starkissedlotus
i love everything queer and sapphic, fantasy and translated fiction
2116 points
Books that deal with grief and the loss of one's mother will always touch me, especially when the prose is this evocative and introspective. The prose certainly isn't purple, but it's lyrical and Yael is so commanding and precise in her use of language, she draws some really powerful comparisons, makes some striking points that made me think for days. The way she writes about queerness during the 1960s, about alienation and loneliness and different kinds of relationships deeply affected me.
The two main characters were both complex and beautifully developed over time. Both make a strong first impression and gradually, they become more human and familiar. We experience the story both through Isabel's and Eva's perspective so it's all subjective and I loved how over time things crystallized. The historical setting complements everything so well, it's not overwhelming in the forefront, but serves more so as a backdrop that gains importance over time and reminds us just how ubiquitous the war was, how it affected everyone, even if differently.
starkissedlotus finished a book
2d
The Safekeep
Yael van der Wouden
An exhilarating, twisted tale of desire, suspicion, and obsession between two women staying in the same house in the Dutch countryside during the summer of 1961—a powerful exploration of the legacy of WWII and the darker parts of our collective past. A house is a precious thing... It is 1961 and the rural Dutch province of Overijssel is quiet. Bomb craters have been filled, buildings reconstructed, and the war is truly over. Living alone in her late mother’s country home, Isabel knows her life is as it should be—led by routine and discipline. But all is upended when her brother Louis brings his graceless new girlfriend Eva, leaving her at Isabel’s doorstep as a guest, to stay for the season. Eva is Isabel’s antithesis: she sleeps late, walks loudly through the house, and touches things she shouldn’t. In response, Isabel develops a fury-fueled obsession, and when things start disappearing around the house—a spoon, a knife, a bowl—Isabel’s suspicions begin to spiral. In the sweltering peak of summer, Isabel’s paranoia gives way to infatuation—leading to a discovery that unravels all Isabel has ever known. The war might not be well and truly over after all, and neither Eva—nor the house in which they live—are what they seem. Mysterious, sophisticated, sensual, and infused with intrigue, atmosphere, and sex, The Safekeep is a brilliantly plotted and provocative debut novel you won’t soon forget.
The combination of fantastical, alchemical and scientific elements was really cool!! Paris is strongly characterized and serves as the perfect backdrop for this story, acting as a character of its own in a way. The writing was really solid with a nice combination of lyrical prose at times and more slender sentences at other times.
Even though some parts were predictable, there were so many different puzzle pieces of plot coming together, forming one big puzzle in the end that made this thoroughly enjoyable and kept me entertained. There's so many layers to the story, forming a rich tapestry that is Strange Beasts; from the dynamic between the main characters, family problems to fantastical beasts to the art of perfumery and alchemy and the historical parisian midinettes and ethical questions of good & bad and bavarian folklore and so much more!
starkissedlotus finished a book
2d
Strange Beasts
Susan J. Morris
In this fresh-yet-familiar gothic tale―part historical fantasy, part puzzle-box mystery―the worlds of Dracula and Sherlock Holmes collide in a thrilling exploration of feminine power. At the dawn of the twentieth century in Paris, Samantha Harker, daughter of Dracula’s killer, works as a researcher for the Royal Society for the Study of Abnormal Phenomena. But no one realizes how abnormal she is. Sam is a channel into the minds of monsters: a power that could help her solve the gruesome deaths plaguing turn-of-the-century Paris―or have her thrown into an asylum. Sam finds herself assigned to a case with Dr. Helena Moriarty, daughter of the criminal mastermind and famed nemesis of Sherlock Holmes and a notorious detective whom no one wants to work with on account of her previous partners’ mysterious murders. Ranging from the elite clubs of Paris to the dark underbelly of the catacombs, their investigation sweeps them into a race to stop a beast from its killing rampage, as Hel and Sam are pitted against men, monsters, and even each other. But beneath their tenuous trust, an unmistakable attraction brews. Is trusting Hel the key to solving the murder, or is Sam yet another pawn in Hel’s game?
The Safekeep
Yael van der Wouden
Is it just me or did anyone else find it hard to imagine this in the 1960’s?
