Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Local Bookstore

So I've been going through a reading slump, and this book was the root of it. I've been meaning to read it ever since it came out, but it wasn't until my friend Christine begged me to read it that I finally eventually did. I know, I know, a movie is in the works and all that. I knew I'd get around to it, but there's so many other books I wanted to read and... sigh, okay. My heart wasn't in it. But why? This seems like everything I could possibly want in a book! Creepy Victorian children? Check. Weird vintage photography? Check. (I have a folder dedicated to them on my desk top, and a Pinterest board too) So why was I resistant?
Okay, I loved the idea for this - a guy has a collection of weird old pictures so he makes up stories about them? That's pretty cool. But the story... Well, let's start the review.
I'm a completionist. I have the rest of the series sitting on my bookshelf right now, so I have to finish the whole thing. Even if... I wasn't particularly feeling it. I thought the book moved far too slowly for my taste, but luckily there are two books I haven't read. This, too me, feels like a set-up. A trap. Even worse because this book ends with a cliff-hanger. Can I even tell you want this was even about? It took incredibly long for us to learn that it might be best if I don't. Screw it. So this kid from Florida, Jacob, watches helplessly as a monster kills his beloved grandfather. But no one believes him because he is a dirt-bag teen and teens suck obviously monsters aren't real and it was probably wolves or something. But Jacob is adamant and he's sent to a therapist who convinces him to research some of the stories his grandfather told him growing up, you know, to prove to himself that he hadn't seen an actual monster kill his grandfather.
Jacob's research sends him to a tiny fishing island off the coast of Wales. After a lot of bullshit (no one likes this American Dirt-Bag Teen in Wales. No One.) Jacob finds the actual children his grandfather grew up with before WWII - the Peculiar children who have unique abilities.
Jacob is alright, but Emma, the girl who once loved his grandfather and now is falling for him, a bit of a fire brand (literally), irritates me to no end. She's some embodiment of a male fantasy that in real life no man could deal with for very long.
In the end that may be the thing that urks me most about this book - the subtle pretentiousness of a hip, edgy male author and his Gary-Sue hero.

Prudence: The First Book of the Custard Protocol

Amazon Pre-Order

We know how excited I was about this book. I preordered it and I never preorder anything. I had a moral dilemma when it arrived because it clashed with my Lenten penance.

Prudence Alessandra Maccon Akeldama, or Rue to friends, is all grown up! It's really touching to see all the old crew 20 years older, even the babies which we didn't get to know really well at the end of the Parasol Protectorate books.
Rue is gifted an entire dirigible of her own by her indulgent adopted father, Lord Akeldama. However, this isn't just for joy-riding and globe trotting in. Her mission, should she choose to accept it, is to visit India and procure some very rare, very new tea plants. Because, as we all know from personal experience, tea is very important. So, along with her homies Prim, Percy, and Quesnel, she sets off, but perhaps a little too hastily. Because fairly quickly the youths discover that maybe they should have stuck around a little longer so that Akeldama could debrief them more on what to expect. Things such as werecats and an abducted Englishwoman. This causes a great deal of confusion (and as the reader it felt a little off the cuff and sloppy).

Plot-wise, the story was imperfect. Many of Carriger's series start off feeling like that, but improve after she embellishes over time. Considering that there is only projected to be one book after this one in the series, I'm a little concerned here.
But the thing that really makes this book work beautifully is the humor and the characters. I loved the banter between Rue & Percy. And Quesnel is just...

...Oh My Lanta. Mother MAY I! Etc etc

As usual, Carriger follows a formula with her cast. There's the plucky female lead, much developed since the soulless and socially cold Alexia. There's the well dressed, vain-ish, but totally loyal best friend (Ivy, Prim, and Dimity), and even that has gotten stronger. And there's the nerdy idiot brother that somehow girls adore. As I say, a little formulaic, but I really love the dynamic and it keeps me coming back for more. 

