Bookish Ramblings & My Latest Reads

As a student, it is not always easy to find a lot of time to read the books that are on my ever-growing to-be-read pile. If I’m not reading something out of choice, it will normally be something associated with an essay that I’m undergoing for my course at university. This often includes academic based books which I’ve scanned the library for and thereafter embellished with many a post-it note, enabling me to keep track of quotes and ideas to integrate into an essay. While this may seem a rather strenuous task, I have come to realise that academic books have been effective in enhancing my vocabulary in general and rewarded my ability to consolidate ideas more coherently. But this isn’t at all too discredit fiction’s ability to stimulate the mind and illuminate the imagination.

Anyway, as of late, I have read a few books which are;

J.K Rowling’s The Order of the Pheonix

This took me a little longer to read than usual, but it was enjoyable all the same. It was my first time reading it, although I am undeniably a big Harry Potter enthusiast, I had only ever read the first four books. I am more eager to read the next book- The Half-Blood Prince, as it one of my favourite films out of the franchise.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

I have for a few years now been a Sherlock fanatic, discovered through watching the popular BBC series, Sherlock. However, I would say that reading the original stories has certainly expedited my enthusiasm. The Memoirs is the fourth book in the series and is ever filled with short stories of murder, crime and political intrigue. It is also in this book that a certain infamous ‘Napoleon of crime’ appears. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is one of my most favoured writers of fiction, and I can’t recommend his work enough. I am currently reading The Hound of the Baskervilles, the next book in the series at the moment.

Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories

Originally, I was looking at some of the short stories from this book as part of my research for an essay I was writing on fairy tales during my most recent semester at university. Carter’s work is mainly gothic in nature, and she most notoriously takes centuries-old fairy tales and gives them a rather grotesque and some would argue post-feminist twist. I wasn’t too found on her style of writing so I probably won’t be rushing to read more of her work. Nonetheless, It was refreshing to read something of a different nature than what I usually would pursue.

Linwood Barclay’s Clouded Vision

My decision to read this short novel is definitely proportionate to my mother’s rather recurrent and arguably non-discreet suggestions. I think she would agree with me on this when I say that Barclay is one of her most admired authors. Now I can’t deny that I was somewhat curious to see what all of the fuss was about, so I read this short story of his to get a taster of his work. The story is basically about a woman who goes missing at the bottom of a lake, and I can’t really say anymore without giving it away. Clouded Vision was fast-paced in nature and was undeniably a gripping read, so I am definitely open to reading more of Barclay’s thrillers.

Thank you for reading!

I would love to hear any comments or recommendations!

🙂

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