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Margot's Room
This is an interactive web-comic told over 5 parts. To access each part you must click the corresponding item within Margot's Room.
6 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2011
About the author
Emily Carroll
49 books2,152 followersE.M. Carroll was born in June 1983 in London, Ontario. They started making comics in 2010 and their horror comic "His Face All Red" went viral at Hallowe'en 2010.
Since then, E.M. has published several books, created comics for vanthologies, and provided illustrations for other works. E.M. has won several awards, including an Ignatz and two Eisners. They are married to fellow Canadian artist, Kate Craig.
Emily's work now uses the initials E.M. Carroll. Visit their growing exhibits at EMCarroll.com.
Since then, E.M. has published several books, created comics for vanthologies, and provided illustrations for other works. E.M. has won several awards, including an Ignatz and two Eisners. They are married to fellow Canadian artist, Kate Craig.
Emily's work now uses the initials E.M. Carroll. Visit their growing exhibits at EMCarroll.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
July 20, 2024
Well that was a strange and creepy little tale. It’s also interactive, so after reading the text, you click on the items mentioned in order to read the story itself, which is actually quite neat.
January 17, 2021
Entertaining and creepy short read. It sure was an interesting way to tell a story. You click on the pictures in the room as you follow the story along.
Here’s the link:
http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
Here’s the link:
http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
October 18, 2024
Emily Carroll creates elegantly creepy horror comics and is now known principally for two books; Through the Woods, a collection of five short stories, some of them with a literary Victorian (or earlier—it’s that gothic use of the past) setting; the second is her illustration of the twentieth-anniversary graphic novel adaptation of Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak. Both are wonderful.
You can also go to her website and read some very short shorts she makes available there.
Margot's Room is an interactive webcomic that begins (and ends) in (daughter) Margot’s Room. There are five short parts of the story, and the words and related images on this first page lead you through the story. It took me a few seconds to figure how to proceed, but you have to click on five images in order: Flowers, Doll, Gone (the window), the Wall, and Blood. The early parts of it seem rather straightforward, as the wife and mother tells the tale, but the form and content of the story change rather abruptly in the fifth part, making you question just what it is that happens. This last part especially is amazing as it uses the web-comic format to move you through space back to the room. It’s creepy wonderful.
Read it here:
http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/
You can also go to her website and read some very short shorts she makes available there.
Margot's Room is an interactive webcomic that begins (and ends) in (daughter) Margot’s Room. There are five short parts of the story, and the words and related images on this first page lead you through the story. It took me a few seconds to figure how to proceed, but you have to click on five images in order: Flowers, Doll, Gone (the window), the Wall, and Blood. The early parts of it seem rather straightforward, as the wife and mother tells the tale, but the form and content of the story change rather abruptly in the fifth part, making you question just what it is that happens. This last part especially is amazing as it uses the web-comic format to move you through space back to the room. It’s creepy wonderful.
Read it here:
http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/
January 2, 2021
WELCOME TO DECEMBER PROJECT!
this explanation/intro will be posted before each day’s short story. scroll down to get to the story-review.
this is the FIFTH year of me doing a short story advent calendar as my december project. for those of you new to me or this endeavor, here’s the skinny: every day in december, i will be reading a short story that is 1) available free somewhere on internet, and 2) listed on goodreads as its own discrete entity. there will be links provided for those of you who like to read (or listen to) short stories for free, and also for those of you who have wildly overestimated how many books you can read in a year and are freaking out about not meeting your 2020 reading-challenge goals. i have been gathering links all year when tasty little tales have popped into my feed, but i will also accept additional suggestions, as long as they meet my aforementioned 1), 2) standards, because i have not compiled as many as usual this year.
IN ADDITION, this may be the last year i do this project since GR has already deleted the pages for several of the stories i've read in previous years without warning, leaving me with a bunch of missing reviews and broken links, which makes me feel shitty. because i don't have a lot of time to waste, i'm not going to bother writing much in the way of reviews for these, in case gr decides to scrap 'em again. 2020 has left me utterly wrung out and i apologize for what's left of me. i am doing my best.
