October Wrap-Up
what I read and watched last month
This is my Monthly Wrap-Up series, where I share quick reviews for the things I read and watched during the previous month. If you are a new reader (welcome!), here’s the September post:
For October, predictably, I went with a horror theme. I was able to read more this month, and overall I felt quite positive about what I read. Originally I had planned to watch a lot of horror movies, but I really don’t have what it takes—I’m fine reading about monsters and hauntings, but seeing them on-screen is a whole different experience. One horror show was enough for me! Without further ado, let’s begin.
What I Read.
Goliath by Scott Westerfeld
Alek and Deryn are back inside the Leviathan, which is now headed towards Japan to help the British allies on the Eastern front. To get there they have to fly across Russia, and on their way they get a mysterious request from the Tzar to go rescue a certain scientist who’s stranded in the middle of Siberia and who may have the power to turn the tide of the war.
Seeing how Darwinists and Clankers interact in other parts of the world was super fun, I’m glad we got to see many different locations before the ending. I was pleasantly surprised with how the romance played out, I thought the evolution of Alek and Deryn’s friendship into a romantic relationship was very natural, and I liked that it didn’t get dragged out for drama. This was my favorite book on the trilogy, 4/5.
You can read my thoughts on the entire trilogy here:
The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang
As a war orphan living in the middle of nowhere, Rin’s only options are marrying or passing the national exam and getting into a prestigious academy. Rin is willing to do anything to get away from home, but it turns out that getting into the nation’s top military academy is only the beginning.
I was excited to start this trilogy, so I’m happy that this book didn’t disappoint. My favorite part was the beginning about Rin getting into Sinegard and then having to fight to stay there. I loved Rin’s ruthlessness, it is something I don’t see often in a female character. The world building is great, and Sinegard is one of my favorite depictions of the “magic school” trope (even though it isn’t technically a magic school). The cruel and competitive environment kept me on edge the entire time. I do think my interest dropped a bit after leaving Sinegard, and I couldn’t get invested in any of the members of the Cike besides Altan. I preferred when the magic system was more vague, but I still liked the revelations regarding the gods and seeing how Rin and Altan used this terrible power. The way the author portrays the horror of war was amazing, I could see some people call it over the top at times, but I thought it was realistic, which is why it felt so horrifying. The fights are also extremely visceral. I was sometimes turned off by the weirdly modern prose, it feels a little fanfic-esque at times, but considering that this was the author’s debut novel I think that’s forgivable. I’m conflicted about the finale, but overall I had a great time reading this book. 4/5
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
A doctor invites three people to spend the summer in a haunted house, with the hopes of uncovering the truth about the place. Hill House welcomes its four guests, and one of them soon proves to be more receptive to the house’s perverse attention.
I can now say that Shirley Jackson is one of my favorite authors. This was a perfect gothic tale: The setting came dreadfully alive, the tense atmosphere made even the most normal scenes nerve wracking, and the ambiguity of the ending makes the entire story even more haunting. Like every Jackson book, you end up with more questions than you started with. Eleanor is a deeply intriguing character; she’s hateful, lonely, full of contradictions and subtly uncanny. It’s hard to tell what’s real or not about her. Eleanor and the House are the most important characters of the book, and as the story progresses, the limit between the two starts to blurry. I loved the concept of the house as a living organism, one that hates its inhabitants and pushes them to be the worst version of themselves, quite literally possessing them. Are there ghosts in Hill House, or is Hill House itself the ghost? Gothic authors often use the setting as a source of horror, but I believe Jackson is the master when it comes to haunted houses. 5/5 This is one of the best books I’ve read this year.
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
After receiving a concerning letter from her cousin Catalina, Noemí Taboada is sent on a mission to find out what’s happening to Catalina on her new home, a mansion in the middle of nowhere belonging to the old Doyle family. Despite Catalina’s husband claiming that everything is fine, Noemí is immediately distrustful of the family and suspects that there’s something sinister happening in that house.
This was a great horror story that challenges the Gothic tradition in clever ways, and the discussions about colonialism, racism and feminism were thought-provoking. 4/5 It could have been more polished on some parts, but overall it was a good time.
I wrote a longer review for this book here:
Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice
A young man is given the opportunity to interview a real vampire, the ancient Louis de Ponte Du Lac. Over the course of the book, the vampire proceeds to share his life story, which is marked by tragedy and loss.