Timeless: The Last Book of the Parasol Protectorate

Amazon Used

The last book in the Parasol Protectorate series, which I enjoyed so much as a whole, and I'm not really sure how I'm going to do this review. I'm kind of in a haze. Yes, Gail Carriger's new series, "The Custard Protocol," was released only this week - so it's not like I can't continue my journey with these characters absolutely immediately. But the series ended in such a way that... Well, I'm still dealing with Carriger making some decisions that I'm so totally on board with, and others that kind of crushed me. This being the last book in the series, understand that I will have to spoil the very important things. I will keep my review above a break for you, and the spoilers below it. If You Haven't Read This Book Do Not Read Past The Break. 

In this book, Alexia and company has had a few years to settle down until they receive a surprise invitation from an old as the literal hills (if you call pyramids "hills") Egyptian Vampire Queen. There's little choice, but many motives, for her to accept it. One of them being to find out something about her long lost father, and a little more about her preternatural condition. Naturally, new cases of intrigue spring up that must be dealt with.
So this book was a roller coaster ride. There were times where I felt euphoric and other times when I felt like my heart somehow lodged it's self in the back of my throat and I thought, panicking, "Is this real?! Is this real?!" I found out that some readers didn't share my enthusiasm, seeing as it was released around the same time as the last of the Sookie Stackhouse series - which was apparently disappointment (I wasn't a big fan of that series, Louisiana setting notwithstanding, so I can't imagine it ending any worse than the way it began, as I wouldn't read past the first book). Maybe it's because I allowed myself to become completely invested in these characters over the course of the last 3 months, but still couldn't allow myself to accept the bad luck of some of the characters. I'm still trying to digest it.
Rest thee assured that it ends happily, I guess. If you want any proof of that see The Custard Protocol - but do not see it if you haven't finished this series. It is a stand alone, but already it's made enough references to the events in this book to mess a sloppy reader up.
Speaking of, here comes the break! (Don't read if you don't want to be spoiled! You've been warned!)

Heartless: Book Four of the Parasol Protectorate Series

Amazon Used

At this point in the series, with only one book left, I almost can't write a review without spoiling some things for certain readers. That's why I'm going to change up my format out of consideration of anyone thinking about reading further into the series. I'm doing this because you might not be interested in starting a new series without knowing if it will end badly. We don't want another Lost.
Okay, Carriger has gotten into a really good stride at this point in the series. All of the characters are really interesting, the conflict is now more engaging - and if you have your wits about you, you actually have a chance at guessing the outcome (I hate books that deliberately with-hold information from the reader and toss out red herrings so that, even if you're paying very close attention, you'll never figure it out - cough, cough the Millennium trilogy)
I'm also excited that Carriger focused more on London this time around. I'm already a fan of Victorian novels on manners, and one of my favorite parts about this series is that - unlike a lot of Steampunk (unfortunately... ) - she's interested in it as well. Most Steampunk is really just a regular sci-fi novel but with steam & goggles. I get that a lot of fans think that's more interesting than Victorian manners, but this sets it apart.
The rest is under the spoiler-buffering jump -

Blameless: Book Three of the Parasol Protectorate Series

Local Used Bookstore

After reading the Finishing School series in such a whirlwind, I felt a little bad about never having finished up the Parasol Protectorate when I easily could have. The first book had been entertaining, but the second book was a little bit of a pot boiler, and so I nearly fell off because of it. But after enjoying Finishing School so much, I decided I'd wasted enough time not reading the rest and dove right in. During my extended weekend brought on by that surprise dental visit, I had enough time to catch up on some reading - which is always something I'm trying to squirrel out more of. I still managed to take longer than I needed to read this, mainly because the volume before it didn't exactly leave me thrilled, even though it ended in an exciting cliff hanger. In fact, it feels like it has been so long since I've last picked up this series that I barely can remember any of the minor characters. If it hadn't been for my closest friends being in the throes of Carriger Mania, I might not have picked it up again at all. But I'm glad that I did. As for forgetting characters names, I found it was a bit like riding a bike - it all comes back to you pretty quickly.
Now, where we last left off Alexia found herself in a delicate predicament. Cast out by her husband, family, The Queen, and embarrassed by society, you'd be tempted to worry about her. However, Alexia has always managed to take care of herself, though she gets by with a little help from her friends. The always dependable Lord Akeldama has suddenly left London, leaving Alexia to be pursued by all the remaining Vampires of London who now want her dead. She has no choice but to leave town herself, making a break for Italy (along with a few of her dependable friends) to seek out the care (????) of the Knights Templar - a collection of highly trained warrior monks. While there, Alexia learns more about her predicament and herself.
I'm really glad I decided to finally read further than the 2nd book. The characters are developing further and it's so much more interesting as a whole. I only have two books left of the series and I'm a little worried about what I'll do after it's all done (It isn't like I don't have 3 bookcases literally overflowing with unread books, bless my heart) but the good news is that I have Gail's new book preordered!