DECEMBER 10: MARGOT'S ROOM - EMILY CARROLL
another chilling little graphic short from emily carroll. this one begins with a poem that tells you how to proceed:
first he gave me flowers
& second I made her a doll
but third he’d be gone for hours
& fourth we hit a wall.
LASTLY THERE WAS BLOOD, (rich & raw in the light of the moon)
I can’t forget
I will always regret
what happened in
MARGOT’S ROOM
to read the story in order, you first click on the flowers, then the doll, then the window, then the mirror on the wall, and finally, the blood on the floor.
if you do, you will discover the story of a relationship that begins inauspiciously
becomes spooky
and ends tragically
like all of the stories i've read from her, i'm not 100% on the details, but her artwork is great and she's always amazing at establishing atmosphere, and this one's a lot of spooky-good fun.
read it free here
DECEMBER 1: PG - COURTNEY SUMMERS
DECEMBER 2: THE JUMPING MONKEY HILL - CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE
DECEMBER 3: ORIGIN STORY - T. KINGFISHER
DECEMBER 4: THE GREAT SILENCE - TED CHIANG
DECEMBER 5: A CLEAN SWEEP WITH ALL THE TRIMMINGS
DECEMBER 6: BORED WORLD - ANDY WEIR
DECEMBER 7: VAMPIRE - ROBERT COOVER
DECEMBER 8: A STATEMENT IN THE CASE - THEODORA GOSS
DECEMBER 9: STET - SARAH GAILEY
DECEMBER 11: HORROR STORY - CARMEN MARIA MACHADO
DECEMBER 12: TERRAIN - GENEVIEVE VALENTINE
DECEMBER 13: IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED, TRY, TRY AGAIN - ZEN CHO
DECEMBER 14: GHOUL - GEORGE SAUNDERS
DECEMBER 15: DURING THE DANCE - MARK LAWRENCE
DECEMBER 16: CLEARING THE BONES - CELESTE NG
DECEMBER 17: THE WAITER'S WIFE - ZADIE SMITH
DECEMBER 18: DEMOLITION - FIONA MCFARLANE
DECEMBER 19: NO PERIOD - HARRY TURTLEDOVE
DECEMBER 20: DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE - GG
DECEMBER 21: RUB-A-DUB-DUB - TONY MILLIONAIRE
DECEMBER 22: HANSA AND GRETYL AND PIECE OF SHIT - REBECCA CURTIS
DECEMBER 23: BRIDESICLE - WILL MCINTOSH
DECEMBER 24: I, CTHULHU, OR, WHAT'S A TENTACLE-FACED THING LIKE ME DOING IN A SUNKEN CITY LIKE THIS (LATITUDE 47° 9' S, LONGITUDE 126° 43' W)? - NEIL GAIMAN
DECEMBER 25: CHRISTMAS TALE - MARK LAWRENCE
DECEMBER 26: THE MONSTERS OF HEAVEN - NATHAN BALLINGRUD
DECEMBER 27: TWO DREAMS ON TRAINS - ELIZABETH BEAR
DECEMBER 28: THE MARTIANS CLAIM CANADA - MARGARET ATWOOD
DECEMBER 29: UNDER THE WAVE - LAUREN GROFF
DECEMBER 30: MR. SALARY - SALLY ROONEY
DECEMBER 31: A/S/L - EMMA CLINE
come to my blog!
this explanation/intro will be posted before each day’s short story. scroll down to get to the story-review.
this is the FIFTH year of me doing a short story advent calendar as my december project. for those of you new to me or this endeavor, here’s the skinny: every day in december, i will be reading a short story that is 1) available free somewhere on internet, and 2) listed on goodreads as its own discrete entity. there will be links provided for those of you who like to read (or listen to) short stories for free, and also for those of you who have wildly overestimated how many books you can read in a year and are freaking out about not meeting your 2020 reading-challenge goals. i have been gathering links all year when tasty little tales have popped into my feed, but i will also accept additional suggestions, as long as they meet my aforementioned 1), 2) standards, because i have not compiled as many as usual this year.
