No Frothy Fare Served up in This Gothic Novel Filled with Golems Galore!

 

One golem alone can be terrifying, but when multiple golems are at play throughout the plot, you’ve got the makings of a truly disturbing, in the best kind of way, read. Golems are difficult to categorize because they can be either friend or foe to those (a group of four friends in this case:  Paul, Serena, Jessica and Matt) who bring them into existence. Warren does an outstanding job of keeping the reader guessing as to whom is a good guy or gal or golem! Plus, as “The Wretched” is ‘The Covedale Chronicles Book 1,’ there’s an open ending by design. The reader is left satisfied, however, as there’s no cold ending. Rather, there’s an adept story resolution via the denouement.

Peppered throughout the storyline are appearances by great supporting characters. Some that stand out are:  the mysterious pale men in black suits (really hope to learn more about them in ‘The Covedale Chronicles Book 2’-in fact, I feel they’ll have a darkly delightful backstory), Emily and Malcolm.

Plus, golems aside, there are other things which are personified in a sense. Specifically, the Victorian House itself-that Paul, Serena, Jessica and Matt live in-and even the Cherry Picker (dwelling right outside the Victorian House). Wonderful that there’s a macabre vibe in the Victorian House as well, as that’s a gloomy element found in great Gothic novels.

Thematically, I believe two concepts stand out:  wretchedness (hence, the title) and a perhaps more hidden one in metamorphosis. Serena sheds light with:  “We may feel wretched, because of everything that’s happened…but we are not wretched.” Beautiful exposition! Metamorphosis is seen on so many levels as well. The golems obviously metamorphose, as does a creepy cool doll named Addy and even, in a more subtle way, the protagonists. Paul’s changing love interests is an example of this as is Jessica and Matt’s relationship. Perhaps the most noteworthy indication of the theme of transformation throughout is the mentioning of Franz Kafka’s novella, “The Metamorphosis.”

Looking forward to “The Covedale Chronicles Book 2!”

G.L. Giles

 

La 21ème Partie du “Chat Cosmique”~~~

“Alors, avez-vous d’autres Annunorci atterri ici dans le passé? ”

“Je ne pense pas, car leur présence serait difficile à manquer, à moins que…”

“à moins que… ils sont à quelque chose comme une convention de Cosplay, en particulier un comme Diamond City con qui débute leurs festivités à l’Halloween,” J’ai continué, avec une prise de conscience et d’appréhension de plus en plus, que j’ai fini la phrase du félin pour lui.

“Précisément,” dit-il en accord. “De plus, j’ai eu des agences de renseignement de ma planète se réunir qu’ils ont prévu d’Envoyer un Annunorcus ce soir.”

Je le lis ici.

Magical Realism in a Grotesquely Groovy Ghost Story!

Magical Realism in a Grotesquely Groovy Ghost Story!

Bibiana Krall has an uncanny knack of gathering heartfelt abstractions and lesser known events intelligibly. This rare talent is obvious in her story titled “The Soul Keeper:  A Ghost Story.” I don’t know of many fiction writers who can create disjunctive and conjunctive symbiosis (to use biological terms which come to mind) at the same time regarding the ghosts, the setting (San Francisco), the 1960s, Egyptomania and the Vietnam War. Further depth, which denotes a rich storyline, is added by a rejection of the notion that her ghostly entities are all good or all evil. And, her descriptions are superlative! Here’s an example:  “Memory snapped in a missing puzzle piece when the scent of crushed lilacs and petrichor drifted under her nose, while tea sloshed in her belly like a winter’s storm.” Lastly, magical realism percolates through the story with one of my favorite examples being when there’s a time rift of sorts involving the shop owner in Chinatown who “had manifested out of nowhere…,” yet his appearance is not shocking, as there’s a feeling of organic unfolding to his entry in the storyline (via previous occurrences).

G.L. Giles

You can download a copy here!

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Review of Nancy Bacon’s “Legends and Lipstick: My Scandalous Stories of Hollywood’s Golden Era”

There are many remarkable attributes of Nancy Bacon. To start with, her warm, inviting personality shines throughout this memoir. She’s also insightful, nonjudgmental and funny! I wasn’t expecting to laugh as much as I did, but she’s humorous in an oftentimes unexpected way. Her natural optimism shines throughout, and it’s certainly admirable that she can laugh through adversity. Her ‘boob history’ (boob her-story? 🙂 ) recounting is hilarious—joking through the real life horror is quite praiseworthy. Wordplay abounds and her descriptions are delightfully detailed. Hollywood’s Golden Era is palpable as is her heartbreaking struggle with alcoholism.

She did more than merely rub elbows with some movie idols in Hollywood’s Golden Era. Yet, she was discreet, and it’s readily apparent that she deeply cared for them. But, this is no book of Hollywood fluff, for there are some stories which are somewhat scarring to hear (I listened to this memoir via Amazon’s Audible). A major female Hollywood star of the Golden Era who was into brutality comes to mind first, and one of Ms. Bacon’s abusive boyfriends next. Yikes! However, these examples aren’t in the same ballpark with the light BDSM that she experienced later on (but long before E.L. James’s “50 Shades of Grey” made BDSM more mainstream) with a love interest. Ms. Bacon was ahead of her time in some respects, yet she also had a finger on the pulse of the times she experienced. Plus, her life wasn’t filled with just movie stars, as she also spent time with famous men in politics. Impressive is an understatement!

In closing, the expression to ‘pull oneself up by one’s bootstraps’ comes to mind as her beginnings were modest, yet she achieved so much by her own ingenuity and positive outlook. In fact, she was also a magazine editor, co-author of “Whitney Houston: Good Girl/Bad Girl,” and she wrote 10 romance and adventure novels.

Highly recommended!

G.L. Giles

La vingtième partie du “Chat Cosmique”~~~

“Oui, eh bien, peut-être certains sont, mais je peux vous assurer que les Annunorci sont en diamants. Diamants naturels de votre planète!”

“Mais, pourquoi? Je pense à peine qu’il est plausible que les ogres de toutes sortes voudraient des diamants comme un accessoire de mode.

À ce que le grand chat, sorte de ronronnement craché, qui je pense était sa façon de rire, avec, “vous avez le sens de l’humour de votre père. Ils doivent avoir le genre de diamants naturels que votre planète offre, car ils appauvrissent l’offre de leur propre planète. Ils les utilisent pour garder leurs nombreuses industries sanglantes fonctionner. Les diamants synthétiques ne fera pas.”

Je le lis ici.

Only 7 Years in the Making~~~

“Humor, Horror and Whatnot:  An Adult Collection” has been released~~~

It’s available here.

Yours in dark delight,

G.L. Giles

 

‘Tis the Season for Well-Crafted Horror!

‘Tis the Season for Well-Crafted Horror!

This was my first foray into the world of audio books at Audible, and I was not disappointed. I have a feeling that “Keepsakes: A Triptych of Terrifying Tales” will be a great touchstone for the books I listen to next. I have been a fan of Staci’s darkly delightful books for over a decade now, as they’re oozing (acceptable word choice before Halloween) with creativity and skilled writing. Eldritch personification pulsates with a sinister, buy sexy, vibe throughout her first offering in the collection: “Mood Ring.” The storyline alone is wonderfully gripping, but Sincera Alexander’s sonorous voice narrating the tale makes it full-on irresistible! The creepy collection includes two more tales captivatingly read by KK Ryder and Curt Lambert. Warning: you may never look at your supposedly inanimate objects in the same way again! *cue wicked laughter* Highly recommended!
GL Giles

You can listen to it or read it here.