#da book rec

[a-kind-of-merry-war]

can you recommend your favourite queer historical/fantasy novels or series for me?? desperate for some new books to read 🙏

Anon I'm so mad, I had a couple of rec lists floating around but what do you know, tumblr has eaten them!! So I'm putting together a new one for you. I should pin this somewhere really.

Queer historical romances

Anything by Cat Sebastian. Seriously. Anything. My personal favourite series is "Seducing the Sedgwicks", and her two most recent 50s-set books are both exceptional.

Equally, anything by KJ Charles. Again, they're all brilliant, so it doesn't really matter where you start. I really liked Band Sinister.

Olivia Waite does lovely f/f historical romances. I really enjoyed The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics.

Sebastian Nothwell (hello @nothwell) writes brilliant historical romances (and also has a couple of fantasy romances too). Planning a re-read of some of his when I've actually got time 😅

Solomon's Crown by Natasha Siegel, loved this one a lot

The Gentleman's Book of Vices by Jess Everlee (there's a f/f sequel coming out soon!)

Queer fantasy romance

I am utterly obsessed with A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows. I loved it. It's like it was crafted just for me. Also, the sequel just came out!

A Taste of Gold and Iron by Alexandra Rowland, SO indulgent and tropey and fun, I had a blast reading it. (hello @ariaste). Also, Alexandra's next book is about to come out - it's called Running Close to the Wind and its about PIRATES. YES.

The Last Binding series by Freya Marske. Absolute best of the best. Everyone loves them.

(See also, Swordcrossed, also by Freya Marske, coming out later this year)

Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh. Short, sweet, and engrossing. Finishing this book is like stepping into sunlight for the first time after being lost in the woods for hours.

Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. It's a classic for a reason.

Queer fantasy/sci-fi with romantic elements, but isn't a straight-up romance

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune. I cried.

Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree, extremely cosy domestic fantasy in the traditional D&D style, about an orc who sets up a coffee shop.

A Botanical Daughter by Noah Medlock. Frankenstein-style horror but with queer people and plants. More horror than fantasty, tbh.

Our Hideous Progeny by C E McGill (waving at @c-e-mcgill) is classic gothic horror/sci-fi, but this one is Frankenstein but with dinosaurs. And queer people. Very light background romance. Loved it.

OH WAIT ETA: What Manner of Man by @stjohnstarling - not sure if this fits your needs as its more horror romance than anything else, but its basically "dracula, but gay", and it's very good.

[bellasbookclub]

Reccer Spotlight: G!

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Mexican Gothic

Jamaica Inn

The Monstrumologist

A River Enchanted

The Importance of Being Earnest

G tried to think of genre-ly diverse recs and they came out Oops, All Gothic (ok, except for the last two.) Full text available in their tab of the Bella’s Book Club Summer Reading ‘23 Reclist!

more info on BBC Summer Reading 2023

more Reccer Spotlights

[whilereadingandwalking]

The Devourers by Indra Das is a richly written, artistic fantasy telling the story of shapeshifters who have lived in India since the Taj Mahal was first being built. A young professor named Alok meets a mysterious stranger who insists he's half-werewolf. He asks the professor to type up two manuscripts for him—manuscripts that tell the story of a human woman named Syrah who lived 200 years before them, a woman who became the object of a shapeshifter's deadly desire.

It's a book about greed, about a relentless, single-minded desire to violate and conquer. It is slow-paced yet difficult to put down, a slowly unspooling mystery, a mythological story that feels epic, historical, bloody, visceral. It's impressively new and feels very grounded in a sense of its own ancient folklore. It reminded me of NK Jemisin's talent for carving a world that feels convincingly, terrifyingly real and old.

I will mirror some reviewers' thoughts that at times the descriptions of bodily fluids could be a bit much. The amount of "piss" I understood, they're animals, there's a certain marking of territory. But there was so much of it. Part of me also wondered how necessary Fenrir's part to the book really was. The narrative picks up tremendous momentum once we begin Syrah's story, and I struggled to get a sense of what Fenrir really wanted. I almost wonder if it would have been better for us to get his journals within her portion of the narrative.

Still, I've been wanting to read this book for a long time, and wasn't disappointed. The explorations of trust, sex/physicality, gendered violence, and queerness, alongside an interpretation of werewolf as a being with two selves, two skins, was fascinating. I really enjoyed this read despite its difficult topics, and am so glad to have finally gotten to it.

Heavy content warnings for sexual assault, body horror. Also for homophobia, violence, physical abuse.

[jurassic-cunt]

me reading The Devourers: yeah... the professor definitely wants the werewolf to fuck him

[crypticashlee]

IM WRITING MY FIRST BOOK

It about a girl who grew up poor and worked her ass off is able to go to her Dream university with her best friend and meets the presidents son who is an asshole but it’s slowburn enemies to lovers plus academic rivalry plus smut

The main love interest is based on Barron trump but it can be read without that in mind.

GIVE IT A READ

[thoughtfulfangirling]

October/Autumn Books

Over the years, I've been trying to collect books good for reading around this time of year. I thought I'd make a masterlist of sorts. There will be categories, and books may be in several of them.

Each of these books I feel have something to offer in terms only that they fit what I feel is readings for the season within their vibes. Any YA books will be explicitly marked as such. Additionally, my actual opinion of the books will be marked with 1 through 5 asterisks (stars), and because I hate rating books, I'm going to preface by saying I'm being very loosey goosey with them XD

Autumn Vibes (weather)

Autumn at the Willow River Guesthouse by C.P. Ward**

Feelgood fall read. It makes efforts to evoke autumn, having a bike trip be a part of her work routine sometime between the months of late August to October. I don't know that I personally thought it succeeded, but it tries, and I'll give it that. It also has themes of shedding an old life. In her late 20s, Lily loses in the span of a couple days her job, her apartment, and her fiance. She leaves the city to go back to her country home to figure out what she wants to do with her life. The book has the bones for a good autumn read, but the execution didn't do it for me. Judge for yourself if this sounds interesting. (I probably should just give it one star because it doesn't even MENTION Halloween, but I did like that it spent so more time with Victoria than the love interest XD)

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

YA. Vampires exist, and the world knows about it. The world is dealing with it as best they can. Barriers between overnight workers and the public, habits to close all windows every night, avoid evening events, and the conversion of large towns into prisons for vampires and those who wish to become them. Within this world, Tana is just trying to have a normal teen's life, but that all changes when a drunken night at a friends and a forgotten open window results in her waking up seemingly the only survivor of a vampire attack. That's enough for a teenager to have to deal with, but as it turns out, not all the vampires are gone. (The audiobook for this one is exceptionally creepy and good.)

Doll Bones by Holly Black *****

Contemporary. YA. Kids try to keep the magic of youth alive by going on an adventure (running away) to a doll they want to believe is haunted to her grave site in early-ish autumn.

Cemetary Boys***

YA. Takes place during autumn, and much of the book is set outside, not infrequently in a cemetary no less. Pretty good for autumn vibes. It's been a while since I've read it, so it may be more just the general weather climate that's evoked than falling leaves and such, but still, definitely feels like fall and is a story about ghosts and witches, and blood rituals. How do you go wrong with that?

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

Sometimes, living is the true thing of nightmares. Such is the case for the hitchhiking ghost Rose Marshall. She's hitched the ghost roads for decades longer than she's been alive and content with her undead existence despite being haunted still by the man who killed her, demon-pact and all. When he curses her, she finds that only by living again can she remove the curse. It was only supposed to last one evening, the only evening the dead can return to flesh: Halloween night. (This is a book 2)

In the Woods by Tana French ****

In his childhood, Adam Ryan was out with his friends when those friends went missing. It became a huge story, especially because when they found him, he was so traumatized, he had no memory of what took place. They never solved his mystery, but he became an investigator himself. He thought that was all behind him, except he is put on a case that has a mysterious link to that cold mystery. Ryan shouldn't be working this case, but no one has linked him to it yet, and he can't help but try and see if this new case will reveal anything about his own.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

Alex Stern is in the fall Semester at a college that deals in magic. Normally, an outsider like her wouldn't have been recruited to help keep order among the magic houses that operate out of the college, but there's something special about Alex: She can see ghosts, a rare gift. At least that's how she's seen. To Alex, it can be more of a curse. One she will have to use though if she is going to find the mentor who mysteriously disappeared earlier that semester under supernatural circumstances.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily Danforth *****

Half historical, half contemporary. Chunks of the book occur during autumn months and lovely descriptions of the weather and orchards, and a repeating motif of apples.