IN ADDITION, this may be the last year i do this project since GR has already deleted the pages for several of the stories i've read in previous years without warning, leaving me with a bunch of missing reviews and broken links, which makes me feel shitty. because i don't have a lot of time to waste, i'm not going to bother writing much in the way of reviews for these, in case gr decides to scrap 'em again. 2020 has left me utterly wrung out and i apologize for what's left of me. i am doing my best.
DECEMBER 10: MARGOT'S ROOM - EMILY CARROLL
another chilling little graphic short from emily carroll. this one begins with a poem that tells you how to proceed:
first he gave me flowers
& second I made her a doll
but third he’d be gone for hours
& fourth we hit a wall.
LASTLY THERE WAS BLOOD, (rich & raw in the light of the moon)
I can’t forget
I will always regret
what happened in
MARGOT’S ROOM
to read the story in order, you first click on the flowers, then the doll, then the window, then the mirror on the wall, and finally, the blood on the floor.
if you do, you will discover the story of a relationship that begins inauspiciously
becomes spooky
and ends tragically
like all of the stories i've read from her, i'm not 100% on the details, but her artwork is great and she's always amazing at establishing atmosphere, and this one's a lot of spooky-good fun.
read it free here
DECEMBER 1: PG - COURTNEY SUMMERS
DECEMBER 2: THE JUMPING MONKEY HILL - CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE
DECEMBER 3: ORIGIN STORY - T. KINGFISHER
DECEMBER 4: THE GREAT SILENCE - TED CHIANG
DECEMBER 5: A CLEAN SWEEP WITH ALL THE TRIMMINGS
DECEMBER 6: BORED WORLD - ANDY WEIR
DECEMBER 7: VAMPIRE - ROBERT COOVER
DECEMBER 8: A STATEMENT IN THE CASE - THEODORA GOSS
DECEMBER 9: STET - SARAH GAILEY
DECEMBER 11: HORROR STORY - CARMEN MARIA MACHADO
DECEMBER 12: TERRAIN - GENEVIEVE VALENTINE
DECEMBER 13: IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED, TRY, TRY AGAIN - ZEN CHO
DECEMBER 14: GHOUL - GEORGE SAUNDERS
DECEMBER 15: DURING THE DANCE - MARK LAWRENCE
DECEMBER 16: CLEARING THE BONES - CELESTE NG
DECEMBER 17: THE WAITER'S WIFE - ZADIE SMITH
DECEMBER 18: DEMOLITION - FIONA MCFARLANE
DECEMBER 19: NO PERIOD - HARRY TURTLEDOVE
DECEMBER 20: DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE - GG
DECEMBER 21: RUB-A-DUB-DUB - TONY MILLIONAIRE
DECEMBER 22: HANSA AND GRETYL AND PIECE OF SHIT - REBECCA CURTIS
DECEMBER 23: BRIDESICLE - WILL MCINTOSH
DECEMBER 24: I, CTHULHU, OR, WHAT'S A TENTACLE-FACED THING LIKE ME DOING IN A SUNKEN CITY LIKE THIS (LATITUDE 47° 9' S, LONGITUDE 126° 43' W)? - NEIL GAIMAN
DECEMBER 25: CHRISTMAS TALE - MARK LAWRENCE
DECEMBER 26: THE MONSTERS OF HEAVEN - NATHAN BALLINGRUD
DECEMBER 27: TWO DREAMS ON TRAINS - ELIZABETH BEAR
DECEMBER 28: THE MARTIANS CLAIM CANADA - MARGARET ATWOOD
DECEMBER 29: UNDER THE WAVE - LAUREN GROFF
DECEMBER 30: MR. SALARY - SALLY ROONEY
DECEMBER 31: A/S/L - EMMA CLINE
come to my blog!
