Gothic fiction, my beloved! So difficult to define, yet so recognizable when you read it. This subgenre – or, as Wikipedia would have it, this “loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting” – originates in the eighteenth century and is characterized by a claustrophobic atmosphere, strong emotions, and a non-linear and complicated form (think: dreams, stories within stories, loads of interstitials).

At its heart, gothic works of fiction usually revolve around horrible secrets in the past now bleeding into the present. These secrets often relate to acts of horrific violence that can be read as an expression of societal conflict. Ann Radcliffe’s A Sicilian Romance (1790), for example, brims with male abuses of power towards the women in their care and includes instances of wrongful imprisonment, attempted murder, and infidelity; Toni Morrison’s Beloved (1987) deals with the horrors of slavery within the US.

The secret at the core of a gothic text may also relate to something considered taboo:  Carmilla (1872) is chockful of lesbian attraction and only narrowly avoided censorship by Sheridan le Fanu arguing that the attraction was not, in fact, lesbian because Carmilla is a vampire and as such has no gender, and the phenomenal gothic movie Crimson Peak (2015) contains an incestual relationship.

Because the gothic is so obsessed with taboos, and because it is minority groups that bear the brunt of systemic violence and abuses of power, it’s not to be wondered at that minorities (such as queer people, women, and people of color) have always been attracted to and comforted by this subgenre, both as readers and authors. For your personal enrichment and entertainment, I have compiled a short and inexhaustive list of some modern sapphic gothic novels that, in my humble opinion, are well worth your time and money.

Affinity by Sarah Waters

As a way to recover from her depression and suicide attempt, upper-class Margaret decides to volunteer as a lady visitor at the women’s ward of Millbank prison. There, she meets Selina Dawes, a spiritualist medium who has been accused of fraud after a séance ended with one woman dead and another deeply disturbed. Soon, Margaret is drawn into Selina’s world and begins to question whether the girl may, in fact, be innocent, and spirits real. 

This is the first Sarah Waters’ novel I ever read, and it blew me away. The novel is beautifully written – my little dark heart throbs with writer’s envy whenever I read a passage crafted by Waters –, utterly compelling, and expertly plotted. Once I finished reading the final chapter, I had to sit for a while to process my emotions. That done, I immediately ordered all her other books. I have read Affinity almost ten years ago now, and still vividly remember it. If that’s not the hallmark of a good novel, I don’t know what is.

The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins

Frannie Langton, servant, former slave, stands accused of having murdered her employer and his wife. The evidence is damning, but though Frannie can’t remember what happened that night and how she came to be covered in the murder victims’ blood, she knows one thing for sure: she cannot have murdered her mistress, because she was in love with her.

Just like Toni Morrison’s Beloved, The Confessions of Frannie Langton lays bare the horrors of slavery and racism. It shows us how constant abuse and discrimination and the trauma and the pain and the anger resulting from that can twist a person. At the same time, this book never feels melodramatic or exaggerated, and I never felt as if Collins tried to manipulate me into feeling certain things. She simply writes about the reality of being a woman of color in an honest, unflinching way, and does so by drawing on canonical gothic texts in surprising and creative ways, showing us her skill as a writer and her mastery of this genre. As such, The Confessions of Frannie Langton is a difficult and harrowing read, but it is also an incredible and rewarding one.

Mary and the Birth of Frankenstein by Anne Eekhout

This novel contains two timelines: one set during that fateful summer in 1816 during which Mary Shelley wrote one of the most famous novels of all time, and one set four years previously, when she stayed with the Baxter family in Scotland, where the enigmatic and beautiful Isabella drew Mary into a world of spirits and witches and monsters. Bold as a flash of lightning, these two timelines together illuminate how Mary came to write Frankenstein.

We are currently experiencing something of a Frankenstein renaissance, and small wonder; it is a phenomenal piece of fiction that you can read over and over again and never grow bored with. It is also a work that many have drawn inspiration from (and will continue to do so, I am sure). What Eekhout manages to do with Mary and the Birth of Frankenstein is imagine a time in Mary Shelley’s life that has been largely neglected by most authors inspired by Frankenstein, even though, according to Mary Shelley herself, this Scottish episode was one of the main sources of inspiration for her novel. In this way, and through her gorgeous and creative writing, Eekhout manages to add a novel to the Frankenstein legacy that is well worth your time.

