en-US Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:46:07 -0800 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 22836532 224 Amy M. Reade 1601832990 JG (Introverted Reader) 2 3.65 2014
author: Amy M. Reade
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2014
rating: 2
read at: 2019/10/16
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: fiction, no_review, 2_stars, z_read_in_2019, gothic, z_author_american, z_setting_us
review:

]]> 15706286 The Shadow of the Wind, The Angel's Game, and now The Prisoner of Heaven.]]> 36 Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn 0062237047 JG (Introverted Reader) 2 3.77 2012
author: Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2012
rating: 2
read at: 2012/11/19
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: own, translations, short_story, nook, fiction, no_review, z_read_in_2012, 2_stars, z_author_spanish, bibliophiles, historical_fiction, gothic, z_setting_spain
review:

]]> 57536492
In the Republic of Santander, non-Christian magic is frowned upon, if not outright prohibited. But when Cristina Franco, an apprentice shaman, is killed by witch owls, her brother Enrique cannot let her go. With forbidden alchemy and engineering, Enrique brings her back to life: part human, part machine. Though her very existence is an abomination to Santander's citizens, Cristina vows to use her new abilities to protect her country from attack.

With help from a handsome skinwalker named Mateo, Cristina and Enrique track down the witch owl coven and uncover a sinister plot to bring Santander under the rule of the Witch Owl Parliament, whose legendary cruelty would dismantle the country's hard-won freedoms. At the same time, Indigenous folks and immigrants are disappearing from Santander--including Enrique's beloved, Gaspar. Could the attacks and the disappearances be related? As the witch owls attack more trains and more refugees go missing, the trio must uncover the witch owls' origins to understand their weakness.]]> 112 David Bowles 1620145928 JG (Introverted Reader) 3 3.50 2021
author: David Bowles
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/22
date added: 2025/02/09
shelves: fiction, graphic_novels, young_adult, z_author_american, read_in_2025, to_review, 3_stars, fantasy, gothic, historical_fantasy, steampunk, retold_stories
review:

]]> 53117768
Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemi’s dreams with visions of blood and doom.

Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.

And NoemĂ­, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind.]]> 320 Silvia Moreno-Garcia 0525620796 JG (Introverted Reader) 4
Her father calls her home early from a costume party one night and asks her to leave as soon as possible to visit her orphaned cousin, Catalina, whom the family adopted after she lost her parents. Catalina has recently married a relative stranger but Mr. Taboada received a disturbing letter from her that signifies all is not well at her new home. He’s reached out to Catalina’s husband but hasn’t received satisfying responses. He wants Noemí to visit Catalina, assess the situation, and bring her home if necessary.

Full disclosure: I requested Mexican Gothic from the library back in September or October, which is practically the only time of year that I seek out horror and/or Gothic reads. When my turn finally came up in November, I wasn’t necessarily in the mood for this kind of book but I decided to read it anyway and see what all the fuss is about. Had I been in a Gothic mood, I would have enjoyed this more.

I liked Noemí. The bored society girl can be a turnoff for me but Noemí is intelligent and would honestly rather be in classes than at parties. She’s also not selfish and genuinely cares about Catalina as if she were her own sister. When she interacts with people who aren’t in her own social class, she generally treats them with respect rather than as a demanding rich girl. Catalina’s father-in-law is a racist man of English descent who is very obviously interested in eugenics and makes demeaning statements about Noemí’s skin tone and background. She argues about his stances with him and holds her own rather than just meekly submitting to her elders. She keeps pushing for answers even as everyone at this awful house tries to shut her down.

There is a strong Gothic vibe at High Place, the house Catalina now lives in. Florence, Catalina’s sister-in-law/housekeeper, gives off strong malevolent Mrs. Danvers vibes. The three servants never speak. The house is falling apart and covered in mold but it obviously used to be beautiful. A faulty generator is the only source of electricity so mostly everyone wanders around with candles and lamps. No one speaks at meals.

The book builds slowly. Everyone is eccentric but the situation seems straightforward enough when the family doctor explains that Catalina has tuberculosis. As Noemí remains at the house and speaks more with Francis, the only member of the household who will take her seriously, she starts to have more questions. A tuberculosis diagnosis doesn’t explain Catalina’s erratic behavior, nor does it explain Noemí’s growing unease. More odd incidents occur and Noemí starts to have incredibly vivid and disturbing dreams. These dreams (are they dreams?) might be a trigger for some readers. The pace starts to quicken until at the end I was quickly flipping pages to see exactly how this situation was going to resolve itself.

Speaking of resolutions, this one was…odd, in the way that I find Lovecraft’s stories odd. I rolled with it though. While the book is complete in and of itself, I also see room for a sequel. Given the commercial success of Mexican Gothic, I think we can expect one.

Readers who enjoy atmospheric Gothic reads should enjoy this book. It does have some horror elements but they generally weren’t terribly graphic.]]> 3.64 2020
author: Silvia Moreno-Garcia
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2020/11/28
date added: 2024/12/18
shelves: kindle, fiction, z_read_in_2020, 4_stars, gothic, historical_fantasy, horror, z_setting_mexico, z_author_mexican, reviewed
review:
Noemí Taboada is the toast of Mexico City. The beautiful, charming daughter of a wealthy businessman, she’s in demand at every social event. Her parents want her to settle down with a nice young man but she wants to continue her university studies.

Her father calls her home early from a costume party one night and asks her to leave as soon as possible to visit her orphaned cousin, Catalina, whom the family adopted after she lost her parents. Catalina has recently married a relative stranger but Mr. Taboada received a disturbing letter from her that signifies all is not well at her new home. He’s reached out to Catalina’s husband but hasn’t received satisfying responses. He wants Noemí to visit Catalina, assess the situation, and bring her home if necessary.

Full disclosure: I requested Mexican Gothic from the library back in September or October, which is practically the only time of year that I seek out horror and/or Gothic reads. When my turn finally came up in November, I wasn’t necessarily in the mood for this kind of book but I decided to read it anyway and see what all the fuss is about. Had I been in a Gothic mood, I would have enjoyed this more.

I liked Noemí. The bored society girl can be a turnoff for me but Noemí is intelligent and would honestly rather be in classes than at parties. She’s also not selfish and genuinely cares about Catalina as if she were her own sister. When she interacts with people who aren’t in her own social class, she generally treats them with respect rather than as a demanding rich girl. Catalina’s father-in-law is a racist man of English descent who is very obviously interested in eugenics and makes demeaning statements about Noemí’s skin tone and background. She argues about his stances with him and holds her own rather than just meekly submitting to her elders. She keeps pushing for answers even as everyone at this awful house tries to shut her down.

There is a strong Gothic vibe at High Place, the house Catalina now lives in. Florence, Catalina’s sister-in-law/housekeeper, gives off strong malevolent Mrs. Danvers vibes. The three servants never speak. The house is falling apart and covered in mold but it obviously used to be beautiful. A faulty generator is the only source of electricity so mostly everyone wanders around with candles and lamps. No one speaks at meals.

The book builds slowly. Everyone is eccentric but the situation seems straightforward enough when the family doctor explains that Catalina has tuberculosis. As Noemí remains at the house and speaks more with Francis, the only member of the household who will take her seriously, she starts to have more questions. A tuberculosis diagnosis doesn’t explain Catalina’s erratic behavior, nor does it explain Noemí’s growing unease. More odd incidents occur and Noemí starts to have incredibly vivid and disturbing dreams. These dreams (are they dreams?) might be a trigger for some readers. The pace starts to quicken until at the end I was quickly flipping pages to see exactly how this situation was going to resolve itself.

Speaking of resolutions, this one was…odd, in the way that I find Lovecraft’s stories odd. I rolled with it though. While the book is complete in and of itself, I also see room for a sequel. Given the commercial success of Mexican Gothic, I think we can expect one.

Readers who enjoy atmospheric Gothic reads should enjoy this book. It does have some horror elements but they generally weren’t terribly graphic.
]]> 219092378 An essential collection of classic stories that established Flannery O'Connor's reputation as an American master of fiction—now with a new introduction by New York Times bestselling author Lauren Groff.

In 1955, with the title story and others in this critical edition, Flannery O'Connor firmly laid claim to her place as one of the most original and provocative writers of her generation. Steeped in a Southern Gothic tradition that would become synonymous with her name, these stories show O'Connor's unique view of life—infused with religious symbolism, haunted by apocalyptic possibility, sustained by the tragic comedy of human behavior, confronted by the necessity of salvation. These classic stories—including "The Life You Save May Be Your Own," "Good Country People," and "The Displaced Person," among others, are sure to inspire future generations of fans and remind existing readers why she remains a master of the short story.

Includes:

"A Good Man is Hard to Find"

"The River"

"The Life You Save May Be Your Own"

"A Stroke of Good Fortune"

"A Temple of the Holy Ghost"

"The Artificial Nr"

"A Circle in the Fire"

"A Late Encounter with the Enemy"

"Good Country People"

"The Displaced Person"]]> Flannery O'Connor 0358182700 JG (Introverted Reader) 2 2.50 1955
author: Flannery O'Connor
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 2.50
book published: 1955
rating: 2
read at: 2024/09/24
date added: 2024/11/19
shelves: audio, fiction, anthology, banned-challenged, challenge_classics_club, southern_lit, z_author_american, z_setting_us, classics, gothic, z_read_in_2024
review:

]]> 7455508 She's been watching us for a while now...

Now you see her

Gillian is haunted by the disappearance of her little girl two years ago. A devastating fire burned down their home, but she remains convinced her daughter survived.

Now you don't

Ten-year-old Tom lives by a neglected church. Is he the only one who sees the strange, solitary child playing there? And what is she trying to tell him?

Now you run

There's a new vicar in town -- Harry. But menacing events suggest he isn't welcome. What terrible secret is this town hiding?