January 3, 2021
I guess it is fitting that I finish this year of horrors with this little horror story.
I have no idea when this review is actually going to show up, since Goodreads decided to just throw some of my reviews out there randomly, while it ignores the reviews I’m actually trying to post. I guess that’s 2020 for you.
Happy New Year, everyone!
Oh yes, the story. Good one. I like Emily Carroll’s art and the way she presents it.
Here you start with this nice little picture, and then you have to follow the text to see where you have to click to get to the next bit of the story.
Nice.
Can be experienced for free here: http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
I have no idea when this review is actually going to show up, since Goodreads decided to just throw some of my reviews out there randomly, while it ignores the reviews I’m actually trying to post. I guess that’s 2020 for you.
Happy New Year, everyone!
Oh yes, the story. Good one. I like Emily Carroll’s art and the way she presents it.
Here you start with this nice little picture, and then you have to follow the text to see where you have to click to get to the next bit of the story.
Nice.
Can be experienced for free here: http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
January 13, 2021
This is very cool. I love the artwork of this interactive and spooky read. Thank you Maureen for sharing!
You can read it here.
You can read it here.
January 5, 2021
Oooh this was short and creepy and fun! Kind of like 2021 so far. Anyways, thanks to Dennis for his review which brought this to my attention. You can read it free here: http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/
It's slightly interactive, so you read the initial text, then click on the items in order (flowers, doll, window, wall, and then floor) to read the story. Enjoy! (Hint: sometimes you have to scroll down, sometimes you have to scroll right, sometimes it's both)
It's slightly interactive, so you read the initial text, then click on the items in order (flowers, doll, window, wall, and then floor) to read the story. Enjoy! (Hint: sometimes you have to scroll down, sometimes you have to scroll right, sometimes it's both)
January 13, 2021
Interesting and creepy at the same time.
June 30, 2021
Short stories maintain a goal curve through longer books, or hard times not conducive to reading. Free stories acquaint me with authors outside favourite genres and when they are Canadian, I am in. I had trouble choosing a grade for Emily Caroll’s haunting, unforgettable, 2011 tableaux. Her amazing creativity and outstanding originality are ingenius: story-wise and even with an innovative way to present her graphics via the medium of a webpage! I am grateful my dial-up internet loaded it. I refuse to spoil anything. To read every part in order, an introductory poem supplies clues about which images to click. It builds this emotionally charged tale from the beginning, each electric chapter at a time.
My review on April 3, 2021 gave 3 stars, solely for disliking sad endings that indicate no relief or hope. Although I understand unease is a horror trait, I disliked the dismal feeling this story left with me, as a clairsentient who felt for the heroine. A Mother should not be left with nothing to cherish or look forward to. I loved the mysterious, suspenseful atmosphere Emily generated lastingly. We go in sensing horror, knowing something negative happened and follow the entire graphic webpage until we know all there is to tell.
On June 30, 2021, I am changing my feedback of “Margot’s Room” to 4 stars. I have to reward that it furnishes a profound emotional impact, more thoroughly than most tales as brief as this one. I loved that we can’t visually discern an era. I paid attention to Emily’s lilting, genuinely poetic language and some era indicators in the chapter of the couple meeting. An unnamed supernatural ingredient is chilling, with an origin story that I appreciate this authoress making an effort to build in. I encourage publishing a happy ending sequel. http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
My review on April 3, 2021 gave 3 stars, solely for disliking sad endings that indicate no relief or hope. Although I understand unease is a horror trait, I disliked the dismal feeling this story left with me, as a clairsentient who felt for the heroine. A Mother should not be left with nothing to cherish or look forward to. I loved the mysterious, suspenseful atmosphere Emily generated lastingly. We go in sensing horror, knowing something negative happened and follow the entire graphic webpage until we know all there is to tell.