The Temple House Vanishing by Rachel Donohue

Louise and Victoria, both students at an all-girls Catholic boarding school, develop a passionate friendship that at least partly revolves around their infatuation with their charismatic art teacher. That is, until the teacher and Louise both disappear, seemingly having eloped together. Twenty-five years later, a young journalist decides to try and solve this cold case.

What better setting for a queer gothic mystery than an all-girls Catholic boarding school? Like the other books on this list (I spot a pattern!), I found this book beautifully written and completely compelling; though I tried to savor it, I ultimately ended up devouring it in two days. Unlike the three previous books, this one takes place in a more modern setting, and, though it is still gothic and deals with the taboo desire of two teenage girls for an adult who definitely shouldn’t be reciprocating but clearly revels in their attentions, it doesn’t feel as heavy as the others. If you are looking for a deeply gothic and suspenseful read that simultaneously won’t rip out your heart and stomp all over it, this is the one for you.

Yellow Jessamine by Caitlin Starling

Shipping magnate Evelyn Perdanu has had to do unspeakable things to reach her position of power in the dying city of Delphinium. When one of her ships returns and brings with it a mysterious illness that causes all sufferers to become singularly obsessed with her, that position of power is threatened. Evelyn must uncover the link between this sickness and herself, or risk losing all she has worked so hard and suffered so terribly for to obtain.

Technically, this is a novella, and unlike the previous entries on this list, it takes place in a fantasy setting, so perhaps I am cheating a little here, but don’t be fooled: Yellow Jessamine is one gruesomely gothic and sweetly sapphic story. Despite clocking in at only 130 pages, this novella feels lush and fully realized. For those of you who have tired a little of traditional gothic, this is the book to choose.

If you are like me and you simply can’t get enough of sapphic gothic fiction, there is always more to read! You should probably check out my sapphic gothic horror novel My Darling Dreadful Thing, if I may be so bold. It is set in the Netherlands in the 1950s and revolves around Roos, a young woman with a spirit companion. Ruth looks like a bog body, has a thirst for blood, and is fiercely possessive of Roos, but she’s also the only good thing in Roos’ life, which is filled with sordid backroom séances, starvation, and other abuse at the hands of her mother. When young and wealthy widow Agnes attends one of these séances, she is so impressed by Roos that she asks her to come live with her at the dilapidated estate she inherited upon the death of her husband. From the case notes of Doctor Montague, a psychiatrist tasked with determining whether Roos is mentally fit to stand trial, we know that something awful will happen there, but what? And, more importantly, who – or what – is to blame?

Once you are done checking out my novel, may I suggest any of the following:

Historical gothic:

• Fingersmith by Sarah Waters.
• Our Hideous Progeny by C.E. McGill.
• The Wicked Cometh by Laura Carlin.
• Maddalena and the Dark by Julia Fine.

Gothic with a modern setting:

• Tripping Arcadia by Kit Mayquist.
• Bloom by Delilah S. Dawson.
• Sisters by Daisy Johnson.

Fantasy gothic:

• House of Hunger by Alexis Henderson.
• Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson.

The post Author Johanna van Veen’s Gothic & Sapphic Fiction Recommendations appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Welcome to the most beautiful month of the year, Pride Month! Usually, this month is packed with parades, events and festivals, but due to all of us #stay(ing)athome, Pride will have to find a way to take place online even more than the years before. But we are not The Nerd Daily for nothing, after all; we specialise in making the online world as welcoming, engaging, and inclusive as possible!

Let’s make this month as colourful as we can! To help you kick off, we present you: The LGBTQ+ Literary Alphabet. We will take each letter (and as many of the letters from the ‘+’ category as we can) and will recommend you some fantastically diverse books that are simply perfect for a good pride month read. 

And we’ll start right here! Our letter today is: L as in Lesbian. We’ve divided our bookish recommendations into genres, so that every single one of you bookworms can find a book that fits your tastes and reading habits! From adult and YA, all the way to middle-grade fiction, we’ve got you covered!

Happy reading!

