Recs if you like Tampa...

These book covers all have a certain anatomical resemblance in common, from subtle and subversive to in-your-face. These books span non-fiction and fiction, menstrual health, desire, taboo, dystopia, and more.

This list is inspired by a day when a few people had updates involving Tampa and I was like, “wait, is that…?”

*Yes, I do know that the artist herself said that she really was just painting flowers and people were reading what they wanted to, but…

Fiction has always been where truth hides. Across horror, thriller, literary fiction, fantasy & mystery every book on this list has something to say about power, who holds it, who destroys it, and how it reproduces itself.

These books are deeply human, and they aren't afraid to make you uncomfortable along the way. Whether the characters are unlikeable or the author seems to be rudely calling you out or the content is critiquing an aspect of the human experience (or all the above), these books are unflinching in the face of their consumers. Recommendations are welcome!

i am her. she is me. and we are both that millennial bitch who loves pink.

always taking suggestions for books with covers that are the best shade of pink.

Tier 3 of the Disturbing Novel Icberg. Stories are more graphic with darker themes.

Note: some books are missing due to lack of access.

All sorts of stories about all sorts of women. Mostly litfic, some horror.

List of books containing narrators that are unreliable, unfavorable, vile, malicious, manipulative and so on. The story, therefore, may be distorted through the lense of the narrator. Passages will likely contain content where you stop and think, "Hold up, did I read that correctly?" This list will focus on horror and horror adjacent books, focusing not just on narrators that are unreliable but also unlikable, cruel, vicious, vile and/or manipulative.

"Turn me over, I'm done on this side!" —St. Lawrence, whilst roasting on a spit

Gallows humor, black comedy, l'humour noir — whatever you call it, this is the place for it. This list includes André Breton's seminal anthology of dark humor, a number of the works excerpted in this anthology, and beyond. You can find a link to the complete contents of Breton's anthology in the comments.

Want more weird humor? Check out my list Nitpicky Neuroticism (Comedy Edition)!

“It’s like a car crash you just can’t look away from”

Books where the red flags are flashing from page one. You see the obsession forming, the moral line blurring, the disaster building — and you keep reading anyway. Slow spirals. Psychological rot. Inevitable collapse. Oh my!

books to hate-read, recommended by the pagebound club comments

people hate the character(s) but they couldn't put the book down 😋

(antihero, villain protagonist, unreliable narrator, etc.)

boo!! tomato tomato!! 🍅🍅🍅

Fixations and obsessions

i love books that feel vile and uncomfortable and leave you feeling like you need to take a long shower and think about your life choices and that you can’t stop thinking about for days after. recs wanted and appreciated

An introductory list to transgressive fiction—a genre in which characters, feeling confined by social norms, seek to free themselves those of restrictions through illicit or unusual means. Because this list is intended to be an introduction, the books within it are (relatively) well-known within popular culture, rather than the best or most extreme examples of the genre.

"Weird girl literature" featuring obsession

💜 yarnandbooks

Depressing, rage-inducing, a collection of books that thoroughly disgusted me of the events/ the character's thoughts and/ behavior. Sometimes it's important. Sometimes it's just fun. Could be satire, social commentary, or historical!

ps. as always, please do check the TW

booked i enjoyed but also found extremely disturbing