First off, HOW ARE YOU?? It’s been 29839392833783 years I feel.
Secondly, I was wondering if you had any book recommendations? I love my fanfiction, but I’m trying to get into reading things other than my greatest hyperfixation this year, and I’m honestly a terrible reader and need something to keep my brain occupied 😭😭
I’m asking since I know you’re a writer, and probably know the literature world more than me (feel free to ignore this though)
Also
Dirt🌱🤎🌱
Blare!! Hi!! I'm doing pretty good, work is swinging WILDLY between "crickets" and "everything is happening all at once", but that's just part of being a writer. I'm having fun with it! (I'll explain more about what's going on either later today or tomorrow, I’ve got great news!) How are you doing?
And do I EVER have some recs for you! XD I love gushing about my favorite stories. Fair warning, most of these will be in the MG/YA sci-fi and fantasy space, since that's what I write and read. But I'm also going to put in some of my favorite classics if you're looking to try some of those.
Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls by Kaela Rivera: MG Fantasy. There's a reason this one's at the top of this list. This is (probably) my favorite fiction book. It's got everything: a loveable protagonist, shapeshifters, gladiatorial fights, elemental and soul magic, a desperate quest that pulls at your heartstrings, all set in a world based around Central American folklore. Coyote is amazing. So is Kit. They're all amazing. Plus, it's a trilogy and the author's coming out with a different series this August, so there’s plenty to read! I will include a TW for verbal, emotional, and (brief) physical child abuse outside of the normal "protagonist is in a fight with the bad guy" stuff.
The Magic Thief by Sara Prineas: MG Fantasy. This is a MASTERCLASS in writing first person PoV. The magic system only gets more fascinating as you continue through the series, but even non-fantasy readers will enjoy the characters and their relationships with each other. Conn isn't just hilarious, he's also incredibly talented as both a magician and a thief, which is very fun to read. This is the book I go to most often as a comfort re-read. Just don't read on an empty stomach, or you will wind up baking biscuits at 3 am using the recipe in the back of the book. :) CW for one minor swear near the middle/end section of the book.
Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier: MG Fantasy/Adventure. If you’re looking to go on an impossible journey with the greatest thief who ever lived and his best friend—a cursed knight-cat-horse guy—to start a revolution with an enslaved princess and a whole bunch of ravens, this is the book for you. This is such a unique story, it’s hard to find other books/genres to compare it to. There’s really nothing like it, and it draws you in with a lot of heart while keeping the madcap-adventure vibes. (Anything by Jonathan Auxier is like this, he’s one of my favorite authors—go with Sweep if you want all the feels). TW for child abuse (especially at the beginning) and child labor/enslavement.
The Outlaws Scarlett and Browne by Jonathan Stroud: MG/YA Sci-Fi/Dystopian. Best first page I’ve ever read. I’ve never found a book that comes out swinging so hard from the very first line. If you don’t like dark humor, this isn’t for you, but if you do … this book is hilarious. Plenty of violence, scary moments, and action, so TW for that and some swearing throughout. It’s set in post-apocalyptic (possibly nuclear war?) England where everyone’s just out to survive. A sassy survivalist/thief gets thrown into helping a boy with psychic powers escape the people chasing him. Fun fact: I got introduced to this book by my publisher when we were working on my character dynamics/humor since they saw some similarities between this book’s two main characters and my book’s two MCs!
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness by Andrew Peterson: MG Fantasy. This book is delightfully goofy with a cool premise. A bunch of siblings are forced to run from sentient monsters when they discover they’re the heirs to a kingdom long destroyed. Some fun dystopian vibes with this one, and lots of humor! There’s also some really well-done Christian symbolism, especially in the later books in the series. (Be prepared for a slightly ambiguous ending to the final book, though.)
Any Sherlock Holmes short story or novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: Adult Mystery. This is a great read for anyone looking to get into classic fiction. You don’t have to start at the very first and go through chronologically, but I recommend reading at least a few others before going to The Hound of the Baskervilles to appreciate just how much of a masterpiece it is. TW for some swearing/blasphemy, violence (fistfights, guns) and, of course, murder because most of them are murder mysteries (not normally gory in excess, but you do wind up at crime scenes and see everything that entails, as well as finding out exactly how the criminal did it).
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle: Adult Adventure/Medieval Period Piece. Another great gateway to the classics, especially if you want to improve your reading for older English. Robin Hood isn’t at the same level as Shakespeare, though, so it’s more accessible. And it has good humor, even by modern standards! Possibly a TW for some blasphemy and near-death experiences. Also a frequent re-read for me. (If you want to stop the story at a happy place where everything’s resolved, do not read the last chapter.)
There are so many more I could list, but I’ll stop there. XD What kinds of stories do you like, so I can better refine my recs?