The Finishing School Series

Have you been wondering where I've been, dear readers? Wonder no more. This Christmas season I received from my bestie the entire (at press date) Finishing School series by Gail Carriger (of Parasol Protectorate fame) - and under peer pressure I read the entire thing (as quickly as my work schedule allowed). I debated on reviewing them each individually, but because I moved on from one to the next so quickly I didn't give myself time. Instead, I'm just going to review it as a whole - as I have the rare opportunity to.

Christmas Gifts from Jenee G.

Looking back at my reviews of the Parasol Protectorate books I'm a little horrified to see that I didn't love them as much as I remembered enjoying them. I guess the two feelings can mutually exclusive? I think of that series as a prototype for this one, however. I feel like Gail toyed around with some of the same ideas that she brought back in these books - and now honed them to perfection.

The Finishing School series is basically about a Victorian girls charm school, which sounds so quaint doesn't it? Well, they're also training to become assassins and spies. Picture it! Using handkerchiefs and sewing scissors for lethal weapons? Sounds pretty perfect to me. It has a beautifully droll sense of humor, which is more than enough to hook me, a series of badass girls and "evil genius" boys, foppish vampires, genteel werewolves, eccentric professors, cross-dressing, and a few more of my favorite things.
I absolutely don't want to give too much away, so at this point I just want to talk about my impressions. There aren't many characters in this series, which is fine (because once you read something like Game of Thrones you start to appreciate that) but one thing that I didn't like is that the minor characters didn't get a whole lot of chances to develop sooner. This series is going to be 4 books long and so far we have three, so that is something that stresses me out a bit. Naturally, the important characters do by the 3rd book, so that's what's important. Hopefully Carriger revisits some of them in later books. Failing that, this is ripe territory for fanfic writers - which I very much encourage. Part of the reason for this review is that this series has a very small fandom and that, to me, is so ridiculous. Please read this books and make lots of fanart and fanfics, everyone! Make all of the things, make it blow up. I want all the movies, video games, a TV series - I want this thing to never die, ya heard?
This series shares the same world (and sprinkling of some of the same characters) as the Parasol Protectorate books, but dated a few decades earlier. Like in Protectorate a lot of the names are nearly unpronounceable - something my friends and I have been debating back and fourth on. However, one of the beautiful things about Carriger's steam-punk world is that it isn't idealized and floofy like some proto-Victorian writers. One of the reasons I've been obsessed with the Victorians for most of my life is that they weren't always as genteel as we now seem to think. They were actually kind of horrifying sometimes. They may have been sexually repressed, but they compensated for it through other avenues - like a healthy obsession with what we today would consider outright macabre. These books don't include examples of this, at least nothing that high school librarians would picket against, but Carriger is aware of it. These books are anything but cutesy-poo.
Ah, now for the "shipping-wars." I'll reveal nothing of my own alignment on here, but you'll be tempted to pick sides and let me just say neither are bad choices. I made it very well known that I wasn't going to share my ships with my friends (because I didn't have one, really. It could go either way for me.) but the 3rd book ends in such a way, that... ugh... #1 whoever you choose, you'll be conflicted no matter what and #2 the 4th book isn't coming out until next November. All this tension and unresolved feelings has me like:

(too late)

Thankfully, Gail will be releasing a new book for a new series this March which I can't fuggin wait for. Maybe that will tide me over until then.

The Supernatural Enhancements

Local Bookseller

I have to thank my local Barnes & Nobel retailer for being so helpful as to recommend this book, The Supernatural Enhancements (by Spanish cartoonist Edgar Cantero), to me.