I came into this book with very high expectations thanks to the TV show. Unfortunately, I believe this is a rare case of an adaptation that is better than its source material on every level. The characters are much more compelling in the show, in particular Louis, who in the book is annoyingly pretentious without any of the endearing traits that the show gave him. It’s interesting how racism and slavery are such major themes here, just like in the show, but the author is not able to do anything good with these elements. It doesn’t help that the pacing is terrible, everything happens too fast. The prose is alright, and I do like some of the discussions the characters have about mortality and the value of life, but overall I get the feeling that the show elevates the story quite a lot. Also, Louis and Claudia’s relationship has some uncomfortable undertones here, but I still loved Claudia deeply, and the tragedy of the ending really hits. 2/5 You are better off watching the show.
What I Watched.
My Hero Academia (season 7)
Our heroes prepare for the final battle with the League of Villains, a battle which will decide the fate of the world. Izuku Midoriya is about to face the greatest threat in history, All for One, and he will need the help of all the friends he’s made so far.
Watching this season knowing how the manga ends is a weird experience. Without going into spoilers, I will say that this season is as good as My Hero Academia gets. The fights are incredible, and everyone gets their moment to shine. Something that I will always praise about this series is how it handles its massive cast of characters, they all have their own little arcs that tie together pretty well. I love how all the powers are utilized to their full extent, we get to see how they can be useful in different circumstances and in combination with other people, it makes the fights more dynamic. It doesn’t hurt that Studio Bones is going all out with every episode, delivering some of the most beautiful animation of the year. The best way to describe season 7 is “spectacle”. Each episode amps up the hype, and even though I’m not happy with how the themes of the story are handled at the end, it can’t be said that the build-up to the grand finale isn’t fun to watch. 4/5 On its own, season 7 is my favorite MHA season.
Uzumaki
Strange things start happening in Kurouzu, a little seaside city. The citizens begin to be haunted by spirals everywhere they look, the entire population is becoming obsessed with this shape. Bizarre and horrifying events pile up, but leaving the city is not an option.
Let’s get this out of the way: Yes, the production value really went down after the first episode. It’s not the worst animation I have seen in anime, but the first episode raised the bar too high, which made the downgrade much more noticeable. Personally, it didn’t bother me as much as it did other people, I thought it was alright most of the time. The story is scary enough on its own that it still worked. The pacing was a little off, I haven’t read the manga but I can tell that they rushed through a couple events and didn’t give them enough time to breathe. It has a very Lovecraftian vibe that can be too out there for some, but I liked it. 3/5 It was good, even if it could have been better if the quality was consistent.
Hocus Pocus 2 dir. by Anne Fletcher.
The Sanderson sisters are back in town. This time it’s up to three teenage girls to stop them, if they can stop fighting each other.
The best way to describe this movie is “a kids version of a kids movie”. It’s too sanitized, with none of the darker and sensual elements of the original. You can tell the older actresses are having fun, but the movie is too self-referential. Worse, the new characters are forgettable. The secondary villain was not even a villain, he was just a dumb plot device to bring the Sanderson sisters back. Still, I have to admit I laughed a lot during the first half and I loved the initial scene, the actresses for the young Sanderson sisters did a wonderful job. It’s fine but nowhere close to the original. 2.5/5
Substack Highlights.
These are some of my favorite Substack posts that I read this month:
The Undying Allure of the Vampire from
Carrie: A Tale of Three Witches from
The Heart of fantasy according to Tolkien from
+ Embracing Reality by Escaping to Faërie by (parts 1 and 3 of their collab series on Tolkien)my thoughts on the anniversary of genocide from
Japanese Legends and their Favorite Animation by
I’m keeping up with a few Fall anime shows, as I mentioned in my September Wrap-Up, but I’m saving my thoughts on them until the season is over. For now, I just want everyone to know that Re:Zero Season 3 has been absolutely fantastic right from the get-go. If you aren’t keeping up with Re:Zero, what are you waiting for?
November is going to be another horror month. I'm going to continue reading The Poppy War trilogy, and I also want to read more by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Shirley Jackson.
Upcoming:
November 10: Fantasy Worldbuilding in Anime, a look into some of my favorite fantasy settings in anime.
November 17: Take care, Miss Nanami! They are trying to eat you! Observations on how food is used as a motif in Revolutionary Girl Utena, particularly around the character of Nanami, our beloved cowgirl/were-cow.
[Paid] November 24: People’s Dreams Never End, an essay about romanticism in Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece series.
I’m going to be really busy this month, so I won’t be able to post as much as I did in October. Hopefully, I should still be able to get at least one post out every week, but the dates may not line up with this schedule. If I get some free time, I will try to squeeze in something else, but I’m not making any promises.
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honored by the mention, thanks! <33
Excited to hear season 7 of MHA is 🔥, but it seems we will never get a fully proper junji ito anime adaptation