Hello, it's been a while since I've made one of these posts! Honestly, life has just been boring for me, so I haven't had much to write about. October has breathed new life into me, though! I have seasonal depression, but for me it's the other way around -- I don't start to feel truly alive until Fall. 

This holiday season, I've made it my goal to watch as many scary movies as possible, and to read as many spooky books! I also had the amazing opportunity to go an event at a park near me. It is the Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site, and I've been going there since I was an infant! That is probably where my love of history was born and nourished. The event took place at night, and with flashlights and paper lanterns lighting the way, we were taken to meet spirits, all telling a tale interwoven with the history of the site. If you're in the area I highly recommend visiting!

What tricks and treats have you gotten up to this month? Please let me know!

TV and Movies:

Midnight Mass (Netflix) - All my life I've been obsessed with vampires. Not only the bloody flicks, but the mythology and folklore surrounding them. It is absolutely fascinating to me how many places have a vampire myth, in fact it is one of the most widespread superstitions the world over. As such, vampires can sometimes be boring, if you don't inject a bit of new blood. Midnight Mass, written by Mike Flanagan of The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor fame, has created something wholly original, moving, and scary in his newest series. It is my favorite series of late, and I highly recommend it for this spooky season! Just be warned, like all of Flanagan's other series, it covers some very deep and sometimes dark topics, and comes with a bittersweet ending.

House of Flying Daggers (Amazon Prime) - I've been meaning to watch this film in its entirety forever after catching the end of it on TV years ago. I (naturally) fell in love with the leading man of the film, Takeshi Kaneshiro, and of course the delicate Ziyi Zhang is wonderful as always! A beautiful movie perfect for lovers of tragic romance, set during the Tang Dynasty in China. If you haven't seen it yet, check it out!

The Last Duel - As soon as I heard about The Last Duel, Ridley Scott's newest film, I knew I'd have to see it. Anytime a historical film comes to theatres I try and catch it, as it is a rare treat! The Last Duel is based on the true story of Lady Marguerite de Carrouges, who in 1386 France, accused her husband's friend-cum-enemy Jacques Le Gris of raping her. To save his own reputation, her husband Jean challenges Jacques to a duel to the death. I absolutely loved the format of this film (which I won't spoil here!) and while I'm not a fan of Matt Damon or Ben Affleck, I like Adam Driver and love Jodie Comer, who is the obvious standout. It is tense, moving, and ultimately satisfying, filled with beautiful landscapes and clothing, a win for any historical lovers like me!

As a note, I would caution that the film does contain two rather graphic scenes of rape. Please be aware of this before you watch it!

Who I've Been Watching:

Watcher (Youtube) - As any self-respecting cryptid and haunted house lover would be, I'm obsessed with Buzzfeed Unsolved, and the two hilarious hosts, Shane Madej and Ryan Bergara! Call me slow on the uptake, but I just discovered the have their own channel now, along with Steven Lim, where they read submitted scary stories around a fire while getting progressively drunk, have a history based puppet show, and many other fun and scary offerings! A sure cure for your melancholy days!

Products I've Been Loving: 

Storybook Candle Co. - Even though I'm unable to burn candles in my room because I own a cockatiel, and birds are extremely sensitive to smells and smoke, I love putting them around the rest of the house. Storybook Candle Co. is a one woman show, and I love seeing what new collections she has every season! They not only last forever, but put out an amazing amount of scent and adorable to boot! Make sure you buy them before they sell out, as they're always going quick. As you can see from the photo above, I chose Autumn Reading and Sleepy Hollow, which both smell delicious.

Ways to Help:

Navajo and Hopi Families COVID-19 Relief Fund

Stop AAPI Hate

Black Lives Matter

Help Inuit Save Our Future

Aid India's COVID Relief Fund

Edith Wilkin's Street Children Foundation, India

Donate to Palestine

Book Review: The Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin

The Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin
Length: 378 Pages
Genres: Historical Romance, Mystery
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Trigger Warnings in this book for Forced Prostitution, References to Rape, Slavery, and Murder

"'I’ve heard my face described as flawed, ruined, unfortunate. A bad omen. People avert their gazes and move away from me as if it’s a disease they might catch. But after being separated for so many years, my sister was only able to find me because my face was so recognizable. The red-faced whore.' A tear slid down her cheek, but she ignored it. 'I don’t wish to be owned ever again.'”