The November Girl by Lydia Kang ****

YA. Hector is a runaway, and he has planned his time hidden away until his 18th birthday perfectly to escape being in his uncle's custody any longer. On the last day a tourist island on Lake Superior is open, just before the November storms are expected to come and batter the island, he boards the fairy there and remains in secret. The island is expected to be abandoned and dangerous. It does prove to be dangerous, but what it doesn't prove to be, is abandoned. There is a strange girl also still left upon the island, and the creeping cold and raging storms only seem to give her power. She doesn't seem fully human.

Tithe by Holly Black ****

YA. Halloween approaches, and Kaye finds that her world may just be more preternatural than she expected as suddenly she is encountering fairies. Her encounter does more than open her eyes to a new world, it seems to be changing her too, and the stakes will reach a peak Halloween night.

Horror Vibes

Alice Isn't Dead by Joseph Fink *****

When her wife goes missing and doesn't reappear, one woman gives up the life she knows to become a trucker. On the road, she expects to find herself... or her wife. What she finds are mystery and horror instead.

Dracula by Bram Stoker *****

Does anyone actually even need a summary? Look, if you like to read books for Halloween and haven't read this one, just do it. You're on Tumblr; make sure you know what all the Dracula Daily posts are going on about. They're excellent.

The Exorcist by William Blatty ****

What is more horrific than watching a beloved child deteriorate into self harm and bad health and getting no answers, having to trust to faith instead of anything you've trusted before. Or how about a believer faced with evil powers one never expected to truly come face to face with?

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid ***

The witch daughter of a cruel wizard is persuaded by her two elder sisters to sneak out of their carefully controlled home to see a ballet. For her, this is out of character to disobey her father, but she finds the show changes everything. She is enraptured by the performance, and more specifically, the lead, who she chances upon meeting while going out to get some air. For once, she has found something worth coming out of her shell for, but should she have left home when there are dark rumors of a man-eating monster stalking the night and the tentative tranquility of their home, and their voracious father, is as risk? Contains explicit sexual content.

Mexican Gothic****

Noemí leaves her bustling city of Mexico City to go to London to visit her cousin who married into an old family. Her cousin seems sick, having sent for Noemí to rescue her. It is believed her cousin is suffering the effects of a mental illness. Once there, Noemi is struck by how isolated the home is, how run down and mildewy it is. It is not at all what she imagined, nor are the people there, or the family dynamics she could never have guessed at. All she wants to do is get out of there as soon as possible, but first she has to her cousin, and then, she finds she simply cannot leave.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

Alex Stern is in the fall Semester at a college that deals in magic. Normally, an outsider like her wouldn't have been recruited to help keep order among the magic houses that operate out of the college, but there's something special about Alex: She can see ghosts, a rare gift. At least that's how she's seen. To Alex, it can be more of a curse. One she will have to use though if she is going to find the mentor who mysteriously disappeared earlier that semester under supernatural circumstances.

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

I was so hooked starting this book with zero information about it other than it was a good spooky read, and since it was such an experience, I simply cannot get myself to say much about this. It follows a special child student, her teacher, and the head of the locked down school's security team as they navigate a dystopian world behind walls, and attempts to reach the outside world have proven unsuccessful so far.

The Lamb will Slaughter the Lion by Margaret Killjoy****

Danielle is a hitchhiker headed to a socialist commune in Iowa that has largely been abandoned by government interests. The town takes care of itself, and they have a unique way of protecting their own against charismatic leaders who want to make this community their own. Danielle's friend had been living there before he comitted suicide, and so, she needs to know what has happened. A spirit of judgement and execution stalks the daylight hours, killing those with darkness in their hearts. But who doesn't have some amount of darkness inside of them?

The Mall of Cthulhu by Susan Cooper

Danielle "When Ted stumbles onto a gropu of Cthulhu cultists planning to awaken the Old Ones through mystic incantations culled from the fabled Necronomicon, calling forth eldritch horros into an unsuspecting world, eh and Laura must spring into action, traveling from Boston to the seemingly-peaceful suburbs of Providence and beyond, all the way to the sanity-shattering non-Euclidian alleyways and towers of dread R'lyeh itself, in order to prevent an innocent shopping center from turning into... The Mall of Cthulhu

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones ****

Most people experience the past coming back to haunt them in some way, shape, or form. But three men who grew up on a reservation feel like they are being haunted by more than the memories of the past. They don't talk about the incident much, not since they were banned from that part of the reservation, but they feel like perhaps they should as they find themselves fighting for their lives against the ramifications of that day.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily Danforth *****

Half historical, half contemporary. A haunted swath of land, or a curse? The deaths may seem natural, but are they? And why do all these wasps keep showing up every which way?

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

The apartment complex must be haunted. What else explains the series of horror visitations that happen upon 13 different residents who live in the building? Each storey is unlike the other. Almost a series of short stories, except... they do seem to be connected. Everything seems to point in the direction of the apartment's landowner as each resident receives an unexpected inviation to a dinner at his top floor penthouse in too timely a manner with the unexpected.

Under the Pendulum Sun *

Gothic Horror. What happens if the fairy are real and known of during the Victorian era? Well, we must preach to them of course! But it may just be that within the strange land of fairy a brother and sister find themselves in for their purpose of the gospel, the lords and ladies of fairy are more interested in the sins at the heart of the people than their hope for their souls. Very Victorian Gothic. The prose was gorgeous, and an atmosphere of eerie unease was well painted; however, beyond the stunning prose, I did not find the stories or the characters' choices all that compelling. The plot/character work wasn't for me, but if one is in the mood for eerie, haunting prose, then this would be the perfect read.

A Winter Haunting by Dan Simmons ****

Separated from his wife and broken up with by his lover, a professor returns to his home town in the Midwest in late November where the snow has already accumulated. He finds himself lingering over the death of a childhood friend and haunted by his past. Isolated in a small town with wanna be skinheads probably isn't the best time to suddenly feel like shadows are moving in, and he feels like the target.

Eerie Vibes (Horror Light)

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu *****

Only a novella in length, Carmilla is a fascinating read. Follow a lonely girl outside of her country of origin come to have a visitor, Carmilla, stay at her estate under mysterious circumstances. She quickly finds herself enamored with Carmilla and quickly grows ill with her worry over unhappy events which seem to plague Carmilla overnight. Despite them however, Carmilla seems just as robust as ever despite her habit to sleep away the mornings. This book predates Dracula, and it strikes me that it lent much of its lore to Stoker's later novel.

Cemetary Boys****

YA "In an attempt to prove himself a true brujo and gain his family’s acceptance, Yadriel decides to summon his cousin’s ghost and help him cross to the afterlife. But things get complicated when he accidentally summons the ghost of his high school’s resident bad boy, Julian Diaz – and Julian won't go into death quietly. The two boys must work together if Yadriel is to move forward with his plan. But the more time Yadriel and Julian spend together, the harder it is to let each other go."

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

YA. Vampires exist, and the world knows about it. The world is dealing with it as best they can. Barriers between overnight workers and the public, habits to close all windows every night, avoid evening events, and the conversion of large towns into prisons for vampires and those who wish to become them. Within this world, Tana is just trying to have a normal teen's life, but that all changes when a drunken night at a friends and a forgotten open window results in her waking up seemingly the only survivor of a vampire attack. That's enough for a teenager to have to deal with, but as it turns out, not all the vampires are gone. (The audiobook for this one is exceptionally creepy and good.)

Doll Bones by Holly Black *****

Contemporary. YA. A child's parent keeps an eerie doll locked up in a cabinet, and the children's playtime has turned her into a queen of sorts. Then suddenly one of the children has a dream; a girl was murdered and her ashes placed in the doll. Her soul is restless and wants to be laid to rest in her grave, and the kids — her subjects — must find it and take her to it.

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould ****

YA. Why is it that the worst of humankind can flourish so proliferous in the most beautiful of places? The small town of Snake Bite is littered with shadows and mystery, and it seems to be targeting the town's teens. First, Ashley's long time boyfriend goes missing, and then newcomer and outcast Logan's new friendly acquaintance is found dead. The town might hate Logan, and Ashley might come from the most prominent family in the town, but the two girls can't help but investigate the odd happenings that disappeared Ashley's boyfriend and implicated one of Logan's dads in that disappearance. The town believes he killed him, Logan is determined to prove him innocent, and Ashley still believes he's alive. She can feel his presence still all around.