Sometimes I wish that she'd just leave me in peace.]]> 425 Sharon J. Bolton 0312600518 JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.95 2010
author: Sharon J. Bolton
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/08
shelves: to-read, fiction, gothic, thriller, z_author_british, z_setting_uk, to_find
review:

]]> 18900805 Once again, internationally acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn creates a rich, labyrinthine tale of love, literature, passion, and revenge, set in a dark, gothic Barcelona, in which the heroes of The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game must contend with a nemesis that threatens to destroy them.

Barcelona, 1957. It is Christmas, and Daniel Sempere and his wife Bea have much to celebrate. They have a beautiful new baby son named Julian, and their close friend FermĂ­n Romero de Torres is about to be wed. But their joy is eclipsed when a mysterious stranger visits the Sempere bookshop and threatens to divulge a terrible secret that has been buried for two decades in the city's dark past. His appearance plunges FermĂ­n and Daniel into a dangerous adventure that will take them back to the 1940's and the dark early days of Franco's dictatorship. The terrifying events of that time launch them on a journey fraught with jealousy, suspicion, vengeance, and lies, a search for the truth that will put into peril everything they love and ultimately transform their lives.

Full of intrigue and emotion, The Prisoner of Heaven is a majestic novel in which the threads of The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game converge under the spell of literature and bring us toward the enigma of the mystery hidden at the heart of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a collection of lost treasures known only to its few initiates and the very core of Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn's enchanting fictional world.]]> 293 Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn 0062206303 JG (Introverted Reader) 3 The Angel's Game.

Eh. It was better than The Angel's Game but still a long way from The Shadow of the Wind. I love FermĂ­n, so I enjoyed delving into his story, painful as that was. But the plot felt like filler between books. It feels like there has to be a fourth book in this loose series and The Prisoner of Heaven is just a placeholder. There were some revelations that clarified a few points and set up some definite conflict for future books, but there wasn't enough going on to justify an entire book. At least it was short.

I also missed Ruiz ZafĂłn's gorgeous writing. It didn't even feel like the same author/translator team, although it was. It was just a story, pure and simple. I didn't feel any desire to mark any passages at all. I don't know who fell down on the job here, but it just wasn't up to the standard I've set for this pair.

I'll give The Cemetery of Forgotten Books one more try, but I'm starting to wonder if The Shadow of the Wind was just a fluke. I sincerely hope not.
]]> 4.26 2011
author: Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2011
rating: 3
read at: 2012/11/24
date added: 2024/09/27
shelves: z_read_in_2012, 3_stars, z_author_spanish, bibliophiles, characters_i_love, gothic, z_setting_spain, nook, translations
review:
FermĂ­n Romero de Torres is finally getting married. He's got one problem though--he's living under an assumed name. He has absolutely no proof that he legally exists. How is he supposed to get married without all the paperwork to prove that he is whom he says he is? As he explains this to Daniel Sempere, his history is finally explained in more detail, as well as his tie to David MartĂ­n, hero of The Angel's Game.

Eh. It was better than The Angel's Game but still a long way from The Shadow of the Wind. I love FermĂ­n, so I enjoyed delving into his story, painful as that was. But the plot felt like filler between books. It feels like there has to be a fourth book in this loose series and The Prisoner of Heaven is just a placeholder. There were some revelations that clarified a few points and set up some definite conflict for future books, but there wasn't enough going on to justify an entire book. At least it was short.

I also missed Ruiz ZafĂłn's gorgeous writing. It didn't even feel like the same author/translator team, although it was. It was just a story, pure and simple. I didn't feel any desire to mark any passages at all. I don't know who fell down on the job here, but it just wasn't up to the standard I've set for this pair.

I'll give The Cemetery of Forgotten Books one more try, but I'm starting to wonder if The Shadow of the Wind was just a fluke. I sincerely hope not.

]]> 33134217 Holiday stories and recipes by the New York Times bestselling author of Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?—“otherworldly and wickedly funnyâ€� (°Őłó±đĚýNew York Times Book Review).

For years Jeanette Winterson has loved writing a new story at Christmas time, inspired by the mysteries and traditions of the season. Here she brings together twelve of her funny and bold tales, along with twelve delicious recipes for the Twelve Days of Christmas.

From jovial spirits to a donkey with a golden nose, a haunted house to a SnowMama, Winterson’s original and imaginative stories encompass the childlike and spooky wonder of Christmas. These tales pair perfectly with Winterson’s original recipes, or ones contributed by literary friends including Ruth Rendell, Kathy Acker, and others. Enjoy the season of peace and goodwill, mystery, and a little bit of magic with this “holiday treasure…to be pulled out on a December night, fireside, and read aloudâ€� (°Őłó±đĚýNew York Times Book Review).]]> 240 Jeanette Winterson 0802189741 JG (Introverted Reader) 4 3.86 2016
author: Jeanette Winterson
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2022/12/26
date added: 2024/09/24
shelves: anthology, christmas, nonfiction, fiction, z_read_in_2022, kindle, to_review, 4_stars, fantasy, holiday, lgbtq, magical_realism, gothic, z_author_british, z_setting_us, biography_memoir, cookbooks
review:

]]> 59441651 A dazzling gothic tale of Faustian bargains, jealousy, and murder set in a spectacular circus, where star-crossed lovers' destinies are forged at an unexpected price, for readers ofĚýV. E. Schwabâ€�'s The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue.Ěý

In Victorian London, where traveling sideshows are the very pinnacle of entertainment, there is no more coveted ticket than Ashe and Pretorius'ĚýCarnivale of Curiosities. Each performance is a limited engagement, and London's elite boldly dare the dangerous streets of Southwark to witness the Carnivale's astounding assemblage of marvels. For a select few, however, the real show begins behind the curtain. Rumors abound that the show’s proprietor, Aurelius Ashe, is more than an average magician. It's said that for the right price, he can make any wish come true. No one knows the truth of this claim better than Lucien the Lucifer, the Carnivale's star attraction. Born with the ability to create fire, he's dazzled spectators since he was a boy.

When Odilon Rose, one of the most notorious men in London, comes calling with a proposition regarding his young and beautiful charge, Charlotte, Ashe is tempted to refuse. After revealing, however, that Rose holds a secret that threatens the security of the troupe's most vulnerable members, Ashe has no choice but to sign an insidious contract.
Ěý
The stakes grow higher as Lucien finds himself drawn to Charlotte and her to him, an attraction that spurs a perilous course of events. Grave secrets, recovered horrors, and what it means to be family come to a head in this vividly imagined spectacle—with the lives of all those involved suspended in the balance.]]> 448 Amiee Gibbs 153872393X JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.55 2023
author: Amiee Gibbs
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/29
shelves: to-read, fiction, fantasy, gothic, historical_fantasy, mystery, overdrive_nc, overdrive_pdx, z_author_american, z_setting_uk
review:

]]> 4912857
The whole of Barcelona stretched out at my feet and I wanted to believe that when I opened those windows � my new windows � each evening its streets would whisper stories to me, secrets in my ear, that I could catch on paper and narrate to whomever cared to listen�

In an abandoned mansion at the heart of Barcelona, a young man, David Martin, makes his living by writing sensationalist novels under a pseudonym. The survivor of a troubled childhood, he has taken refuge in the world of books and spends his nights spinning baroque tales about the city’s underworld. But perhaps his dark imaginings are not as strange as they seem, for in a locked room deep within the house lie photographs and letters hinting at the mysterious death of the previous owner.

Like a slow poison, the history of the place seeps into his bones as he struggles with an impossible love. Close to despair, David receives a letter from a reclusive French editor, Andreas Corelli, who makes him the offer of a lifetime. He is to write a book unlike anything that has ever existed � a book with the power to change hearts and minds. In return, he will receive a fortune, and perhaps more. But as David begins the work, he realizes that there is a connection between his haunting book and the shadows that surround his home.

Once again, Zafon takes us into a dark, gothic universe first seen in The Shadow of the Wind and creates a breathtaking adventure of intrigue, romance, and tragedy. Through a dizzyingly constructed labyrinth of secrets, the magic of books, passion, and friendship blend into a masterful story.
(jacket)]]> 531 Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn 0385528701 JG (Introverted Reader) 3
I was rocking through the first half of the book, loving Ruiz ZafĂłn's writing, and then I just stopped caring a little over halfway through. I'm not entirely sure what happened. I think I got sick of having absolutely no freaking idea what was going on. Yeah, I knew who the publisher was, but I didn't know how that was going to tie into everything else. I read this using this really cool post-it-flag bookmark my husband gave me, because I knew that I would probably have tons of quotes I loved in here. The last one is at page 324 out of 531 pages. There's no big event that I can find there, I think that's just where I ran out of patience.

I loved Ruiz ZafĂłn's previous book, The Shadow of the Wind , and I have a feeling that a re-read would bump that one up to five stars. I missed having a FermĂ­n. There wasn't really anyone to give any lightness or grace to the story. It was all darkness and despair. The relationship between David and Isabella gave a few lighter moments, but he ended up hurting her feelings more often than not, so those were pretty limited. This is sort of a companion to Shadow, and I had a hard time figuring out how and when they fit together. I was confused about how this Sempere was consistently described as being shy and sort of boring, when that wasn't the guy I knew from Shadow. This young Sempere is the father in Shadow.

I have to say, my hat is off to the translator, Lucia Graves. She did one heckuva job translating this. The story might have lost me a little, but the writing is still lyrical, and that has to be as much to her credit as to the author's.

Maybe I should have put this aside and tried it again later when I realized that I had started to lose interest. I don't think that would have made a difference though. It's still a dark, Gothic novel that fans of that genre will still probably love. I just preferred The Shadow of the Wind much, much more.]]> 3.94 2008
author: Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2008
rating: 3
read at: 2010/03/07
date added: 2024/06/29
shelves: 3_stars, z_author_spanish, fiction, historical_fiction, z_read_in_2010, reviewed, z_setting_spain, paranormal, translations, thriller, gave_away, gothic, beautifully_written
review:
David MartĂ­n is a writer of penny dreadfuls who is offered a huge sum of money to write a book for a French publisher. He can't find any evidence that the publisher actually exists though, and violent things start happening to David's friends and colleagues.

