“Skin”: In-Depth Review-Spoilers!
“When we will to be more than we are, what do we do? How do we choose what then to become, and how accomplish that becoming? And after transformation -- what?”. – Kathe Koja, interview with Dark Echo.
Skin, a horror fiction novel by Kathe Koja, explores and combines the ideas of transcendence and art in a thrilling and astonishing way. I picked this book up for a dollar at a used book sale in college, and I only recently got around to reading it, but once I did, I could barely find the strength to put it down! I was first drawn in by the cover, and I have since seen multiple versions that I honestly would also love to own (when I have the space, I am sure I will own way too many duplicates of books). The cover I own is black, with a spiraling silver fingerprint interrupted by a slash and drip of red. I will insert a picture, of course!
The cover is so simply eye-catching, and to me, it held the promise of something disturbing, which if you know me, is right up my alley. Then, reading the synopsis, I was sold!
WARNING: This review contains multiple large spoilers.
Skin combines the stories of two women, Tess and Bibi, and dives further and deeper into madness with the two of them throughout the story. Tess is a metal welder and sculptor, struggling to make ends meet and obsessed with the work. Bibi is a dancer with ambition and dreams of exploring the limits of art. When the two meet, an unusual relationship forms between them and leads to the shaping of a performance art group that explores unconventional methods of art, Bibi becoming obsessed with the limits of the physical body and Tess working herself to the bone to create metal moving sculptures. Soon enough, the passion begins to consume Tess and Bibi in different ways, obsession and lust for pain increasing beyond their control.
Reading this book was an incredibly immersive experience, and Koja’s stream-of-consciousness style of writing truly aided in the visualization and connection to the story and characters. I think this book would not have been half as good if it were written in any other style than Koja’s unique prose. The halting, choppy sentences, the mixture of inner thought and external dialogue, the imagery used in the character’s own minds, all of it truly elevated the story. The abrupt switches and capitalization throughout her sentences emphasized the characters’ descent into madness and obsession in such a way that was not obvious or too blunt, but personal and broken in a way that felt real. Watching the inner monologue of Tess become more fractured and unstable throughout the novel was truly an incredible experience.
The novel focuses mainly on Tess and Bibi, although there are multiple other characters that we see often like Michael or Paul. The relationships shown in this book are broken, unhealthy, unstable, and possessive in many ways. I feel that the relationships the characters have with each other is yet another example of the madness that the art and passion create within them, and the effect that it has on the psyche of the artists.
When we meet Bibi, she is first introduced alongside a male character, Crane, that is interested in working with Tess for her metalworking skills. Bibi’s relationship to Crane is not clearly stated, but it is evident that she is not a docile, sensitive girlfriend. Tess sees Bibi as a strong, intoxicating presence, one that exudes a quiet and confident power. Bibi’s silent observation of Tess’s sculptures and her calm demeanor draw Tess in, making her curious. She refuses to work with Crane, but Bibi Bloss is persistent. She shows up at Tess’s door again, alone, to suggest they pair up. She wants Tess’s sculptures involved in her physical performances. Already, we see that Bibi is a strong and independent woman who knows what she wants and will not let anything get in her way. We see Tess as a workaholic, a girl who cares for nothing but the burning of her metal. She’s tough, but she lacks the same ambition and hunger for praise or recognition that Bibi has.
When the partnership begins, Bibi and Tess oversee the dance troupe and the performance. They work in sync, combining their ideas of moving metal and grotesque imagery to create The Surgeons and their disturbing shows. They are both respected by their fellow performers, but Bibi brings in the work. Bibi has connections, and Tess is respected only because Bibi demands it. Tess is infatuated with Bibi; the way she takes control, her ideas, her ambition. Yet again, we see Bibi in control, with Tess by her side, supportive and enamored, but still focused on her work and their collaboration.
Bibi and Paul, one of the Surgeons, have an undefined relationship in the beginning. Paul wants Bibi, and he wants to be close to her. Bibi allows him to be close, sometimes. He is useful to her and the group, and as he is a part of her artistic vision, she allows him to love her. She never claims him as her boyfriend, but it is obvious that he is infatuated with her. Again, Bibi has control.
Paul’s devotion to Bibi is seen to grow stronger and more intense as the shows that the Surgeons put on become more graphic and passionate. When Bibi begins to explore and incorporate unconventional art methods like cutting (slicing into flesh to create designs and scars), scarification, and piercings, Paul is right by her side, regardless of her consistently unkind treatment of him. She has him wrapped around her finger. When her performances become more aggressive, she uses him as practice for her newfound hobbies. Infected and sick from her practicing cutting him, he grows weaker, and yet remains loyal to Bibi, until tragedy strikes and he is killed during a performance because of Bibi becoming more unstable and unsafe, going off script and putting lives in danger for her vision.