Adult Fiction

Carol by Patricia Highsmith | Goodreads

Patricia Highsmith’s story of romantic obsession may be one of the most important, but still largely unrecognized, novels of the twentieth century. First published in 1952 and touted as “the novel of a love that society forbids,” the book soon became a cult classic.

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters | Goodreads

With dreams of paying back the kindness of her adopted family, Sue agrees to a plan. Once in, however, Sue begins to pity her helpless mark and care for Maud Lilly in unexpected ways, but no one and nothing is as it seems in this Dickensian novel of thrills and reversals.

The Wicked Cometh by Laura Carlin | Goodreads

Even in the darkest of times, you cannot bury the truth . . . A debut historical novel that will appeal to fans of Sarah Waters and The Silent Companions.

Disobedience by Naomi Alderman | Goodreads

Steeped in Jewish philosophy and teachings, Disobedience is a perceptive and thoughtful exploration of the laws and practices that have governed Judaism for centuries, and continue to hold sway today. Throughout the novel, Alderman retells stories from the Torah — Judaism’s fundamental source — and the interplay between these tales and the struggles of the novel’s unique characters wields enormous power and wisdom, and will surely move readers to tears.

Young Adult Fiction

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth | Goodreads

The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a stunning and unforgettable literary debut about discovering who you are and finding the courage to live life according to your own rules.

Juliet Takes A Breath by Gabby Rivera | Goodreads

A gutsy, queer YA coming-of-age story perfect for fans of The Poet X, Roxanne Gay and Feminists Don’t Wear Pink.

Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan | Goodreads

Leila has made it most of the way through Armstead Academy without having a crush on anyone, which is a relief. As an Iranian-American, she’s different enough; if word got out that Leila liked girls, life would be twice as hard. But when beautiful new girl Saskia shows up, Leila starts to take risks she never thought she would. As she carefully confides in trusted friends about Saskia’s confusing signals, Leila begins to figure out that all her classmates are more complicated than they first appear to be, and some are keeping surprising secrets of their own.

The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth | Goodreads

Two girls embark on a summer of montage-worthy dates (with a few strings attached) in this hilarious and heartfelt lesbian rom-com that’s perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Jenny Han.

Fantasy & Sci-Fi

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon | Goodreads

From the internationally bestselling author of The Bone Season, a trailblazing, epic high fantasy about a world on the brink of war with dragons – and the women who must lead the fight to save it.

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone | Goodreads

Co-written by two award-winning writers, THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR is an epic love story spanning time and space.

The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave | Goodreads

Gothic, intoxicating, feminist and romantic – this is the breathtakingly imagined untold story of the brides of Dracula, by bestselling author Kiran Millwood Hargrave in her much-anticipated YA debut.

Cinderella Is Dead by Kalynn Bayron | Goodreads

This fresh take on a classic story will make readers question the tales they’ve been told, and root for girls to break down the constructs of the world around them.

Classics & Poetry 

The Color Purple by Alice Walker | Goodreads

A powerful cultural touchstone of modern American literature, The Color Purple depicts the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia. Deeply compassionate and beautifully imagined, Alice Walker’s epic carries readers on a spirit-affirming journey towards redemption and love.

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu | Goodreads

A classic Victorian vampire novella, which influenced Bram Stoker’s later treatment of the vampire mythos in Dracula. Secret fans of the fantastic YouTube adaptation of this novella may find themselves drawn in even further by the original novella that started it all.

Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown | Goodreads

Bawdy and moving, the ultimate word-of-mouth bestseller, Rubyfruit Jungle is about growing up a lesbian in America–and living happily ever after.

Middle-Grade Fiction

In The Role of Brie Hutchens by Nicole Melleby | Goodreads

An own-voices LGBTQ novel from the acclaimed author of Hurricane Season, about eighth-grader Brie, who learns how to be true to herself and to her relationships with family, friends, and faith.

The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James by Ashley Herring Blake | Goodreads

Twelve-year-old Sunny St. James navigates heart surgery, reconnections with a lost mother, first kisses, and emerging feelings for another girl.

Kenzie Kickstarts a Team by Kit Rosewater | Goodreads

A highly illustrated middle-grade series that celebrates new friendships, first crushes, and getting out of your comfort zone

Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World by Ashley Herring Blake | Goodreads

In the wake of a destructive tornado, one girl develops feelings for another in this stunning, tender novel about emerging identity, perfect for fans of The Thing About Jellyfish.