I was rocking through the first half of the book, loving Ruiz ZafĂłn's writing, and then I just stopped caring a little over halfway through. I'm not entirely sure what happened. I think I got sick of having absolutely no freaking idea what was going on. Yeah, I knew who the publisher was, but I didn't know how that was going to tie into everything else. I read this using this really cool post-it-flag bookmark my husband gave me, because I knew that I would probably have tons of quotes I loved in here. The last one is at page 324 out of 531 pages. There's no big event that I can find there, I think that's just where I ran out of patience.

I loved Ruiz ZafĂłn's previous book, The Shadow of the Wind , and I have a feeling that a re-read would bump that one up to five stars. I missed having a FermĂ­n. There wasn't really anyone to give any lightness or grace to the story. It was all darkness and despair. The relationship between David and Isabella gave a few lighter moments, but he ended up hurting her feelings more often than not, so those were pretty limited. This is sort of a companion to Shadow, and I had a hard time figuring out how and when they fit together. I was confused about how this Sempere was consistently described as being shy and sort of boring, when that wasn't the guy I knew from Shadow. This young Sempere is the father in Shadow.

I have to say, my hat is off to the translator, Lucia Graves. She did one heckuva job translating this. The story might have lost me a little, but the writing is still lyrical, and that has to be as much to her credit as to the author's.

Maybe I should have put this aside and tried it again later when I realized that I had started to lose interest. I don't think that would have made a difference though. It's still a dark, Gothic novel that fans of that genre will still probably love. I just preferred The Shadow of the Wind much, much more.
]]> 6604465
Barcelona, 1945—A great world city lies shrouded in secrets after the war, and a boy mourning the loss of his mother finds solace in his love for an extraordinary book called The Shadow of the Wind, by an author named Julian Carax. When the boy searches for Carax’s other books, it begins to dawn on him, to his horror, that someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book the man has ever written. Soon the boy realizes that The Shadow of the Wind is as dangerous to own as it is impossible to forget, for the mystery of its author’s identity holds the key to an epic story of murder, madness, and doomed love that someone will go to any lengths to keep secret.]]> 487 Carlos Ruiz Zafón JG (Introverted Reader) 4 The Shadow of the Wind by Julián Carax. Daniel falls in love with this exquisitely written book and is puzzled when he find out that very few copies of the book ever sold and that his copy is one of the few still in existence. He sets out to find out more about the author of the book that he loves so much, never dreaming of the secrets he will uncover over the next ten years.

I don't think I've ever read many, if any, books by Spanish authors. So I'm reading along, starting to fall under this book's spell, and I all of a sudden started thinking about the movie "Pan's Labyrinth." Then I started worrying that maybe that brutal kind of sucker punch that happened at the end of the movie was a trademark of Spanish writers in general. And I think that affected the way I read the rest of the book. I think that if I ever go back and re-read it, I will enjoy it more. But this time around, I was afraid to let myself get too attached to anyone. Weird, I know. I wish that hadn't happened.

All in all, this was a really good book. It had that melodramatic feel that I've loved in Jane Eyre and The Thirteenth Tale. There were several twists and turns that grabbed me and almost shouted, "This isn't going where you think it is! Pay attention!" When I could let go of my weird "Pan's Labyrinth" thing, I caught myself wandering through the house, holding the book so I could read it in one hand, and haphazardly doing chores with the other. I used to do that all the time when I was little, but it doesn't happen all that often now.

I didn't feel all that much for most of the characters, but I loved--possibly a tiny SPOILER here--broken, brilliant, valiant FermĂ­n. He tried so hard to overcome what he saw as his weaknesses. He was loyal, he was funny, he was chivalrous. He and Daniel had this whole "Scent of a Woman" thing going on that I loved. Fermin: "The female heart is a labyrinth of subtleties, too challenging for the uncouth mind of the male racketeer. If you really want to possess a woman, you must think like her, and the first thing to do is to win over her soul. The rest, that sweet, soft wrapping that steals away your senses and your virtue, is a bonus." What woman could resist a man like that? Not this one!

The book was pretty dark overall, but there were a few scenes where small kindnesses made all the difference to someone that just broke my heart. Whether it was the wise-cracking beggar breaking down in tears after being given a bath, or the shy boy who asks Daniel to be his friend. Just looking back through those scenes makes my heart ache for the people who just need something so small.

The translator did a great job. A few phrases here and there rang a little false when I read them, but mostly I would never have guessed it was a translation.

I found several quotes that I liked:

"Few things leave a deeper mark on a reader than the first book that finds its way into his heart."

"The moment you stop to think about whether you love someone, you've already stopped loving that person forever."

"What destiny does not do is home visits. You have to go for it."

"Making money isn't hard in itself... What's hard is to earn it doing something worth devoting one's life to."

Someone "says that the art of reading is slowly dying, that it's an intimate ritual, that a book is a mirror that offers us only what we already carry inside us, that when we read, we do it with all our heart and mind, and great readers are becoming more scarce by the day."

I did enjoy this, and I think that readers who like that whole Gothic melodrama style will enjoy it also.]]> 4.26 2001
author: Carlos Ruiz ZafĂłn
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2001
rating: 4
read at: 2009/01/20
date added: 2024/06/29
shelves: own, fiction, z_read_in_2009, translations, reviewed, 4_stars, titles_i_like, z_author_spanish, z_setting_spain, gothic, bibliophiles, magical_realism, beautifully_written
review:
Daniel Sempere's father takes him to The Cemetery of Forgotten Books when he's ten years old. One of the cemetery rules is that on your first visit, you choose a book, take it with you, and protect it forever. Daniel chooses The Shadow of the Wind by Julián Carax. Daniel falls in love with this exquisitely written book and is puzzled when he find out that very few copies of the book ever sold and that his copy is one of the few still in existence. He sets out to find out more about the author of the book that he loves so much, never dreaming of the secrets he will uncover over the next ten years.

I don't think I've ever read many, if any, books by Spanish authors. So I'm reading along, starting to fall under this book's spell, and I all of a sudden started thinking about the movie "Pan's Labyrinth." Then I started worrying that maybe that brutal kind of sucker punch that happened at the end of the movie was a trademark of Spanish writers in general. And I think that affected the way I read the rest of the book. I think that if I ever go back and re-read it, I will enjoy it more. But this time around, I was afraid to let myself get too attached to anyone. Weird, I know. I wish that hadn't happened.

All in all, this was a really good book. It had that melodramatic feel that I've loved in Jane Eyre and The Thirteenth Tale. There were several twists and turns that grabbed me and almost shouted, "This isn't going where you think it is! Pay attention!" When I could let go of my weird "Pan's Labyrinth" thing, I caught myself wandering through the house, holding the book so I could read it in one hand, and haphazardly doing chores with the other. I used to do that all the time when I was little, but it doesn't happen all that often now.

I didn't feel all that much for most of the characters, but I loved--possibly a tiny SPOILER here--broken, brilliant, valiant FermĂ­n. He tried so hard to overcome what he saw as his weaknesses. He was loyal, he was funny, he was chivalrous. He and Daniel had this whole "Scent of a Woman" thing going on that I loved. Fermin: "The female heart is a labyrinth of subtleties, too challenging for the uncouth mind of the male racketeer. If you really want to possess a woman, you must think like her, and the first thing to do is to win over her soul. The rest, that sweet, soft wrapping that steals away your senses and your virtue, is a bonus." What woman could resist a man like that? Not this one!

The book was pretty dark overall, but there were a few scenes where small kindnesses made all the difference to someone that just broke my heart. Whether it was the wise-cracking beggar breaking down in tears after being given a bath, or the shy boy who asks Daniel to be his friend. Just looking back through those scenes makes my heart ache for the people who just need something so small.

The translator did a great job. A few phrases here and there rang a little false when I read them, but mostly I would never have guessed it was a translation.

I found several quotes that I liked:

"Few things leave a deeper mark on a reader than the first book that finds its way into his heart."

"The moment you stop to think about whether you love someone, you've already stopped loving that person forever."

"What destiny does not do is home visits. You have to go for it."

"Making money isn't hard in itself... What's hard is to earn it doing something worth devoting one's life to."

Someone "says that the art of reading is slowly dying, that it's an intimate ritual, that a book is a mirror that offers us only what we already carry inside us, that when we read, we do it with all our heart and mind, and great readers are becoming more scarce by the day."

I did enjoy this, and I think that readers who like that whole Gothic melodrama style will enjoy it also.
]]> 42766858 Get swept away in Erin A. Craig's mesmerizing House of Salt and Sorrows. As one by one her beautiful sisters mysteriously die on their isolated island estate, Annaleigh must unravel the curse that haunts her family. Be careful who you dance with. . . .

Four of Annaleigh Thaumas's eleven sisters have returned to the Salt, the brackish water that surrounds their lonely island home, their lives cut short, each more tragically than the last. Whispers throughout the Highmoor estate say the girls have been cursed by the gods.

