magicalghoul's reviews
72 reviews

Where Sleeping Girls Lie by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
The prose didn't draw me in which in itself isn't an issue if I find the setting to be interesting, but I think I'm not the target for this type of dark academia book? so I didn't really find it interesting. 
The Upstairs House: A Novel by Julia Fine

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I think it's very curious that I hadn't really encountered a book that was half essay, half prose, and now I've encountered the format twice two months in a row (the other book is the autobiographical In the dream house)

This was a hard read, not because I wasn't interested or the prose wasn't good, but because the topic hit a bit too close to home. I even had to stop reading one day because it triggered a depersonalization episode. 

The main character's delusion felt really #relatable to me, as is the topic of a mental illness that feels like a possession, a haunting, something to be exorcised in secret because nobody will believe you if you told them. 

Also it just feels really good to read a book with a psychotic main character that isn't demonized, and to know that the author herself experienced psychosis and wants to shine a light on the subject with her book. 
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The Feminization of Dr. Faustus: Female Identity Quests from Stendhal to Morgner by Helga Druxes

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informative reflective

5.0

The terms "faustian hero"/"faustian bargain" have always seemed gender neutral to me, so it was interesting to look back at the time when it was only exclusively applied to male characters and how some writers then started applying Faustian tropes to female or even "third sex" characters. 

I'd been meaning to get into this one for some years now and finally could get my hands on a digital copy. Very informative and easy read, made me interested in a couple of the classic books it analyzes.
Las malas by Camila Sosa Villada

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challenging dark emotional funny informative reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Dolor. Desidia. Violencia. Las Malas es una cucharada dura de tragar, una mirada sobre la vida de un sector de la población que sufre la indolencia de la sociedad, las consecuencias de ser excluida de la misma.

También es una mirada llena de amor y mucha nostalgia hacia esas compañeras que una vez tuvo la autora, y una mirada sobre su niñez. Pero todo el amor del mundo no nos puede salvar si hay violencia sistemica sobre nosotros, sólo podemos sobrevivir. 
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Cuentos Diversos by Bruno Mateo, Carlos Luis Sánchez, Aisak Ovalles, Obdulia Viera, Oscar Villanueva, Nubia González, Horahis Suarez, Bartolomé Cavallo

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dark emotional hopeful sad

3.0

No sé exactamente cuál fue el criterio usado para elegir a los cuentos ganadores, pero en lo personal me sorprendió que los tres cuentos elegidos tuviesen ciertas fallas en redacción, puntuación y prosa cuando algunas de las historias no ganadoras eran de mejor calidad tanto en fondo como en forma, al punto que pensé que el orden de publicación era de la historia con más baja puntuación y terminando con el ganador. 

Dicho esto, mis favoritas fueron El cuartico está igualito, Mariposa y Rebeca.

Independientemente de la calidad del resultado, se aplaude la iniciativa de publicar narrativas de autores género-diversos. También me entristece muchísimo que hoy en día sea impensable que este tipo de iniciativas se vuelvan a gestar desde el propio gobierno. 
The Six Deaths of the Saint by Alix E. Harrow

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adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter

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challenging dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

3.5

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

Lived the formatting of this, from the fairy tale classifications to the more academic chapters. 
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Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

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dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

My favorite were the law & order vignettes and the opening story. I plan to start the author's other book today. 
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Mandíbula by Mónica Ojeda

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Una prosa HERMOSA y personajes muy vívidos.

Sólo me hubiese gustado que durara más y que llegara a un desenlace más claro. Pero son preferencias personales.