It was, indeed, a "fun read," as I was promised. Not perfect, but fun. I'll try not to emphasize the author's background as a cartoonist too much, because a lot of the critique I have with the book is that it seemed a little comic-booky - but more on that later.
It is about a young man named simply A. who has just randomly inherited a mansion and fortune from a relative he didn't know existed, meaning that he would have to move from whatever European country he is from to America in order to claim it. He is accompanied by Niamh, a mute 14-year old punk girl - imagine a Doctor & Companion relationship here (Niamh clearly has feelings for A and is sometimes much smarter and aware than he is - has done far more heroic feats than A has, but she has been demoted to some kind of Cutesy-poo Sidekick.) The previous owner of the mansion and fortune died by committing suicide the same way and at the same age as his own father before him. Clearly there is some nefarious mystery to be solved!
Through a series of puzzles, weird dreams, and interviews with locals, A and Niamh (and their dog, alas, not named Scooby-Doo, but far more cleverly, "Help") try to figure out the secrets of the house and it's late inhabitant. The Supernatural Enhancements is a novel told almost entirely through transcriptions of surveillance videos, letters, diary entries and the like. Your brain adjusts to it after a while - I had trouble deciding if the narrator was reliable or not at first as I was hoping that this book was going to be like House of Leaves, but different. Maybe Cantero was inspired by House of Leaves, but there weren't very many similarities.
I'm sure the author was trying a lot of neat new tricks while writing this novel, because it's format doesn't seem conventional - unless you've read a graphic novel script. I don't think it was entirely successful - it took the entire first half of the book for anything to fall into place and make any kind of sense. It just seemed like two bored kids trying to be spooked about living in a haunted house. See, even though there's a ghost, it's really more of a scape-ghost: she doesn't actually do anything. The sad thing about it is that Cantero can write some beautiful prose when he puts his mind to it and you can read all of the dream sequences in the book as proof of that. He does it in such a way that only an artist can. Not many writers can successfully pull off writing a dream that you can see, feel, taste and smell without questioning their sobriety.

It was all very fun. The 90's pop culture references were fun. As mentioned, A. and Niamh were like the Scooby Gang, but unimpressed, and that was fun. The concept and format was fun. World building was fun. The story was tedious, but then Things Got Real, and that was fun.
So on a scale of one star to five stars, it was a grand sum of fun stars.

Uzumaki

Amazon Used

I was actually really excited to read this graphic novel. I've been seeking it out since it first dropped in America around 2002. I know - 12 years seems like a long time to wait to read a comic book, but understand that the nature of manga in the early aughts was that it was an expensive hobby for a teenager. Finally, the stars aligned and I was able to find it as an omnibus for a great price - also, I'm an adult with a job and I can actually afford that kind of hobby.

So, we've already talked about how difficult it is for horror stories to scare me. I'm not much of a sucker for the genre - in fact most attempts to scare me, I can't take seriously. It's a rare novel that will actually get under my skin, so to speak. Uzumaki did that. Because a lot of themes in horror are actually absurd, sometimes the line between stupid and scary can be easy to cross. But count on the Japanese to remove the line entirely. I mean, it's a combination of stupid and scary. There's no picking sides, there's no side to pick. And full disclosure, I don't mean "so stupid it's scary," like, you know, real life can sometimes be. I mean, the Japanese are so completely "odd-ball" by our Western standards that a lot of what is actually really scary about this manga could also be just complete weirdness.

This was weird at times, but I got the feeling that Junji Ito started off with this one crazy idea - for a man to become obsessed with the swirl pattern to the point of grotesqueness (he kills himself by forcing his body to become a swirl) - and had to apply swirls and spirals into the ongoing comic in whatever creative way he could manage. Mangaka are on such a demanding work schedule, they aren't ever given a lot of time to plan out their ideas, so sometimes the stories seem forced and don't work out very well, and sometimes they're really successful. This isn't dissimilar to the way Stephen King (in particular) works, actually.
Because this was a complete collection of the series, there were a few subtle details you notice when looking at the work as a whole instead of having collected the series book by book. For instance, early on, the series starts slow, but steady. Our heroine, Kirie, watches as her boyfriend's family is driven insane by any natural occurrence of spirals. When he loses both parents, natural spirals steadily begin effecting other people. Curls in your hair, snails, metal springs, ect. - all these become unlikely, yet all the more horrifying, killers. Though it's clear that when Junji Ito had his ending in sight, he knew exactly what he wanted to do with it. On a whole, it became creepier and creepier as the series progressed. It may be *gasp* my new favorite horror book!