As someone with a lifelong love of history, I of course have my own favorite time-periods and places, many of which are the usual that people start off with: Victorian and Regency England (especially if you're an Austen lover, like me), and WWII. And as much as I love those settings, and will always pick up a book or watch a movie during them, I believe we're way past due to inject a different flavor into the historical fiction genre, which has long been turning stale. Combined with a new fascination with Ancient China (and Joseon Korea), I decided to pick up the first book in Jeannie Lin's Pingkang Li Mysteries series, which are a wonderful blend of romance, historical detail, and mystery.

Tang Dynasty China, 847 AD. Yue-ying is maidservant to the beautiful and mercurcial courtesan Mingyu, the most valued woman within the Pingkang Li, or Lotus Palace, a place where scholars and politicians alike come to woo women with poetry and words. Before coming to work for Mingyu, Yue-ying was bought from her home and sold to a brothel, never once being considered to be a courtesan because of the red birthmark marring her cheek. Her past still haunts her, and she wants nothing more than to be a good companion to Mingyu, and to leave flirtation to others.

Bai Huang is known as the "flower prince of the Pingkang Li". He is handsome, gullible, and readily plays the fool, which endears him to everyone, even if his words conceal hidden barbs. Beneath that mask is a man of undeniable strength and smarts, and one who has possibly the best heart in China. Secretly, he attends parties and pleasure houses to gather information for his father, a man he is trying to prove himself to after running up a staggering debt gambling.

Drawn together by the death of the courtesan, Huilan, and the corpse of a man discovered stabbed in the neck with a beautiful hairpin that only the elite could afford, Yue-ying and Huang delve deep into the mysteries hiding beneath the perfume and powder of the North Hamlet. And even more troubling to Yue-ying is the growing attraction she's feeling for Huang -- especially after vowing to never be owned by a man again.

Full of breathtaking romance between two deeply developed characters that you want nothing more than to find happiness together, intrigue and fascinating tidbits about Tang Dynasty China, The Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin is a sure win for romance and history lovers alike!

Book Review: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Length: 301 Pages
Genres: Gothic Horror, Historical Fiction, Mystery
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Trigger Warnings in this book for Racism (Including Many Conversations about Eugenics), Body Horror, Incest, Suicide, Murder, Gaslighting and Sexual Assault

“It was not a haunting. It was possession and not even that, but something she couldn’t even begin to describe. The creation of an afterlife, furnished with the marrow and the bones and the neurons of a woman, made of stems and spores.”

Hello everyone! I'm back with another amazing Gothic read! I've had my eye on this book ever since it came out in 2020, but just haven't been able to get around to it yet. I figured there was no better time than the present, since we're now well into October. 

Noemí Taboada likes to drive fast cars, go to parties, and flirt with boys, but don't let that fool you into thinking she's just a pretty face. She's smart with a backbone of steel, and has plans to study anthropology at a mixed gender University -- if only she can get her father to agree. When her beloved cousin, Catalina, writes a disturbing letter, claiming that her husband is poisoning her and her new home, the mysterious High Place, is haunted, Noemí's father agrees to a bargain: bring Catalina home and avoid any scandal, and Noemí can attend any University she wants.

Arriving at El Triunfo, the little village at the foot of High Place, Noemí finds a place that is shrouded in mystery and fear. The house itself is dark and covered with mold, the inhabitants cold and borderline hostile. The only one who shows her any friendship is Francis, Catalina's husband's young cousin. Soon, Noemí starts experiencing strange things herself: vivid dreams, a lack of appetite, and visions. Is there more to High Place and the unsettling family Catalina has married into? Or is madness catching?

This book reminded me so much of a classic Gothic. It has the mad woman, the isolated manor, the large and insidious family dynamic, all with the added plus of a witty heroine who does more bantering than fainting. Mexican Gothic will leave you wanting more, some might even say...infected. (*wink*)

Book Review: The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling

The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling
Length: 368 Pages
Genres: Horror and Fantasy
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Trigger Warnings in this book for Blood, Gore, Body Horror, Miscarriage, and Death

"A magician gets what she asks for, whether she meant to ask for it or not."

My little Gothic loving heart has been eagerly awaiting the publication of The Death of Jane Lawrence! I've always loved the genre, whether it be in film or on paper, and after working on my own Gothic story that love has only bloomed bigger, so it is with much joy in my heart that I can say: Reader, I adored it.

I hadn't looked into the plot very much, as I wanted to go in knowing as little as possible, so I was really surprised (pleasantly, so) to discover it's set in a fantasy alt-England called Great Breltain, where religion is something of the past and the superstitious after a war with Ruzka (a stand-in for Russia), and magic is possible, but often with great cost.

