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Books and other things..
Sep. 14th, 2023 09:13 pmGroggy. I had eaten dinner. Just finished watching the soap (which I watch during dinner instead of the news), and ...somehow dozed off for about an hour and a half. One moment it was about 7 pm, the next 8:35 pm.
I blame lack of sleep the night before. And a difficult work day. Both of which made me irritable. I'd stayed up a bit too late (11:30 pm) finishing a horror novel, and then couldn't get comfortable. Finally fell asleep, only to wake up around 2 Am in pain, unable to get comfortable, feeling a kind of sick sinus headache, took tynenol, and finally with the aid of Headspace sleep meditation - got to sleep again around 3:30, only to get up with the alarm at 5:45.
Work was...frustrating. But I accomplished a few things.
**
Been enjoying Bluesky. Although I think I followed too many folks and am getting a bit lost again and scare of posting anything. I got followers too - mainly from stating that I get most of my book recommendations from social media, and not best of lists and have lots of e-books, because book stores are crappy at stocking much in the way of sci-fi and fantasy novels.
I've leaped from the Romance genre to the fantasy/sci-fi and horror genre, to kill my reading slump. It worked. After slogging through the dreadfully dull historical romance, "A Daring Pursuit" - I flew through T Kingfisher's The Hollow Places. Much like "The Twisted Ones" - Kingfisher gets her inspiration from another horror tale from the turn of the previous century, or circa 1900, Algernon Blackwoods's The Willows - a summary of it can be found Two minute summary and analysis of The Willows. Kingfisher even references the previous work within her own - having it become the instigator of her contemporary reinterpretation of it. (She does much the same thing with The Twisted Ones, referencing The White People within it.)
Kingfisher's novel features psychological horror and body horror (although to someone else and not the main characters). The supernatural and largely unseen (until the end) menace does weird things to its victims, that are disquieting and deeply horrifying. ( spoilers )
I found the novel equal parts compelling (a real page turner), suspenseful,
and disquieting. Also much like her earlier work haunting, I find myself thinking about it after reading it.
The plot? ( vague spoilers )
To tell more, would give it all away, and horror novels are best left unspoiled for the most part.
I enjoyed it. More importantly it broke my reading slump. And since the Twisted Ones was the last book to do it. I took the hint and decided to jump genres. I'm reading horror at the moment.
Currently reading The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias' - which is about a man who due to horrific circumstances finds himself doing the unthinkable.
The Devil Takes You Home a barrio noir that invites readers to consider the depths of darkness in this world, its material effects, and the cycles of violence we both willingly and perforce enter into.
At the novel's opening, Mario, the narrator, and his wife Melisa have just received news that their daughter Anita has been diagnosed with leukemia. A few weeks later, Mario is fired from his job after taking too much time off to care for her. The bills, medical and otherwise, pile up, and in desperation, Mario reaches out to Brian, an old coworker who told Mario once to "Call if the damn poverty noose gets too tight, yeah?" In short order, Brian gives Mario a gun, a mark, and the promise of $6,000.
It's well written and reminds me a little of Stephen King in style. Also a character centric novel.
As I remarked recently on Blue Sky? One of the things that horror and romance novels have in common, possibly the only thing, is an utter dependence on character. If the characters aren't strong, relatable and/or likable and the reader isn't rooting for them - the whole thing unravels.
They tend to be more character driven than plot driven. And may well be the only genres like this. Mystery is very plot driven, Science Fiction is into world building as is Fantasy. Literary is well into the prose or word-smithery, I'm not even sure it matters sometimes if there are characters or plot - as long as the prose is thought-provoking and/or moving on some level. But horror and romance? It's the characters that matter. If they aren't there - the story falls apart.
**Off to bed, and hopefully sleep.
I blame lack of sleep the night before. And a difficult work day. Both of which made me irritable. I'd stayed up a bit too late (11:30 pm) finishing a horror novel, and then couldn't get comfortable. Finally fell asleep, only to wake up around 2 Am in pain, unable to get comfortable, feeling a kind of sick sinus headache, took tynenol, and finally with the aid of Headspace sleep meditation - got to sleep again around 3:30, only to get up with the alarm at 5:45.
Work was...frustrating. But I accomplished a few things.
**
Been enjoying Bluesky. Although I think I followed too many folks and am getting a bit lost again and scare of posting anything. I got followers too - mainly from stating that I get most of my book recommendations from social media, and not best of lists and have lots of e-books, because book stores are crappy at stocking much in the way of sci-fi and fantasy novels.
I've leaped from the Romance genre to the fantasy/sci-fi and horror genre, to kill my reading slump. It worked. After slogging through the dreadfully dull historical romance, "A Daring Pursuit" - I flew through T Kingfisher's The Hollow Places. Much like "The Twisted Ones" - Kingfisher gets her inspiration from another horror tale from the turn of the previous century, or circa 1900, Algernon Blackwoods's The Willows - a summary of it can be found Two minute summary and analysis of The Willows. Kingfisher even references the previous work within her own - having it become the instigator of her contemporary reinterpretation of it. (She does much the same thing with The Twisted Ones, referencing The White People within it.)
Kingfisher's novel features psychological horror and body horror (although to someone else and not the main characters). The supernatural and largely unseen (until the end) menace does weird things to its victims, that are disquieting and deeply horrifying. ( spoilers )
I found the novel equal parts compelling (a real page turner), suspenseful,
and disquieting. Also much like her earlier work haunting, I find myself thinking about it after reading it.
The plot? ( vague spoilers )
To tell more, would give it all away, and horror novels are best left unspoiled for the most part.
I enjoyed it. More importantly it broke my reading slump. And since the Twisted Ones was the last book to do it. I took the hint and decided to jump genres. I'm reading horror at the moment.
Currently reading The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias' - which is about a man who due to horrific circumstances finds himself doing the unthinkable.
The Devil Takes You Home a barrio noir that invites readers to consider the depths of darkness in this world, its material effects, and the cycles of violence we both willingly and perforce enter into.
At the novel's opening, Mario, the narrator, and his wife Melisa have just received news that their daughter Anita has been diagnosed with leukemia. A few weeks later, Mario is fired from his job after taking too much time off to care for her. The bills, medical and otherwise, pile up, and in desperation, Mario reaches out to Brian, an old coworker who told Mario once to "Call if the damn poverty noose gets too tight, yeah?" In short order, Brian gives Mario a gun, a mark, and the promise of $6,000.
It's well written and reminds me a little of Stephen King in style. Also a character centric novel.
As I remarked recently on Blue Sky? One of the things that horror and romance novels have in common, possibly the only thing, is an utter dependence on character. If the characters aren't strong, relatable and/or likable and the reader isn't rooting for them - the whole thing unravels.
They tend to be more character driven than plot driven. And may well be the only genres like this. Mystery is very plot driven, Science Fiction is into world building as is Fantasy. Literary is well into the prose or word-smithery, I'm not even sure it matters sometimes if there are characters or plot - as long as the prose is thought-provoking and/or moving on some level. But horror and romance? It's the characters that matter. If they aren't there - the story falls apart.
**Off to bed, and hopefully sleep.