yall drop some good detective fiction in the replies!! bonus points for sweet old ladies who can kick a murderer’s ass <3

I just made a playlist with songs that remind me of my dark forest bookstagram aesthetic. If you want to recommend a song to add it, go for it!.

I just made a playlist with songs that remind me of my dark forest bookstagram aesthetic. If you want to recommend a song to add it, go for it!. 

• Never Let Me Go — Florence + The Machine
• all the good girls go to hell  — Billie Eilish
• i love you  — Billie Eilish
• Lithium  — Evanescence
• The Other Side  — Evanescence
• I Don’t Love You  — My Chemical Romance
• The Ghost Of You  — My Chemical Romance
• Edge Of Seventeen  — Stevie Nicks
• Dreams  — Fleetwood Mac
• Crystal  — Stevie Nicks
• Sorcerer  — Stevie Nicks
• Like a Stone  — Audioslave
• I Am a Highway  — Audioslave
• Heather  — Conan Gray
• The Story  — Conan Gray
• Comfort Crowd  — Conan Gray 
• Checkmate  — Conan Gray
• Die For You — Justin bieber ft. Dominic Fike 
• willow  — Taylor Swift
• cardigan  — Taylor Swift
• no body, no crime  — Taylor Swift ft. HAIM
• evermore  — Taylor Swift ft. Bon Iver
• Met Him Last Night  — Demi Lovato ft. Ariana Grande
• Mad World  — Ariana Grande
• deja vu  — Olivia Rodrigo
• favorite crime  — Olivia Rodrigo
• traitor  — Olivia Rodrigo
• jealousy, jealousy  — Olivia Rodrigo
• I’m so tired…  — Lauv ft. Troye Sivan
• Mean it  — Lauv ft. LANY
• Fake  — Lauv ft. Conan Gray
• There’s No Way  — Lauv ft. Julia Michaels 
• Modern Loveliness  — Lauv
• crash  — EDEN
• drugs  — EDEN
• Dynasty  — MIIA

The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkin Gilman

[Original Story on Medium. Link here]

This may be a short story, but in now way does this story fall short compared to full length novels.

Let me start by saying (writing) that this reads like a personal diary and I have a strict hit or miss with first person narration, either it comes off as too corny or I’m amazed at the connection I feel to the character.

The first person narrator, which remains nameless, is a recent mother that has moved into a lovely mansion with her husband. She claims to be sick, but her husband and brother, who are physicians recommend plenty of rest and food. Out of sight, out of mind is their motto. She is not to speak, write, or even think of her sickness because it might deplete her health. If she gets angry with her husband, John, she is to learn how to control herself and check her “tendencies”. If she is anything but agreeable then the men don’t want to hear it, she’s meant to stay at home and sit pretty.

The amount of eye rolls I did while reading the first few pages should have been recorded. The story made me react, almost instantly, towards the situation at hand. I never wanted to speak to a character so much as I did with this story. Here was a women baring her soul into her writing, into telling us this very important time in her life, and we were in her safest place — her thoughts, which flowed so beautiful it was hard not to highlight every line.

Adding to her deteriorating mental health, She becomes obsessed with the an ugly yellow wallpaper in her room. She stays up to watch her hallucination take shape within the wallpaper, even seeing a women watching her in the wallpaper. While her husband is out one night, she starts frantically ripping the wallpaper. John returns, only to faint as he sees his wife crawling on the floor claiming she got out of the wallpaper.

I’d say. if this was turned into a move it’d be a psychological thriller. I am in love with this work, not only because it managed to grasp at so many concerning topics in such few pages, but also because it was clear and precise in its execution. I come back to this story every couple of months to check if the impact is still the same and I’m never disappointed — I think the yellow wallpaper is absolutely perfect.

A couple of things that are worth discussing.

First — the nameless women. Why leave the only person that addresses the audience names less? Why do we know so much about her life and inner thought, but not her name? Giving her a name wouldn’t lessen the effect of the story, but forgoing a name makes this women an icon; a representation of the gender. Pure genius.

Second — Men telling women what a women should do. John might have loved and cared deeply for our character, but I don’t think anybody wants that type of love and care. He silenced her in any way, shape, and form he could think of. He used his profession as a physician to invalidate, belittle, and dismiss her. He made her feel as if it were her shortcomings that were to blame, as if she was the burden that he had to carry through life. He put her in a box that only he has the key to open and close. The amount of control John had over her resonates and unfortunately it is a gender thing.

