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The House of Stairs by Barbara Vine
“There is no time in our lives when we are so conspicuously without mercy as in adolescence.” I don’t think I would ever picked up this ‘obscure’ and forgotten novel if it hadn’t been for the ‘crime fiction’ module I took during my second year of uni. Thanks to that module, which was in every […]
1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1st pov, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, Adult, adulthood, ALIENATION, ART/CREATIVITY, atmospheric, bad love, Barbara Vine, beautiful prose, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, books about books, books about writers, British author, class, CRIME, domestic thriller, england, f/f, favourite authors, female authors, first love, friendships, GOTHIC, GUILT, heartbreak/breakups, HISTORICAL FICTION, House As Character, identity, illness, introspective, it’s about the *yearning*, lgbtq+, LITERARY FICTION, LONDON, loneliness, Longing, manor/big house, MEMORY, modern gothic, MURDER, murder mystery, MYSTERY, obsession, psychological, Psychological thriller, psychopaths, published in 1988, queer, re-reads, read in 2018, read in 2020, read in 2022, rich people, sapphic, SEXUALITY, strong sense of place, SUSPENSE, the female malaise, The House of Stairs, toxic relationships, unrequited love, whydunnit -
The Sundial by Shirley Jackson — book review
“I mean, why should I figure I’m so special, the world is going to end while I’m around?” In The Sundial, perhaps Shirley Jackson’s most comical novel, twelve rather disagreeable individuals are cooped together in a mansion waiting for the end of the world. “The house would be guarded during the night of destruction and […]
1950s, 20th century, 4 STARS, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, american classics, apocalyptic, CLASSICS, creepy setting, dark humor, family, favourite authors, female authors, House As Character, Kafkaesque, madness, manor/big house, modern classics, modern gothic, paranoia, psychological, published in 1958, re-reads, READ IN 2019, read in 2020, SHIRLEY JACKSON, SMALL TOWN, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, surreal, SUSPENSE, The Sundial -
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier — book review
Rebecca is a work of Gothic suspense that is told in a mesmerising prose and makes for an enthralling and evocative read. “Colour and scent and sound, rain and the lapping of water, even the mists of autumn and the smell of the flood tide, these are memories of Manderley that will not be denied.” […]
1930S, 1st pov, 20th century, 4 STARS, Adult, age gap, beautiful prose, bluebeard, British author, british classics, CLASSICS, Cornwall, Daphne du Maurier, domestic thriller, england, female authors, first love, GOTHIC, HISTORICAL FICTION, House As Character, introspective, jane eyre, madness, manor/big house, MARRIAGE, Monte Carlo, MURDER, MYSTERY, psychological, published in 1938, READ IN 2019, Rebecca, ROMANCE, SUSPENSE, THRILLER, unnamed narrator -
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson – book review
“Bow all your heads to our adored Mary Katherine.” In recent years Shirley Jackson has experienced a kind of renascence. Perhaps because of Netflix’s adaptation of The Haunting of Hill House or possibly thanks to contemporary authors (such as Donna Tartt, Neil Gaiman, and Stephen King) who have credited Jackson as their inspiration, enhancing her […]
1950s, 1st pov, 20th century, 5 STARS, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, ALIENATION, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, atmospheric, blackwood manor, BOOK REVIEW, Booklr, class, constance blackwood, creepy setting, fairytalesque prose, favourite authors, female authors, GOTHIC, House As Character, Kafkaesque, manor/big house, merricat blackwood, modern gothic, MYSTERY, occult, psychological, psychopaths, published in 1962, re-reads, read in 2016, read in 2017, read in 2018, READ IN 2019, read in 2020, read in 2021, SHIRLEY JACKSON, SISTERS, surreal, SUSPENSE, terrific prose, unreliable narrators, village, WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE, witchcraft -
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett — book review
“I was still at a point in my life when the house was the hero of every story, our lost and beloved country.” Not Quite a Review, More of an Ode to Ann Patchett: Usually I tend to post my reviews a couple of days after I’ve finished reading a book. With The Dutch House […]
1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1st pov, 20th century, 5 STARS, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, Adult, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, ANN PATCHETT, ART/CREATIVITY, beautiful prose, bildungsroman, CHILDHOOD, class, coming of age, divorce/separations, evil stepmother, family, fatherhood, fathers & sons, favourite authors, female authors, forgiveness, GRIEF, growing up, HISTORICAL FICTION, House As Character, identity, illness, introspective, LITERARY FICTION, manor/big house, MARRIAGE, mothers & sons, NEW YORK, nostalgic reads, orphans, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, place as character, published in 2019, re-reads, READ IN 2019, read in 2021, restrained prose, siblings, strong sense of place, The Dutch House -
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson — book review
“They can’t turn me out or shut me out or laugh at me or hide from me; I won’t go, and Hill House belongs to me.” The first time I read The Haunting of Hill House I felt confused and vaguely underwhelmed. Having loved We Have Always Lived in the Castle, I was expecting a […]
1950s, 20th century, 3rd pov, 5 STARS, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, ALIENATION, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, american classics, anxiety, atmospheric, Booklr, CLASSICS, creepy setting, distressing reads, favourite authors, female authors, female doubles, feverish, ghosts/spirits, GOTHIC, hallucinations, haunted house, hauntings, Hill House, HORROR, House As Character, loneliness, madness, manor/big house, modern classics, mothers & daughters, obsession, paranoia, psychological, published in 1959, queer undercurrents, re-reads, READ IN 2019, read in 2021, SHIRLEY JACKSON, suicide, SUPERNATURAL, SUSPENSE, terrific prose, the haunting of hill house, tragedy -
The Likeness by Tana French
A brilliantly executed novel that depicts the complex and passionate relationship between a close group of friends. In many ways, it reminded me of The Secret History.Gripping and full of suspense, The Likeness is so much more than your usual crime novel. French pays incredible attention when portraying her characters and their relationships with one […]
1st pov, 5 STARS, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, academia, Adult, american irish author, bad love, cliques, Contemporary, CRIME, dark, dark academia, DETECTIVE, friendships, House As Character, IRELAND, lgbtq+, morality, MYSTERY, police procedural, psychological, Psychological thriller, read in 2017, SUSPENSE, TANA FRENCH, The Likeness, toxic relationships, UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE, unreliable narrators, whodunnit
luce [is reading] 