literature
Geek literature from the New York Times or the recesses of online. Our favorite stories showcase geeks.
Book Review: "Queens and Kings" by Lucy Worsley (Pt.1)
For the sake of going through this properly, I would like to split up this review into the parts that the book is also split up into. This will be part 1, covering the beginning of the book all the way to the end of chapter 8.
By Annie Kapurabout 3 hours ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Between the Waves" by Hilary Tailor
At the moment, I have focused my thriller reading on the works of Hilary Tailor. I have unfortunately finished the bibliography of John Marrs, I'm working my way through Mark Edwards and I believe I have completed Lucinda Berry - I am giving others a bit of a break. Hilary Tailor writes a strange sub-genre of thriller which often involves islands and folkish settings. In her book These Dark Places she unearths secrets about a man after he has died through his widow. In the book Between the Waves, we have a missing child at the centre and three women who must rediscover what they have lost whilst trying to work out where exactly Hazel went on that fateful day 20 years' ago and whether she is alive or dead.
By Annie Kapura day ago in Geeks
Book Review: "South Riding" by Winifred Holtby
So you're telling me this woman was friends with Vera Brittain, who then also knew Virginia Woolf...and I'd never heard of her until right now? Well, I've been going through the Virago Modern Classics books and yes, yes, I've probably bought more Daphne Du Maurier novels - but this book was making the rounds on the lists I was looking at. Even though South Riding has so many characters that there are a few pages before the story dedicated to telling you who they are and how they're related/married, I cannot say I was bored. This is a provincial modernist masterpiece. Believe me, it is well worth the read even though there are lots of people and it is longer than your average modernist novel.
By Annie Kapur2 days ago in Geeks
Confessions of an English Opium Eater by Thomas De Quincey
Thomas de Quincey was someone who was exceedingly bright, but had a life that was coated in addiction issues. His experiences with opium addiction began after he was introduced to laudanum as a remedy for illness and insomnia. This would develop into him writing a book on his experiences, mixed with the philosophical qualities of addiction - Confessions of an English Opium Eater.
By Annie Kapur2 days ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The King's General" by Daphne Du Maurier
If you're interested, you can find reviews of other Daphne Du Maurier books I've read below: And so, now we are on The King's General. When I was in university (yes, that's a long while ago now, let's not mention how many years it has been), I was taking a film module in which we had to adapt a short story for the screen and write our own production script for it. I chose The Apple Tree by Daphne Du Maurier mainly because it fascinated me. No it wasn't my favourite short story, but at the time I got really into it. Ever since then I have definitely been meaning to read more of her works as I had only by then, read the famous ones and of course, my personal favourite by her: My Cousin Rachel. The one thing we have to love about The King's General though is that it is set in a place that is the inspiration for Manderley, the haunting atmosphere of Rebecca, her most widely-read novel.
By Annie Kapur3 days ago in Geeks
Book Review: "The Passion of New Eve" by Angela Carter
A friend of mine from the past once convinced me to read (and then reread) The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter, which was very enjoyable through my teen years. I didn't end up reading too many more books by this author though until I was in my early 20s and now, in my 30s, I am currently trying to work my way through as many Virago Modern Classics as possible. One of the books that kept popping up as a recommendation was The Passion of New Eve in which I have constantly been told is a description of New York which is to die for. Needless to say, I died over and over again. These descriptions were not just words, they were entire worlds - complete metaphors and horrific, graphic and terrifying as I imagined it. We are most definitely plunged into the City of Dreadful Night. A very different New York than what we are told indeed.
By Annie Kapur3 days ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Hidden Strangers" by Minka Kent
If I had read the first two instalments then why would I not read the third one? Unfortunately, the third instalment is the final one in the series and boy did it change my perspective on the entire ordeal. I'm not going to say exactly how because the event I'm talking about takes place pretty much at the end of the book but let's just say that I was both right and wrong about Camille and how she is portrayed as a sociopath. Apart from this, I found this book to probably be the best in the entire series. Why? Well, I think the author's writing just seems like it's going somewhere. It's set inside this one house and almost claustrophobically, the author plays into the isolation. Also, I tried to guess the ending and I was way out.
By Annie Kapur6 days ago in Geeks
Book Review: "Circle of Strangers" by Minka Kent
Okay, I lied about giving this series a rest after the first one, you probably read that in the review of Imaginary Strangers. This one is slightly better but still has its flaws. I feel like there are some things I'd question about the accuracy of the portrayal of a sociopath but then there's the ending which felt a bit forced. Apart from this, there's genuinely interesting set of characters now that our narrator, Camille, has moved into her new home with her family. What is uncovered however, is slightly less surprising than we think it is. I don't think though, the point of this book is to shock the reader but instead it is to introduce different character types to us. Needless to say, it was still an enjoyable book and I am looking forward to the third instalment so much I've already bought it.
By Annie Kapur7 days ago in Geeks
Isis: Still a Goddess after All These Years
To Live, Die and Live Again Ancient Egyptian mythology can be best summed up as a life-and-death cycle. In many respects, the gods and goddesses were born, lived their lives, died and were reborn. And at the heart of it was a goddess, sometimes referred to as a queen, enchantress and a mother to gods.
By Dean Traylor7 days ago in Geeks
