Fascinating Deep dive into a genre I was not familiar with! Made my "to read" stack even bigger.
Reviews and Comments
I'm going to die next to a pile of books I was definitely going to read. Moved to bookwyrm.social/user/frenchcookie49
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Literally my Mom vs Dracula
4 stars
Content warning The plot and some TW for the scares.
Soooo I read most of Grady Hendrix's book in 7 days. This was the one that started it. I really liked the idea, of a bunch of WASPs going head to head with a vampire. It seemed it cute, and I already liked one of Grady's previous works, Horrorstor.
And this book over delivered on all of my expectations! I liked the main character, Patricia, a housewife who was a nurse in a previous life and her struggles to keep the house clean, get the kids to school, make dinner, and try have a social life in the 90s in Charleston, same place as one of Grady's other works "My Best Friend's Exorcism." She and her other white, christian, middle-class gal pals start a book club centering around true crime.
I myself am not a not a true crime person, but the way it pays off when shenanigans begin to occur, it is brilliant. Additionally I am not christian, middle-class 'gal' but I could not help by sympathize with Patricia as she deals with her old-age and mental health ridden mother in law, who is absolutely confident she knows Patrica's new mysterious and (very sexy) neighbor...
Obviously this is not a flawless horror story. Some of the topics - racism, classism, mental health and so on are not handled well. The mother in law's personal nurse Mrs Green falls well into the "black mysticism" cliche and while it's "fitting" that Patrica and her pals don't think much of the black population the two pronged attack feels bad, man. Especially since a lot of it is already pretty scary!
If you hate bugs, good luck with the attic scene. Listen I'm not squeamish but that was pushing it. There's also the scary way that the vampire takes the blood from his victims and what he does it one of Patricia's friends... There's some real atmosphere. (And dang the way the cover image ties in with the story.)
A solid horror read! I'll probably read it again.
frenchcookie47 finished reading The Southern Book Clubs Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
frenchcookie47 reviewed Grendel by John Gardner
Tl:Dr - Came for the monster stayed for the discussion of nihilism.
5 stars
I sucked this book down with an extra large boba smoothie straw. So glad I finally read a book about one of English literatures earliest monsters. And monster he is! This is not really a book about how Grendel was misunderstood really. This is about a monster looking desperately looking for meaning in a world that was probably not made by God. I love him.
frenchcookie47 rated Grendel: 5 stars
Grendel by John Gardner
The first and most terrifying monster in English literature, from the great early epic Beowulf, tells his own side of …
frenchcookie47 reviewed Filth by Irvine Welsh
TL;Dr - ACAW (All Cops Aave Worms)
5 stars
Content warning Spoilers for mention of murder and the body parasite the MC has.
NGL I read this book because the pitch sounded like the video game Disco Elysium which I desperately wanted to recreate the initial experience of. I was more correct then I could ever possibly guess. Bruce Robertson is filth! But I loved joyriding in his head along with his charming tapeworm. I will admit I did figure who did the murder like halfway through, but it's more than sticking with it. I'm excited to read more from Irvine Welsh, and even though a lot of people warned me about how he writes with the Scottish brogue/slang written out, I never struggled with it, but I could see how one could. Recommended, but you should probably have a pretty strong stomach. Also make sure all foods you eat are cooked to an appropriate temperature.
frenchcookie47 reviewed Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix
TL;DR - When your retail job wants you literally dead...
4 stars
I read this book in essentially one sitting. Grady Hendrix seems to have to sucked me all the way in. I love the idea of a haunted retail situation, maybe because I worked in a grocery store for 10 years and it's already so soul sucking that you might as well be haunted by ghosts. Solid body horror, and the start is quite creepy. Also I was a sucker for ending. #FriendshipGoals
frenchcookie47 reviewed Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
TL;DR - It's Epochal for a reason, Bethany!
5 stars
Listen even if you fundamentally disagree with this book, you should probably still read it, even if only not to make a ack-jass out of yourself when you try to explain why it's the worst ever actually. BUT! If you think this book is really cool and romantic actually you should probably still read it even if only to really double check on what Dolores Haze is actually doing/saying and maybe dont listen to everything Humbert Humbert says?? (Talking to you Vanity Fair).
frenchcookie47 reviewed I lost it at the movies by Pauline Kael
Tl:Dr - (Feels good to do that on a new site) Local Californian has opinions on movies!