When Annaleigh finds out that her sisters have been sneaking out to attend glittering midnight balls and dance until dawn, she's not sure whether to stop them--or join them. And when she begins to see a series of horrific, ghostly visions and more sisters die, she realizes she must solve the mystery--with the help of Cassius, a sea captain who knows much more about her than he should--and unravel the Thaumas curse before she descends into madness or . . . it claims her next.]]> 406 Erin A. Craig 1984831941 JG (Introverted Reader) 4 3.98 2019
author: Erin A. Craig
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2022/11/02
date added: 2024/06/27
shelves: fantasy, fiction, fairy_or_folk_tale, retold_stories, z_author_american, gothic, kindle, z_read_in_2022, to_review, 4_stars, young_adult
review:

]]> 40725252
During a walk through the local church yard, Edmund spots an eye in the undergrowth. His terror is only briefly abated when he discovers it's actually a painting, a 'doom', taken from the church. It's horrifying in its depiction of hell, and Edmund wants nothing more to do with it despite his historical significance. But the doom keeps returning to his mind. The stench of the Fen permeates the house, even with the windows closed. And when he lies awake at night, he hears a scratching sound � like claws on the wooden floor...

Wakenhyrst is a terrifying ghost story, an atmospheric slice of gothic, a brilliant exploration of the boundaries between the real and the supernatural, and a descent into the mind of a psychopath.]]> 359 Michelle Paver 1788549562 JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.82 2019
author: Michelle Paver
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/06/03
shelves: to-read, fiction, gothic, z_setting_uk, z_author_british, historical_fiction, overdrive_pdx
review:

]]> 40019792 315 Daphne du Maurier JG (Introverted Reader) 4 3.95 1936
author: Daphne du Maurier
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1936
rating: 4
read at: 2023/11/30
date added: 2023/12/05
shelves: fiction, gothic, classics, z_author_british, z_setting_uk, z_read_in_2023, to_review, 4_stars, historical_fiction, gave_away
review:

]]> 15799400 Ěý
The Resurrectionist offers two extraordinary books in one. The first is a fictional biography of Dr. Spencer Black, from a childhood spent exhuming corpses through his medical training, his travels with carnivals, and the mysterious disappearance at the end of his life. The second book is Black’s magnum opus: The Codex Extinct Animalia, a Gray’s Anatomy for mythological beasts—dragons, centaurs, Pegasus, Cerberus—all rendered in meticulously detailed anatomical illustrations. You need only look at these images to realize they are the work of a madman. The Resurrectionist tells his story.]]> 208 E.B. Hudspeth 1594746168 JG (Introverted Reader) 4
I want to give this 5 stars, I really do. I gravitate more toward words than pictures though and the story in this book was not quite as strong as the art. I feel like I fumbled through my synopsis but that's because I was never entirely clear what Dr. Black was supposed to be trying to do with his work. It was a bit awkward and flimsy but I was mostly able to let it go because I knew there had to be a payoff in the illustrations.

There were some genuinely creepy moments though. The part where Dr. Black's wife and brother find out what he's up to left me worried that I wouldn't be sleeping that night. It was that disturbing. It had a Frankenstein feel to it without Victor Frankenstein's histrionics and hysterics so I really liked that aspect as well.

The last--oh, let's call it 2/3--of the book were gorgeous anatomical illustrations of mythical creatures. I tried hard to take my time through them and look at them closely and fully appreciate them. I can sometimes tear way too fast through pictures in a book.

These were genuine works of art. I was amazed at the amount of detail that went into them. I was left wondering if the author was a science illustrator as well. My favorite drawings were of the mermaids. They were just gorgeous. He has put a lot of thought into how these beings would actually work. The minotaur has a tremendous support system holding that big bull head up. The mermaids have dorsal fins to help them stay oriented correctly in the water. I could go on, but I won't.

There's a part of me that wishes the illustrations were in color. Not necessarily the anatomical drawings, but definitely the full rendering. They're amazing either way though.

I also loved the scientific names he came up with. From the fairly obvious Sirenus oceanus for mermaids to the more subtle but pleasing Pegasus gorgonus, I loved all of the ones that I understood....

I just googled all of the ones that I didn't immediately understand and they are all perfect. It's a small, nerdy thing but it appeals to me.

Lovers of mythology and fantastical creatures should adore this book. I intend to put it out in October as my spooky coffee table book. I'll probably reference it when I come across these beings in my other reading as well. It is definitely a book to be dipped into again and again.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy for review!]]> 3.60 2013
author: E.B. Hudspeth
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2013/05/12
date added: 2023/05/09
shelves: fiction, received_for_review, z_read_in_2013, reviewed, 4_stars, z_author_american, covers_i_like, gothic, historical_fantasy, own, z_setting_us, mythology, visual_media
review:
Dr. Spencer Black was a brilliant doctor whose career was derailed by an obsession with mythological creatures. He believed that anatomical deformities were not so much mutations as throwbacks to earlier days in the evolutionary timeline. He believed he could prove this by recreating creatures from fable and myth. If he could make them viable, they must have existed, right? He left behind a body of work that is incredible for its detail of beings that have only been seen in imagination--for centuries anyway, if Dr. Black's theory is correct.

I want to give this 5 stars, I really do. I gravitate more toward words than pictures though and the story in this book was not quite as strong as the art. I feel like I fumbled through my synopsis but that's because I was never entirely clear what Dr. Black was supposed to be trying to do with his work. It was a bit awkward and flimsy but I was mostly able to let it go because I knew there had to be a payoff in the illustrations.

There were some genuinely creepy moments though. The part where Dr. Black's wife and brother find out what he's up to left me worried that I wouldn't be sleeping that night. It was that disturbing. It had a Frankenstein feel to it without Victor Frankenstein's histrionics and hysterics so I really liked that aspect as well.

The last--oh, let's call it 2/3--of the book were gorgeous anatomical illustrations of mythical creatures. I tried hard to take my time through them and look at them closely and fully appreciate them. I can sometimes tear way too fast through pictures in a book.

These were genuine works of art. I was amazed at the amount of detail that went into them. I was left wondering if the author was a science illustrator as well. My favorite drawings were of the mermaids. They were just gorgeous. He has put a lot of thought into how these beings would actually work. The minotaur has a tremendous support system holding that big bull head up. The mermaids have dorsal fins to help them stay oriented correctly in the water. I could go on, but I won't.

There's a part of me that wishes the illustrations were in color. Not necessarily the anatomical drawings, but definitely the full rendering. They're amazing either way though.

I also loved the scientific names he came up with. From the fairly obvious Sirenus oceanus for mermaids to the more subtle but pleasing Pegasus gorgonus, I loved all of the ones that I understood....

I just googled all of the ones that I didn't immediately understand and they are all perfect. It's a small, nerdy thing but it appeals to me.

Lovers of mythology and fantastical creatures should adore this book. I intend to put it out in October as my spooky coffee table book. I'll probably reference it when I come across these beings in my other reading as well. It is definitely a book to be dipped into again and again.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy for review!
]]> 18869987
Collecting five stories of mystery and slow, creeping horror, Daphne Du Maurier's Don't Look Now and Other Stories showcases her unique blend of sympathy and spinetingling suspense.]]> 214 Daphne du Maurier 0316253642 JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.84 1971
author: Daphne du Maurier
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.84
book published: 1971
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/02/26
shelves: to-read, audio, to_find, z_author_british, anthology, fiction, classics, gothic
review:

]]> 308621
Weeks go by at Lydstep with little to mark the passage of time beyond John's daily walks and the amusingly provincial happenings that engross the Cosway women, and Kerstin occupies her many free hours at the Hall reading or making entries into her diary. Meanwhile, bitter wrangling among Julia Cosway and her four grown daughters becomes increasingly evident. But this is just the most obvious of the tensions that charge the old remote estate, with its sealed rooms full of mystery. Soon Kerstin will find herself in possession of knowledge she will wish she'd never attained, secrets that will propel the occupants of Lydstep Old Hall headlong into sexual obsession, betrayal, and, finally, murder.]]> 341 Barbara Vine 0307237605 JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.61 2005
author: Barbara Vine
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.61
book published: 2005
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2022/11/03
shelves: to-read, fiction, gothic, overdrive_pdx
review:

]]> 49571036
A ravenous reader and researcher, Tillie has something of an addiction to truth, and she won’t rest until she unravels the mystery of her sister’s death. Unfortunately, Tillie’s addicted to more than just truth; to ease the pain from a recent injury, she’s taking more and more laudanum…and some in her immediate circle are happy to keep her well supplied.

Tillie can’t bring herself to believe vampires exist. But with the hysteria surrounding her sister’s death, the continued vampiric slayings, and the opium swirling through her body, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for a girl who relies on facts and figures to know what’s real—or whether she can trust those closest to her.]]> 379 Lydia Kang 1542017793 JG (Introverted Reader) 3 3.83 2020
author: Lydia Kang
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2021/06/07
date added: 2021/06/18
shelves: kindle, fiction, z_read_in_2021, to_review, 3_stars, gothic, historical_fiction, mystery, young_adult, z_author_american, z_setting_us
review:

]]> 6987425 6 Shirley Jackson 0787123579 JG (Introverted Reader) 3
2.5 stars

I think this might have been ruined for me by the narrator, David Warner. The book is in third person, but is told from Eleanor's point of view. Why on earth did someone choose to have a man narrate? For the right book, he would be fine, and he did what he could with this. An older man with a deep voice is just not the right person to lead us down Eleanor's thoughts when she's so very--weak, maybe? No, uncertain is the better word. She's uncertain of her place in the world, in the house, in the group. She's also a dreamer who has a tenuous grasp on reality at best. The narrator definitely needed to be a young woman.

Eleanor herself is something else. Her thoughts get to be a little disturbing. She's definitely an unreliable sort-of-narrator. I never really knew what was happening in the real world and what was only happening in her head. For that matter, I never knew what she was actually doing.

Aside from that, I think I expected more of a horror angle. Sure, the house does get up to some crazy things, but nothing as bad as what I expected. I don't feel like there was a very good reason for all the previous renters to leave after one night. But then I'm not actually in the house, am I?

The retainers were probably the freakiest things about the house. The old man was downright scary when Eleanor first encounters him!

I'm not sure what I expected at the end, but it wasn't what I got. I just sat in the car and blinked for a few minutes after it ended. It definitely made sense, but wow. Unexpected.