Bibi begins to become infatuated with the idea of transcendence. She pushes the limits of her body as well as others’, begging Tess to see and understand her idea. She claims to be achieving a higher level of understanding and power from doing these unconventional practices. She pushes the narrative that there is something beyond physicality, something spiritual and intangible. Bibi insists that these practices bring her closer to transcendence, and that the others simply cannot see the vision that she does.
Michael, another more central character, is very different from Paul’s character, but his relation to the others also exists as an example of control and power dynamics. When he first enters the story, he is a friend of friends and looking to work with The Surgeons. Bibi and Tess (Tess more hesitantly) accept him into their group. From the beginning, he seems to be a quieter, kinder, softer character. He does not fight with the others, he is content to do any work they ask, and he is kind and friendly to Bibi and Tess equally. At first, it seems he is a helpful mediator. However, things start to change after Paul’s accidental death.
Since Bibi and another dancer mentioned that “everyone” had been intimate with Michael, Tess begins to wonder what else Bibi could be keeping from her. It is a beginning seed in the garden of distrust that blooms throughout the book. Tess starts to worry about her friend, as she watches Bibi get pierced and cut almost beyond recognition, all the while with Michael refusing to take sides. He appears to be there purely for moral support and to aid Tess and Bibi in their communication when they fight about the lengths Bibi is going to. The power here is still with Bibi, as she continues to go further and experiment in ways Tess finds horrific. As Tess begins to question her own role in the group and the lengths they will go to, her and Bibi fight more and more. Bibi just wants her to understand, to try this new art form she has discovered and began incorporating into the work with Tess, and Tess wants only to burn her metal and stay close to Bibi. Michael, as always, is their diligent and kind colleague and friend.
Suddenly, the fighting with Bibi grows more intense, and Tess can hardly stand the reality of what Bibi is doing to herself and to their performances. Bibi becomes obsessed with body modifications and blood and pain, scaring Tess. Bibi, frustrated and upset that Tess isn’t understanding her, leaves. The Surgeons are no more, and Tess swears off performing and showing her pieces. In the aftermath of Paul’s death and Bibi’s role in it, Tess is more frightened and worried than ever for her friend. We watch as Tess lets the worry consume her, as all she thinks of is Bibi. She misses her desperately. Bibi is the only person she has felt truly connected with, and regardless of their frightening differences, Tess mourns the loss. Meanwhile, Michael is still in touch with both Bibi and Tess and continues to encourage them to make up.
Now, Michael’s power is shifting. Subtly, but intentionally. He now has access to both women who were originally in charge together. He begins to report to both Tess and Bibi, news of what the other is doing, feeling, or saying. He uses his middle-man stance to slowly manipulate the two of them into doing exactly what works for him. Eventually, he is able to convince the women to reconnect. Tess and Bibi reconvene, both so happy to be together again that their differences are set aside.
After the multiple fights and resulting falling-outs that the women have, Michael plays a large role in the two women actually forming a romantic relationship. His constant middle-man role results in the two trusting him and his insisting that they both are good for each other and their art. Bibi and Tess become lovers, passionate and intense. Tess’s inner monologue often is in awe of Bibi and her beauty, regardless of the body modifications that continue to appear that Tess firmly disagrees with.
It is very interesting to watch them form a new type of relationship, full of hope that this is what will change everything. When they first proclaim to be lovers, they definitely go through the “honeymoon phase”. However, I think even this relationship is a nod to the power dynamics these characters struggle with throughout the book. Tess as a lover is protective and loving, although she still struggles with Bibi’s choices, which she finds even harder to express her feelings on once they are romantic partners. We see Tess become frustrated and resentful toward Bibi because she does not want to ruin this new relationship and loves Bibi so deeply that she cannot handle the thought of pushing her away. Meanwhile, Bibi is extremely possessive and still as pushy as ever. Bibi uses the relationship to manipulate Tess further, although from Bibi’s perspective, she just wants her partner to support her and experience the things Bibi loves together. Bibi’s controlling qualities are still quite obvious. She repeatedly calls Tess “My girl” and shows public displays of affection often, subtly laying claim to Tess in a way that she couldn’t before, and in a way that almost gives her more power over Tess and how people treat the two of them in positions of power.