Last — The actual yellow wallpaper. I mean I understand her hatred for the wallpaper, I never liked yellow. Women’s history is neither light nor pleasant to go through, but we’ve all somehow manages to get caught up in the wallpaper at one point in our lives or someone else tries to trap us in there. She wasn’t literally trapped in the yellow wallpaper but she might as well have been. When our character writes she’s defying the men around her and when she finally manages to rip apart the wallpaper, until the very end, she thought she was freeing another women, not herself — let this story sink in.

Read this book if…

• Reading iconic feminist works have been on your to-do list.
• You want a quick reminder of why reading and writing is a super power.

Rate: 5/5

Time: less than an hour

Book-shelf Worthy: I’m telling you it’s a must of short-stories

Quoteworthy

John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage

It is so hard to talk with John about my case, because he is wise, and because he loves me so.

He says no one but myself can help me out of it, that I must use my will and self-control and not let any silly fancies run away with me

John does not know how much I really suffer. He knows that there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him

Sometimes I think there’s a great many women behind, and sometimes only one, and she crawls around fast, and her crawling shakes it all over.

The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkin Gilman

UPDATE :: The next book reviews are….

• The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkin Gilman

It was on my long list of to be reviewed books, mostly because it’s one of my favorites. The books I’ve already read are actually taking me longer to review since I have to go back and read them, but someone in my inbox told me I should review it so it’s the first on my list now to review.

• The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe

Another short that I absolutely loved, so why not bundle my two favorites to review.

• A Court of Thorns and Roses Series (1-3) by Sarah J. Maas

I read the series last summer and I have to revisit my thoughts of the series, but I did immensely enjoy them. I’m not reviewing the last book, A Court of Silver Flames, because I haven’t read it, yet and I’m sorta hesitating until the next book is released (Mostly because I hear it might be around Azrael, so might as well bundle the two books together).

• Throne of Glass Series (1-7) by Sarah J. Maas

literally just finished the last book yesterday and while I did review the first one and wasn’t all that excited to read the rest of the books, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I never doubted Sarah J. Maas (one of the few authors I like off of BookTok), but the first two books were an uphill battle to get through. Though the last books make me emotional unstable…I’ll just save the rest of my comments for the reviews.

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

[Originally published on my Medium page: link here]

This is the second part of a two book series (the first I reviewed here)

The gang is back again and I have to say that this sequel maintained my interest just as well as the first book. Again, I can’t stress how much I love the characters, each one providing the right amount of comfort to soothe my anxiety in the face of all this danger. While the first book focused on breaking in and out of a highly secured military base, this time the location stays in Ketterdam, where the home battles/war becomes much more personal. This was far more intricate in writing than in the first book and for different reasons. The characters are developing and that includes the bad guys! Most times it felt like all fronts of battle were under attack and they were being closed in; flipping the score was more difficult for the gang this time. I want to emphasize that this time it’s not just a job, many things expanded, one being character interaction, and the other is the amount of chest-pounded plans Kaz comes up with. Bardugo, again, creates a steady flow of events while still keeping us on our toes, waiting anxiously for how things will unfold.

Read this book if you read the first book, want revenge, AND want more Jesper making Wylan blush scenes.

• Rate: 4.5/5
• Time: Took 24 hours
• Book-shelf Worthy: Yes! Gotta get the collection

Quoteworthy

I told you, I like your stupid face.

You don’t win by running one game.

You will see me once more, but only once.

The really bad monsters never look like monsters.

When fear arrives, something is about to happen.

What about the nobodies and the nothings, the invisible girls? We learn to hold our heads as if we wear crowns. We learn to wring magic from the ordinary. That was how you survived when you weren’t chosen, when there was no royal blood in your veins. When the world owed you nothing, you demanded something of it anyway.

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

[Originally published on my Medium page: link here]

Since I picked this one before its predecessor (Shadow and Bone Trilogy), I felt plunge into the world, yet it only took a couple of chapters to get acquitted well with the world; seriously should have read the trilogy first, but no regrets in getting to meet these characters.