Read this if you're in the mood for something that's walking the line between gothic and horror. Just don't listen to the version narrated by David Warner.]]> 3.39 1959
author: Shirley Jackson
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.39
book published: 1959
rating: 3
read at: 2011/10/26
date added: 2021/05/12
shelves: audio, z_read_in_2011, fiction, reviewed, 3_stars, on_the_screen, z_author_american, classics, gothic, paranormal
review:
Dr. Montague, a researcher into paranormal activity, has rented the fabled Hill House for the summer. The house has a reputation for being haunted. Very few people have managed to stay in it for more than a night. In order to sort of help the house do its worst, he invites people to stay with him who have had paranormal experiences. The only two who take him up on his offer are Theodora and Eleanor. Luke, the future heir to the house, also comes along. It does not take long for the house to show what it's made of.

2.5 stars

I think this might have been ruined for me by the narrator, David Warner. The book is in third person, but is told from Eleanor's point of view. Why on earth did someone choose to have a man narrate? For the right book, he would be fine, and he did what he could with this. An older man with a deep voice is just not the right person to lead us down Eleanor's thoughts when she's so very--weak, maybe? No, uncertain is the better word. She's uncertain of her place in the world, in the house, in the group. She's also a dreamer who has a tenuous grasp on reality at best. The narrator definitely needed to be a young woman.

Eleanor herself is something else. Her thoughts get to be a little disturbing. She's definitely an unreliable sort-of-narrator. I never really knew what was happening in the real world and what was only happening in her head. For that matter, I never knew what she was actually doing.

Aside from that, I think I expected more of a horror angle. Sure, the house does get up to some crazy things, but nothing as bad as what I expected. I don't feel like there was a very good reason for all the previous renters to leave after one night. But then I'm not actually in the house, am I?

The retainers were probably the freakiest things about the house. The old man was downright scary when Eleanor first encounters him!

I'm not sure what I expected at the end, but it wasn't what I got. I just sat in the car and blinked for a few minutes after it ended. It definitely made sense, but wow. Unexpected.

Read this if you're in the mood for something that's walking the line between gothic and horror. Just don't listen to the version narrated by David Warner.
]]> 40440
The enigmatic Winter has spent six decades creating various outlandish life histories for herself -- all of them inventions that have brought her fame and fortune but have kept her violent and tragic past a secret. Now old and ailing, she at last wants to tell the truth about her extraordinary life. She summons biographer Margaret Lea, a young woman for whom the secret of her own birth, hidden by those who loved her most, remains an ever-present pain. Struck by a curious parallel between Miss Winter's story and her own, Margaret takes on the commission.

As Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good, Margaret is mesmerized. It is a tale of gothic strangeness featuring the Angelfield family, including the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline, a ghost, a governess, a topiary garden and a devastating fire.

Margaret succumbs to the power of Vida's storytelling but remains suspicious of the author's sincerity. She demands the truth from Vida, and together they confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming, finally, transformed by the truth themselves.

The Thirteenth Tale is a love letter to reading, a book for the feral reader in all of us, a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and that we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter and, in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life.]]> 406 Diane Setterfield 0743298020 JG (Introverted Reader) 5
I loved this! It has a very dark, gothic feel to it that reminded me of both Jane Eyre and Rebecca. Vida's story is full of twists and turns and is a delight to read. If you like the Bronte sisters, pick this one up. It's perfect for a dark and stormy day.]]> 3.96 2006
author: Diane Setterfield
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2008/10/22
date added: 2021/04/28
shelves: fiction, z_read_in_2008, reviewed, 5_stars, z_setting_uk, z_author_british, gothic, historical_fiction
review:
Vida Winter is called the Charles Dickens of her age. No one has ever been able to find out the story of her life. Any reporter who tries gets a beautiful story, but still, it's only a story. But now Vida is old and sick and she must share her story with the world. She chooses Margarate Lea, amateur biographer, to write the final story that everyone has been waiting for.

I loved this! It has a very dark, gothic feel to it that reminded me of both Jane Eyre and Rebecca. Vida's story is full of twists and turns and is a delight to read. If you like the Bronte sisters, pick this one up. It's perfect for a dark and stormy day.
]]> 144852 Jane Eyre. One hundred fifty years later, Clare Boylan has finished Brontë's novel, sparking a sensational literary event. With pitch-perfect tone that is utterly true to Brontë's voice, Boylan delivers a brilliant tale about a mysterious young girl, Matilda, who is delivered to a girls' school in provincial England. When everything about the girl's wealthy background turns out to be a fiction, it falls to a local gentleman, Mr. Ellin, and a childless widow, Isabel Chalfont, to begin a quest for her past and her identity that takes them from the drawing rooms of country society to London's seamiest alleys. With all the intelligence and pathos of the novel's originator, Boylan develops Brontë's sketch of a girl without a past into a stunning portrait of Victorian society with a shameful secret at its heart.]]> 437 Clare Boylan 0143034839 JG (Introverted Reader) 3
I have to say that this novel stayed true to the whole Gothic, melodramatic feel that I associate with the Brontës. There were all kinds of improbable twists, turns, loops, and coincidences. Boylan was much more explicit than Charlotte Brontë could have been. Not that she was explicit, it just seems that some things weren't referred to, even obliquely, in those times. I did pick out where Charlotte left off and Boylan took over, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well it did all fit together.

There were a lot of chapters covering the back stories of the supporting characters. They were absolutely necessary, but since I didn't know that until the end, I was mostly frustrated and wishing I could get on with the "real" story.

I would have rated this a little higher if I could have liked Emma a little better. But I really, really didn't like her. She was all "Woe is me!" and "All is ashes." She kept going though, through all her troubles, so I had to admire her for that, but would a smile really have killed her? And her world view was stark black and white. She did not see or acknowledge any shade of gray. She was very unforgiving and intolerant. If this character had been written in Jane Eyre's place, she would never have forgiven Mr. Rochester for lying about his marriage and that would have been the end of that.

But I did like Isabel Chalfont. Her life was never easy either, but she made the best of it, learned what she could, found happiness where she could, and tried not to dwell too much on things she couldn't change.

I think fans of the Brontës, who have read all their work and wish they could read more, will actually like this. Just don't expect anything other than doom and gloom from Emma.]]> 3.64 2003
author: Clare Boylan
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2003
rating: 3
read at: 2009/07/29
date added: 2021/04/24
shelves: 3_stars, historical_fiction, fiction, z_read_in_2009, reviewed, z_setting_uk, z_author_irish, gothic
review:
When Charlotte Brontë died, she left 20 pages of a novel behind. Clare Boylan decided to finish it. A little girl is enrolled in a private girls' academy. She is shy and reclusive, but the headmistresses make much of her because it's obvious that her benefactor has money. Trouble arises when her benefactor can't be found and the girl can't--or won't--tell anyone anything about herself.

I have to say that this novel stayed true to the whole Gothic, melodramatic feel that I associate with the Brontës. There were all kinds of improbable twists, turns, loops, and coincidences. Boylan was much more explicit than Charlotte Brontë could have been. Not that she was explicit, it just seems that some things weren't referred to, even obliquely, in those times. I did pick out where Charlotte left off and Boylan took over, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well it did all fit together.

There were a lot of chapters covering the back stories of the supporting characters. They were absolutely necessary, but since I didn't know that until the end, I was mostly frustrated and wishing I could get on with the "real" story.

I would have rated this a little higher if I could have liked Emma a little better. But I really, really didn't like her. She was all "Woe is me!" and "All is ashes." She kept going though, through all her troubles, so I had to admire her for that, but would a smile really have killed her? And her world view was stark black and white. She did not see or acknowledge any shade of gray. She was very unforgiving and intolerant. If this character had been written in Jane Eyre's place, she would never have forgiven Mr. Rochester for lying about his marriage and that would have been the end of that.

But I did like Isabel Chalfont. Her life was never easy either, but she made the best of it, learned what she could, found happiness where she could, and tried not to dwell too much on things she couldn't change.

I think fans of the Brontës, who have read all their work and wish they could read more, will actually like this. Just don't expect anything other than doom and gloom from Emma.
]]> 8675320 167 Susan Hill 1846682363 JG (Introverted Reader) 3
Eh. This was more Gothic than horror so I feel that it was too short to really work up some good suspense. Gothic novels are such a slow burn that they almost have to be chunksters to really pull me in and get my nerves on edge. At less than 200 pages, the events of this book happen relatively quickly and feel rushed and even a little obvious. The basic premise is very solid though and I think I would have enjoyed a longer book much more than I did this one.

Being so short, it is worth a try if you're interested or if you're in the mood for a little Gothic fun though.]]> 3.44 2010
author: Susan Hill
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.44
book published: 2010
rating: 3
read at: 2013/10/30
date added: 2021/04/22
shelves: fiction, own, gothic, z_read_in_2013, reviewed, 3_stars, z_author_british, covers_i_like, z_setting_uk, paranormal
review:
Adam Snow gets lost in the countryside on a drive back to London one evening and finds himself at a derelict house. He gets out of the car to look around and feels a small hand slip into his. There's no one else there. He takes the memory of the hand with him and remembers it as a comforting presence. But then he starts to have panic attacks, near misses, and inexplicable urges to harm himself. The small hand obviously does not bear him good will.

Eh. This was more Gothic than horror so I feel that it was too short to really work up some good suspense. Gothic novels are such a slow burn that they almost have to be chunksters to really pull me in and get my nerves on edge. At less than 200 pages, the events of this book happen relatively quickly and feel rushed and even a little obvious. The basic premise is very solid though and I think I would have enjoyed a longer book much more than I did this one.

Being so short, it is worth a try if you're interested or if you're in the mood for a little Gothic fun though.
]]> 55462582 From the acclaimed and award-winning author of The Hunger comes an eerie, psychological twist on one of the world's most renowned tragedies, the sinking of the Titanic and the ill-fated sail of its sister ship, the Britannic.