Besides the story, it also had beautiful illustrations - in manga, it's unusual to see characters that are actually distinctive in ways besides haircuts and gender (sometimes, not even that!). But that wasn't the case here. Also, Kirie is one of those great feminist characters you don't get to see much in comic books. She's girly and loyal - in fact, her loyalty is her real strength. I disagree that feminist heroes can't have love, and must be bombastic. They can be, you know, regular, realistic girls too! They can be pretty, but don't have to be sexy. Kirie is all that!

Uzumaki might be my new favorite horror!!

Spooky-Scary Reading List!

Just like last year, and the year before that, and the year before that one, forever and ever, America, The Earth, The Universe, etc., I celebrate the month of October by curating a reading list appropriate for Halloween - to get me into the holiday spirit.
Halloween isn't my favorite holiday, but it's the only one I dislike less than all the others. I don't especially like horror, costumes, or, shit, even pumpkin spice. I am, however, a morbid individual. It's hard to explain my rational. I'm not scared or disturbed by horror easily - I actually find a lot of it pretty silly. This may be owing to having grown up on Mystery Science Theater and just being desensitized by it through satire. So when I started devoting the month of October to reading horror novels - a genre that I don't usually give much attention to - it was an attempt to try something new and maybe find something that actually could scare me. But mostly it was just to get myself hyped about a holiday that I would otherwise just ignore. It's a fun tradition, and one that I look forward to, but more often than not I'm unimpressed with the books that I find.
Because I'm Super unversed in the horror genre in novels, I still depend heavily on the recommendations of others. I've read enough Stephen King and HP Lovecraft to know that I'm bored by it and hate it, but I know that there's got to be better horror novels out there. Occasionally I'll actually find some. But if it isn't Stephen King or HP Lovecraft, everyone seems to draw a blank. So it seems to me, the horror genre isn't as expansive as I'd hope. There may be a devoted market for it, but it doesn't seem to touch it's cousins, sci-fi and fantasy.

Anyway, over the course of the month I will be unveiling the creepy little books I've been reading - so stay tuned for that!

Beautiful Darkness

local comic shop

I saw an article for this comic book on BuzzFeed and I knew I had to have it. The art is simple and cute, but the artist has some obvious chops, as is displayed in various points of realism. The art was something I was really excited about, so allow me to geek out over it for a bit. I feel like this book is going to be a lasting influence on me and an artist and writer. If you're familiar with the Finnish series of children's books (and cartoons) called The Moomins, this style is not dissimilar. Also, I'm personally a huge fan of water color and pencil lines in my own work, which is the predominate medium used here. Though, personally I can never quiet pull it off as effortlessly as is done here. In fact, this comic was originally published in France - this is not my first French comic, but it is enough that I can say that I love French and Belgian comics - particularly their illustration and sequential narratives (something you pay more attention to when you can't speak the language). Luckily, this book is in English now.

The story is described as an "anti-fairy tale." I would have to correct you if you would describe it as Grimm-Like, because people are under the false impression about the Brothers' Grimm fairy tales. It is dark and creepy, but largely the horrifying thing is the naivety of the cute little characters. If it's read as a fable, it can be seen as a message about our own oblivious society. But I have so many questions about this book - is Aurora (the cute little girl centered around the story) the soul of another little girl? Are her friends dying off as the body decays - do they represent other parts of the ego? Have I been doing too much research on Jungian theory in fairy tales? Am I completely over thinking this?? Probably.

This was a quick read - I finished it along with my Sunday morning coffee. But it's a delight. Though the art is cuter than a buttermilk biscuit, I still wouldn't, say, give it to a child to read. It is disturbing at times, so consider the child's maturity before handing it off to them. It can still be easily enjoyed by adults, as well.