While it may seem that this is an underdog storyline, I think it’d be an insult to underestimate the Six of Crows. Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Nina, Matthias, and Wylan all form the group, and each one is from different parts of life and with different morals, interests, and baggage (psychical and/or mental). My favorite part about this book was having the pleasure of knowing each character. Each of them proves to be useful, determined, strong, and yet flawed; the morally grey characteristic checks out with every one of them and I love it. I didn’t think third-person multiple POV (Point of View) could be written this flawlessly.

Bardugo has managed to not only create a world but incorporate unique characters that you can’t help fall in love with. Now the plot centers around a heist, so there’s a lot of push and pull when it comes to how much information can and should be given to the reader to keep things interesting. Bardugo has tossed every twist, turn, trapped door, and smoke grenades at us; In the front line of danger, but always a step behind.

Read this book if you love heists, fantasy, morally grey characters, and sexual tension (and issues) that won’t get solved and you’re forced to get the 2nd book.

• Rate: 4.5/5
• Time: Took 3 days, read the ending near a dim lamp in the middle of the night.
• Book-shelf Worthy: Yes!

Quoteworthy

No mourners. No funerals.

We are all someone’s monster.

Do you have a different name for killing when you wear a uniform to do it?

Better terrible truths than kind lies.

The easiest way to steal a man’s watch is to tell him you’re going to steal his watch.

I will have you without armour, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

[Originally published on my Medium page: link here]

The only thing I regret about this book is not being able to read it earlier. The novel follows a sheepherder, Santiago, on his journey towards the pyramids to find his treasure. Along the way, he runs through worldly issues and meets peculiar characters that assist and guide him to his destiny. I think you can feel the life-altering decisions being made by the readers in some passages; it makes a simple statement that it’s never too late to pursue one’s dreams, no matter how complicated things seem to be. Honestly, I loved everything about the book, especially how Coelho conveys a depth of themes and perspectives in a simple story about a sheepherder that just wanted to see the world. I think many people can relate and have experienced, or at least thought of, finding their own treasures in life; frankly, it’s haunting how The Alchemist can give you both hope and a bit of excitement-fear that comes in deciding to follow your purpose in life.

Read this book if…

1. Life is going a little too fast or a little too slow for your liking.
2. You’re going on a trip and want to bring a book along
3. Especially if you’re a fan of The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, this would be a great follow-up towards adolescence or anywhere in the continuous wheel of life.

• Rate: 5/5
• Time: quick read, but do take longer to digest the words fully
• Book-shelf Worthy: Definitely!!!!!!

Quoteworthy:

Every blessing ignored becomes a curse

Everything that happens once can never happen again. But everything that happens twice will surely happen a third time.

When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.

The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times/

When a person really desires something, all the universe conspires to help the person to realize his dreams.

To realize one’s destiny is a person’s only obligation

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

[Originally published on my Medium page: link here]

I may or may not have a love-hate relationship with book series that holds over 3 books. Either I love the story from the first installment or I push through the first couple of books before I can actually admit that I’m obsessed or just wasted my time waiting for the epic moment that’ll convert me into a fan. I’ve heard a lot of great things about Sarah J. Maas and mostly it culminates in the thousands of TikTok’s that have praised all of her series (ACOTAR is on the “To Be Reviewed” List, while I still have to read the others). I wanted to start with Throne of Glass because it’s her earlier series and I’d like to think authors get better the more books they write. Might not want to judge this book too harshly; it is a young adult fantasy, which means a highly more subjective review.

Honestly, didn’t really like the book at first, most of the characters seemed too cliche and got an awkward vibe (which I will pass as new book jitters). I will say that the book grew on me.

Celaena Sardothien is not the typical heroine read about. She’s a trained assassin taken out of her prison sentence by the prince in order to compete with others to serve the king. That’s the plot, and it’s not half bad. In between the testing/competition, champions are mysteriously killed off and Calaena wonders what exactly is happening around her. I think the key element that made me cringe-smile was how unapologetically themselves the characters were; Dorian a playboy prince who dislikes his father, Calaena the assassin who is still very much a 17-year-old girl, and Chaol an honorable friend and solider. Prince Dorian and Captain Chaol bring forth the ever-important love triangle, which did not overpower the story — might hold off on that for the next book. I’ll say that as of now, I’m preferring Chaol over Dorian. While the main plot was to win the competition, I found the extensive amount of loose ends amusing. It started with a competition, then a murder mystery, and now we’re at a place that is not entirely safe, but better from where we started. I won’t spoil anything, but I’d love to see how every component concerning wyrdmarks and magic plays out later. As the first book to a long series, I will say it’s an okay introduction. We’ve covered the basics of what’s occurring, but Maas doesn’t give out as much information hence why I’m already ordering the 2nd book.