Someone, or something, is haunting the ship. Between mysterious disappearances and sudden deaths, the guests of the Titanic have found themselves suspended in an eerie, unsettling twilight zone from the moment they set sail. Several of them, including maid Annie Hebley, guest Mark Fletcher, and millionaires Madeleine Astor and Benjamin Guggenheim, are convinced there's something sinister—almost otherwordly—afoot. But before they can locate the source of the danger, as the world knows, disaster strikes.

Years later, Annie, having survived that fateful night, has attempted to put her life back together. Working as a nurse on the sixth voyage of the Titanic's sister ship, the Britannic, newly refitted as a hospital ship, she happens across an unconscious Mark, now a soldier fighting in World War I. At first, Annie is thrilled and relieved to learn that he too survived the sinking, but soon, Mark's presence awakens deep-buried feelings and secrets, forcing her to reckon with the demons of her past—as they both discover that the terror may not yet be over.

Brilliantly combining the supernatural with the height of historical disaster, The Deep is an exploration of love and destiny, desire and innocence, and, above all, a quest to understand how our choices can lead us inexorably toward our doom.]]> 13 Alma Katsu 0593164083 JG (Introverted Reader) 3 Titanic. When passengers begin boarding the ship in Southampton, she’s oddly drawn to the Fletcher family–Mark, Caroline, and baby Ondine. Strange things begin happening aboard ship and passengers begin to spread rumors of thieves stealing jewelry from state rooms as well as rumors of a spirit haunting the brand-new vessel.

Four years later, Annie leaves the mental institution where she’s been living ever since the sinking. She’s not exactly a patient and not exactly staff. She’s essentially a boarder. Her friend Violet, who also survived the Titanic, has written and begged her to come work as a World War I nurse aboard the Titanic’s sister ship, the Brittanic. The doctor at the asylum urges Annie to go live a normal life so she does. But memories start racing back to her as soon as she boards the Brittanic. What exactly happened all those years ago aboard the Titanic?

I liked this well enough. The juxtaposition of the Titanic and the paranormal elements was done well. I was never entirely sure what was going on, although I did have all the pieces pretty early in the story. It is refreshing when I can’t quite put everything together.

My biggest quibble is that the story could have been tightened up a lot. There are so many characters! Annie is the main character but there are also chapters written from the points of view of Madeleine Astor, Madeleine’s servant boy, Mark Fletcher, Caroline Fletcher, W. T. Stead, Lady Duff-Gordon, and Dai Bowen on the Titanic and Charlie Epping aboard the Brittanic. There may have been more. I do see how most of these contributed to the larger work, but I honestly don’t know what Madeleine, Dai, Lady Duff-Gordon, and Charlie added. They each had their own tiny story that didn’t contribute much of value to the main plot. It made the book feel a bit rambling to me.

I quickly realized that Annie is an unreliable narrator. I’m not quite sure how I feel about those. Done well, they lead to some huge, surprising plot twists. Otherwise, I think they irritate me. Annie was a bit more of the latter. She came across as one of those girls who falls in love with every male she meets. There are reasons, I’ll grant her that. But those girls have always annoyed me, whether in fiction or in real life. Other readers will tolerate that kind of thing better than I do.

The ending? It came across as bizarre and overly melodramatic. Annie’s unreliability did make it a bit surprising. I don’t want to say more. I can’t think of a better way to meld this story with actual history though.

Jane Collingwood did an excellent job with the narration; I’ll seek out other books she reads. She had a wide gamut of accents to tackle–from Irish to English and American to Welsh with first- and third-class variants as well–and she handled them admirably.

If you’re looking for a spooky, atmospheric read, I do recommend this despite some problems I personally had with the book. Readers who enjoy all things Titanic should especially like it.]]> 2.98 2020
author: Alma Katsu
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 2.98
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2020/10/03
date added: 2020/11/19
shelves: audio, fiction, z_read_in_2020, gothic, historical_fiction, narrators_i_like, paranormal, world_war, z_setting_uk, z_author_american, 3_stars, reviewed
review:
Annie Hebley is a good Irish girl who accepts a job working as a stewardess in the first-class rooms aboard the Titanic. When passengers begin boarding the ship in Southampton, she’s oddly drawn to the Fletcher family–Mark, Caroline, and baby Ondine. Strange things begin happening aboard ship and passengers begin to spread rumors of thieves stealing jewelry from state rooms as well as rumors of a spirit haunting the brand-new vessel.

Four years later, Annie leaves the mental institution where she’s been living ever since the sinking. She’s not exactly a patient and not exactly staff. She’s essentially a boarder. Her friend Violet, who also survived the Titanic, has written and begged her to come work as a World War I nurse aboard the Titanic’s sister ship, the Brittanic. The doctor at the asylum urges Annie to go live a normal life so she does. But memories start racing back to her as soon as she boards the Brittanic. What exactly happened all those years ago aboard the Titanic?

I liked this well enough. The juxtaposition of the Titanic and the paranormal elements was done well. I was never entirely sure what was going on, although I did have all the pieces pretty early in the story. It is refreshing when I can’t quite put everything together.

My biggest quibble is that the story could have been tightened up a lot. There are so many characters! Annie is the main character but there are also chapters written from the points of view of Madeleine Astor, Madeleine’s servant boy, Mark Fletcher, Caroline Fletcher, W. T. Stead, Lady Duff-Gordon, and Dai Bowen on the Titanic and Charlie Epping aboard the Brittanic. There may have been more. I do see how most of these contributed to the larger work, but I honestly don’t know what Madeleine, Dai, Lady Duff-Gordon, and Charlie added. They each had their own tiny story that didn’t contribute much of value to the main plot. It made the book feel a bit rambling to me.

I quickly realized that Annie is an unreliable narrator. I’m not quite sure how I feel about those. Done well, they lead to some huge, surprising plot twists. Otherwise, I think they irritate me. Annie was a bit more of the latter. She came across as one of those girls who falls in love with every male she meets. There are reasons, I’ll grant her that. But those girls have always annoyed me, whether in fiction or in real life. Other readers will tolerate that kind of thing better than I do.

The ending? It came across as bizarre and overly melodramatic. Annie’s unreliability did make it a bit surprising. I don’t want to say more. I can’t think of a better way to meld this story with actual history though.

Jane Collingwood did an excellent job with the narration; I’ll seek out other books she reads. She had a wide gamut of accents to tackle–from Irish to English and American to Welsh with first- and third-class variants as well–and she handled them admirably.

If you’re looking for a spooky, atmospheric read, I do recommend this despite some problems I personally had with the book. Readers who enjoy all things Titanic should especially like it.
]]> 1450974 188 Mary Stewart 0688084257 JG (Introverted Reader) 5 4.00 1988
author: Mary Stewart
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1988
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2020/11/12
shelves: fantasy, fiction, womens_fiction, re-reads, 5_stars, gothic, z_author_british, z_setting_uk
review:

]]> 17724712
The October Country is many places: a picturesque Mexican village where death is a tourist attraction; a city beneath the city where drowned lovers are silently reunited; a carnival midway where a tiny man's most cherished fantasy can be fulfilled night after night. The October Country's inhabitants live, dream, work, die--and sometimes live again--discovering, often too late, the high price of citizenship. Here a glass jar can hold memories and nightmares; a woman's newborn child can plot murder; and a man's skeleton can war against him. Here there is no escaping the dark stranger who lives upstairs...or the reaper who wields the world. Each of these stories is a wonder, imagined by an acclaimed tale-teller writing from a place shadows. But there is astonishing beauty in these shadows, born from a prose that enchants and enthralls. Ray Bradbury's The October Country is a land of metaphors that can chill like a long-after-midnight wind...as they lift the reader high above a sleeping Earth on the strange wings of Uncle Einar.]]> 352 Ray Bradbury 0062242253 JG (Introverted Reader) 3 3.95 1955
author: Ray Bradbury
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1955
rating: 3
read at: 2020/11/08
date added: 2020/11/12
shelves: kindle, anthology, z_setting_us, z_author_american, fiction, z_read_in_2020, to_review, 3_stars, fantasy, gothic, horror, paranormal, science_fiction, titles_i_like
review:

]]> 45174090
First he inherits a bookstore in Providence from someone he's never heard of, along with an indignant bookseller who doesn't want a new boss. She's Emily Lovecraft, the last known descendant of H.P. Lovecraft, the writer from Providence who told tales of the Great Old Ones and the Elder Gods, creatures and entities beyond the understanding of man.

Then people start dying in impossible ways, and while Carter doesn't want to be involved, he's beginning to suspect that someone else wants him to be. As Carter reluctantly investigates, he discovers that H. P. Lovecraft's tales were more than just fiction, and he must accept another unexpected, and far more unwanted, inheritance.]]> 8 Jonathan L. Howard 1427276897 JG (Introverted Reader) 4 3.53 2015
author: Jonathan L. Howard
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.53
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2019/11/06
date added: 2019/11/06
shelves: audio, fiction, no_review, z_read_in_2019, 4_stars, covers_i_like, z_setting_us, gothic, z_author_british
review:

]]> 25615042 For fans of Kate Morton and Sarah Waters, here’sĚýa magnetic debut novel of wrenching family secrets, forbidden love, and heartbreaking loss housed within the grand gothic manor of Black Rabbit Hall.

Ghosts are everywhere, not just the ghost of Momma in the woods, but ghosts of usĚýtoo, what we used to be like in those long summers . . .

Amber Alton knows that the hours pass differently at Black Rabbit Hall, her London family’s country estate, where no two clocks read the same. Summers there are perfect, timeless. Not much ever happens. Until, of course, it does.