I don’t ordinarily read classic books, I never thought that I would find them entertaining. I ended up buying four classic books on a whim back in the beginning of summer. So far, The Portrait of Dorian Gray has been one of the most fascinating of them.
I wasn’t sure what this book would be about or how the characters from so long ago would act. I found this book delightfully hilarious and the way it is written sure made it feel like a much longer novel. There were many details, but I didn’t care for them all. I loathed the long descriptive chapters where not much happened, but the dialogue is exquisite.
While reading this book, you slowly delve into the mindset of a man who cares not for good, but for pleasure. His twisted mind is something that easily can unsettle a reader. Dorian Gray knows that he looks phenomenal and that his looks can get him out of any perilous situations. He doesn’t mind people thinking him a sinful man, his reputation is in tatters.
When Dorian kills one of his closest friends, Basil Hallward, he seems to have no regrets. He only wants no one to find out about the crime he has committed. He has no sense of morality or righteousness. He is shockingly immune to the fact that he ended the life of Basil, in doing so he has also driven Alan Campbell to suicide and a plethora of others during his life. He thinks that he can get away with anything seeing as his youth is eternal and his beauty is extraordinary.
The portrait of the main character which morphs into a disgusting old man, showing the details Dorian’s sins should have left on his body, is absolutely breath-taking. The whole premise of it is incredible, watching Dorian’s portrait transform from this innocent young man to an elderly man that no one would ever like to see. The fact that Oscar Wilde clearly states that a man’s sins will show on his body is fascinating.
Lord Henry I found to be an absolutely charismatic gentleman who loves to contradict someone and test their patience while pondering the most grotesque facts one can imagine. He always has witty remarks which leave the reader chuckling at such a point of view. He is the one who contributes to the corruption of Dorian Gray, but I wouldn’t go so far as to blame him.
The ending of the novel was cathartic and just gave the reader a sense of satisfaction. Imagining Dorian’s dead body that was old and disgusting, showing the might of the sins he had committed was an immaculate way of closing the novel. It left one with the feeling that the vicious cycle had closed and the world could go back to its wholesome self.
I must admit that I loved this book and it did give me food for thought. Its emphasis on beauty and sinfulness was undeniably captivating, its action was intriguing, and the whole premise was fascinating. I’m glad I read this book and I would recommend it.
Rating: 2/5
Author: Henry James
Publication: October 13th, 1898
Genre: Victorian gothic horror/Hauntings/Psychological thriller
Trigger warnings: Sexual misconduct, sexual abuse, suicide, abuse, child molestation (implication of), child mortality, death, mental health decline, violence
When it was published on the ominous date of the 13th of October, The Turn of the Screw was originally believed to be a ghost story, one which made a fine addition to the enormous collection of ghost stories that arose from the Victorian period. It was only years after its publication, that the public started to wonder if the story was a ghost story, or if it had actually been intended as a psychological thriller, based off the ideas developed by Freud, depicting the effects of repression (both sexual and other) on a young woman’s mind. Were the ghosts real? The public wondered. Or was the governess mad? Frustratingly, we’re left to our own devices to answer these questions, for Henry James never commented on the matter.
The good thing about this novel, was that it was told in a murky (sometimes cluttered) way that made interpretation of the events rather difficult. I was never quite sure which thoughts the governess had that belonged in the story, which related to the apparent ghosts, and which were assumptions she made that could have been true, or could’ve been a false lead into darkness. This telling of the story allowed for the characters to remain estranged in a way that was unnerving. For example, we never even find out the narrater’s name. That narration, alongside its skin-crawling content, didn’t fail to make me shudder throughout.
The bad thing about this novel, is that while it succeeds in being all things creepy, it’s not that scary. The events of the novel are being relayed (in the text) by a young man at a party to his audience in the form of a ghost story that he’d found record of years before. But they aren’t scary, they don’t make you jump. They just make your skin bloody crawl later, when you think over the obvious abuse (both sexual and otherwise) that is implied in the novel, and how these events (as well as the lukewarm care of the governess) impact the children of the novel.
That being said, if you are after a scary re-telling of this tale, I suggest seeing the 2009 BBC adaption of the novella, starring Michelle Dockery. That portrays the entire novel as an obvious ghost-story, and is excellent at making you jump at all the right moments.
To purchase this novella, go to:
Turn of the Screw (Amazon UK)
Turn of the Screw (Amazon US)
Can't get over the fact that a book written in 1891 - The picture of dorian gray - mentions the THE TIMES newspaper. Like IK it's an old newspaper (Itstarted up in like 1785) but seeing such a modern connection is SCARY. YOU'RE TELLING ME THESE CHARACTERS READ THE SAME NEWSPAPER THAT PEOPLE ARE STILL READING CENTURIES LATER?? pls tell me I'm not the only one overwhelmed by this information