Will o' The Wisp: An Aurora Grimeon Story

Local Comic Shop

This is a graphic novel I bought only after looking at the cover - a grave mistake indeed. But what a cover! It's hardcover and perhaps you can see well designed, but the best part is the little gilt-metal clasp on the side - like an ancient text. I didn't even trouble myself with trying to open the book in the store - lust took over and I walked straight to the check out.
Alas. I should have known not to trust it. (gosh darn it!) The art wasn't all that. In fact, it kind of sucked. I try to be nice and encouraging to other artists, because even I know that sometimes my own abilities can be easily criticized. But... there is no reason this should have been allowed to pass. The style was dated and a Emily The Strange/ Invader Zim knock-off - and it just wasn't good. The colors were muddled, flat, and blah. The character designs weren't very good either, for instance sometimes the men's expressions were feminine and constipated. And Aurora's upper lip looked like a row of tiny teeth, which I had a hard time over looking and figuring out. The writing wasn't much better either: it was riddled with plot holes. I suppose writing for comics can be difficult and different when you aren't used to it. I can imagine the meetings between the author and artist were enthusiastic, because starting a project like this for the first time would be really exciting, but they needed more than enthusiasm. I hope they'll have learned from the mistakes they made for their 2nd time.

So, what happens here is that teenaged Aurora, as lone survivor of her family, is placed in her Grandfather's care. Her Grandfather is an eccentric old man who lives in a Louisiana swamp. The majority of the residents of this swamp are very superstitious - and even more so as friends and family are being found dead (not long after Aurora's arrival). As a Louisiana native, I personally cringe a little at all the misconceptions, but whatever. I'm kind of used to it and expect it. Besides, the inaccuracies aren't really the worst parts, they just don't redeem any of it.
I probably should have taken more of this is stride because it's supposed to be for teenagers, which means I'm probably too old and pretentious for. Still, it felt like a waste of my time and money. I ended up handing it off to one of my teen-aged cousins.

The Ocean At The End of The Lane

It was a few months ago when I was visiting a friend at a local comic book shop that also sells books that no one ever - EVER - buys. (If you're a local, you know the exact one) I confessed to her one of my darkest secrets, and now I will confess it to you. I don't like Neil Gaiman's books. Not anymore. I considered myself a fan for years and years - from early on in high school after a certain teacher introduced me to his Sandman comics until college when I started reading many of his novels. But after some point I had to admit to myself that though I hadn't read all of his stories, there weren't many that I had read that just left a good impression on me. I had to be honest - Stardust is one of the best and most beautifully crafted novels I have ever read, but after that one none have ever really been truly good.
So this past week, during a lunch break visit to the library, I found myself picking up his latest novel The Ocean at The End of The Lane. It's noteworthy that not only had I all but given up on Neil Gaiman, but also the only copies my library had in stock were large print. Large print novels, while a God-send to some readers, give me headaches due to the often obnoxiously large font. So honestly the odds were stacked up against this book from the start. Now - imagine my surprise this Friday when I find myself camped out on my couch with mugs of spent coffee and tea stacking up around me as I find myself having devoured the entire novel effortlessly - even having skipped lunch. I won't hold you in suspense any longer: I really loved this book.
Neil Gaiman has redeemed himself in my eyes. The Ocean at The End of The Lane is reminiscent (although not a recreation) of his other stories that originally endeared him to me: somewhere between Coraline and Stardust, but written instead as a fairy tale for adults. Personally, that's a cue word from me that translates into "great." I love fairy tales - they remind me of what drew me into books in the first place: love, danger, magic, adventure and wisdom. All the things stale reality is void of.

The Ocean at The End of The Lane is about a man who revisits an old family from his childhood, and while there he recalls one mighty adventure he has with them. Knowing Neil Gaiman, this doesn't mean it's a simple and realistic coming of age story. Traditionally, "coming of age stories" of this sort have less magic and mayhem. It's a quick read, so cozy up with it and some tea one of these perfect fall days.