The Best of Edgar Allan Poe

I have never read an author that, in so little time of story, manages to dredge up so much feeling of dread. If you want to set a dark and dreary mood, Poe's your man. In today's age, I don't know that his stories come off nearly as spooky as they once did, but they certainly evoke a sort of low mood spooky stories often aim for. It's like the counter of a thriller which often evokes high, frantic energy instead of the low, desolate mood of Poe's work.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley ****

For current readers, I don't know if this quite works as horror, but there is definitely something to the carelessness of men who create without considering their creations.

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

Sometimes, living is the true thing of nightmares. Such is the case for the hitchhiking ghost Rose Marshall. She's hitched the ghost roads for decades longer than she's been alive and content with her undead existence despite being haunted still by the man who killed her, demon-pact and all. When he curses her, she finds that only by living again can she remove the curse. It was only supposed to last one evening, the only evening the dead can return to flesh: Halloween night. (This is a book 2)

The Lamb will Slaughter the Lion by Margaret Killjoy****

Danielle is a hitchhiker headed to a socialist commune in Iowa that has largely been abandoned by government interests. The town takes care of itself, and they have a unique way of protecting their own against charismatic leaders who want to make this community their own. Danielle's friend had been living there before he comitted suicide, and so, she needs to know what has happened. A spirit of judgement and execution stalks the daylight hours, killing those with darkness in their hearts. But who doesn't have some amount of darkness inside of them?

Mexican Gothic****

Noemí leaves her bustling city of Mexico City to go to London to visit her cousin who married into an old family. Her cousin seems sick, having sent for Noemí to rescue her. It is believed her cousin is suffering the effects of a mental illness. Once there, Noemi is struck by how isolated the home is, how run down and mildewy it is. It is not at all what she imagined, nor are the people there, or the family dynamics she could never have guessed at. All she wants to do is get out of there as soon as possible, but first she has to her cousin, and then, she finds she simply cannot leave

Our Wives Under the Sea****

Miri's wife returns after having been missing on a submarine dive deep into the depths of the ocean, and she must contend with the fact that her home now feels a host to a stranger. She feels lonelier as ever as Leah slowly seems to turn farther away from the woman Miri knew into something completely Other.

Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire *****

Follow a hitchhiking ghost over the breadth of the continental US. She was run off the Sparrow Hill Road in 1952 on her way to prom and never made it there. Instead she haunts the highways of the US, hitchhiking her way from roadside diner to roadside diner. She finds a calling in spending time with someone before their last moments, fated to die on the road. Sometimes though, she gets to alter that fate. But there is one out there who has an unpleasant fate in mind for her, and he haunts the roads in his immortal demon car, determined to get the prey who escaped him in the early 1950s.

Sorrowland by Rivers Soloman****

Vern escapes the cult she was brought into pregnant with twins. Her escape only extends to the forest surrounding the commune though. A single young woman shouldn't be able to survive with two children alone like this, and yet Vern does with ease. Something is different about her. Her body starts to become foreign in parts, to change, and she realizes something was done to her. Something that haunts her and alters her. It helps her protect her children, but can will she survive it?

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Interested in 'true' ghost stories? Well find here collected stories Seymour and Neligan sought out from real people in Ireland who vouched to the veracity of their accounts. The stories are disjointed and with no real beginning or end, but read much like tales told around the campfire in the dark of night.

The Vampyre; A Tale by John Polidori**

Vern "A short work of prose fiction written in 1819" "often viewed as the progenitor of the romantic vampire genre of fantasy fiction." Our protagonist becomes fascinating by an intriguing gentleman and takes up with him only to begin to suspect a dark explanation of the man's behaviors.

Dark Stories

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson ****

A letter from one vampire to her maker whom she has murdered. The story is their story, the one of living under a man she thought a savior, who turned her into a monster, and showed her an initial love that hid a vindictive, controlling menace amidst the monotonousness of his vampirism. Explicit sexual content.

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

What if vampires were born and not made? And how fun would it be to have a book that's a thriller, complete with a justice system, but all made up of vampires and their symbiotic humans? If that sounds appealing, it might be for you. Just check the trigger warnings if you are one who benefits from that!

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

I was so hooked starting this book with zero information about it other than it was a good spooky read, and since it was such an experience, I simply cannot get myself to say much about this. It follows a special child student, her teacher, and the head of the locked down school's security team as they navigate a dystopian world behind walls, and attempts to reach the outside world have proven unsuccessful so far.

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid ***

The witch daughter of a cruel wizard is persuaded by her two elder sisters to sneak out of their carefully controlled home to see a ballet. For her, this is out of character to disobey her father, but she finds the show changes everything. She is enraptured by the performance, and more specifically, the lead, who she chances upon meeting while going out to get some air. For once, she has found something worth coming out of her shell for, but should she have left home when there are dark rumors of a man-eating monster stalking the night and the tentative tranquility of their home, and their voracious father, is as risk? Contains explicit sexual content.

King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St. Clair **

The princess and heir to a kingdom besieged by a vampire army finds herself preparing for her father's surrender to the Vampire King. An unexpected and unpleasant stipulation of the treaty of surrender is the princess's hand in marriage. For her people, she agrees, but her people expect her to assassinate her new husband despite his immortal durability. Fairytale elements. Intrusive thoughts. Contains smut.

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo ***

Alex Stern is in the fall Semester at a college that deals in magic. Normally, an outsider like her wouldn't have been recruited to help keep order among the magic houses that operate out of the college, but there's something special about Alex: She can see ghosts, a rare gift. At least that's how she's seen. To Alex, it can be more of a curse. One she will have to use though if she is going to find the mentor who mysteriously disappeared earlier that semester under supernatural circumstances.

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones ****

Most people experience the past coming back to haunt them in some way, shape, or form. But three men who grew up on a reservation feel like they are being haunted by more than the memories of the past. They don't talk about the incident much, not since they were banned from that part of the reservation, but they feel like perhaps they should as they find themselves fighting for their lives against the ramifications of that day.

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin***

Talk about a book that feels like horror for me in particular! You can tell that this is an older book, but for those who knew what it was like for a married woman then, that adds all the more to the horror. This is a slow and quiet horror for the most part but very poignant. I anticipated that after all the buildup, the ending wouldn't be able to live up, but I actually quite liked it. Though don't let that allow you to suspect a peachy resolution XD

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

The apartment complex must be haunted. What else explains the series of horror visitations that happen upon 13 different residents who live in the building? Each storey is unlike the other. Almost a series of short stories, except... they do seem to be connected. Everything seems to point in the direction of the apartment's landowner as each resident receives an unexpected inviation to a dinner at his top floor penthouse in too timely a manner with the unexpected.

Mystery

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould ****

YA. Why is it that the worst of humankind can flourish so proliferous in the most beautiful of places? The small town of Snake Bite is littered with shadows and mystery, and it seems to be targeting the town's teens. First, Ashley's long time boyfriend goes missing, and then newcomer and outcast Logan's new friendly acquaintance is found dead. The town might hate Logan, and Ashley might come from the most prominent family in the town, but the two girls can't help but investigate the odd happenings that disappeared Ashley's boyfriend and implicated one of Logan's dads in that disappearance. The town believes he killed him, Logan is determined to prove him innocent, and Ashley still believes he's alive. She can feel his presence still all around.

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

What if vampires were born and not made? And how fun would it be to have a book that's a thriller, complete with a justice system, but all made up of vampires and their symbiotic humans? If that sounds appealing, it might be for you. Just check the trigger warnings if you are one who benefits from that!

In the Woods by Tana French ****

In his childhood, Adam Ryan was out with his friends when those friends went missing. It became a huge story, especially because when they found him, he was so traumatized, he had no memory of what took place. They never solved his mystery, but he became an investigator himself. He thought that was all behind him, except he is put on a case that has a mysterious link to that cold mystery. Ryan shouldn't be working this case, but no one has linked him to it yet, and he can't help but try and see if this new case will reveal anything about his own.

Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin ****

Under the rule of King Henry II, within Cambridge, there is amongst the people a deranged serial killer targeting children. The people point the blame at the local Jewish population, but after a raid sequesters them within the castle walls and the killings don't stop, a woman of the station of what we might call today coroner is summoned from out of the country to learn from the dead children what she may to uncover the identity of a serial killer eager to target those who would try to track them down. Historical fiction. Some explicit sexual content.