4 stars
Tl:Dr - (Feels good to do that on a new site) Local Californian has opinions on movies! I'd have on on her opinions about movies if I'd ever seen any of them, but I've only seen Citizen Kane (Not reviewed, only mentioned) and West Side Story which I agree with Kael about, but that's more because I'm a bitter hater of Romeo and Juliet. Kaels writing is really pretty and I can tell she deeply cares about her subject. And I don't think she ever wanted any of the movies to eviscerated to be bad, but she wasn't going to write anyone a puff piece, y'know? Additionally this was int resting to read from a time capsule sort of perspective. Like getting to look back at how people were thinking about media in the 50s/60s. Kaels thoughts on relations between men/women and consent WOULD NOT land today but I thought …
Tl:Dr - (Feels good to do that on a new site) Local Californian has opinions on movies! I'd have on on her opinions about movies if I'd ever seen any of them, but I've only seen Citizen Kane (Not reviewed, only mentioned) and West Side Story which I agree with Kael about, but that's more because I'm a bitter hater of Romeo and Juliet. Kaels writing is really pretty and I can tell she deeply cares about her subject. And I don't think she ever wanted any of the movies to eviscerated to be bad, but she wasn't going to write anyone a puff piece, y'know? Additionally this was int resting to read from a time capsule sort of perspective. Like getting to look back at how people were thinking about media in the 50s/60s. Kaels thoughts on relations between men/women and consent WOULD NOT land today but I thought it was fascinating to read about. Good book. You should read it.
frenchcookie47 reviewed The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon
Tl:Dr - Gonna be honest, I still not super clear about what this book was about
4 stars
Tl:Dr - Gonna be honest, I still not super clear about what this book was about and I think I need to read it again to really get it. Maybe this time with the Wikipedia page open. But the writing was great and very smooth and the wit that I was able to keep up with delicious!
TL;Dr - My Book of the Year in 2022.
TL;Dr - My Book of the Year in 2022. In a series of essays put together by the daughter of the man who originally let Lolita debut on the US stage, Jenny Milton Quigley and 30 other modern essayists take the Humbert Humbert, Valdimir Nabakov, 1950s America and a modern "cancel culture' to task. I ate this book like it was fried and dipped in chocolate. I came back for seconds. I rotated it in my brain like a freaking rotisserie chicken and I'm a vegetarian. I like Lolita. I like it a lot. I liked it's dissection even more. By cracking open a book as difficult as Lolita I felt I finally had a glimmer of understanding of what it was even trying to be about. Putting in context, comparing it to real life, examining Nabokov, the tragedy of Dolores Haze and looking through at every critical lens possible …
TL;Dr - My Book of the Year in 2022. In a series of essays put together by the daughter of the man who originally let Lolita debut on the US stage, Jenny Milton Quigley and 30 other modern essayists take the Humbert Humbert, Valdimir Nabakov, 1950s America and a modern "cancel culture' to task. I ate this book like it was fried and dipped in chocolate. I came back for seconds. I rotated it in my brain like a freaking rotisserie chicken and I'm a vegetarian. I like Lolita. I like it a lot. I liked it's dissection even more. By cracking open a book as difficult as Lolita I felt I finally had a glimmer of understanding of what it was even trying to be about. Putting in context, comparing it to real life, examining Nabokov, the tragedy of Dolores Haze and looking through at every critical lens possible made me not only love the OG novel but really fall for everyone who contributed to a novel that's barely talked about today. Read this one!!!
frenchcookie47 rated Lolita in the Afterlife: 5 stars
frenchcookie47 finished reading Lolita in the Afterlife by Jenny Minton Quigley
Content warning Discussions of Pedophila and Spoilers for Lolita
TL;Dr - My Book of the Year in 2022. In a series of essays put together by the daughter of the man who originally let Lolita debut on the US stage, Jenny Milton Quigley and 30 other modern essayists take the Humbert Humbert, Valdimir Nabakov, 1950s America and a modern "cancel culture' to task. I ate this book like it was fried and dipped in chocolate. I came back for seconds. I rotated it in my brain like a freaking rotisserie chicken and I'm a vegetarian. I like Lolita. I like it a lot. I liked it's dissection even more. By cracking open a book as difficult as Lolita I felt I finally had a glimmer of understanding of what it was even trying to be about. Putting in context, comparing it to real life, examining Nabokov, the tragedy of Dolores Haze and looking through at every critical lens possible made me not only love the OG novel but really fall for everyone who contributed to a novel that's barely talked about today. Read this one!!!