Our two spooky reads' months have ended - hooray! RIP VIII was such a fantastic event, right?
For me personally, I think this was the most successful reading event during the wholeblogging time. In the end of August I decided to tackle the following pieces of literature:
1. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
2. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
3. Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson
4. Dracula by Bram Stoker
5. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes from The Penguin Complete Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
6. The Shadow Over Innsmouth from Great Tales of Horror by H.P. Lovecraft
And here's what happened:
1. It sucks but I didn't get into The Turn of the Screw, my mind kept wandering off and after about half, I just put it aside, though it's more likely it will be one of those very rare cases that I will not finish a book/novella.
2. I finished The Night Circus and reviewed it here.
3. I finished Gardens of the Moon and reviewed it here.
4. I finished Dracula and have not reviewed it yet, but let me tell ya, it was a good piece of vampire story. That's how a vampire should be - none of that sparkling-under-the-sun crap.
5. I didn't read Sherlock Holmes because I think my short story quota is full for a while, what with Bradbury stories and Lovecraft story/novella.
6. I finished The Shadow Over Innsmouth and haven't reviewed it yet, but it was definitely the highlight among all the RIP reads - you guys, it was SO GOOD. I finished it yesterday, so just in time, and I'm so happy I decided to read it. So creepy, disturbing, with a twist that followed good pacing throughout - I'm a big fan. That's how a horror story should be written.
In addition, I accidentally read a few more books that would definitely count as RIP reads:
* The Illustrated Man - it's Ray Bradbury, and it's good, just as I would expect from him. Review here.
* Sharp Objects - Gillian Flynn and I will not be besties; I didn't get this book, good thing it was a short one. Review Rant here.
So, I read 4 novels, 1 collection of short stories, and 1 novella. 2 of them count towards the Classics Club goal.
I will definitely take part again next year!
I really enjoyed Dracula too! Looking forward to reading your book review.
ReplyDeleteI should really get it done - damn reviewing slump :)
DeleteYou did so fantastic! I really should've had Bradbury on my list. And I STILL haven't read The Night Circus, I took it back to the library without reading it. What is wrong with me...
ReplyDeleteSo glad you had a good R.I.P. experience!
Thanks! Isn't this the thing with library books, though - as easy as it is to take them from library, as easy it is to take them back, and also you know that if you really want you can get it from the library again in future. Whereas books you have at home kinda keep staring accusingly from shelves day after day as if saying "Why haven't you read me yet???" :D
DeleteOf your initial list, I've read two (Holmes and Dracula) and really want to read the other four! :) I've also read some Holmes this month (The Memoirs of S.H.), but I'm terribly behind with reviews... Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed the event! And nice work! :)
ReplyDeleteLet's not even talk about being behind with reviews - I have a book from May! that I haven't written about. I actually stacked all my TBReviewed books on the windowsill for photo and yes... that tower looks daunting...
DeleteBut thanks, if I remember correctly, it was your blog from where I read about the event in the first place.
'none of that sparkling under the sun crap' - haha! Sounds like Dracula is something I'm going to have to try. You did so amazing with your reading and I'm so pleased you enjoyed the event. All your posts have persuaded me to take part next year too :D
ReplyDeleteI definitely recommend Dracula - it's such a classic tale and although it's a big creepy, it didn't make me jump up or anything. (Also there is quite a nice female character involved, as much as times allow :) )
DeleteI think the event is really nice and if you have books on your shelf or TBR list that fit these categories of horror or thriller or any such, it's a good moment to pick them up and get done with 'em :)
I'm not surprised you ended up putting Turn of the Screw aside, you know I didn't think it was amazing either. And I'm so glad you loved Dracula, it's one of my favourites :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, I actually think I'm going to try Daisy Miller next, because I want to like Henry James, and all the other novels seem so big and daunting, so I'm hoping for the best. Maybe Turn of the Screw was just a little mistake.
DeleteAnd yes, Dracula was so good. Wonderfully atmospheric :) (Like the bits about climbing down the castle walls, head first... brrrr.)
I know it's practically blasphemy to say this about a classic, but I was so disappointed in Dracula...I was honestly expecting it to be scarier. I think it was something to do with the way it was written in letters that took away a lot of the suspense for me :/ Probably a case of my expectations being too high making it really hard for any book to live up to them, especially since this one is pretty much the "original" of it's kind.
ReplyDeleteI've seen other people being disappointed for the same thing (and especially quite aclimatic ending) and I can totally see where this is coming from. I think why I had pleasant experience was because I had no expectations, I love epistoraly style in general and also I was aware all the time what year this book was written and I thought maybe what we see as "suspense" was not quite the same back then. It was still at times a pretty spooky book but definitely not as intense as some of more modern horror fiction.
DeleteKeeping in mind the time the book was written sounds like a very important point. If I had been more aware of that, my feelings might have been different! I do think modern horror has gone way beyond creepy or spooky into downright terrifying territory, so that probably skewed my perception.
DeleteIt's interesting how our perceptions change based on changed times and experiences. If I had read Dracula when I was younger, I probably would have been bored to death with it, but nowadays, it's sometimes easy to forget that I'm actually reading for enjoyment as well, not just to "understand" where certain authors are coming from, if you know what I mean. That's why there comes that difference of really enjoying a book, and being able to appreciate a book.
DeleteBut in case of Dracula, I really enjoyed it because I'm a person who enjoys more subtle horror and psychological tension, in other words, I'm a big wuss :)