Snakes in Gothic Literature

As reminders of our baser animal nature and the wild power of the natural world, animals frequently play an important role in Gothic literature. I have previously written posts on the roles of cats and dogs. Now I want to focus on one animal that had been particularly feared throughout history: snakes. Associated with deception, temptation, and sin, snakes make powerful symbols of abstract evil, in addition to the connotations they already hold as genuine objects of fear in the real world. Below are a few classic works that derive their horror from deadly snakes or serpents:

photo of red snake
(Photo by Jan Kopřiva on Unsplash)

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Review of Darkly: Black History and America’s Gothic Soul

Darkly cover“America’s haunted history is Black history.” This is the premise of a new book by Leila Taylor, Darkly: Black History and America’s Gothic Soul. A while back, I had the pleasure of attending her lecture on “The Afro-Gothic” at an event run by Morbid Anatomy. The presentation got me thinking about the Gothic in a whole new way, and I was eager for more information than what could fit in a one-hour talk. Luckily, Leila was in the process of writing this book, and now it’s finally out! Darkly, which came out just last week, examines the intersection of goth, the Gothic, and Blackness. Continue reading Review of Darkly: Black History and America’s Gothic Soul

A Sanctuary of Spirits Review

Halloween may be over, but that just means it’s time for my other favorite thing about fall: a spooky new release from Leanna Renee Hieber! In A Sanctuary of Spirits, the second installment in Leanna’s new Spectral City series, the girl-gang of the NYPD Ghost Precinct return to investigate a horde of restless children’s spirits. The book comes out tomorrow, November 12. And if you’re in the New York City area, you should join me tomorrow for the launch party at WORD bookstore in Brooklyn! Continue reading A Sanctuary of Spirits Review

Spectral City and the Importance of Women in Community

Leanna Renee Hieber, one of my favorite authors, has visited The Gothic Library before to discuss the varieties of female strength in her Strangely Beautiful Saga. Now she’s back to talk about her latest series, The Spectral City, and why she writes about women in community. Read on to learn about why relationships between women are so important, especially in the Gothic…

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Review of Women’s Weird–Bringing Female Authors Back into the Spotlight

Women's Weird coverAs Halloween approaches, it’s time to get weird! Last month, I read Monster, She Wrote: The Women Who Pioneered Horror and Speculative Fiction, which brought my attention to the many gaps in our understanding of the history of these genres, caused by the tendency of past (and some present) critics to value male authors over their equally inventive and influential female contemporaries. Well, a small press in the UK is looking to fill one of those gaps with the collection Women’s Weird: Strange Stories by Women, 1890–1940, edited by Melissa Edmundson. Appropriately, the book is being released on Halloween day. Continue reading Review of Women’s Weird–Bringing Female Authors Back into the Spotlight

Iconic Ghosts from Gothic Literature

As Halloween approaches, the veil between this word and the next grows thinner and, according to legend, the spirits of the dead can more easily come into contact with the living. These days, we tend to focus less on communing with our dead ancestors and more on dressing in costume, watching horror films, and telling ghost stories. But either way, we’ve still got ghosts on the brain. And what better way to celebrate ghosts than by seeking out some shining examples from Gothic literature? For the purposes of this post, I’ve limited myself to only ghosts that are fairly unambiguous supernatural apparitions of dead humans, though the Gothic genre contains a multitude of spirits that range from literal to metaphoric or imagined to everything in between. Below are five of the most memorable ghosts that appear in Gothic literature: Continue reading Iconic Ghosts from Gothic Literature

Denizens of Distant Realms Review

Once upon a time doesn’t necessarily have to be long, long ago. I’ve mentioned my great love of fairy tales—whether they be classics, retellings, or brand-new fairy tales that emulate the classics in form and style. Denizens of Distant Realms, a new collection of short stories by Dawn Vogel, falls into the latter category. The book came out back in August, and while I was previously unfamiliar with the author and her other works, my great love of fairy tales drew me to take a chance on the new collection. Continue reading Denizens of Distant Realms Review

Slytherin Season: Celebrating Snaky Book Covers!

Recently, there has been a growing trend of book covers adorned with slithering snakes. Just within the last few months, we’ve seen them on the gorgeous covers of Shelby Mahurin’s debut, Serpent & Dove, and Pierce Brown’s latest addition to the Red Rising Saga, Dark Age. The trend is especially prominent among young adult fantasy titles, but it seems to be spreading to other markets and genres, as well. And I have to say, as a Slytherin, I am 100 percent on board with this! Continue reading Slytherin Season: Celebrating Snaky Book Covers!

The Lady and the Highwayman Review

The Lady and the Highwayman coverWant some romance with a side of literary rivalry? How about if it’s set in the Victorian era and features that aptly named mode of early horror fiction—the penny dreadful? The Lady and the Highwayman by Sarah M. Eden, which came out earlier this month, is a delightful historical romance that pushed all the right buttons for me. If you love Victorian literature, bold heroines, and sweet couples solving mysteries together, then this is the perfect book to curl up with on a cool autumn day! Continue reading The Lady and the Highwayman Review

Review of Hadestown—A Mythic Musical

Hadestown posterAll aboard! You don’t want to miss the train to Hadestown, a Broadway musical that gives Greek mythology a modern twist. Friends have been telling me for months that I needed to see this show, especially since the tale of the spring goddess Persephone and her underworld husband Hades is one of my favorite myths and I’m a sucker for creative retellings. I finally got the chance, and let me tell you: it totally lives up to the hype. The production stars Reeve Carney (whom some of you may recognize as Dorian Gray from the show Penny Dreadful) as the poet Orpheus, Eva Noblezada as his lover Eurydice, Amber Gray as Persephone, Patrick Page as Hades, and André De Shields as Hermes. The production swept the Tony Awards this year, winning eight awards including Best Musical and Best Original Score. Hadestown is currently playing at the Walter Kerr Theatre in New York. Continue reading Review of Hadestown—A Mythic Musical