Read this book if the plotline interest you and you’d like to see what all the fuss is about over on BookTok, but I get the sense that the hype might be for things further along.

• Rate: 3/5
• Time: About 3–4 days
• Book-shelf Worthy: I think I’m going to have to read the rest of them to see

Quoteworthy

My name is Celaena Sardothien. But it makes no difference if my name’s Celaena or Lillian or Bitch, because I’d still beat you, no matter what you call me.

Libraries were full of ideas — perhaps the most dangerous and powerful of all weapons

We all bear scars,… Mine just happen to be more visible than most.

We each survive in our own way.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

[Originally published on my Medium page: link here]

Newland Archer is our guide through the high society of New York, a lawyer engaged to May Welland, contempt with the world around him, fully immersed in his position in life and in love with his fiance. Enter Countess Ellen Olenska, who, when compared to May, is the complete opposite; she doesn’t allow social constructs and obligations to dictate her life; she questions the regulations of society and who makes them. Fearing a family scandal, Archer convinces Olenska not to divorce her husband but ends up fearing for his own growing affections.

I found Archer annoying at first, all the talk of New York society, but he’s what I’d like to call the character development effect; turns a smidge attractive as the story progresses. Olenska is hands-down my favorite character, unapologetically herself in a world where it’s extensively criticized. Archer experiences the feeling of living, but can’t hold on to it; that is what love stories are made of. This story seems to be told before, in different time periods, characters, locations, etc. The Age of Innocence reads like many historical romance dramas and I love it. It’s always the raging war and discussion between love and obligation; the answer never is as simple as we make it out to be. Spoiling nothing, I’d like to say that if you’d like a happily ever after, please read one of the other many historical romance dramas (I always recommend Pride and Prejudice) and then come back to The Age of Innocence to fully bask in the angst. I have a love-hate relationship with the ending, but I wouldn’t want to change it.

Read this book, if you’re interested in taking a trip to 1870s New York and mingling with society. Tell me if you broke a smile whenever Olenska spoke or pulled eyebrows from the love, and don’t forget to count the mental eye rolls dedicated towards society!

• Rate: 3/5
• Time: 2 days
• Book-shelf Worthy: deserves to be up there with the others of its genre

Quoteworthy

Women ought to be free — as free as we are.

What’s the use? You gave me my first glimpse of a real life, and at the same moment you asked me to go on with a sham one. It’s beyond human enduring — that’s all.

To have you here, you mean-in reach and yet out of reach? To meet you in this way, on the sly? It’s the very reverse of what I want.

The real loneliness is living among all these kind people who only ask one to pretend!

Each time you happen to me all over again.

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse

[Originally published on my Medium page: link here]

Siddhartha is introduced as a Brahmin, which speaks towards how his life is supposed to go; he’s a natural, and his position in life is already laid out for him. However, his thirst for knowledge and constant questioning pulls him into a journey of self-discovery. While I thought Siddhartha came out as arrogant, specifically when speaking to The Buddha, I think everything placed in the book (from events to characters) was entirely purposeful towards the point of enlightenment. His journey takes him far from his life as a Brahmin, turning him into a business partner, a lover, a father, and many other roles (some not as admirable). While I’ve read many stories that introduce an array of characters along the way, this novel is refreshing; turning the main character into a variety of persons throughout his lifetime.

A review cannot do this book justice, it goes down as a “must-read” to fully understand the work properly. Hermann Hesse has an amazing mind which can create a fluent storyline that not only entertains the reader but turns the gears of the brain.

Nearing the end of the novel, I cried at Siddhartha’s last words. I think the rush of emotions was partly due to how long it took to reach this point of enlightenment. It’s not a very long read, but it seems like an entire lifetime spent beside the character. Not only that, but every word was filled with the air of unreachable depth and peacefulness — the final bearing of this process. Maybe my emotions got the best of me, or this book truly sneaked up on me. Either way, it’s one of my favorites of Hesse.

Read this book if you want a tale worth contemplating over or maybe you’ve been into self-discovery lately.