H.P. Lovecraft's "The Re-Animator"

Super Adorable Art from here 

One thing remains consistent with this tradition I have, and it is that pretty much every year I try to read one of H.P. Lovecraft's stories in October. This year, I read his serial classic Hebert West: The Re-Animator.
But first, something I've observed over time about H.P. Lovecraft's cultish following - There are a lot of people who say adore Lovecraft buuuut I doubt that many have really read any of his works: Lovecraft definitely has a bandwagon following. This may not even be true, but I have a few reasons for my suspicions. For one thing, Lovecraft is pretty blatantly racist. In fact, it's not at all subtle. You could pish-posh it away as a sign of the times, but the proof exists in many of his stories, as well as in his personal letters, etc. Another reason is that... well... I'm sorry to piss in anyone's Cheerios, but Lovecraft isn't great writer. He's a tremendously important influence on the modern Horror genre, but at the end of the day, he wrote pulp fictions and that was all. 
Actually, Lovecraft is a fascinating dude who lived a truly bleak life. His father was carted away to a mental institution when he was just 3 years old, where he would die. Lovecraft was in fact mislead as to how his father died. He was raised by this aunts, mother, and very wealthy grandfather. When his grandfather died, he and his mother lived under difficulty together in what was described as a "love/hate relationship." Eventually, she would end up in a mental institution and die there as well, but this time, rather, during surgical complications. Lovecraft went on to marry a woman a few years older than he, but the relationship would dissolve into an odd, passive split when he decided he was homesick, and just... left her. She filed for a divorce which he never signed. It's important to note here that he hated minorities - even White minorities. Including his own wife.
He would become a sort-of hermit for a few years, writing for pulp magazines and passing on career advancements, etc. All-in-all, he was just a weird dude. A lot of people like to talk about him, but not many people know very much about his personal life.

ANYWAY - you can here for "The Re-Animator." Perhaps you've seen the movie - which I haven't, though I understand it's really popular. The Re-Animator is a serialized fiction about two young doctors - one being Hebert West, an unassuming gentleman obsessed with creating a formula for bringing the dead back to life (the other - the unnamed narrator who is Hebert's Best Bud). In each chapter, we're told how Hebert get's his human corpses to experiment on. I guess what makes it especially scary is that he doesn't dispose of them (at least, not intelligently) - so these reanimated corpses could be... anywhere. Even NOW. Ooooohhh... Spooookyyyy. But seriously.
Because it was a magazine serial story, it got repetitive and predictable. It is my understanding, for instance, that Hebert West was "Fair haired and bespectacled." But, for what it's worth, something that I enjoyed about Lovecraft's writing style is that though it may have been written in the early century, it doesn't feel that way. Maybe this is because his casual style is more heavily indebted in our modern style than I realized - in which case, if Lovecraft is a bad writer, than that's what's really scary about his work.

"The Human Chair" by Edogawa Rampo

Every October I like to celebrate Halloween by reading something "spooky." This year I decided to read some short stories. The first one being a Japanese story called "The Human Chair," by Edogawa Rampo.
But before I start talking about the story, I want to say a few words about Edogawa Rampo. That isn't his real first name - it's a pen name. Try saying it out loud a few times. "Ed-o-ga-wa Ram-po." Does it sound a little familiar? Like, "Edgar Allen Poe," perhaps? They aren't the same person at all, but oddly enough Edogawa Rampo is more popular in Japan than Edgar Allen Poe is. In fact, most Japanese would never even think to confuse the two.
Now, about the story. I think it was a good idea for me to read short fiction rather than a long novel. Horror seems to work better in this format. "The Human Chair," is basically about a chair with a man living inside. He's hideously ugly and shy, but an amazing craftsman. So he builds himself a chair that he will fit into and whoever would sit upon it will never be any wiser. He basically gets his kicks when women sit on him (eerr...) It is in fact the only time any woman has ever been so close to him, and so naturally he falls in love with every single one. So this story, summed up very quickly, is about a repulsive man who has sex with unassuming women through a chair. Though we are never told out right that he has sexual encounters with them, it's pretty safe to assume. ...Then the story eventually ends with the biggest cock-block the world over.
Okay, as someone who doesn't especially like reading horror since I'm always so emotionally detached from what I'm reading, I have to say this story was creepy. But it's another perfect example what I mean when I say horror can be so absurd it's hard to take seriously.

