Something for the Weekend

Something for the Weekend

Nightstand October 24, 2013

bookfestivalIt’s that time of the year in Texas, it’s time for the Texas Book Festival! For one reason or another I have missed out on the last couple of festivals but this year I am planning to be there. Maybe not for the whole event but hopefully I can catch a couple of author readings, a look through the vendor tents and who knows maybe a bit of book buying too.

Another thing I want to do this weekend is finish Delia’s Shadow by Jamie Lee Moyer. This is my second R.I.P. Challenge read. A story with ghosts, a mystery and a dash of romance. I hope I can also read a few more short stories for the challenge.

Other than that, I hope to squeeze in a trip to the bookstore as I’m looking for some magazines. Hope you all have a great weekend ahead!

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Dracula

Dracula

Nightstand October 23, 2013

dracula“What manner of man is this, or what manner of creature is in the semblance of man? I feel the dread of this horrible place overpowering me; I am in fear — in awful fear — and there is no escape for me; I am encompassed about with terrors that I dare not think of…”

Dracula
By Bram Stoker

I don’t need to tell you what the story is about because I think we all know it right? So I’ll just tell you more about my reading expectations and experience.

I have always loved the story of Dracula from what I saw on film and via other writers’ imaginings. I’ve read many stories that featured vampires like the Anne Rice books and the Twilight series. I’ve read graphic novels, romance novels, and horror novels, but something always made me stay away from this classic book.

Why? I think my expectations were very high and I was a bit hesitant to read it and feel letdown. What if I hated it? So, with this R.I.P. Challenge I thought that’s it I’m going for and friends, I loved it. This will definitely go on my list of favorites for the year and here are just some observations:

I love stories that are in told via letters or journal entries. I’d heard before that both of these were used in Dracula but I don’t think I realized that the whole story was narrated that way. And, I especially loved this quote from Mina’s journal entry: “I am anxious, and it soothes me to express myself here; it is like whispering to one’s self and listening at the same time.” As an avid journal keeper myself I totally get this.

I was surprised that even though I knew the story it still managed to be creepy and suspenseful. Yes, sometimes the description went on a bit too long but it served to create a rich atmosphere filled with suspense.  I can only imagine how scary this story must have been back when it first came out in the 1897.

Finally, my favorite part of the story was the beginning when Jonathan Harker has arrived at the castle and meets Dracula. Jonathan’s growing sense of alarm at what he is witnessing made this a page-turner for me.

Source: Personal copy

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Ghostly Tales

Ghostly Tales

Nightstand October 22, 2013

furnishedroomAs part of my R.I.P. Challenge I wanted to read some short stories and while I had several books to choose from, I decided to read from the book I borrowed from the library a couple of weeks ago, The Big Book of Ghost Stories.

Before I get into the stories, I just have to share this picture. Isn’t that great? The book has these cool, retro illustrations throughout and I love seeing those.  So far I’ve read three of the stories in this collection. There are old favorites like The Monkey’s Paw to more recent stories from Joyce Carole Oates and Donald E. Westlake for example.

The first story I read was Laura by Saki. Two women talk about the afterlife and Laura imagines what she’d come back to life as. Her friend is a bit perturbed by all this but when Laura dies, things start to get real interesting. This one was creepy.

Next up The Furnished Room by O. Henry. A sad story about a young man looking for his sweetheart. Will he find her? Will he finally be at peace? I didn’t find this one scary but did like the story overall.

The last story I read was The Toll-House by W.W. Jacobs. I chose this one because the writer also wrote The Monkey’s Paw which was a story I first heard when I was in elementary school and I thought had such a great twist at the end. My expectations were high for this tale. In this story four men dare each other to spend the night in a haunted house. One of course scoffs at the idea of there being anything such as a haunted house. Of course the night is long and things do go bump in the night. I liked the story well enough but I didn’t get a scare from this one.

So those are my short stories for the season. I hope to squeeze in a few others before the challenge is over and in time for Halloween. I’ll keep you posted.

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