Will you be picking up any of these books? Tell us in the comments below!

The post LGBTQ+ Alphabet Recommendations: L for Lesbian Fiction appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Slamming doors, bad dreams, cold-spots, electrics shorting, items moving on their own… Are you living in a Haunted House? From friendly spirits to malevolent poltergeists, this list will have you shaking in your boots, peering round corners, and sleeping with the light on. Are you ready to be ghost hunters? We are about to set foot in Hill House, The Overlook Hotel, and Crickley Hall and you may not come out alive!

Trigger Warning: This article includes fictional themes of rape, sexual assault, child abuse incest, drug use and murder.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Would you go for a summer holiday in a haunted house? That is exactly what Eleanor, Theodora, and Luke do following an invitation from Dr Montague who is investigating the supernatural occurrences at Hill House. The group are tasked with living in the house for the summer, noting unearthly experiences.

Although dark and foreboding with a chequered past, Hill House is uninviting but apparently not haunted. However, malevolent events begin slowly unfolding leaving us to wonder what is the work of spirits and what may be the work of the group of ragtag inhabitants. The house comes to life, ensnaring its victims, particularly drawing in fragile, vulnerable Eleanor who is infatuated with the house. Will Hill House ever let her go?

For those that have watched the hit Netflix series, you’ll find that the show takes a lot of creative licence, further developing key themes from the book to stretch over a whole series. The novel is more compact with traditional haunted house tropes but still packs a frightening punch, made even more impactful by the shock ending. Come inside Hill House if you dare…

The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

Waters writes a ghoulishly Gothic piece of horror fiction in The Little Stranger that transports us to the postwar England countryside and the now dilapidated Hundreds Hall. Dr Faraday, a community physician, and the books narrator, reflects on Hundreds Hall in its heyday and is shocked to find its state of disrepair when he is called out to treat an unwell maid. Following this, Faraday becomes close to the family, falling in love with Caroline, treating her brother Roderick’s war injuries and having tea with their mother, the lady of the estate. Little does Faraday know, he is in for a shocking ride full of psychosis, mysterious accidents, and suicides raising the question: is Hundreds Hall really haunted or are the events a product of grief, shell-shock and the financial pressure of living in a house that’s falling down around them?

Waters explores the ideas of class and the breakdown of class barriers after the conclusion of the World War Two, as well as the effects of post traumatic stress disorder on soldiers and pilots using traditional horror tropes as metaphor for the real life horrors of the time. A bit of a slow-burner, you’ll have to give this book a bit of a chance but once it gets going, it will suck you in and keep you questioning until the last page!

The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson

If you like real life-scares, this is the one for you. Based on the experiences of the Lutz family who moved into the Amityville place after some horrific murders took place, the book chronicles the paranormal happenings that follow. Despite multiple blessings on the house, the Lutz family claim that supernatural events continued including night-time waking, swarms of flies, nightmares, hidden rooms, cold spots, imaginary friends, damaged locks and doors, slime, demons, and ghosts. The family end up being pushed to their limit and feel that they are going mad.

The book has come under some criticism due to non-believers feeling that the Lutz family made up the events and exploited the family who previously lived in the house whom experienced the terrible murder tragedy. On the other hand, whether real or not, the book makes for a supreme scare and will leave you awake long into the night wondering… What was that sound? Did I lock the door? Was that a shadow?

The Shining by Stephen King

How could you write any horror list without including the King himself, Stephen King! Although not technically a ‘house’ the Overlook hotel is a building and it is most definitely haunted! When Jack Torrance moves his wife and young son Danny into a hotel in the mountains for the winter to work as a caretaker. Jack expected peace and quiet, family time to peruse his passion of writing… Boy was he wrong! When the hotel wakes up and tries to ensnare Jack and Danny, the psychological horror begins. With King’s usual themes of psychic abilities and supernatural occurrences, you’ll find yourself running for your lives down the corridors and through the snowy gardens with the Torrance family, promising yourself not to look back!

Exploring the dark themes of alcoholism, marriage problems, and child abuse, The Shining puts family life under the microscope when the Torrance family are completely isolated from the rest of the world. Alongside this, King begins to drip feed us elements of the paranormal and has us questioning, what’s in Danny and Jack’s heads and what is real. Read if you dare but you may never stay in another hotel again, especially not room 217.