More than three decades later, Lorna is determined to be married within the grand, ivy-covered walls of Pencraw Hall, known as Black Rabbit Hall among the locals. But as she’s drawn deeper into the overgrown grounds, half-buried memories of her mother begin to surface and Lorna soon finds herself ensnared within the manor’s labyrinthine history, overcome with an insatiable need for answers about her own past and that of the once-happy family whose memory still haunts the estate.

Stunning and atmospheric, this debut novel is a thrilling spiral into the hearts of two women separated by decades but inescapably linked by the dark and tangled secrets of Black Rabbit Hall.


From the Hardcover edition.]]> Eve Chase 014752489X JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.62 2015
author: Eve Chase
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2017/05/23
date added: 2017/05/23
shelves: fiction, audio, gothic, no_review, z_read_in_2017
review:

]]> 30075444 A contemporary gothic from an author in the company of Kelly Link and Aimee Bender, Mr. Splitfoot tracks two women in two times as they march toward a mysterious reckoning.

Ruth and Nat are orphans, packed into a house full of abandoned children run by a religious fanatic. To entertain their siblings, they channel the dead. Decades later, Ruth’s niece, Cora, finds herself accidentally pregnant. After years of absence, Aunt Ruth appears, mute and full of intention. She is on a mysterious mission, leading Cora on an odyssey across the entire state of New York on foot. Where is Ruth taking them? Where has she been? And who � or what � has she hidden in the woods at the end of the road?

In an ingeniously structured dual narrative, two separate timelines move toward the same point of crisis. Their merging will upend and reinvent the whole. A subversive ghost story that is carefully plotted and elegantly constructed, Mr. Splitfoot will set your heart racing and your brain churning. Mysteries abound, criminals roam free, utopian communities show their age, the mundane world intrudes on the supernatural and vice versa.]]> 12 Samantha Hunt 1504722590 JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.23 2016
author: Samantha Hunt
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.23
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2016/10/12
date added: 2016/10/14
shelves: audio, gothic, fiction, no_review
review:

]]> 3253233 Every piece of lace has a secret . . .
My name is Towner Whitney. No, that's not exactly true. My real first name is Sophya. Never believe me. I lie all the time. . . .

Towner Whitney, the self-confessed unreliable narrator of The Lace Reader, hails from a family of Salem women who can read the future in the patterns in lace, and who have guarded a history of secrets going back generations, but the disappearance of two women brings Towner home to Salem and the truth about the death of her twin sister to light.
The Lace Reader is a mesmerizing tale that spirals into a world of secrets, confused identities, lies, and half-truths in which the reader quickly finds it's nearly impossible to separate fact from fiction, but as Towner Whitney points out early on in the novel, "There are no accidents."
(front flap)]]> 390 Brunonia Barry 0061624764 JG (Introverted Reader) 3 3.46 2006
author: Brunonia Barry
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.46
book published: 2006
rating: 3
read at: 2014/12/26
date added: 2015/01/05
shelves: fiction, no_review, z_read_in_2014, 3_stars, gothic, womens_fiction, z_setting_us, z_author_american, gave_away
review:

]]> 1662997
Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Wolf live on Coldwater, a penal colony off the coast of Australia, where their father, Captain Wolf, rules the household with the same unyielding sternness he imposes on the inmates. The young women rarely venture beyond their corner of the island and meet no one but the prison guards. Their imaginations, however, know no boundaries, and together the three conjure up complex and magical lands. They vow to become novelists, dreaming of literary fame and of lives far from the harsh desolation of Coldwater.

As governor of the convict island, Captain Wolf is working on a masterpiece of his own–the perfect prison. His theories of prison management have proven remarkably During his tenure, not one prisoner has escaped. The arrival of an unusual convict from famine-stricken Ireland seems an opportunity to create a model prisoner–until one of his daughters becomes obsessed with the handsome young man and the delicate balance the family has constructed is shaken beyond repair.

This remarkable story grew from the author’s lifelong curiosity about the Brontë sisters and their classic novels. Taking the few seeds that history reveals about Charlotte, Anne, and Emily Brontë, McConnochie has skillfully reimagined their lives and created a work of fiction as imbued with passion as their novels and as psychologically riveting as any contemporary thriller.

Mardi McConnochie’s first novel, told through the eyes of the Wolf sisters, is an unforgettable portrait of the love and fear, the trust and betrayal, and the potential for freedom in one extraordinary family.


From the Hardcover edition.]]> 293 Mardi McConnochie 034544812X JG (Introverted Reader) 4
The girls realize after their father is shot (it happens on the first page) that they need to try to take control of their own lives, and so they set about trying to earn money the only way they can--by writing. They know it's not a very practical plan when they live in Australia and all the publishers are in England, half a world a way, but what other hope do they have? Their father won't be around forever.

I really don't know why this is rated so poorly because I thoroughly enjoyed it. Maybe people are upset that the lives of these classic authors are so very fictionalized? I haven't read reviews yet to see what's going on.

I love Jane Eyre and I tend to love Gothic stories. Seeing Charlotte Brontë in her own Gothic story was a treat for me. Emily irritated the heck out of me, but Wuthering Heights irritated the heck out of me too, so I thought she was well-represented. I haven't read any of Anne's work although I intend to. The island is so gloomy and atmospheric that it becomes a character in its own right.

I felt so very bad for these sisters. Growing up alone like they have, they aren't really fit for anything. They don't have any "society" to go out into. The only people they see besides their own family are the officers of the prison. They aren't really stimulating companions. They've had such sad, hard lives too. Even before they came to the island, there was tragedy in the family that left them all reeling. None of them have really recovered. As more of their past is revealed, I was more and more horrified of what had happened and how they had each reacted.

If you don't mind reading about real people in a completely fictional setting, I recommend this for a good, Gothic read. This is the perfect time of year to pick up a book like this. Cold howling wind outside, cold howling wind between the pages, but you're nice and cozy with a blanket and a cup of tea. Sounds like heaven to me.]]> 3.09 2001
author: Mardi McConnochie
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.09
book published: 2001
rating: 4
read at: 2012/12/03
date added: 2013/01/21
shelves: fiction, z_read_in_2012, 4_stars, z_author_australian, gothic, historical_fiction, z_setting_australia, womens_fiction
review:
Author Mardi McConnochie imagines what the lives of the Brontë sisters would have been like if they had grown up on a remote island/penal colony off the coast of Australia. In this fictional tale, their father is the warden of the colony, paranoid to the point of madness and with a giant God-complex. He makes life hard for everyone on the island, including his daughters. Charlotte is the sensible one, Emily is overly sensitive with a large streak of the fey in her, and Anne is caught somewhere between them.

The girls realize after their father is shot (it happens on the first page) that they need to try to take control of their own lives, and so they set about trying to earn money the only way they can--by writing. They know it's not a very practical plan when they live in Australia and all the publishers are in England, half a world a way, but what other hope do they have? Their father won't be around forever.

I really don't know why this is rated so poorly because I thoroughly enjoyed it. Maybe people are upset that the lives of these classic authors are so very fictionalized? I haven't read reviews yet to see what's going on.

I love Jane Eyre and I tend to love Gothic stories. Seeing Charlotte Brontë in her own Gothic story was a treat for me. Emily irritated the heck out of me, but Wuthering Heights irritated the heck out of me too, so I thought she was well-represented. I haven't read any of Anne's work although I intend to. The island is so gloomy and atmospheric that it becomes a character in its own right.

I felt so very bad for these sisters. Growing up alone like they have, they aren't really fit for anything. They don't have any "society" to go out into. The only people they see besides their own family are the officers of the prison. They aren't really stimulating companions. They've had such sad, hard lives too. Even before they came to the island, there was tragedy in the family that left them all reeling. None of them have really recovered. As more of their past is revealed, I was more and more horrified of what had happened and how they had each reacted.

If you don't mind reading about real people in a completely fictional setting, I recommend this for a good, Gothic read. This is the perfect time of year to pick up a book like this. Cold howling wind outside, cold howling wind between the pages, but you're nice and cozy with a blanket and a cup of tea. Sounds like heaven to me.
]]> 36314 352 H.P. Lovecraft 0060957905 JG (Introverted Reader) 3 4.20 1935
author: H.P. Lovecraft
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 4.20
book published: 1935
rating: 3
read at: 2011/11/18
date added: 2012/11/25
shelves: z_read_in_2011, anthology, horror, fiction, no_review, 3_stars, classics, gothic, z_author_american
review:

]]> 9665288 214 Shirley Jackson JG (Introverted Reader) 4 Amanita phalloides, the death-cup mushroom. Everyone else in my family is dead."


And so begins Merricat's story about life for the last surviving members of the Blackwood family. There has been some sort of tragedy in the past, but Mary Katherine doesn't want to talk about it. She does want to talk about how much the villagers hate her family, how much she hates them, and how she wishes she could live on the moon.

Unsettling. That is by far the best word to describe this book.

Odds are that you didn't make it through high school without reading Shirley Jackson's short story, "The Lottery." It would be a tossup between that and "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman for my choice as most disturbing short story ever.

Jackson somehow kept that same tone alive throughout a novel.

Short stories are generally creepier for me than novels are. Authors end up explaining too much in a novel and I'm able to put them out of my head. But all those unresolved questions in short stories cause them to stay with me in a way that very few novels do.

But Jackson pulled that off here. Wow.

So much of the eeriness comes from Mary Katherine, or Merricat, herself. She's eighteen, but it's almost like her mind stopped progressing at twelve, which is when the tragedy happened. I don't mean that she's "challenged" in anyway, it's just that she doesn't really see the need to grow up. I found myself constantly questioning her motives and her truths. Are her truths widely-accepted truths? And if not, who are you supposed to believe?

There is the feel of a hedge witch about Merricat. She has daily tasks that she sets herself, and part of that is making sure that their property is secure from strangers. Oh, she does check the locks, gates, and fences, but she also makes sure that the talismans she has hung from trees and buried in fields are also intact.