Michael congratulates their partnering, seeming happy for the two to be together. However, Michael is still continuously physically invading Tess’s space, although to be fair, Tess does not stop it. He often kisses the two on the cheek or even the lips, is always hugging them, and constantly offering Tess extra affection. He subtly works his way under Tess’s skin, tempting her trust and playing Switzerland. When things inevitably go south again for the girls and they separate once more, Michael is there for Tess. He comforts her and continues to remain in contact with the both of them.
His constant friendliness begins to feel much more forceful. Bibi has started her own performance group, and they are doing things grosser and more grotesquely than The Surgeons ever did. When Tess finds out, she struggles deeply. She wishes for Bibi to be safe and protected, but she also hates what Bibi’s becoming. She is disgusted and becomes resentful of anyone that helps Bibi in her journey. Meanwhile, Michael begins to continuously berate Tess and ask her to go to Bibi’s shows. He tells her repeatedly that because she refuses to show her work again, she isn’t growing. Michael claims that “if you’re not growing, you’re dead”. Tess wants to bury herself in her art, the one thing she finds solace in, and tries to ignore Bibi and her shows, but Michael continues to press her.
By this point, Michael weasels his way into Tess’s life as a constant “support”. He feeds her information about Bibi whether she asks or not, well aware of the emotional impact his reports have on Tess. Eventually, a barrier is broken, and Tess allows Michael to move in with her and help her pay bills. They then become lovers, and Tess thinks back to the moment that Bibi told her that everyone had been intimate with Michael. She uses this, as well as her resentment, as fuel for her actions. Still obsessed with the work and not wanting to show or perform, Tess takes on students. She teaches and works day in and day out and continuously refuses to attend Bibi’s shows regardless of Michael’s pleading.
It becomes clear at that point that Michael is pressuring Tess for his own gain. He continues to beg her to go to the shows, claiming she needs it for her art. Tess finally snaps, and she realizes that Michael only wants what is best for himself. He does not have his own talent or niche, and thus he is working hard to force Bibi and Tess together so he can profit from their artistry and grotesque performances. The two separate, and Tess is left alone once more, wondering if she is even capable of a normal loving relationship.
Tess breaks. One day, she finally goes to a show of Bibi’s. She is horrified by the spectacle, and her heart breaks for her former friend and lover. Tess’s emotions surrounding Bib are always so complex, and they are written so well that it’s hard to determine a moral right and wrong often from her narration. She resents Bibi for leaving, and for being so controlling, as well as using people to her advantage. On the other hand, she repeatedly refers to Bibi as a hedgehog, a small, powerful but vulnerable thing that should be protected. This just shows the complexity of their relationship and Tess’s feelings toward her.
Eventually, at the last show Bibi and her troupe put on, Tess watches Bibi easily and brutally kill one of her fellow dancers. Bibi is left screaming, proclaiming her victim was supposed to take her with him. Tess is horrified. This is Bibi’s final break. The body modifications and spirituality of the horrid things she’s done consumed her. The passion for her art and for a message that only she truly knew finally did her in. She was prepared to be killed and to kill, on stage in front of her audience, as a form of artistry and symbolism of the physical body being shed and the soul being lifted.
Tess is simultaneously horrified, disgusted, and devastated. She is glad that Bibi still survives but permanently sees her as a damaged and broken individual that she herself failed to protect. Tess feels a great responsibility toward Bibi, the woman who brought Tess to the world of performance and was able to get Tess’s passions recognized. She felt as though Bibi was the only person that has ever truly understood her, and she lives with constant regret that she couldn’t do the same.
The story ends with Bibi in a mental institution. Tess visits as much as possible, and Bibi’s life is essentially over, reduced to psychotic behavior in an institution that she will likely never leave. I think this ending is magnificent. There are a lot of ways the ending could have gone, but I think this one is the most authentic and meaningful. Bibi could have succeeded in killing herself along with her troupe member on stage, but I think that would only have stopped everything too short. Bibi’s death would have marked a win; it would have allowed her character to reach an ultimate goal and end her story as a struggling, mad artist with the simple end: death.
The idea that Bibi was instead institutionalized is quite interesting. Bibi’s story consisted of a young woman that wanted to be a dancer, got into the scene, met Tess, got inspired, and took everything too far. Tess’s metal work inspired Bibi and the darkest parts of her.
