The Challenge is here. And I will be doing Peril the first which is:
"Read Four books of any length, from any subgenre of scary stories that you choose."
These have to be read between the 1st. September and the 31st. October.
I've chosen a pool of books from which my four will be picked. My list is:
The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray by Chris Wooding. (YA)
The New Lovecraft Circle edited by Robert M. Price. (Horror)
Wolf Moon by Charles De Lint (Horror)
Living Dead in Dallas Charlaine Harris (Vampire mystery)
Jamaica Inn by Daphne Du Maurier (Gothic)
Tales of Unease by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. (Chilling tales)
Ghosts in the Snow by Tamara Siler Jones (Creepy mystery)
A Coven of Vampires by Brian Lumley (Vampires)
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova (More vampires...)
The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
Smoke and Mirrors by Neil Gaiman
I may also my indulge in a few Short Story Sundays and read
The Mystery of the Sea by Bram Stoker
as my additional book as and when I can get hold of a copy.
All of these are on my tbr pile and all are new reads except one -
Jamaica Inn - which I read so many years ago I can remember little about it so it will feel like a new read.
Edited to add: The Mystery of the Sea is on the way and The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova has been added to my pool of books.
12 comments:
That's a great list, Cath. Many of the books on your list are new to me, so I look forward to your reviews. Enjoy!
Hi Cath,
I'm new to your blog! Nice to encounter someone from the SouthWest (I grew up in Devon and my partner is from there).
Great list of books. Jamaica Inn is a favorite of mine, and is utterly perfect for this challenge. I revisited it not that long ago, and it was every bit as good as I remembered.
I have Tales of Unease on my list too, so will be interested to compare notes!
Robin: It's so nice to have an *excuse* (if one is needed) to read some good creepy books. And also follow what others are reading and get some recommendations. I meant to say when I commented on yours that The Woman in Black is, in my opinion, one of the best ghost stories ever written. I hope you enjoy it.
Hi Quixotic.
Hello, nice to meet you! I grew up in Cornwall but have lived in Devon (or Somerset) off and on for many years. Which part of Devon did you grow up in? I'm actually in Tiverton.
I don't remember a great deal about Jamaica Inn, only that it was dark and creepy so am really looking forward to revisiting that. Bodmin Moor is such a wonderful area, we tend to be on Exmoor or Dartmoor on days out and forget how fantastic Bodmin moor is.
Tales of Unease looks quite good. I may find I've read a few of them as I once took a big book of Conan Doyle's short stories out of the library. But that's okay.
Just before I was born my parents lived on Dartmoor. Then we spent some years in Wales, before ending up in East Devon in the Axe Valley - between Sidmouth and Lyme Regis. We're hoping to move back that way (or at the very least Somerset) in the next few years.
Jamaica Inn is definitely dark and creepy. That and Frenchman's Creek are my favourite du Maurier novels.
Bodmin Moor is awesome. Sadly we don't even visit Dartmoor much these days. That will have to be rectified in the near future!
Very interesting list. T"he Haunting of Alaizabel Cray" has been on my TBR list for years. I look forward to your review.
Quixotic: The Axe Valley is a gorgeous spot, I quite fancy living that way myself and we often pop down to Lyme for the day. The secondhand bookshop at the bottom of the hill is one of the best I know. Good luck with moving back one day - I don't blame you in the slightest.
I think my favourite Du Mauriers are Frenchman's Creek (what's not to love???) and The House on the Strand. Love the atmosphere in that and the method of time travel is er... different.
Nymeth: Hi. I kind of thought the list was a bit pedestrian to be honest but we'll see. The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray has been sitting on my bookshelves unread for about four years I think. One of my daughters borrowed it and liked it a lot, so I'm quite keen to read that one for the challenge.
"so the R.I.P. II challenge is right up my street." I love blogging because I 'meet' people from all of the world. I've always said, "It's right up my alley." So when you said street I checked out your profile and saw you are from England. Isn't it fabulous that I can sit in my kitchen in Utah and visit with someone from Tiverton?!
A few new titles on your list. Can't wait to read your reviews. I loved The Historian.
Hi Booklogged! Oh yes, I completely agree about the excitement of being able to visit with someone on the other side of the world and not even leave your own house. It's just a fantastic thing and I love it. Utah? How wonderful. I've visited many eastern states of the USA but never been as far west as Utah - I hear it is beyond beautiful.
I'm definitely planning to read The Historian for the challenge. I wasn't sure if I needed to be familiar with Dracula by Bram Stoker so am currently rereading that just in case.
I read Dracula first and was glad I did.
I was doing a search for "The Mistress of the Art of Death" and somehow stumbled upon your blog! I have enjoyed reading about your reads and reading, *rather wordy there* ...I really enjoyed The fingersmith, however I can see where others might not. I tend to like books that are more "outside the box" ....
I have the historian sitting in my tbr pile, it never dawned on me to read Dracula first, thanks for that tip!
beth
Hi Beth, nice to meet you! I see you're in Athens, WV... I know that area a little bit. We stayed at Fayettesville last year, for a couple of nights, to see the New River Gorge. That bridge is amazing. I love the craft place called Tamarack... I think it was at Beckley but wouldn't swear to that. It's certainly a beautiful area.
Yes, I loved Fingersmith too but I should have known the person I recommended it to wouldn't. My book tastes are like yours, a bit "outside the box". (I like that term.) Most people my age are reading only crime novels, whereas I like all kinds of weird stuff.
I have *really* enjoyed Dracula. I'm told it's a good idea to read it first and believe me it'll be no hardship.
I'm pretty new to Blogspot too, btw. It took me a while to get used to all the bells and whistles but people here are really friendly.
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