On June 30, 2021, I am changing my feedback of “Margot’s Room” to 4 stars. I have to reward that it furnishes a profound emotional impact, more thoroughly than most tales as brief as this one. I loved that we can’t visually discern an era. I paid attention to Emily’s lilting, genuinely poetic language and some era indicators in the chapter of the couple meeting. An unnamed supernatural ingredient is chilling, with an origin story that I appreciate this authoress making an effort to build in. I encourage publishing a happy ending sequel. http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
January 26, 2021
An incredibly dark, quick to read, web comic. I loved the little interactive elements of clicking the different objects in Margot’s Room to get the next part of the story! Also, having to scroll horizontally to the right for some parts instead of only up and down added an extra layer to the experience. I am a huge fan of the art style used here, would make me want to check out more illustrated works by Emily Carroll in the future.
Here is the link to read it for free if you want to check it out for yourself! http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in... 💀
Here is the link to read it for free if you want to check it out for yourself! http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in... 💀
January 8, 2019
Interactive short story. http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/
Thanks to GR friend David Schaafsma for the link to this story. This was such fun to read. It's a creepy story and the illustrations are perfect and gory.
Thanks to GR friend David Schaafsma for the link to this story. This was such fun to read. It's a creepy story and the illustrations are perfect and gory.
March 12, 2024
Link to the comic, it's only a few (interactive) pages long and worth your time: https://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/
Emily Carroll is the real deal, folks. I absolutely love their work.
Emily Carroll is the real deal, folks. I absolutely love their work.
August 31, 2016
Wow! That was a creative, scary way to tell a short story.
August 13, 2021
First he gave me Flowers & Second I made her a Doll,
but Third he'd be gone for Hours & Fourth we hit a Wall.
Lastly there was Blood, (rich and raw in the light of the moon).
I can't forget
I will always regret
What happened in MARGOT'S ROOM.
A unique interactive style written story, that you have to pay close attention to what she said for the story to make sense.
You can read it for free here:
http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
but Third he'd be gone for Hours & Fourth we hit a Wall.
Lastly there was Blood, (rich and raw in the light of the moon).
I can't forget
I will always regret
What happened in MARGOT'S ROOM.
A unique interactive style written story, that you have to pay close attention to what she said for the story to make sense.
You can read it for free here:
http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/in...
February 17, 2016
WHAT THE HELL, WHAT THE HELL, WHAT THE HELL, WHAT THE HELL
WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL
WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL
February 12, 2016
A comic all about what happened!! What happened? This is such a cool and beautiful read and you can find it on her website: http://www.emcarroll.com
April 28, 2019
This is my new favourite horror webcomic. And it's interactive too! Can be read on Emily Carroll's website.
November 18, 2021
3,5/5. Putting the interactive side of writing online at good use, this short story was interesting in its form more than in its content.
November 30, 2022
OH THAT WAS GOOD.like a point and click adventure except not.
August 13, 2017
A one-page horror story that leaves sooooo many questions, but damn is it effective. Carroll leaves the reader to puzzle together a narrative from her short poetic lines and bone-chilling illustration. Even if it turns out to be impenetrable, the reader'll have tons of unsettling fun giving it a try.
November 5, 2021
Damn, that was brilliant. Very short, but uses the webcomic medium perfectly. Very creepy and tells a great story with just enough information to piece together yourself while progressing into something that rounds itself back again to the beginning. Quite dark at times, but also light and colorful at other times. Good contrasts.
January 18, 2016
HOLY. FUCK.
January 30, 2021
I was made aware there was more parts to this story than I thought lol, creeepy stuff here
February 20, 2021
First he gave me flowers,
& second I made her a doll.
But third he'd been gone for hours,
& fourth we hit a wall.
LASTLY there was blood,
(right and raw in the light of the moon.)
I can't forget
I will always regret
What happened in
MARGOT'S ROOM
This is a very clever interactive web-comic. The above opening rhyme gives you the clues of where to click on the picture to bring up the five parts of the story.
Dark and disturbing, as Emily Carroll often is, this story of loss and change was another good read. I fear I may be about to go down an Emily Carroll rabbit hole. This story and its clever presentation, gets a full 5 stars.