The setting and language makes it feel like a whole century before that! I kept picturing them in 1800’s clothes and then they mention her driving a car or whatever and my brain’s like, “wait, reset the imagery!” Haha
The Safekeep
Yael van der Wouden
Pls give me some sapphic book recommendations with beautiful prose and the same vibe, tension, and pacing as The Safekeep lol
The Safekeep
Yael van der Wouden
starkissedlotus started reading...
1w
The Safekeep
Yael van der Wouden
An exhilarating, twisted tale of desire, suspicion, and obsession between two women staying in the same house in the Dutch countryside during the summer of 1961—a powerful exploration of the legacy of WWII and the darker parts of our collective past. A house is a precious thing... It is 1961 and the rural Dutch province of Overijssel is quiet. Bomb craters have been filled, buildings reconstructed, and the war is truly over. Living alone in her late mother’s country home, Isabel knows her life is as it should be—led by routine and discipline. But all is upended when her brother Louis brings his graceless new girlfriend Eva, leaving her at Isabel’s doorstep as a guest, to stay for the season. Eva is Isabel’s antithesis: she sleeps late, walks loudly through the house, and touches things she shouldn’t. In response, Isabel develops a fury-fueled obsession, and when things start disappearing around the house—a spoon, a knife, a bowl—Isabel’s suspicions begin to spiral. In the sweltering peak of summer, Isabel’s paranoia gives way to infatuation—leading to a discovery that unravels all Isabel has ever known. The war might not be well and truly over after all, and neither Eva—nor the house in which they live—are what they seem. Mysterious, sophisticated, sensual, and infused with intrigue, atmosphere, and sex, The Safekeep is a brilliantly plotted and provocative debut novel you won’t soon forget.
Winterveil
Ava Reid
Winterveil
Ava Reid
I want to thank Edelweiss+ and HarperCollins for an eARC of Winterveil!
I was very excited to read Winterveil because I'm a big fan of stories that are set during a specific historical period that are then altered by the author. That was also the case here, where the story is based on the Cold War but with a historical timeline that has been changed, where the Cold War has not ended yet. The concept of using criminal teenagers to enroll them in your secret military academy and to train them as soldiers to win the Cold War is really cool and I think that has been executed well.
This is my introduction to Ava Reid, so I can't really compare her writing in Winterveil to her earlier works. I know that she's written mythological, gothic and dark academia stories, so this could be quite the departure from that. Her writing felt very accessible and straightforward in this work, making it feel like a rather quick read despite it being almost 500 pages long. One could almost describe the writing as spartan, quite fitting for a story taking place at a military academy. Despite all that, Reid managed to infuse the story with a lot of emotion.
The four main characters were very distinct and I enjoyed reading from all four points of view. We got to know a satisfying amount of backstory and enough information on them to understand their motives and desires and to see where they're coming from. I was so happy to see some sapphic representation as well! One could argue if they act and talk like teenagers, I would also like to note that there's a handful of sexual scenes in here, even if they're not very explicit, I would say this is geared more towards old YA, if not New Adult. The three girls were really well written and I loved all three of them. When it comes to Julian, I enjoyed him as a flawed and complex character most of the time, but I feel like we had too little time for him, especially with the way Reid wrote him. At some point it just felt jarring because we got no real explanations on his actions and that should have been explored more. I think some parts were a little repetitive and could have easily been substituted with more actual explanations, but I can excuse this if there'd be a sequel to Winterveil.
My biggest gripe is that the ending felt rather abrupt. I felt like there was a whole lot of build-up, the whole first half of the book essentially sets up the second half of the story, it introduces us to the four main characters and develops their relationships a little so the second half is more believable, but there was also a noticeable disconnect. It felt rather jarring and maybe that's exactly what Reid wanted to achieve. In the first half we are focused on getting to know the hierarchy and rules of the academy and then what's essentially a Pokemon tournament, while in the second half the tone gets a lot more serious and we follow the four characters on something like a CIA mission.