• Rate: 4.5/5
• Time: Can be read in less than a day
• Book-Shelve Worthy: Buy it right now!

Quoteworthy

The opposite of every truth is just as true.

I was afraid of myself, I was fleeing from myself. I was seeking Atman, I was seeking Brahman, I was determined to dismember myself and tear away its layers of husk in order to find in its unknown innermost recess the kernel at the heart of those layers, the Atman, life, the divine principle, the ultimate. But in so doing, I was losing myself

Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.

They both listened silently to the water, which to them was not just water, but the voice of life, the voice of Being, the voice of perpetual Becoming.

He has robbed me, yet he has given me something of greater value … he has given to me myself

I will no longer mutilate and destroy myself in order to find a secret behind the ruins.

We are not going in circles, we are going upwards. The path is a spiral; we have already climbed many steps

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse

Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse

[Originally published on my Medium page: link here]

Surprisingly, the narrator is not present when introducing the novel, rather the landladies nephew is the one who manages to share.publish the manuscript left behind by Harry Haller. Unsurprisingly, like many Hesse novels, it reads like day-to-day journal entries, which critically focuses on human psychology.

There’s a clear conflict from the beginning, Harry Haller is too intelligent to be stuck in a world constructed by and for the bourgeois society. Haller does come off as extremely arrogant, however, his whole “spiritually and intellectually awakened” persona isn’t ideal, rather it becomes the main reason for his disconnection with society and others.

On our late night walk with Haller, we come across The Treaties of the Steppenwolf, a short pamphlet that is claimed to be “not for everyone” and is a margin-writers dream. The pamphlet examines and introduced us to the perceived duality of the soul one being a man and the other a wolf; grouping savage, instinctual qualities to the wolf and civilized, posed qualities to the man. Both sides of the soul seem to be in constant disagreement, but one cannot rule without the other. This part was pretty comical to me, first because I think anyone could relate towards this simple explanation of the human soul — the constant struggle between instinctual gut feelings and society norms. As I was getting comfortable in the rant of dualistic entities inside of the soul, the pamphlet does a complete 180 and calls this idea idiotic and rudimentary; people that accept this do not understand the complexity that the human soul actually is — not two but many that cannot be defined nor understood in this lifetime. I highly enjoyed the pamphlet.

It does also touch lightly on the subject of depression and suicide — being as they are a result of the disconnect from others. The sole focus on the self, thinks only as far as the self, hence the timed lifespan (theres a bunch of other rabbit holes one can venture down).

After the pamphlet, Hesse provides a small encounter between Harry and a past friend to further prove that his intelligence serves as more of a burden; the arrogance is not intentional rather unavoidable (almost like a sickness). That being said, Steppenwolf does leaves on a hopeful note. It emphasizes the human need to connect and the constant struggles in belonging.

The novel is a hit or miss for readers, either the tone of Harry Haller becomes intolerable, the monologues becomes gruesomely long, or simply this work dims in comparison towards Hesse’s other works.

If you think this book is about a man turning into a werewolf — totally not for you.

Read this book if you try your best to understand others and even at time try to understand yourself.

• Rate: 4/5
• Time: Took me 3 days, tried to pace myself — could’ve done it in 2 days
• Book-Shelve Worthy: It’s in the Hesse collection

Quoteworthy

Solitude is independence. It had been my wish and with the years I had attained it. It was cold. Oh, cold enough! But it was also still, wonderfully still and vast like the cold stillness of space in which the stars revolve.

You are willing to die, you coward, but not to live.

In eternity there is no time, only an instant long enough for a joke.

For what I always hated and detested and cursed above all things was this contentment, this healthiness and comfort, this carefully preserved optimism of the middle classes, this fat and prosperous brood of mediocrity

The man of power is ruined by power, the man of money by money, the submissive man by subservience, the pleasure seeker by pleasure.

I cannot understand nor share these joys, though they are within my reach, for which thousands of others strive.

I cannot understand nor share these joys, though they are within my reach, for which thousands of others strive.

Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse

My next book for review is going to be one I read when I was younger, The Silver Kiss by Anette Curtis Klause. Don’t know if I will include the two short stories that take place after the book or not. Might make them their own reviews.

Part 2 of The Bare Witch Project Review https://ndecastra.wixsite.com/mysite/post/the-bare-witch-project-by-celeste-hall-part-2…