I felt sorry for her sister Constance. Constance is apparently beautiful and she seems to be happiest when she's taking care of others. But whatever happened in the past has left her ostracized from society, and honestly even agoraphobic. She should be raising a beautiful family, but she's instead trapped living in a museum of a house with her younger sister and her elderly uncle. But she sweetly goes about her days.

I do recommend this book if you're looking for something unexpected and...unsettling. That really is the best word. It was great for Halloween, and I won't be forgetting Merricat or Constance anytime soon.]]> 4.00 1962
author: Shirley Jackson
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1962
rating: 4
read at: 2010/10/20
date added: 2011/09/10
shelves: 4_stars, z_author_american, fiction, gothic, z_read_in_2010, reviewed, young_adult
review:
"My name is Mary Katherine Blackwood. I am eighteen years old, and I live with my sister, Constance. I have often thought that with any luck at all I could have been born a werewolf, because the two middle fingers on both my hands are the same length, but I have had to be content with what I had. I dislike washing myself, and dogs, and noise. I like my sister Constance, and Richard Plantagenet, and Amanita phalloides, the death-cup mushroom. Everyone else in my family is dead."


And so begins Merricat's story about life for the last surviving members of the Blackwood family. There has been some sort of tragedy in the past, but Mary Katherine doesn't want to talk about it. She does want to talk about how much the villagers hate her family, how much she hates them, and how she wishes she could live on the moon.

Unsettling. That is by far the best word to describe this book.

Odds are that you didn't make it through high school without reading Shirley Jackson's short story, "The Lottery." It would be a tossup between that and "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman for my choice as most disturbing short story ever.

Jackson somehow kept that same tone alive throughout a novel.

Short stories are generally creepier for me than novels are. Authors end up explaining too much in a novel and I'm able to put them out of my head. But all those unresolved questions in short stories cause them to stay with me in a way that very few novels do.

But Jackson pulled that off here. Wow.

So much of the eeriness comes from Mary Katherine, or Merricat, herself. She's eighteen, but it's almost like her mind stopped progressing at twelve, which is when the tragedy happened. I don't mean that she's "challenged" in anyway, it's just that she doesn't really see the need to grow up. I found myself constantly questioning her motives and her truths. Are her truths widely-accepted truths? And if not, who are you supposed to believe?

There is the feel of a hedge witch about Merricat. She has daily tasks that she sets herself, and part of that is making sure that their property is secure from strangers. Oh, she does check the locks, gates, and fences, but she also makes sure that the talismans she has hung from trees and buried in fields are also intact.

I felt sorry for her sister Constance. Constance is apparently beautiful and she seems to be happiest when she's taking care of others. But whatever happened in the past has left her ostracized from society, and honestly even agoraphobic. She should be raising a beautiful family, but she's instead trapped living in a museum of a house with her younger sister and her elderly uncle. But she sweetly goes about her days.

I do recommend this book if you're looking for something unexpected and...unsettling. That really is the best word. It was great for Halloween, and I won't be forgetting Merricat or Constance anytime soon.
]]> 8143073
But whenever I myself gained the courage to ask him further of our past, he just looked sadly at me. “Please, Nicolai,� he would say after a moment, as though we had made a pact I had forgotten. With time, I came to understand I would never know the secrets of my birth, for my father was the only one who knew these secrets, and he would take them to his grave.
Ěý
The celebrated opera singer Lo Svizzero was born in a belfry high in the Swiss Alps where his mother served as the keeper of the loudest and most beautiful bells in the land. Shaped by the bells� glorious music, as a boy he possessed an extraordinary gift for sound. But when his preternatural hearing was discovered—along with its power to expose the sins of the church—young Moses Froben was cast out of his village with only his ears to guide him in a world fraught with danger.
Ěý
Rescued from certain death by two traveling monks, he finds refuge at the vast and powerful Abbey of St. Gall. There, his ears lead him through the ancient stone hallways and past the monks� cells into the choir, where he aches to join the singers in their strange and enchanting song. Suddenly Moses knows his true gift, his purpose. Like his mother’s bells, he rings with sound and soon, he becomes the protégé of the Abbey’s brilliant yet repulsive choirmaster, Ulrich.
Ěý
But it is this gift that will cause Moses� greatest determined to preserve his brilliant pupil’s voice, Ulrich has Moses castrated. Now a young man, he will forever sing with the exquisite voice of an angel—a musico —yet castration is an abomination in the Swiss Confederation, and so he must hide his shameful condition from his friends and even from the girl he has come to love. When his saviors are exiled and his beloved leaves St. Gall for an arranged marriage in Vienna, he decides he can deny the truth no longer and he follows her—to sumptuous Vienna, to the former monks who saved his life, to an apprenticeship at one of Europe’s greatest theaters, and to the premiere of one of history’s most beloved operas.
Ěý
In this confessional letter to his son, Moses recounts how his gift for sound led him on an astonishing journey to Europe’s celebrated opera houses and reveals the secret that has long shadowed his How did Moses Froben, world renowned musico , come to raise a son who by all rights he never could have sired?
Ěý
Like the voice of Lo Svizzero , The Bells is a sublime debut novel that rings with passion, courage, and beauty.]]> 374 Richard Harvell 0307590526 JG (Introverted Reader) 4
The side of me that loves dark, convoluted, Gothic stories absolutely loved this book! A mother widely believed to be mad, an evil father, life with monks, and love against all odds just add up to the perfect read when I am in the right mood. And I was in the right mood for this one.

Gothic doesn't feel like exactly the right word to describe this book, but melodramatic has a negative connotation, at least to me, so I'm going to stick with Gothic.

Moses is a sensitive soul, and I found myself wanting to protect him in his childhood years. As he grew up and started to go after what he wanted, I was firmly on his side, cheering him on through everything.

I won't get into the supporting characters too much for fear of giving something away, but I even loved and loathed them as I was supposed to. I will give you this quote about a bookish monk*: "And sure enough, the next Thursday, when Nicolai had fetched me from rehearsal and scrubbed my face and combed my hair, there stood Remus, dressed in hat and cloak and carrying a satchel full of books as though we would be traveling for many days, as if running out of books were tantamount to running out of air." Who among us can't relate to that? And they were only going to be away for a couple of hours!

Moses' descriptions of sounds and music were a feast for all the senses. "Guadagni waved his hands as he sang, his long fingers describing ebbs and swells just as his voice did. In its delicate moments, he held me rigid as I strained to hear, and then, in its massive moments, I felt as if I might collapse under the force of his voice's brilliance. Guadagni gazed toward a corner of the room, and I saw in his eyes that there was his Eurydice, soon to be his again. Find her! the music said to me. Find her! It swept away any fear that lingered in the shadows of my soul. Warm tears stained my now-clean face."*

But mostly this story is about love. Motherly love, fatherly love, passionate love--love in all its forms. While I would never describe myself as being a fan of romances, I am a sucker for stories with such pure love in them.

If you're in the mood for a Gothic novel with a big voice, pick this one up. I think you'll love it.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy for review.

*I read an ARC, so this quote might have changed or been removed from the final edition.]]> 4.02 2010
author: Richard Harvell
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2010/11/22
date added: 2010/12/28
shelves: arc, own, received_for_review, 4_stars, z_author_american, fiction, gothic, historical_fiction, z_read_in_2010, reviewed, z_setting_austria, z_setting_switzerland
review:
Moses Froben, an opera singer of world-renown, raised a son who could not possibly have been his own. When his son asked how they had come to be together, Moses would studiously avoid the question. On Moses's death, however, his son found a memoir that told of Moses's humble beginnings and how father and son found each other.

The side of me that loves dark, convoluted, Gothic stories absolutely loved this book! A mother widely believed to be mad, an evil father, life with monks, and love against all odds just add up to the perfect read when I am in the right mood. And I was in the right mood for this one.

Gothic doesn't feel like exactly the right word to describe this book, but melodramatic has a negative connotation, at least to me, so I'm going to stick with Gothic.

Moses is a sensitive soul, and I found myself wanting to protect him in his childhood years. As he grew up and started to go after what he wanted, I was firmly on his side, cheering him on through everything.

I won't get into the supporting characters too much for fear of giving something away, but I even loved and loathed them as I was supposed to. I will give you this quote about a bookish monk*: "And sure enough, the next Thursday, when Nicolai had fetched me from rehearsal and scrubbed my face and combed my hair, there stood Remus, dressed in hat and cloak and carrying a satchel full of books as though we would be traveling for many days, as if running out of books were tantamount to running out of air." Who among us can't relate to that? And they were only going to be away for a couple of hours!

Moses' descriptions of sounds and music were a feast for all the senses. "Guadagni waved his hands as he sang, his long fingers describing ebbs and swells just as his voice did. In its delicate moments, he held me rigid as I strained to hear, and then, in its massive moments, I felt as if I might collapse under the force of his voice's brilliance. Guadagni gazed toward a corner of the room, and I saw in his eyes that there was his Eurydice, soon to be his again. Find her! the music said to me. Find her! It swept away any fear that lingered in the shadows of my soul. Warm tears stained my now-clean face."*

But mostly this story is about love. Motherly love, fatherly love, passionate love--love in all its forms. While I would never describe myself as being a fan of romances, I am a sucker for stories with such pure love in them.

If you're in the mood for a Gothic novel with a big voice, pick this one up. I think you'll love it.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy for review.

*I read an ARC, so this quote might have changed or been removed from the final edition.
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If their sense of safety is built on a delusion, does it matter?� When the idyll is threatened, Jean, Michael and Steph discover that because their lives are now worth living they are now also worth preserving, although at appalling cost.]]> 303 Morag Joss 0440242444 JG (Introverted Reader) 0 3.58 2003
author: Morag Joss
name: JG (Introverted Reader)
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2009/11/22
shelves: owned_to_read, own, to-read, fiction, gothic
review:

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