Jane Shoringfield is a woman with a love and understanding of the mathematics that reflects the way she lives her life: practically, and with each decision carefully researched. Orphaned during the war, she has lived with her guardians ever since, but now they wish to return to the very place her parents died. And Jane can't stomach it. So, with a discerning eye, she compiles a list of bachelors within Larrenton, and sets her sight on Dr. Augustine Lawrence. She makes him a proposition, where they will marry, live together, but be more like business partners than husband and wife.

Augustine agrees under one condition -- he must always spend the night at his ancestral home, Lindridge Hall, and she must never come there.

It seems an easy compromise, only Jane never expected to be attracted to him, let alone grow to love him and learn to be loved instead. Soon, she learns that Augustine is inexplicably tethered to Lindridge Hall, and is haunted by his failings...and perhaps something more.

Full of magic and spooks, a crumbling estate filled with things that go bump in the night, and a strong and smart heroine, The Death of Jane Lawrence is a must-read for this Halloween season. If that doesn't convince you maybe this will: It's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, where magic not only changes our reality but sometimes our bodies in horrifying ways, meets Crimson Peak. What are you waiting for?

Book Review: Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper

Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper
Length: 336 Pages
Genres: LGBTQ, Paranormal Romance, Fantasy
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

A special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for an ARC of this book!

Trigger Warnings for Cheating

"A swell of raw magic flooded into the car, until the air around me nearly shimmered with potential, bright and buzzy and headier than a champagne cocktail. As if Thistle Grove's own magical heart was pulsing eagerly toward me, welcoming me back. No hard feelings about my long absence, apparently.
Made one of us, I guess."

I was so, so pleased when I was reached out to to give a review of this amazing, wonderful, perfect book, and I cannot thank the publishers more for allowing me too! Payback's a Witch is everything I dreamed it would be (and more).

Set in the magical town of Thistle Grove, we follow Emmy Harlow as she returns home to take her family's ancestral place as Arbiter during the Gauntlet, a spellcasting tournament in which the other three witching families compete. Emmy hasn't returned in four years, and left in the first place all because of her ex Gareth, scion of the stuck-up Blackmoore family, who own almost every bit of Thistle Grove and everyone in it. They are the most powerful of all the families, and haven't lost a tournament in years and are expected to win again like clockwork. Only Gareth screwed with the wrong witches.

Upon returning, Emmy learns it's not only her heart that he's broke -- he also hurt her bestfriend, Linden Thorne, and the darkly beautiful Talia Avramov's. Together, they devise a devilishly sweet scheme: work together during the games to bring down Gareth -- and the Blackmoores -- once and for all. The only thing Emmy doesn't expect is to fall head over heels for Talia.

I adored everything about this book, from the history of the families, which wove in some Arthurian myth along with the Russian Baba Yaga, to the charmingly witchy town, to the romance between Emmy and Talia, which was equal parts sweet and sexy. The writing was gorgeous, so incredibly evocative I could actually picture the haunted woods, to the dusty little shop (cleverly named "Tomes and Omens") to the verdant Honeycake orchards. Payback's a Witch is the perfect romance for #SpookySzn, and let's be real, for every season after!

Book Review: Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney

Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney
Length: 295 Pages
Genres: Mystery, Thriller
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Trigger Warnings in this book for Nefarious Goings on Typical of a Mystery/Thriller, Cheating, Mentions of Animal Neglect

"Can a weekend away save a marriage?"

Alice Feeney has been on my radar for a while now, but when I want to pick something up I'm usually more drawn to Fantasy and Historical Fiction. However, her newest novel, Rock Paper Scissors, was an option for my September Book of the Month, and I couldn't resist. I mean, a mystery set in snowy Scotland, inside a supposedly cursed chapel, sounded too good to pass up! Happily, I can say that Feeney has made a loyal fan out of me!

Amelia and Adam are at the end of their marriage. He spends most of his time adapting novels into screenplays, is glued to his phone 24/7 and suffers from prosopagnosia, which leaves him face-blind and unable to recognize even those he holds dear. She prefers dogs to people and works at a rescue and lost both of her parents to a car accident before she was even born. They think they know everything about each other -- but do they really? A trip to Scotland, won by Amelia in a raffle, seems the perfect antidote to their marital problems. 

Told in interchanging chapters from Amelia's POV, Adam's, the mysterious Robin, who lives in a thatched cottage outside Blackwater Chapel, and anniversary letters written from wife to husband every year, this is a tightly plotted thriller that will have you guessing until the very end. Alice Feeney is one of the best mystery writers I've ever read, and this book is so original and a breath of fresh air for the genre! 

It was exactly what I was wanting: something atmospheric and gripping, perfect for the holiday season.