathering steam, Rosemary's Baby spoke to anxieties concerning gender roles and reproductive rights. Young, compliant newlywed Rosemary Woodhouse is eager to have children with her husband, struggling actor Guy (first red flag: her husband's name is Guy). After moving into an apartment building with a history of satanic murder, who wouldn't be in the mood to procreate?

Combining the apartment's creepy history, a pair of overly involved neighbours and Guy's lack of concern about Rosemary's ever-worsening physical and mental state, Rosemary's Baby is a perfectly told tale of suspense and gaslighting designed to terrify any woman who's ever been told to she's "acting crazy." The film of the same name is a near perfect adaptation (a rarity!) and not just because of the creepy lullaby that plays over the opening credits—I can't sleep a wink after hearing it. 

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood is another classic that moved from the page to the screen, both large and small. Atwood, a Canadian legend who is somehow not on any of our banknotes, paints a brutal portrait of a dystopian society called the Republic of Gilead, created in the former United States. Gilead is a theocracy where women are second-class citizens, whose status is dependent on their fertility. Fertile women become handmaids: their sole purpose is to bear the children and no, this is not an optional elective. For those more inclined to "Hulu and panic" than "Netflix and chill," The Handmaid's Tale is a familiar television series guaranteed to make anyone with a uterus ugly-cry before the end of every episode. 

Those familiar with the How to Fail podcast know the name Elizabeth Day, but they probably don't associate her with pregnancy thrillers. Magpie is Day's seventh book and follows Marisa, who is blissfully happy with her partner Jake in their new home. Some belt tightening necessitates the couple take in a lodger in their London flat. Enter Kate. Kate is Marisa's opposite in every way, thin and trendy where Marisa is curvy and traditional. Tensions escalate as Kate quickly begins to show a little too much interest in Marisa and Jake's baby.

The Farm by Joanne Ramos adds elements of both race and class to the pregnancy horror show by exploring a very capitalist approach to pregnancy. The eponymous farm is an upscale facility designed for surrogates carrying the children of the obscenely wealthy for a sizable host fee, complete with customized diets, fitness programs and medical equipment. A lucrative nine-month contract sounds appealing to the women of the story, the majority of them poor women of color. When the Farm's rules are questioned or ignored by the hosts, the women are left questioning if a payday is worth losing their bodily autonomy. 

If you can sympathize with people who can afford property in London, Greenwich Park by Katherine Faulkner is a twisty pregnancy suspense with plenty of buried secrets and complicated relationships. After suffering multiple miscarriages, Helen nervously enters a new pregnancy, leaving her job and joining a prenatal class. There, she meets Rachel who quickly inserts herself into Helen and her partner's home life. 

Teased as a modern day Rosemary's Baby complete with its own Dr. Hill, Danielle Valentine's Delicate Condition places a stalked actress at the center of its suspenseful tale. Anna Alcott's star is rising just as she and her husband struggle through their first IVF session. However, it appears someone doesn't want this child to happen. Anna's appointment times are suddenly swapped, medications are mysteriously misplaced and more bizarre events conspire to keep the actress from ever rocking a cradle. This particular page-turner has the dubious honour of being the first novel to be used as source material for the anthology horror television series American Horror Story, starring Kim Kardashian and Emma Roberts.  

Nutshell by Ian McEwan comes at the pregnancy thriller narrative from an entirely new perspective: the baby's. The narrator of this story is still in his mother's womb, where he overhears her and her lover conspiring to kill his father. It is an Ian McEwan novel, so the baby is the most precocious unborn child ever, but the murder plot's suspenseful progression will keep you turning the pages. 

Viewer beware: the first episode of Dead Ringers doesn't skimp on the gory birth scene. In this Amazon Prime original series, Rachel Weisz plays both Beverly and Elliot Mantle, twin gynecologists who get up to more than a little medical malfeasance. The series is a modern, gender-swapped reimagining of David Cronenberg's film of the same name ,which took its cues from the novel Twins by Bari Wood and Jack Geasland. 

And to finish strong, I recommend this film in place of the "vomit comet" nausea test for prospective astronauts. À l'intérieur (Inside) is a French, new wave horror film that takes place over the course of one night. Recently widowed and heavily pregnant Sarah moodily waits out the final night in her home before going to the hospital to induce labor for her overdue baby. But a mysterious woman (wielding one hell of a pair of scissors) is intent on getting inside her home for reasons unknown. Rated BYOB (Bring Your Own Barf Bag). 

As you read or watch the blood, guts and gaslighting, think of your mother and everything she went through to have you and help her fix her computer.

For those disappointed that I didn't include books about evil children, that's a blog for another day. In the meantime, read We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver, The Push by Ashley Audrain and Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage to tide yourself over.