The Witch Elm*****

Toby experiences a series of devastating events, the first of which is a break in and assault that leaves him with literal brain trauma, hazy memories, and a sense that he is no longer himself and will never be so again. So when a corpse shows up in the old summer home he and his cousins stayed at and it turns out to be an old pal from school, he is left absolutely untethered from all he understands in his world, and every attempt to make it makes sense seems to send him down the wrong path. The later part of the book does take place in the autumn months, but I didn't really get the sense that this took up a whole lot of the story

Classic Halloween Elements

The Coldest Girl in Cold Town by Holly Black *****

YA. Vampires exist, and the world knows about it. The world is dealing with it as best they can. Barriers between overnight workers and the public, habits to close all windows every night, avoid evening events, and the conversion of large towns into prisons for vampires and those who wish to become them. Within this world, Tana is just trying to have a normal teen's life, but that all changes when a drunken night at a friends and a forgotten open window results in her waking up seemingly the only survivor of a vampire attack. That's enough for a teenager to have to deal with, but as it turns out, not all the vampires are gone. (The audiobook for this one is exceptionally creepy and good.)

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu *****

Only a novella in length, Carmilla is a fascinating read. Follow a lonely girl outside of her country of origin come to have a visitor, Carmilla, stay at her estate under mysterious circumstances. She quickly finds herself enamored with Carmilla and quickly grows ill with her worry over unhappy events which seem to plague Carmilla overnight. Despite them however, Carmilla seems just as robust as ever despite her habit to sleep away the mornings. This book predates Dracula, and it strikes me that it lent much of its lore to Stoker's later novel.

Cemetary Boys****

YA, Featuring ghosts and witches and blood rituals. What is more Halloweeny? "In an attempt to prove himself a true brujo and gain his family’s acceptance, Yadriel decides to summon his cousin’s ghost and help him cross to the afterlife. But things get complicated when he accidentally summons the ghost of his high school’s resident bad boy, Julian Diaz – and Julian won't go into death quietly. The two boys must work together if Yadriel is to move forward with his plan. But the more time Yadriel and Julian spend together, the harder it is to let each other go."

Dracula by Bram Stoker *****

Does anyone actually even need a summary? Look, if you like to read books for Halloween and haven't read this one, just do it. You're on Tumblr; make sure you know what all the Dracula Daily posts are going on about. They're excelle

The Best of Edgar Allan Poe

I have never read an author that, in so little time of story, manages to dredge up so much feeling of dread. If you want to set a dark and dreary mood, Poe's your man. In today's age, I don't know that his stories come off nearly as spooky as they once did, but they certainly evoke a sort of low mood spooky stories often aim for. It's like the counter of a thriller which often evokes high, frantic energy instead of the low, desolate mood of Poe's work.

The Exorcist by William Blatty ****

What is more horrific than watching a beloved child deteriorate into self harm and bad health and getting no answers, having to trust to faith instead of anything you've trusted before. Or how about a believer faced with evil powers one never expected to truly come face to face with?

Fledgling by Octavia Butler****

What if vampires were born and not made? And how fun would it be to have a book that's a thriller, complete with a justice system, but all made up of vampires and their symbiotic humans? If that sounds appealing, it might be for you. Just check the trigger warnings if you are one who benefits from that!!

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley ****

What can have more than classic Halloween elements than a classic horror tale??

The Gilda Stories***

Vampires always fit this season. Follow a girl willing to kill to obtain freedom as she merges into life as a vampire and seeks out her people and a place to call home. 200 years of finding places for herself allow for a nice exploration of what it means for a vampire to live for a very, very long time.

The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire *****

Sometimes, living is the true thing of nightmares. Such is the case for the hitchhiking ghost Rose Marshall. She's hitched the ghost roads for decades longer than she's been alive and content with her undead existence despite being haunted still by the man who killed her, demon-pact and all. When he curses her, she finds that only by living again can she remove the curse. It was only supposed to last one evening, the only evening the dead can return to flesh: Halloween night. (This is a book 2)

The Girl with All the Gifts *****

I was so hooked starting this book with zero information about it other than it was a good spooky read, and since it was such an experience, I simply cannot get myself to say much about this. It follows a special child student, her teacher, and the head of the locked down school's security team as they navigate a dystopian world behind walls, and attempts to reach the outside world have proven unsuccessful so far.

The Mall of Cthulhu by Susan Cooper

Danielle "When Ted stumbles onto a gropu of Cthulhu cultists planning to awaken the Old Ones through mystic incantations culled from the fabled Necronomicon, calling forth eldritch horros into an unsuspecting world, eh and Laura must spring into action, traveling from Boston to the seemingly-peaceful suburbs of Providence and beyond, all the way to the sanity-shattering non-Euclidian alleyways and towers of dread R'lyeh itself, in order to prevent an innocent shopping center from turning into... The Mall of Cth

Mexican Gothic****

Noemí leaves her bustling city of Mexico City to go to London to visit her cousin who married into an old family. Her cousin seems sick, having sent for Noemí to rescue her. It is believed her cousin is suffering the effects of a mental illness. Once there, Noemi is struck by how isolated the home is, how run down and mildewy it is. It is not at all what she imagined, nor are the people there, or the family dynamics she could never have guessed at. All she wants to do is get out of there as soon as possible, but first she has to her cousin, and then, she finds she simply cannot lea

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin***

Talk about a book that feels like horror for me in particular! And though a lot of the book has a veneer of the mundane, don't be deceived. There are witches and blood rituals and demonic entities tipping the scales. Perfect for those who love the spooky elements of Halloween! Also, I anticipated that after all the buildup, the ending wouldn't be able to live up, but I actually quite liked it. Though don't let that allow you to suspect a peachy resolution XD

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson***

One of the classic horror books has to go among classic Halloween! You think you know this story, but if you haven't read it, you likely know less than you think! This is the perfect time of year to check out the original.

Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire *****

Follow a hitchhiking ghost over the breadth of the continental US. She was run off the Sparrow Hill Road in 1952 on her way to prom and never made it there. Instead she haunts the highways of the US, hitchhiking her way from roadside diner to roadside diner. She finds a calling in spending time with someone before their last moments, fated to die on the road. Sometimes though, she gets to alter that fate. But there is one out there who has an unpleasant fate in mind for her, and he haunts the roads in his immortal demon car, determined to get the prey who escaped him in the early 1950s.

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims ***

The apartment complex must be haunted. What else explains the series of horror visitations that happen upon 13 different residents who live in the building? Each storey is unlike the other. Almost a series of short stories, except... they do seem to be connected. Everything seems to point in the direction of the apartment's landowner as each resident receives an unexpected inviation to a dinner at his top floor penthouse in too timely a manner with the unexpected.

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Interested in 'true' ghost stories? Well find here collected stories Seymour and Neligan sought out from real people in Ireland who vouched to the veracity of their accounts. The stories are disjointed and with no real beginning or end, but read much like tales told around the campfire in the dark of night. I mean what is more classic than ghosts, poltergeists, banshees, and the like?

The Vampyre; A Tale by John Polidori**

Vern "A short work of prose fiction written in 1819" "often viewed as the progenitor of the romantic vampire genre of fantasy fiction." Our protagonist becomes fascinating by an intriguing gentleman and takes up with him only to begin to suspect a dark explanation of the man's behaviors.

Nonfiction

From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death by Caitlin Doughty*****

Is the west too disconnected from death thanks to a 20 billion dollar industry that makes loved ones disappear nearly the moment they leave the world of the living and their bodies corpses? What if we returned to a not so distant practice of taking part in death rituals, to have a purpose, be a link, in a loved one's passing from this world and the next? Doughty explores those rituals and more from cultures across the world and asks us to imagine a more fulfilling grieving process that included the body of those who've passed on.

Haunted Wisconsin by Michael Norman, Beth Scott****

Collected from around Wisconsin, this book contains tales of an "assortment of ghosts, apparitions and other supernatural occurrences."

I'll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara***

"A masterful true crime account of the Golden State Killer—the elusive searial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade—from Michelle McNamara, the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case."

Penguin Book of Hell by Scott Bruce **

Let's talk about hell. That's what this book is all about, from the ghostly afterlife of the Greeks to the hell we force on others. This follows in a pretty straight line from the Greek/Roman concepts thru the Christian concepts, to attitudes about endless punishment held today.

True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John Seymour & Harry Neligan***

Interested in 'true' ghost stories? Well find here collected stories Seymour and Neligan sought out from real people in Ireland who vouched to the veracity of their accounts. The stories are disjointed and with no real beginning or end, but read much like tales told around the campfire in the dark of night. I mean what is more classic than ghosts, poltergeists, banshees, and the like?