All that was a lot of fun to read, but then the story ended so abruptly and we never really got closure? I was quite confused, I felt like we needed at least one more chapter so everything could be resolved and tied up neatly. I felt like the whole plot around the mysterious mission was explained very sparingly and a whole lot was left unexplained.
starkissedlotus finished a book
1w
Winterveil
Ava Reid
Bestselling author of A Study in Drowning and Fable for the End of the World Ava Reid is back with a thrilling new duology unlike anything you’ve read before.It’s a game—until it’s war. A disgraced politician from a powerful American dynasty.A coldly brilliant strategist who will sacrifice anything to win.A former pageant queen with a talent that could change the world.An expert female soldier with an enigmatic past—and a dangerous secret.In an alternate future where the Cold War still rages, four precocious teenage criminals with dark skills and darker secrets are offered a fresh start at a secret military academy. But instead of training to end the war, they find themselves on a mysterious mission that will test loyalties, forge romances, and maybe end the world as they know it.
starkissedlotus started reading...
1w
Strange Beasts
Susan J. Morris
In this fresh-yet-familiar gothic tale―part historical fantasy, part puzzle-box mystery―the worlds of Dracula and Sherlock Holmes collide in a thrilling exploration of feminine power. At the dawn of the twentieth century in Paris, Samantha Harker, daughter of Dracula’s killer, works as a researcher for the Royal Society for the Study of Abnormal Phenomena. But no one realizes how abnormal she is. Sam is a channel into the minds of monsters: a power that could help her solve the gruesome deaths plaguing turn-of-the-century Paris―or have her thrown into an asylum. Sam finds herself assigned to a case with Dr. Helena Moriarty, daughter of the criminal mastermind and famed nemesis of Sherlock Holmes and a notorious detective whom no one wants to work with on account of her previous partners’ mysterious murders. Ranging from the elite clubs of Paris to the dark underbelly of the catacombs, their investigation sweeps them into a race to stop a beast from its killing rampage, as Hel and Sam are pitted against men, monsters, and even each other. But beneath their tenuous trust, an unmistakable attraction brews. Is trusting Hel the key to solving the murder, or is Sam yet another pawn in Hel’s game?
starkissedlotus TBR'd a book
1w
Juniper & Thorn
Ava Reid
From highly acclaimed, bestselling author Ava Reid comes a gothic horror retelling of The Juniper Tree, set in another time and place within the world of The Wolf and the Woodsman, where a young witch seeks to discover her identity and escape the domination of her abusive wizard father, perfect for fans of Shirley Jackson and Catherynne M. Valente. A gruesome curse. A city in upheaval. A monster with unquenchable appetites. Marlinchen and her two sisters live with their wizard father in a city shifting from magic to industry. As Oblya’s last true witches, she and her sisters are little more than a tourist trap as they treat their clients with archaic remedies and beguile them with nostalgic charm. Marlinchen spends her days divining secrets in exchange for rubles and trying to placate her tyrannical, xenophobic father, who keeps his daughters sequestered from the outside world. But at night, Marlinchen and her sisters sneak out to enjoy the city’s amenities and revel in its thrills, particularly the recently established ballet theater, where Marlinchen meets a dancer who quickly captures her heart. As Marlinchen’s late-night trysts grow more fervent and frequent, so does the threat of her father’s rage and magic. And while Oblya flourishes with culture and bustles with enterprise, a monster lurks in its midst, borne of intolerance and resentment and suffused with old-world power. Caught between history and progress and blood and desire, Marlinchen must draw upon her own magic to keep her city safe and find her place within it.
starkissedlotus TBR'd a book
1w
Hemlock & Silver
T. Kingfisher
From New York Times bestselling and Hugo Award-winning author T. Kingfisher comes Hemlock & Silver, a dark reimagining of “Snow White” steeped in poison, intrigue, and treason of the most magical kind. Healer Anja knows little of politics but much of poisons. When she is summoned to treat the mysterious illness afflicting the king’s daughter, she finds herself against the clock, desperate to track down the source of the poison killing Princess Snow. But the chance discovery of a strange alternate world inside a magic mirror leads Anja to darker discoveries, including what really happened to Snow’s dead sister, Rose, and why their mother seemingly went mad and cut out her heart. Aided by a taciturn bodyguard, a narcissistic cat, and a late Renaissance understanding of the scientific method, Anja must navigate the mysteries of the mirror world before the dark queen that dwells within rises to threaten them all.