Bibi admired Tess and the work she did. She was in awe of Tess and her passion. Bibi wanted the love Tess shared with her welding and wanted success from it. I think Bibi admired Tess’s own control of herself and her work, and it only fueled Bibi to strive for control in her own endeavors. She wanted to make her own statement, her own sculptures. Bibi pierced her body, integrating metal into her very being.
I think this is an interesting touch, because to me, I see Bibi first as someone serious and dedicated to her art, uninterested in worldly things or trends, and more interested in expression and the impact she can have on others with her art. Then, she meets Tess, whose whole world is metal. Once the two become enmeshed, we see Bibi revering Tess and her work, equally impressed and hungry for Tess’s work to aid in her own artistic endeavors as well. Once Bibi met Tess and began intertwining their art forms and passions, she became obsessed with the art of body modification. While Tess welded and created her metal monsters, Bibi became one.
I am of the notion that Bibi did this to feel closer to Tess, to try and capture Tess’s heart and to feel as loved by her as the metal work. Bibi spiraled as soon as they began working together. Tess’s quiet passion and talent struck a chord with Bibi, inspiring her while at the same time infuriating her. She wanted what Tess had; the pure enjoyment and passion, the reactions elicited from their audience. She felt stuck in her art; dancing simply did not express wholly enough what Bibi wanted. Bibi wanted to do more, to test the limits, to feel as though she was leaving a mark. And it ate her from the inside out.
Watching Bibi’s descent into madness end in her admittance to a mental hospital felt right. She has done irrevocable damage to her body, and in the act, her psyche. She has become so enmeshed with art that she can no longer find fulfillment anywhere else. She convinces herself that what she’s doing, to herself and to others, is important. She has attached a religious, spiritual meaning to the body mods and violence, which I feel is only to fuel her inspiration. Bibi needed a reason, a real one that people might connect with, for the things she was doing, and eventually she landed on spirituality. She has become obsessed with the modifications to her body and the spiritual meanings she gleans from them.
Bibi, often described abstractly by Tess as a hedgehog, is caged. A hedgehog, prickly on top and soft underneath- this is Tess’s constant view of Bibi, no matter how far she goes. Tess sees Bibi as she first appeared to her; strong and independent, with a softness underneath. And whether that softness is imagined or true, Tess holds onto the image even when Bibi is admitted to the institution. She will always view Bibi as the person that allowed her to experience more, the one who got her to explore things in her art that she would never have considered. She views Bibi as a powerful woman with a soft spot, just for her, and it is this image that I think often leads Tess to make choices concerning Bibi that ultimately end poorly.
Interestingly, there are many moments throughout the story that Tess likens Bibi to other things. At one point, after all the modifications, Tess sees Bibi on stage and describes her pointed face as a gun. I think this shows that even when the hedgehog image is in Tess’s mind, she recognizes the danger that Bibi has become to herself and others. Likening her to such a weapon is also interesting because instead of a knife, which would make sense considering her love of the blade, Bibi is described as a gun. I view guns as much more unpredictable and powerful, and I think that is exactly what Tess thought. She saw Bibi and felt as though anything could happen; that Bibi had the power to shoot at will, and she would.
Bibi’s power and ambition destroyed her, and she pushed herself further and further into a box while believing she was doing the opposite. She committed fully to her new lifestyle and art, refusing to see the issues. And with every piercing and scar, she pushed herself further into the recesses of that community. She was surrounded by people that cut, scarred, and pierced, and it only fueled her delusions. Bibi was careless and reckless, and now she faces the consequences. Once the controller, the powerful figurehead that everyone revered, Bibi’s intensity and power lead her astray, and finally captured, she must submit to the control of the mental hospital.
This book has a lot to say about artists, codependence, and passion. Tess and Bibi are two very different people, and they approach their art in extremely different ways. Tess is subdued and withdrawn; the hermit in the woods focusing on her passion only. Bibi is loud and in control, ambitious to a fault. Combined, they not only become obsessed with their art, but with each other and the intensity of the relationship they share. The two women fuel each other’s madness, and their collaboration ultimately ends in pain for both of them.
I think that showcasing two people with as much artistic passion as they have that become attached to each other in dangerous ways is honestly quite a realistic story. Sure, it’s blown out of proportion to be a thriller, but the notion of a mad artist is a well-known trope. This book allows the audience to watch first-hand a case of art consuming the artist, and I think it is unique in the ways it depicts the descent into passion-driven madness and controlling relationship dynamics.
I truly loved this book and found it incredibly unique and well-written. I absolutely suggest Skin by Kathe Koja to anyone who loves unique prose, gore, and a tortured artist gone insane!