Vampire Forensics: Uncovering the Origins of an Enduring Legend by Mark Collins Jenkins*****

An "engrossing history draws on the latest science, anthropological and archaeological research to explore the origins of vampire stories, providing gripping historic and folkloric context for the concept of immortal beings who defy death by feeding on the lifeblood of others. From the earliest whispers of eternal evil in ancient Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome, vampire tales flourished through the centuries and around the globe, fueled by superstition, sexual mystery, fear of disease and death, and the nagging anxiety that demons lurk everywhere."

The World of Lore Books by Aaron Mahnke ****

These contain the books Dreadful Places, Wicked Mortals, and Monstrous Creatures. I haven't actually read Wicked Mortals yet, but the other two were perfect for the season and am confident so too Wicked Mortals will be too. Follow Mahnke as he explores the history of these folk tales and spoopy histories! They also work as great audio listens.

It's October, so get ready to see this even more! I still have books I want to add to it that are pending, and more will be added as I read. But I'm always looking for more books to queue up for some spoopy time (and/OR Autumn reading), and when I find there's something I wish there was more of out in the world, I find it helps to put out into it what we'd like to see.

That is to say, please feel free to add to this! I will excitedly look forward to more spoopy recs.

[sophielovesbooks]

I asked ChatGPT to create its own dark academia rec list. Here is the result:

"The Secret History" by Donna Tartt: This novel follows a group of elite college students as they become embroiled in a web of secrets and tragedy.

"The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde: A classic novel about a young man who becomes increasingly corrupted by his own vanity and hedonism.

"If We Were Villains" by M.L. Rio: This novel follows a group of Shakespearean theater students as they become embroiled in a murder investigation.

"Brideshead Revisited" by Evelyn Waugh: A classic novel about the relationships and tragedies of a group of aristocratic students at Oxford.

"The Goldfinch" by Donna Tartt: A novel about a young boy who becomes entangled in the criminal underworld after a tragic event.

"The Name of the Rose" by Umberto Eco: A historical novel set in a medieval monastery, where a monk investigates a series of murders.

"The Magus" by John Fowles: A novel about a young man who becomes a teacher on a secluded Greek island, only to become embroiled in a web of deception and manipulation.

Villains is on it!! 😍 Apart from that, I hope all of these actually exist because ChatGPT is notorious for hallucinating info.

[librarydate]

“What’s a game?’ Marx said. “It’s tomorrow, ad tomorrow, and tomorrow. It’s the possibility of infinite rebirth, infinite redemption. The idea that if you keep playing, you could win. No loss is permanent, because nothing is permanent, ever.” - Gabrielle Zevin (Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow) 

Last week I finished reading Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow! This was definitely not what I was expecting and yet I enjoyed it fully! There were moments that this book reminded me of “A Little Life” by Hanya Yanigihara, not that it was extremely dark, but in its structuring of the story and similar character elements and characteristics I felt with our main cast of characters. There were times when I loved them and times when I hated them, and honestly that’s what made me love this book! This was an unexpected 5 star book for me this month! Also during the week my younger sister and I visited AGO after so long which was lovely, and my older sister and I went for a nice long walk to enjoy the fall beauty before it’s all gone! It was a wonderful week! 💕

[cucascaprisun]

I need book recommendations ASAP

(Just, please, nothing by Colleen Hoover or similar thank you very much.)

[farnwedel]

Jahresrückblick/book rec 2023

Das Leben braucht mehr Schokoguss

Autor*in: Ella Lindberg

Inhalt & Kommentar: siehe hier :D

Empfehlenswert für: Zugfahrten, Wartezimmer usw. - leichte Lektüre für zwischendurch, manchmal ganz charmant.

Something to Hide: A Lynley Novel

Autor*in: Elizabeth George

Inhalt: Eine junge Polizistin stirbt nach einem Schlag auf den Hinterkopf. Ein Teenager versucht, seine kleine Schwester vor FGM zu beschützen. Zwischen den Fällen gibt es Schnittstellen und der Fall schlägt Wellen, da er nicht nur für das Team um Lynley, Havers und Nkata Fragen zu strukturellem Rassismus und Integration aufwirft.

Kommentar: Beklemmend. Manchmal vielleicht zu oberflächlich, was die gesellschaftskritischen Themen angeht. Lynleys persönliches Drama nimmt mich überhaupt nicht mit. Havers' sprachliche Entgleisungen sind bemerkenswert. Winston Nkata ist ein Schatz.

Empfehlenswert für: Fans der Reihe; Fans englischer Krimis (wobei manche Beziehungen und Anspielungen im persönlichen Umfeld der Ermittler*innen verwirren können)

The Night Gate

Autor*in: Peter May

Inhalt: In einem Dorf in Frankreich stürzt ein alter Baum um. Zwischen den Wurzeln wird das Skelett eines Luftwaffe-Offiziers mit einem Loch im Schädel gefunden. Zeitgleich wird ein paar Häuser weiter ein Galerist aus Paris brutal ermordet. Enzo Macleod, Polizist im Ruhestand, ermittelt und stößt auf Zusammenhänge, die in der Vergangenheit liegen - genauer gesagt, in der Verlegung der Kunstwerke des Louvre während des Zweiten Weltkrieges.

Kommentar: ...ja. Eigentlich mag ich Peter Mays Romane ja. Aber dieser hier...uff. Erstens spielt er nicht in Schottland, und auch wenn May selbst in Frankreich lebt, das Land kann er nicht so gut rüberbringen wie die Hebriden. Zweitens ist es ein Band aus einer Reihe, die ich nicht kenne, weswegen mir Enzos Hintergrundgeschichte fehlt und er und seine Familie mir nicht wirklich am Herzen liegen (oder sonst irgendeine Figur aus dem Buch, die sind alle recht wenig sympathisch). Drittens habe ich ein massives Problem mit Mays Art, von Deutschen und Deutschland zu schreiben - sowohl in der Gegenwart (er benutzt für eine Figur ständig das Wort "Mitarbeiter", als wär das eine aussagekräftige Berufsbezeichnung, gibt Menschen Anfang 20 Namen wie "Hans" und "Lise" und lässt sie astreines Englisch sprechen, Enzo dann aber mit "Herr Macleod" ansprechen) als auch in der Vergangenheit (vielleicht ist das die German guilt, aber ich würde nie so oberflächlich und unkritisch über Wehrmachtssoldaten, Göring und Hitler persönlich schreiben??).

Empfehlenswert für: Tha mi duilich, Peter, aber das kann ich wirklich niemandem guten Gewissens empfehlen.

Drachenbanner

Autor*in: Rebecca Gablé

Inhalt: England, 13. Jahrhundert. Adela of Waringham und ihr Milchbruder und bester Freund Bedric Archer werden getrennt, als Adela an den Hof von Prinzessin Eleanor und ihrem Gemahl Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, geschickt wird. Bedric hingegen hält die Unterdrückung, die er als Leibeigener erfährt, nicht allzu lange aus und flieht nach London. Er ein freier Mann, sie eine verheiratete Hofdame, treffen sie einander doch immer wieder und werden in die politischen Auseinandersetzungen zwischen Montfort und seinem Schwager König Henry III hineingezogen.

Kommentar: Rebecca Gablé schreibt einfach toll und schafft es, auch wenn sie gewisse Muster und Tropen wiederholt, einen immer wieder in die Welt der Waringhams hineinzuziehen. Man jubelt und zittert mit den Figuren, kann das Buch kaum aus der Hand legen und lernt nebenher noch so einiges über die englische Geschichte.

Empfehlenswert für: Fans der Reihe, aber auch Fans von historischen Romanen im Allgemeinen - dieser hier ist das zweite Prequel in der Waringham-Reihe und kann daher nicht so oft mit Bezügen zu früheren Ereignissen verwirren.

Silberner Mond über Venedig

Autor*in: Kate Hardy

Inhalt & Kommentar: siehe hier

Empfehlenswert für: wann auch immer ihr mein Hörbuch brauchen könnt. :D

Edinburgh Love Stories

Autor*in: Samantha Young

Inhalt & Kommentar: siehe hier

Empfehlenswert für: Flughafenwartebereiche oder so, idk

[kitzatara]

TODAY IS ZATANNA’S 60th DEBUT ANNIVERSARY!!!

Exactly 60 years ago today, Zatanna came onto the comic book pages of Hawkman #4, and has continued to thrill and delight!

So to celebrate here on tumblr, this will be a post about fun facts and information about the one and only, Princess of Prestidigitation, Sorceress Supreme, and Mistress of Magic!