Hell House by Richard Matheson

Four investigators, one haunted house, endless harrowing past events. Welcome to your nightmare! When Lionel, Edith, Florence, and Benjamin travel to the most haunted house in the world to investigate the paranormal happenings causing suicide, murder, and insanity in the previous investigators, they didn’t expect to find their own personal hells. When the house begins to target each member of the party individually based on their weaknesses, fears, and insecurities, the group become divided causing havoc and hellish mayhem.

Full of offensive themes including rape and highly sexualised, some might say perverse scenes, although written in 1971, Hell House still has the ability to repulse and frighten even today. Some have described the text as a bit of a slow burner but worth sticking with, revealing some of the most depraved and disgusting horror scenes ever written in its second half. It takes a strong stomach to read this one and even the most experienced horror connoisseurs have found Hell House too much. It really does push the boundaries on the horror genre, shocking the reader to their core.

The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe

Although a short story, The Fall of House Usher will stay with you long after with its creepy imagery and trademark Edgar Allan Poe poetic writing style. When the narrator (who’s name we don’t know) is contacted by his sick friends, siblings, Roderick, and Madeline, the narrator rushes to their side to help. Once he enters the house, haunting happenings began to take place. Madeline appears to die from her illness and is put into a family tomb by Roderick and our trusty nameless narrator, but the reader is left to wonder: is she really dead when Poe describes her as ‘rosy-cheeked’? Following this, the inhabitants of the house begin to hear strange noises and glowing lights, is it Madeline’s angry spirit wreaking havoc or is she alive and enraged?

Without being explicit, Poe uses his meandering writing style to hint at a range of troubling occurrences including vampirism, incest, and opiate usage creating a Gothic foreboding and melancholy atmosphere. The twins’ undiagnosed illness, inspected under a modern filter, is often seen by readers as hypochondria and anxiety making for a psychological thriller full of twists, turns and the age old question of psychology vs paranormal. Although a very short story, Shakespeare’s famous quote feels the only adequate way to describe The Fall of House Usher. ‘Though she be but little, she is fierce.’

House of Leaves by Mark Z Danielewski

Originally a bundle of papers passed from person to person full of footnotes, scribbles, and appendices, House of Leaves has now been compiled into a uniquely terrifying novel. Following the story of the young family who move into a house on Ash Lane, the book speaks of their supernatural experiences through a psychedelic trip of upside down text, coloured words, font changes, backwards sentences, and unreliable narrators. Inviting the reader to become Sherlock Holmes and put together the clues to find out what really happened on Ash Lane, the house that appears bigger on the inside than the outside.

It’s not an easy read and really makes you work hard for the story and scares but almost all who have read it have stated how absolutely worth it House of Leaves is. Keeping readers up long into the night due to the horror and mystery, this once underground text has been thrust into the limelight by Danielewski’s collation into a novel. The writing will get under your skin and the story will stay with you long after the last page, not only that of the Ash Lane family but also of the range of narrators whom we get to know through the footnotes. Make sure you set aside some serious time and brain power for this one!

The Secret of Crickley Hall by James Herbert

Following a family tragedy, where one of the children is lost, the Caleighs decide to relocate from the city to a secluded house in Devon and have a fresh start. In a moment of foreshadowing, the family dog Chester appears terrified by the house, but putting it down to the stress of starting a new life, the Caleighs ignore this warning. The warnings become more stark when the children begin seeing and hearing things and the horror peaks when Eve Caleigh begins to have terrifying nightmares and hears her lost son Cameron talking to her.

Including many overdone haunted house tropes, this book is saved from being just another haunted house by Herbert’s weaving of the Caleigh family’s sorrowful back story with the horrifying backstory of Crickley Hall itself. Including tragic themes of child abuse, murder, and mutilation. At 634 pages, The Secret of Crickley Hall is a long read and can be repetitive in places, on the other hand, the length allows Herbert to fully develop the characters allowing the reader to form emotional bonds, leaving us reeling at the ended. Reading about the ghosts of mistreated children is not for everyone so be warned before you start reading.

Do you have any other recommendations? Tell us in the comments below!

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