Broken Things

November 15, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

The woods were deep and quiet with snow. Our footsteps plunging through the film of surface ice disturbed crows from their perches, sending them screaming toward the sky. Summer was in a good mood. She hardly seemed to notice the cold and kept urging us to hurry up, go on, just a little farther – past the shed, past another creek, down into a kind of gully where birch trees stood like ghostly signposts, frightened by some past horror into the same stripped whiteness. This was the prima ballerina Summer, the dazzlingly beautiful one, the one we could never refuse. … Continue reading Broken Things

Articles, Top 10 Lists1 Comment

Top 10 Bookish Items I’d Like to Own

November 13, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

The holiday season is coming, people! And luckily, there are so many incredible gifts online for readers. So thanks to That Artsy Reader Girl’s Top Tuesday prompt for this week, I have pulled together a little list of my favorite bookish items for all budgets, including those millionaire friends I know I have out there somewhere. 1. Clear book weight $19.99 This one happens to be one of my top favorite gift ideas. I’m sure most of you have struggled with reading over lunch – it’s hard to hold a book with one hand and eat with the other (not … Continue reading Top 10 Bookish Items I’d Like to Own

Book Reviews, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, MysteryLeave a comment

Daughters of the Lake

November 8, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

His wife’s cries awoke the new father who, rushed, horrified, to the side of his first daughter’s crib in the nursery, an alcove just off what was now the master bedroom that Simon and Jonathan had renovated into a spectacular master bath, complete with a steam shower and Jacuzzi tub. It was Simon’s favorite thing, lazing in the scented water, enjoying a glass of wine and a good book. He had no idea that his great-grandmother had begun to lose her sanity in the exact spot where numerous water jets now massaged the kinks in his back. Although he had … Continue reading Daughters of the Lake

Book Reviews, Historical Fiction, Horror2 Comments

Classic Monsters: Vampires in Kostova’s The Historian

October 31, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

On the side of it, in the deepest flesh on the muscular throat, were two brown scabbed puncture marks. Not fresh, but not fully healed, as if he had been stabbed by twin thorns, or mutilated at knife points. I stepped back from the table, thinking I had lost my mind with all my morbid readings, that I’d actually come unhinged, but the daylight was quite ordinary. The man in his dark wool suit perfectly real, down to the smell of unwash and perspiration and… something else, under his cologne. Nothing disappeared or hanged. I couldn’t drag my eyes from … Continue reading Classic Monsters: Vampires in Kostova’s The Historian

Book Reviews, Horror2 Comments

Classic Monsters: The God of Death in Dubeau’s A God in the Shed

October 25, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

“I see it,” Jonathan confirmed in a whisper. “What is it?” “Not a bear. The eyes are too close together,” Eenis said. “They look almost… human.” Nathan dropped his arms but forced himself not to run away. “We should go,” Jonathan said, voicing what the others were ashamed to admit. “Pleeeease… stay.” The words had been issued from the cavern, piercing the air with a sound that soothed the soul and eased the mind. As the voice dissipated, a body crawled from the shadows of the cave. At first, it walked on all fours, awkwardly scuttling on the ground like … Continue reading Classic Monsters: The God of Death in Dubeau’s A God in the Shed

Articles, Top 10 Lists2 Comments

Top 10 Creepiest Villains

October 23, 2018October 25, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

Villains can really make or break a novel – a believable villain builds upon the plot and the atmosphere, but an unbelievable or powerless villain makes the whole thing seem artificial or irrelevant or both. Based on That Artsy Reader Girl‘s Top 10 Tuesday prompt, here are 10 of the creepiest villains from some of my favorite books. Spoiler Alert: I tried and really couldn’t write this article without a few spoilers. The things that are in here are vague and there isn’t anything from the very ending, but feel free to skip this one if you’d like. 1. The … Continue reading Top 10 Creepiest Villains

Book Reviews2 Comments

Classic Monsters: Sapkowski’s The Last Wish – It has a little bit of everything!

October 18, 2018October 19, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

“Well, then Adda gave birth. And now listen, because this is where it all starts. Only a few saw what she bore, but one midwife jumped from the tower window to her death and the other lost her senses and remains dazed to this day. So I gather that the royal bastard – a girl – was not comely, and she died immediately. No one was in a hurry to tie the umbilical cord. Nor did Adda, to her good fortune, survive the birth. “But then Foltest stepped in again. Wisdom dictated that the royal bastard should have been burned … Continue reading Classic Monsters: Sapkowski’s The Last Wish – It has a little bit of everything!

Articles, Top 10 Lists1 Comment

Top 10 Libraries I’ve Always Wanted to Visit

October 17, 2018October 17, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

Libraries are absolutely one of the best things about the world that we live in – free access to mankind’s vast knowledge. I love everything that libraries have to offer – stories, classes, social gatherings, reference materials… someday I hope to travel and visit some of the world’s greatest libraries. Here are a few at the top of my list. (Top 10 Tuesdays are hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl) 1. Vatican Apostolic Library I was raised as Roman Catholic (and I am still a practicing Catholic) and naturally, as a bookworm, at a very young age I developed a … Continue reading Top 10 Libraries I’ve Always Wanted to Visit

Book Reviews, Reading and Literature2 Comments

Classic Monsters: Zombies in Grant’s Feed

October 11, 2018October 19, 2018 The Perspicacious Bookworm

The world was a weird place before the Rising. After the Rising, with an estimated 87% of the populace living in fear of infection and unwilling to leave their homes, a new breed of reality star was born: the reporter. While you can be an Aggregator or a Stewart without risking yourself in the real world, it’s hard to be an Irwin, a Newsie, or even a really good Fictional if you cut yourself off that way. So we’re the ones that eat in restaurants and go to theme parks, the ones who visit National Parks even though we’d really … Continue reading Classic Monsters: Zombies in Grant’s Feed

The Perspicacious Bookworm

Reading for the critical eye

Top 10 Wintry Reads