Zatanna is a human and Homo Magi hybrid born to Giovanni “John” Zatara and Sindella. Through Zatara she is of Italian descent, and related to Leonardo Da Vinci, Nostradamus, Cagliostro, and Nicholas Flammel. On her mother’s side she is of Atlantean descent and distantly related to Arion the sorcerer king and demi-god of Atlantis.

Zatanna primarily casts spells by speaking backwards, originally due to her connection to Da Vinci who wrote his journals in reverse. Later it was revealed to be a way to keep the Otherkind from the dark multiverse from finding and feeding on her. And while it is her go to spellcasting method she can cast spells without speaking, through rhymes, runes, song, and even psychically!

Since she can pretty much make anything happen by speaking it backwards she has a laundry list of magical capabilities and is considered one of the most powerful Justice Leaguers, and magic users in the DC universe. Having used her powers to stop many threats over the years and save countless lives.

Despite having near limitless powers Zatanna often suffers from being sidelined in stories, or nerfed to make her more palatable to the narrative. Usually due to a combination of sexism, being not as popular as other characters, or so that the other characters can have the spotlight. But when Zatanna gets to shine, it’s brighter than the sun.

Like many of her peers Zatanna has a no kill rule, and has actually never killed anyone in the main continuity/universe. She has also never died in main canon, a somewhat rare quality among comic characters.

Despite having a no kill rule Zatanna does have a bit of temper, as well as an over reliance on her magic powers. She is a self proclaimed “spellaholic” often using magic for mundane tasks and to get even with people who vex her. And when her father, loved ones, and children are threatened she has been known to lash out. But she always sets things right, and does the right thing in the end.

Despite her temper Zatanna is a very kind and loving character, she considers many of the League members to be like family, and is much beloved among the superheroes and magic users of the world. Her fierce determination to do good and put a smile on people’s faces even when she’s feeling low is a stand out character trait. She has even gone out of her way to protect her enemies, the people who caused her mother’s death, and civilians of people who have harmed her. Because at the end of the day she is a hero, and damn good one.

Zatanna is a complex and fascinating character with so much wonderful history to explore. And it’s so fortunate that she has her first ever Black Label solo called Zatanna: Bring Down The House. What better way to celebrate her 60 years than by checking it out? Issue #3 releases next week! And tomorrow (August 21st) Superman #17 releases featuring a rare team up between the Magic Maid and the Man of Steel. And below are some of my personal comic reading recs!

May you come to love her as I do

Yojne! 🎩🪄

[duckprintspress]

Queer Book Recs for Speak Your Language Day!

Once a year on Tumblr on May 7th, the account @spyld organizes Speak Your Language Day, a day to encourage people on such an English-centric platform to speak their native languages instead. Duck Prints Press works with creators from over the world, many of whom speak languages other than English as their native tongues (French and German are most common among our folks, but they’re far from the only mother tongues) and so we wanted to join in the celebration for the day by highlighting some of our favorite queer works originally published in languages other than English. Six people contributed to this list (half themselves not native English speakers.). Original language blurbs used when possible!

Where We Go from Here (Você Tem a Vida Inteira) by Lucas Rocha. Original language: Brazilian Portuguese

As vidas de Ian, Victor e Henrique se encontram de uma forma inesperada. Ian conhece Victor no dia em que recebe o resultado de seu teste rápido de HIV. Os dois são universitários. Victor está envolvido com Henrique. Ian está solteiro. Os três são gays.

Dois deles têm a vida atingida pela notícia de um diagnóstico positivo para o HIV. Um não tem o vírus. Um está indetectável. Dois estão apaixonados. Henrique é mais velho e, depois de Victor, pensou que poderia acreditar de novo em alguém.

Victor têm medo do que o amor pode trazer para a sua vida.

Ian sequer sabe se será capaz de amar.

Os três são, ao mesmo tempo, heróis e vilões de uma história que não é sobre culpa, mas sim sobre amor, amigos e sobre como podemos formar nossas próprias famílias.

Guardian (镇魂/Zhen Hun) by priest. Original language: Chinese

Zhao Yunlan heads up a covert division of the Ministry of Public Security that deals with the strange and unusual, blurring the line between the mortal realm and the Netherworld. His cocky, casual attitude conceals both a sharp mind and an arsenal of mystical tools and arcane knowledge. 

While investigating a gruesome death at a local university, Zhao Yunlan crosses paths with the reserved Professor Shen Wei. Zhao Yunlan is immediately intrigued by Shen Wei’s good looks and intense gaze, and the attraction between them is immediate and powerful, even as Shen Wei tries to keep his distance. Shen Wei and his secrets are a puzzle Zhao Yunlan feels compelled to solve as mysterious circumstances throw them together, and their connection becomes impossible to deny.

The Center of the World (Die Mitte der Welt) by Andreas Steinhöfel. Original language: German

Was immer ein normales Leben auch sein mag – der 17-jährige Phil hat es nie kennengelernt. Denn so ungewöhnlich wie das alte Haus ist, in dem er lebt, so ungewöhnlich sind auch die Menschen, die dort ein- und ausgehen – seine chaotische Mutter Glass, seine verschlossene Zwillingsschwester Dianne und all die anderen. Und dann ist da noch Nicholas, der Unerreichbare, in den Phil sich unsterblich verliebt.

Journey Home (A Caminho de Casa) by May Barros. Original language: Brazilian Portuguese

Amara e Luiza are two witches that live in a queerplatonic relationship. When Luiza decides to embark on a journey throught the galaxy in a quest for the lost fortress of Laura, the Dragon Queen, she ends up finding more than expected, while Amara follows her footsteps, hoping it’s not too late.

Roze Brieven by Splinter Chabot. Original language: Dutch

Op zijn verjaardag op 3 maart 2020 debuteerde Splinter Chabot met CONFETTIREGEN. Het boek werd al snel omarmd door de boekhandel en media. En daar bleef het niet bij. Sinds de verschijning krijgt Splinter dagelijks reacties op zijn openhartige verhaal over zijn coming-out. Reacties van ouders, van jongeren die met dezelfde worsteling kampen, van ouderen die zichzelf herkennen in het verhaal, van mensen uit de LGBTQ+-gemeenschap, van docenten en nog vele anderen. Ontroerende, grappige, gekke, treurige en hoopvolle reacties die Splinter stuk voor stuk beantwoordt.

In Roze brieven zijn de meest bijzondere brieven verzameld door Splinter zelf met daarbij de reacties die hij heeft gestuurd. Voor alle lezers van CONFETTIREGEN en voor iedereen die worstelt met zijn of haar identiteit zal Roze brieven een waardevolle bron van herkenning zal zijn. Een intieme en ontroerende bundeling waarin een belangrijke boodschap weerklinkt: Het wordt beter.

Silent Reading (默读/Mo Du) by priest. Original language: Chinese

Childhood, upbringing, family background, social relations, traumatic experiences…We keep reviewing and seeking out the motives of criminals, exploring the subtlest emotions driving them. It’s not to put ourselves in their shoes and sympathize, or even forgive them; it’s not to find some reasons to exculpate their crimes; it’s not to kneel down before the so-called “complexity of human nature”; nor to introspect social conflicts, much less to alienate ourselves into monsters.We just want to have a fair trial – for ourselves and for those who still have hope for the world.

Favorite (Preferida) by May Barros. Original language: Brazilian Portuguese

(no blurb available)

Amatka by Karin Tidbeck. Original language: Swedish

Av ren slump har människor hamnat i en parallell värld. Det är en instabil plats, där orden hela tiden formar verkligheten. Den dagliga kampen för att överleva har skapat ett samhälle fyllt av regler, där kollektivet alltid går före individen. Vanja skickas till det avlägsna samhället Amatka. De människor hon möter där ruskar om i hennes sorg och ensamhet. Hon gör häpnadsväckande upptäckter, som förändrar inte bara henne, personligen. I en instabil värld kan en förändring spridas hur långt som helst.

Thieves (Voleuse) by Lucie Bryon. Original language: French

Arriver à l’heure en cours et étudier ? Très peu pour Ella. Ce qu’elle aime ? Regarder à la dérobée la douce et mystérieuse Madeleine et, bien sûr, faire la fête. Un peu trop, même.

Un matin, elle se réveille avec une gueule de bois carabinée : c’est le blackout. Et la panique. Chez qui a-t-elle passé la soirée ? Et pourquoi son lit est jonché d’objets luxueux qui ne lui appartiennent absolument pas ?