It can be found here: http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/
& second I made her a doll.
But third he'd been gone for hours,
& fourth we hit a wall.
LASTLY there was blood,
(right and raw in the light of the moon.)
I can't forget
I will always regret
What happened in
MARGOT'S ROOM
This is a very clever interactive web-comic. The above opening rhyme gives you the clues of where to click on the picture to bring up the five parts of the story.
Dark and disturbing, as Emily Carroll often is, this story of loss and change was another good read. I fear I may be about to go down an Emily Carroll rabbit hole. This story and its clever presentation, gets a full 5 stars.
It can be found here: http://emcarroll.com/comics/margot/
February 29, 2020
New favourite author...?
MAAAAAAYBEEEE.
I read this as an online ebook. Although I'm not sure this can even be called a mere ebook. I encountered this story on the author's website and it definitely didn't read like a normal book. I was so confused at first because I just saw a page. With a picture. And that's it? I couldn't scroll...there was nothing to read except for a somewhat creepy poem?
And then my mouse turned into a finger.
AND I REALISED I COULD CLICK ON CERTAIN THINGS ON THE PAGE.
AND THEN I REALISE I HAD TO HUNT DOWN SPECIFIC OBJECTS FROM THE POEM.
And, gosh. It was an amazing experience.
Not only was the story creepy, the pictures were such nice visuals...AND I got a scavenger hunt out of it?
My expectations?
Far.
Surpassed.
I love it!
MAAAAAAYBEEEE.
I read this as an online ebook. Although I'm not sure this can even be called a mere ebook. I encountered this story on the author's website and it definitely didn't read like a normal book. I was so confused at first because I just saw a page. With a picture. And that's it? I couldn't scroll...there was nothing to read except for a somewhat creepy poem?
And then my mouse turned into a finger.
AND I REALISED I COULD CLICK ON CERTAIN THINGS ON THE PAGE.
AND THEN I REALISE I HAD TO HUNT DOWN SPECIFIC OBJECTS FROM THE POEM.
And, gosh. It was an amazing experience.
Not only was the story creepy, the pictures were such nice visuals...AND I got a scavenger hunt out of it?
My expectations?
Far.
Surpassed.
I love it!
March 5, 2021
4.5
broooo, this was so effing cool. Wow. Incredible use of the visual and technological medium. The aesthetic of this piece, this haunting, erreir, lost world was consistent throughout the story and made it so memorable.
I have theories about what happened but nothing is ever laid out clearly (which I liked) but wish I had more details because it was so good.
Also scroll sideways too! I made the mistake of not knowing this was possible and was confused my first read haha. But the interactive elements and the fact you had to go on a scavenger hunt to find more pieces of the story was incredible.
About to go read ALL of Emily Carroll's work now.
broooo, this was so effing cool. Wow. Incredible use of the visual and technological medium. The aesthetic of this piece, this haunting, erreir, lost world was consistent throughout the story and made it so memorable.
I have theories about what happened but nothing is ever laid out clearly (which I liked) but wish I had more details because it was so good.
Also scroll sideways too! I made the mistake of not knowing this was possible and was confused my first read haha. But the interactive elements and the fact you had to go on a scavenger hunt to find more pieces of the story was incredible.
About to go read ALL of Emily Carroll's work now.
November 1, 2018
De mis favoritas historias. No sólo son cuentos de terror o terror psicológico: juega con la intriga, con las imágenes y con el diseño del transcurso de la historia. Es un terror casi poético a veces introduciendo elementos fantásticos y otras veces, como esta, la locura y terror de la propia mente humana.
April 6, 2020
an interactive horror comic with an unsettling feel is always right up my ally, i'm so glad i decided to make my way through emily's horror comics because so far i've loved every single one of them
you can read margot's room here (it's interactive so you need to click around - click the flowers, doll, window, wall and then the floor)
you can read margot's room here (it's interactive so you need to click around - click the flowers, doll, window, wall and then the floor)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews