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spookynorvegan's reviews
588 reviews
Fashion Victims: The Dangers of Dress Past and Present by Alison Matthews David
5.0
I loved this book! An intriguing, morbid, academic look at the dangers of fashion; mostly trends and styles of the 1700 - early 1900's. Beautiful photographs of archived pieces and tons of satirical artwork and illustrations corresponding with their respective historical periods. An absolute must for history lovers with a flare for the macabre.
My Lady Jane by Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand
4.0
This tongue-in-cheek re-imagining of the story of Lady Jane Grey's epically short reign, was delightful. I'm pretty familiar with this period of English history, thus was apprehensive to how this YA-branded piece would spin things. But this quirky novel finds an amazing place between humanising and sympathising with now fairly obscure historical figures, while also offering a wonderful parallel history filled with magic. In short, just the kind of read I didn't realise how much I've been missing in my library, until I stumbled upon it.
Women and Ghosts by Alison Lurie
3.0
My first exposure to Lurie's work, this collection of short stories was a fun read. Most of the stories featured in this small collection were reminiscent of a classic Victorian or Edwardian ghost story. A great little tome (little being the sticking word; there are only nine stories and the entire volume is under 200pages), especially if you're after a classic type of story told from an exclusively feminine lens and voice.
Unnatural Creatures: Stories Selected by Neil Gaiman by Neil Gaiman
4.0
A solid, fairly diverse selection of creature - type stories. This is a collection hand-picked by Gaiman himself, and it reads thusly. His fans will definitely come out all the more on top with this one; with not just an eclectic, sizeable anthology with a great common denominator, but a little more insight into the personal tastes of the enigmatic Mr. G himself.
Tales of the Peculiar by Ransom Riggs
4.0
A very enjoyable supplementary text to the amazing Miss Peregrine trilogy. Any self-respecting must add this to their bookshelves.
The Wonder by Emma Donoghue
4.0
WOW. This book hit me straight in the gut.
The initial pacing of the story is quite slow and methodical; really mimicking the perspective and attitude of the main character as she first begins her position as nurse-watch over a 'fasting girl' in a tiny Irish village. Very gothic and bleak in nature (again, most assuredly intentional and reflective of the setting), the last 40-odd pages were absolutely gripping. My hands were practically shaking with the turn of each page, so invested I became in the story of this child and her caretaker. Without really spoiling anything for future readers, I can say that the ending brought tears to my eyes and left me feeling a perfectly suited, empathetic character resolution for the tempestuous final build of the climax.
A really amazing story.
Especially recommended for readers that enjoy classic gothic brit lit (think Wuthering Heights or The Woman in White), and obscure/esoteric historical phenomenon.
The initial pacing of the story is quite slow and methodical; really mimicking the perspective and attitude of the main character as she first begins her position as nurse-watch over a 'fasting girl' in a tiny Irish village. Very gothic and bleak in nature (again, most assuredly intentional and reflective of the setting), the last 40-odd pages were absolutely gripping. My hands were practically shaking with the turn of each page, so invested I became in the story of this child and her caretaker. Without really spoiling anything for future readers, I can say that the ending brought tears to my eyes and left me feeling a perfectly suited, empathetic character resolution for the tempestuous final build of the climax.
A really amazing story.
Especially recommended for readers that enjoy classic gothic brit lit (think Wuthering Heights or The Woman in White), and obscure/esoteric historical phenomenon.
Ren Poesi by Ellen Wisløff
3.0
Et fint, diverse samling av moderne dikt. det finnes garantert noe for hver smak.
Cautionary Tales by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
3.0
2.5 - 3 star rating.
I picked this book up at a local thrift shop, inmediately delighted by both the cover art, and that it was the work of a female author; which is seldom a staple within both the genre and era of this type of publication.
I suppose as a modern female reader myself, I subsequently and automatically had an idea of what I would find within the collection; namely a female voice, female protagonists and some awesome vintage - feel sci-fi.
I was more or less satisfied on the final point of that assumption.
This being my first and only exposure to Yarbro's work, I can't say with certainty if her lack of strong female protagonists is a staple of her work personally, or more of a byproduct of her generation within the genre. Regardless, I was very disappointed by the lack of female voice and perspective overall in these stories. Nearly every single piece in this collection boasts a male protagonist; if a female character is included in the narrative at all, she is either subjugated, or victimised, (and in one story specifically, she is more monster than human, and not remotely sympathetic) and ultimately minor.
The stories mostly have an outdated sort of quality to them, yet are not completely without merit, and I do not regret having read the entire collection. It was fairly diverse as far as story setting goes, and I think more than anything, functions as an insightful collection that can give a 21st-century reader perspective into the evolution of the sci-fi genre itself.
I picked this book up at a local thrift shop, inmediately delighted by both the cover art, and that it was the work of a female author; which is seldom a staple within both the genre and era of this type of publication.
I suppose as a modern female reader myself, I subsequently and automatically had an idea of what I would find within the collection; namely a female voice, female protagonists and some awesome vintage - feel sci-fi.
I was more or less satisfied on the final point of that assumption.
This being my first and only exposure to Yarbro's work, I can't say with certainty if her lack of strong female protagonists is a staple of her work personally, or more of a byproduct of her generation within the genre. Regardless, I was very disappointed by the lack of female voice and perspective overall in these stories. Nearly every single piece in this collection boasts a male protagonist; if a female character is included in the narrative at all, she is either subjugated, or victimised, (and in one story specifically, she is more monster than human, and not remotely sympathetic) and ultimately minor.
The stories mostly have an outdated sort of quality to them, yet are not completely without merit, and I do not regret having read the entire collection. It was fairly diverse as far as story setting goes, and I think more than anything, functions as an insightful collection that can give a 21st-century reader perspective into the evolution of the sci-fi genre itself.
The Graces by Laure Eve
3.0
I didn't dislike this book...I just wasn't super impressed with the originality of the storyline and concepts guiding the character arcs. Not a single character (narrating protagonist included) possessed a decent amount of depth or relatable/plausible unpredictability. The story itself reminded me all too much of the 90's cult classic film 'The Craft'; standard teen girl trying to fit into new environment, while finding herself as a person, while also coming to terms with her supernatural abilities. The sort of Frankensteinesque twist was a pleasant, unexpected, original type of surprise; unique to the nature of the rest of the narrative, giving the book an overall redeeming conclusion. All in all: a decent read, but not something that keeps the reader pulled in by character empathy or anticipation.