Here the Whole Time (Quinze Dias) by Vitor Martins. Original language: Brazilian Portuguese

Felipe está esperando esse momento desde que as aulas começaram: o início das férias de julho. Finalmente ele vai poder passar alguns dias longe da escola e dos colegas que o maltratam. Os planos envolvem se afundar nos episódios atrasados de suas séries favoritas, colocar a leitura em dia e aprender com tutoriais no YouTube coisas novas que ele nunca vai colocar em prática.

Mas as coisas fogem um pouquinho do controle quando a mãe de Felipe informa que concordou em hospedar Caio, o vizinho do 57, por longos quinze dias, enquanto os pais dele não voltam de uma viagem. Felipe entra em desespero porque a) Caio foi sua primeira paixãozinha na infância (e existe uma grande possibilidade dessa paixão não ter passado até hoje) e b) Felipe coleciona uma lista infinita de inseguranças e não tem a menor ideia de como interagir com o vizinho.

Love Me for Who I Am (不可解なぼくのすべてを/Fukakai na Boku no Subete o) by Kata Konayama. Original language: Japanese

男の子？女の子？『ぼく』らの青春にはナゾがいっぱい!

女子の制服を着て学校に通う高校生、もぐもはある日、カフェのアルバイトに誘われる。 可愛い制服を着て働ける仕事に、最初は喜ぶもぐもだったが、このカフェが『男の娘カフェ』であることを知って…。

This Is Our Place (Se a Casa 8 Falasse) by Vitor Martins. Original language: Brazilian Portuguese

O terceiro romance de Vitor Martins, autor de Quinze dias e Um milhão de finais felizes Ambientado e narrado pela mesma casa em três décadas diferentes, Se a casa 8 falasse é um romance sobre jovens lidando com mudanças drásticas, conflitos familiares e primeiros amores, que mostra que, apesar das gerações mudarem, algumas experiências são capazes de atravessar a barreira do tempo. Algumas casas guardam histórias especiais. A que fica no número 8 da rua Girassol tem muito para contar. 2000: Ana recebe a notícia de que vai se mudar e será obrigada a deixar para trás tudo o que conheceu até agora, inclusive a parte mais dolorida de todas: sua namorada. 2010: Enquanto os pais de Greg passam por um divórcio complicado, ele é enviado para a casa da tia, que é dona de uma locadora em tempos de internet e odeia companhia – e muitas outras coisas. 2020: Beto sempre quis se mudar e seguir o sonho de ser fotógrafo em São Paulo. Só que uma pandemia aparece para obrigá-lo a ficar trancado em casa com a mãe protetora e a irmã aparentemente perfeita. Esta é uma história sobre uma casa e seus moradores, incluindo um vira-lata de três patas chamado Keanu Reeves

Heaven Official’s Blessing (天官赐福/Tian Guan Ci Fu) by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu. Original language: Chinese

Born the crown prince of a prosperous kingdom, Xie Lian was renowned for his beauty, strength, and purity. His years of dedicated study and noble deeds allowed him to ascend to godhood. But those who rise may also fall, and fall he does–cast from the heavens and banished to the world below. 

Eight hundred years after his mortal life, Xie Lian has ascended to godhood for the third time, angering most of the gods in the process. To repay his debts, he is sent to the Mortal Realm to hunt down violent ghosts and troublemaking spirits who prey on the living. Along his travels, he meets the fascinating and brilliant San Lang, a young man with whom he feels an instant connection. Yet San Lang is clearly more than he appears… What mysteries lie behind that carefree smile?

Golden Hue (Aura Dourada) by May Barros. Original language: Brazilian Portuguese

(no blurb available)

The Way Spring Arrives and Other Stories (no Chinese title) ed. by Regina Kanyu Wang & Yu Chen. Original language: Chinese

In The Way Spring Arrives and Other Stories, you can dine at a restaurant at the end of the universe, cultivate to immortality in the high mountains, watch roses perform Shakespeare, or arrive at the island of the gods on the backs of giant fish to ensure that the world can bloom.

Written, edited, and translated by a female and nonbinary team, these stories have never before been published in English and represent both the richly complicated past and the vivid future of Chinese science fiction and fantasy.

Time travel to a winter’s day on the West Lake, explore the very boundaries of death itself, and meet old gods and new heroes in this stunning new collection.

There are so many wonderful queer books being published in languages other than English. What are some of your favorites, available in translation or not?

View this list, and other books we’ve previously recommend that were originally published in languages other than English, on this Goodreads shelf!

[jurassic-cunt]

shout-out to that werewolf book where werewolves considered fucking a human beastiality and if one of them did it the others were obligated to kill them lol so funny loved it

[daficrecs]

Send me your Dragon Age fanfics to read & rec/review!

Hi everyone, and welcome to DAFicRecs! Right now it's just me, Sin, running the show, but over time I hope more people will join this project and help me share the love and joy of DA fanfic. 😁💙

My goal is to support fanfic authors in our community by sharing the works I love (and what I love most about them) with the Dragon Age fandom. I have almost two decades of professional experience reviewing books (fiction and non-fiction), and I'd like to use those skills to support our community.

In the past, I ran a similar blog for the Baldur's Gate 3 fandom, which you can check out here: BG3 Fic Reviews

If you would like me to read your fanfic, please send me an ask (with a link to your work and a short description) and I will add your work to my reading queue. While I do sometimes write "spot recs/reviews" of work I really love, I would prefer that this be a collaborative project with the community and that authors submit their work to me themselves.

Thank you for your support and please keep creating and sharing your incredible work! And readers, please remember to leave kudos on your fav fanfic authors' work!

Below the fold are fic submission guidelines! A master list of all the recs/reviews I've posted will also be there in future!

If you have any questions at all, please feel free to send an ask to DAFicRecs.

Last updated: 18 September 2024.

FIC SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

When you submit your fic, please be sure to include the following:

A link to your work & the pseud/handle you publish under (regardless of platform)

The title of your work

Any tags I should be aware of

A brief summary

Any social media you would like to be tagged in the rec/review when we publish it (please include a link to your profile)

If you have commissioned artwork for your fic, please feel free to let us know! We would be happy to post it with the rec/review of your work (with the artist's permission)

What kind of work can you submit?

Anything and everything. Long fics in progress, short NSFW fics, dark fics, angst fics, fluffy fics. Everything is welcome. If there is something in the tags I really can't handle, I will be in contact with you and let you know. In the rare cases where that does happen, please know it is not a reflection on your work—all it means is that I'll need to hold it until I find a reviewer who is comfortable reading those themes.

To be absolutely clear: this blog is firmly profiction and therefore supports and celebrates creative/artistic freedom in fiction.

You can submit your fic to me through the DAFicRecs asks here. Please note that I won't respond to your ask (unless I need further information) and I will just add it to my queue and will get to reviewing it as soon as I can. Please don't worry when you don't get a response to your ask! Once I have created an AO3 collection for my fic reading queue I will update this post with a link. Then you can check there what's currently in my queue, and whether I have added you.

[gizkasparadise]

What is the worst, most technically inept drama that you secretly love? Tell us of the best badgood drama, the clunkiest dialogue, the most inexplicable casting, the hideously costumed yet most fun dramas, please.

🫥Anonymously yours🫥,

💜Purplehanfu😈💜🍇👾

dear complete stranger (<3),

man i love badgood dramas so much!!! i chose ones that are flatout objectively not good, but i was glued for them all. here's a few that are jumping out

triad princess (taiwan). it ends on a cliffhanger that will never be continued, the relationship building is non-existent, jasper liu basically plays himself yet still acts like he's doing a community service project, but omg it's cute and hit all the right notes for me. fave bonus is that one of the gangster henchmen falls in love with the FL's best friend, a shy boy who works at a mart and makes youtube covers

hold on, my lady (chinese). a bandit is offered a choice when she's caught during a heist: be executed or marry this aloof but beautiful but delicate son of the general. she chooses the latter, and hijinks ensue. made on a budget of pocket lint and just wacky, im going to rewatch this today, actually. fave bonus moment: the FL falls dramatically down and the ML breaks both his arms instantly when he tries to catch her

thumping spike & thumping spike 2 (korean). the two are barely related, but both deal with a competitive men's volleyball team! thumping spike 1 is about a washed up competitive female player going to coach a high school team to glory (just dont...think too critically about the age difference, there) and the second is COLLEGE EDITION with a love quadrangle between two identical twins, one of whom is a cheerleader for the team, the ace volleyball player who's too cool for school, and the WILDCARD volleyball player who gets mad when people call him gorilla. the second one is definitely worse than the first one, but neither are bringing home awards. i still watched them both in one sitting.