Changeless: Book Two of the Parasol Protectorate Series

   As it so happens, the review I wrote of Book One, Soulless, is one of my most popular posts so far. That being the case, I can't let my readers down! Here's my review of the 2nd book - Changeless.
   It would be difficult to review this without spoiling it if you intend to read the first book, so I'll just try to avoid mentioning anything, you know, important. This book didn't initially heat up the series. You basically had to read on until the end of the book, the very last chapter, the very last few pages for that. And it ended on a cliff hanger. I'm not going to say that the rest of it was unbearable to read, but it was nothing really all that special, either. It was fun and entertaining to read and revisit the old characters, plus there are a few new characters, too. A mysterious French woman who ends up becoming Alexia's intellectual side-kick, and a Scottish werewolf pack. A good deal of the story takes place in an old Scottish castle.
The basic plot is that some mysterious, presumed bio-weapon that only affects supernatural beings (and only in the London area) is causing Vampire and Werewolf alike to return to their mortal states, as well as exorcizing ghosts. Without warning, Alexia's new husband (whoops! Is that a spoiler?) high tails it out of town, though not necessarily in pursuit of the cause of the blight.

As I've said... it didn't really add much interest to the series. My verdict is still out on if I liked it or not. I'll still continue to read the others in the series, because I really appreciate the author's style and sense of humor. It's refreshing to read anything Steam Punk that isn't awful, and while this is a little better than mediocre, it still isn't.... you know... awful...

Soulless: Book One of The Parasol Protectorate Series

I hope you're all having a Spooktacular Valentines! This year we had kind of a wonky calendar, what with Lent starting exactly one day before Valentines. So if you're Catholic, like me, and gave up sweets for Lent, like me, I hope you're still able to go about enjoying Valentines day. (My advice - don't be weak! Yes, that temptation makes it very, very, very hard, but that's exactly what it's all about. Don't try to squirrel out of it.)
Mardi Gras was a very quiet, rainy affair for us. It's only natural that I camped out all week in my bed, reading and gorging myself on candy (while I still could). And the book I picked to read? Perfect for Valentine's Day. I couldn't have planned it better if I tried, and honestly I didn't.
Now, to know me is to know that I like to celebrate Valentine's Day with Buffy marathons and red velvet cake (if possible), and that "bad" Steampunk Sci-Fi is a special guilty pleasure of mine. Soulless isn't quiet Buffy, but it's in the same vein, and if the book reviews on GoodReads are to be trusted, this book is indeed bad.

Wise words of wisdom.

But since this sort of thing is my Honey Boo-Boo Child, I really enjoyed this book. A lot. I mean, since I'm a paranormal romance/steampunk loving fool, and all. And really, I wasn't too far off the mark before when I mentioned Buffy. Soulless is about a half Italian, smart-ass spinster named Alexia who lives in an alternate-past London. In this version of London, werewolves and vampires live-in with the rest of society. It's all very proper and dignified. And while werewolves and vampires are still considered dangerous, they are accepted and normal. What isn't considered normal, however, is to be preternatural like Alexia. In other words, she has no soul. In other words, she is neither human, nor supernatural, and can't be turned as you would have to have a soul first.
That's pretty cool. But most importantly, she's entertaining as hell. We here at Feast of Poetry love a strong female lead. We also do not believe that that necessarily has to take away from the fact that any romance intended for this strong, independent lady has to be dry and lacking of luster. Because there is a certain Scottish alpha werewolf (Cliche? Perhaps. Do we mind? Not really.) who has set his cap towards our little Alexia. And while the resulting trysts are only PG-13, if even that, they certainly still had me, as the expression goes, "clutching at my pearls."
I really liked the tone of this book. I loved the idea for an a-typical paranormal romance that's refreshed a little bit by adding steampunk elements, Victorian manners, and sassy mouthed heroines. It's not perfect, but it's a fun, light-hearted way to spend a rainy pre-Valentine's week.