my heart twinkle twinkle (korean). this show is actually insane and a parade of toxic that i can never, in good conscience, ever rec to anyone. but gd did i watch the whole fucking thing. look at this fucking poster. this fucking poster looks like it was doused by a fake snow machine.

premise: Noble But Poor family has 3 daughters: the eldest, who is the caretaker; the middle who is Aloof and Ambitious; and the youngest who is A Fucking Menace. they are lead by their single father, who owns a fried chicken store

Rich but Dysfunctional family also has 3 children: the eldest, who is the only son and a fucking piece of work, the middle who is school colleagues with the other family's middle daughter and a hot mess who loves Da Club, and the youngest, who is clingy and gets into a ton of fights with the other family's youngest but is otherwise ok. they run AN EVIL FRIED CHICKEN FRANCHISE that is poisoning people through subpar ingredients!!

there's so much that's so wrong with this, im going to bullet point it from another post i made:

the entire premise is that there’s a fried chicken restaurant rivalry between two families but somehow there’s murder and slush funds and this guy who owns a string of fried chicken franchises named after himself (yeah) has direct access to seoul’s police commissioner at any given moment

one of the main actresses was involved in a scandal a little over halfway through production so they just….vanish her character/entire plotline like it never happened

the main male lead is toxic personified. him and li chengyin from goodbye my princess could co-author a dating strategy/forced-marriage-after-you-kill-your-girlfriend’s-head-of-household book because jesus christ. he literally screams that he hates women and he ends the drama (rightfully!!) in fucking prison

the second female lead disappears/creates a new identity and becomes a chicken chef student of the world. shes later in a love triangle between a single dad chicken shop interior designer and another vanilla guy

that's right, one guy’s job is he’s an architect for chicken restaurant interiors i cant

the main male lead leaves the main female lead’s father to die in a chicken-coop-themed arsony and then cha-cha slides into the son-in-law’s role during the father’s funeral and later MARRIES the female lead

the main male lead tells the female lead’s father’s grave that HE WON AND DAD LOST because the male lead is standing and the father’s in the dirt?!

a friend/almost!love interest of the second female lead dies tragically in a chicken delivery motorcycle chase????

it's the worst drama i've ever seen. i watched all of it.

kakafukaka (japanese)

this one is so gd weird and unappealing it somehow circled back around and became off-puttingly charming to me? so the premise is that there's a 20something year old woman whose life has gone to shit and she ends up in a sharehome with the most sexually dysfunctional bunch of people in the world. one of these is her ex, who tells her that she's the only one he can get a boner with (yeah) and asks her to help him get over his impotence in order to write his novel (yeah). if you read the whole show as kind of an exploration into sex without romance/love, it's as not bad, and there's something weirdly endearing about everyone--i really love the second female lead akari in particular. but it's not a good show, not by a long shot (MDL rating? 6.6), and the ship is dysfunctional at the very best. the ost somehow is great though?

speaking of trash dramas with great OSTs, love in sadness has some of my favorite songs:

okay that's enough for now!!!!

[beasladies]

Charlie Campbell: Book rec

ou os oito livros de cabeceira de uma filha de Atena

As Ondas Virginia Woolf

As ondas, considerada uma das mais importantes obras de Virginia Woolf e do século XX, oferece uma visão única e emocionante sobre a vida humana, a natureza da identidade e a importância da conexão. A história é contada por meio de uma série de monólogos interiores ― os fluxos de consciência ― que seguem a vida de seis amigos, da infância à idade adulta. Cada personagem tem sua própria voz e uma perspectiva única, que, juntas, criam uma imagem profunda e complexa da experiência humana. Ao longo do romance experimental, Woolf explora temas como amizade, amor, solidão, autodescoberta, feminismo e espiritualidade a partir das inquietações e sensações íntimas de suas personagens principais, tecendo uma história poderosa e emocionante com a qual é impossível não se envolver.

2. Alice No País Das Maravilhas Lewis Carroll

Conta a história de Alice, menina que cai numa toca de coelho e vai parar num lugar fantástico, povoado por criaturas estranhas que lembram seres humanos. Um universo nonsense, com uma lógica do absurdo, que remete ao mundo dos sonhos, numa narrativa pontuada por paródias de poemas populares infantis ingleses daquela época. Nesse lugar, Alice enfrenta estranhas e absurdas aventuras, passa por situações incomuns, conhece seres extravagantes, é submetida a perguntas e situações enigmáticas ou desprovidas de sentido lógico, aumenta e diminui de tamanho... e vive tudo com naturalidade e muita, muita curiosidade.

3. Antígona Sófocles

Na lendária Tebas, Creonte, um novo tirano, ordena que sejam dados tratamentos desiguais aos dois irmãos de Antígona. Sua imposição é didática. Se aquele que lutou ao lado da cidade deve receber as honras do sepultamento, o outro, que atacou as muralhas, deve ser jogado no ermo para que sirva de exemplo aos opositores. A ordem, no entanto, não é aceita por Antígona. Ela se insurge contra o édito, honrando seu irmão, defendendo os ritos sacros devidos aos deuses, pondo em risco sua própria vida, trazendo à tona a herança e a verve da antiga estirpe dos Labdácidas. Composta por volta de 442 a. C., Antígona é ainda hoje uma peça conturbada e polêmica. É uma tragédia que pontua os limites do poder, o seu lugar e as suas instâncias, e que oferece o espetáculo grandioso da vontade, do sentimento de estirpe, da piedade e da justiça.

4. A Divina Comédia Dante Alighieri

Escrito no século XIV,  A divina comédia , o poema épico de Dante Alighieri é considerado também um dos textos fundadores da língua italiana. Nele, o escritor apresenta uma jornada inesquecível pelo tormento infinito do Inferno e a árdua subida da montanha do Purgatório até o glorioso reino do Paraíso. Dante conseguiu fundir sátira, inteligência e paixão em uma alegoria cristã imortal sobre a busca da humanidade pelo autoconhecimento e pela transformação espiritual.

5. O Mundo de Sofia Jostein Gaarder

Às vésperas de seu aniversário de quinze anos, Sofia Amundsen começa a receber bilhetes e cartões-postais bastante estranhos. Os bilhetes são anônimos e perguntam a Sofia quem é ela e de onde vem o mundo. Os postais são enviados do Líbano, por um major desconhecido, para uma certa Hilde Møller Knag, garota a quem Sofia também não conhece. De capítulo em capítulo, de “lição” em “lição”, o leitor é convidado a percorrer toda a história da filosofia ocidental, ao mesmo tempo que se vê envolvido por um thriller que toma um rumo surpreendente.

6. Eu Sei Por Que O Pássaro Canta Na Gaiola Maya Angelou

RACISMO. ABUSO. LIBERTAÇÃO. A vida de Marguerite Ann Johnson foi marcada por essas três palavras. A garota negra, criada no sul por sua avó paterna, carregou consigo um enorme fardo que foi aliviado apenas pela literatura e por tudo aquilo que ela pôde lhe trazer: conforto através das palavras. Dessa forma, Maya, como era carinhosamente chamada, escreve para exibir sua voz e libertar-se das grades que foram colocadas em sua vida. As lembranças dolorosas e as descobertas de Angelou estão contidas e eternizadas nas páginas desta obra densa e necessária, dando voz aos jovens que um dia foram, assim como ela, fadados a uma vida dura e cheia de preconceitos. Com uma escrita poética e poderosa, a obra toca, emociona e transforma profundamente o espírito e o pensamento de quem a lê.

7. Hamlet William Shakespeare

Um jovem príncipe se reúne com o fantasma de seu pai, que alega que seu próprio irmão, agora casado com sua viúva, o assassinou. O príncipe cria um plano para testar a veracidade de tal acusação, forjando uma brutal loucura para traçar sua vingança. Mas sua aparente insanidade logo começa a causar estragos - para culpados e inocentes. 

8. Amor Nos Tempos Do Cólera Gabriel García Márquez

Ainda muito jovem, o telegrafista, violinista e poeta Gabriel Elígio Garcia se apaixonou por Luiza Márquez, mas o romance enfrentou a oposição do pai da moça, coronel Nicolas, que tentou impedir o casamento enviando a filha ao interior numa viagem de um ano. Para manter seu amor, Gabriel montou, com a ajuda de amigos telegrafistas, uma rede de comunicação que alcançava Luiza onde ela estivesse.