WHICH LITERARY MONSTER ARE YOU?

Halloween celebrations are almost upon us and I just want to remind you the Spooktakular Giveaway Hop here at FLY HIGH! You still have a couple of days to enter the contest and win two great spooky reads,  which would make your Halloween just perfect: Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children  and Six of Crows. Don't foget to scroll down below the end of the post for the huge list of blogs taking part in this great hop organized by Kathy at I Am A Reader.

That 's not all I have for you today! What about a literary quiz? To celebrate the spooky season our friends at Grammarly  created  a monster of a quiz!!!

SPOOKTACULAR GIVEAWAY HOP - WIN TWO CLASSIC GOTHIC TALES

You know who started all this in English literature? I mean supernatural, horror and terror, fantasy, and alike? Horace Walpole, writing his The Castle of Otranto in 1764, which started a new genre that would become extremely popular in the later 18th century and early 19th century: the Gothic novel. Thus, Walpole, by extension, is the forerunner to such authors as Charles Maturin, Ann Radcliffe, Bram Stoker, Edgar Allan Poe and Daphne du Maurier.  

Here is my choice, then,  for my giveaway contest here at FLY HIGH!,  which is included in the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop organized by Kathy at  I am a Reader: you can choose your prizes from the list of  classic Gothic novels below (in paperback edition). Pick up two titles and they will be yours,  if you are lucky enough. Take your chances to win in the rafflecopter form below this post and ... good luck!

BOOK BLAST - REPLACING GENTRY BY JULIE N. FORD + GIVEAWAY $50 AMAZON GIFT CARD

Replacing Gentry

When Marlie agrees to attend a cadaver ball at Vanderbilt Medical School, she did not expect to actually see any cadavers. Or, that a strange apparition would issue her a chilling message.

Despite the cadaver's warning, Marlie is married a year later to Tennessee State Senator, Daniel Cannon, and living in a plantation-style mansion with two step sons. Add to the mix her growing suspicion that something is amiss with the death of Daniel’s first wife, Gentry; and newlywed Marlie is definitely in over her pretty Yankee head.

What begins as an innocent inquiry into her new husband’s clouded past, ends with Marlie in the midst of a dangerous conspiracy.

A modern twist on the classic Gothic romance novels of Rebecca and Jane Eyre, Replacing Gentry follows Marlie’s precarious journey as she learns the truth about the man she married.

Grab a copy!

Replacing Gentry is just $1.99 on Amazon

AUTHOR GUEST POST & GIVEAWAY: BRYONY ALLEN, THE ASSEMBLY ROOM

Her new YA ghost story is perfect for Halloween week, so I invited Bryony Allen to guest post at FLY HIGH to  tell us everything about it. There's a chance to win the e-book or kindle book of The Assembly Room for readers commenting this post and adding their own e-mail address. The giveaway contest is open worldwide and ends November 7th.

So, why did I write The Assembly Room?

The book is my third novel with my current UK independent publisher, Pneuma Springs, but it's my second in the YA genre. The story came in to being thanks to an old building that is  - believe it or not  - actually called 'The Assembly Room' . The building lies on the outskirts of the village of Hitcham in Suffolk, England. It was on passing this building over the years every time I go to see my parents that the seeds of the book started to take shape in my head. Just looking at the building makes the mind start to wonder what kind of history it may have had; well it does for me at least.

In  my research for the book I looked at the local history in the area as well as land registry records and found that the building (now a little bit derelict) was built in the early 1800's and had been used as a reading room and also a community hall. Its Gothic features are certainly reminiscent of the time period.

The reality is that it is now used as a storage area for its current owner who also owns and lives in an adjacent cottage, and the actual area of land around the place itself was formerly used as a commercial garage in the mid 20^th century.

THE SPOOKTAKULAR GIVEAWAY HOP - MEET KARELLEYN BRAE WADE & WIN DHARIYA: PRELUDE TO A DARK LEGACY

This post is part of the Spooktakular Giveaway Hop hosted at I Am A Reader Not a Writer and at The Diary of a Bookworm. Welcome to the creepiest giveway contest of the year which will go on till Halloween. Leave your comment below this post and choose your options in the rafflecopter form at the end of the interview. Only one option  is mandatory: become a follower if you are not already one! All the others are optional but will give you more chances to win. So, get all your chances to receive a free signed paperback copy of  Dhariya ~ Prelude To A Dark Legacy by Karelleyn  Brae Wade. Moreover,  don't forget to browse through the list of blogs participating in this incredible hop: there are more than 500!  It means you've got chances to win up more than 500 prizes! Click HERE and go to the list of blogs. Now it 's time to meet the author and discover more about your prize!

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Hello and welcome at FLY HIGH,  Karelleyn. It’s always a pleasure to find intriguing books and new writers to present to our readers, so thanks for being my guest today. Since your Dhariya ~ Prelude To A Dark Legacy is a gothic novel, could you please start telling us what is the appeal of the gothic genre to you?

I love the classic gothic novels such as Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights...the elements of dramatic intensity, passion and the hidden mystery within the darkness greatly appeals to me.

The aim of a gothic tale is usually to entertain the readers frightening them. Your purpose instead?

I find today’s gothic stories are more frightening and horror filled...I feel the depth is lost within this sensationalism....I much prefer the old world traditional gothics and follow this path ...to weave the web of intrigue and mystery which compels the readers onward ....luring them deep into the shadows to uncover hidden truths along the way.

FRANKENSTEIN AT THE CINEMA - MY REVIEW

Dannis Boyle’s Frankenstein, the  pluriawarded 2011 theatrical production,  has been a terrific success live on stage at the National  Theatre in London and it has after that also been shown worldwide in movie theatres in the original language.  It arrived in Rome yesterday (Cinema Lux) and it’ll be on tonight too (Cinema Barberini).

I can’t imagine how exciting it must have been for the lucky ones  in the audience at the theatre, but it was amazing and enthralling to watch it on screen last night for me. It was like being on stage with the cast, so with  a really privileged perspective on the spectacular staging.

I’ve always been astonished by the idea of a 19th century woman, Mary Shelley, writing such a modern,  evergreen, disquieting  story and at her young age (19 years old).  However, Nick Dear, whose adaptation Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee - Miller brought on stage, surprised and moved me with his brilliant work, which turns the novel into a  touching play.

The originality of the show is in the idea of a symbiotic relationship between created and  creator, the monster and the scientist who gave him life, unusually rendered with Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee-Miller alternating and taking turns to play the two main roles, that of Victor Frankenstein and that of his unnaturally created monster.

The version I saw last night was with Cumberbatch as the creature and Lee-Miller as Victor Frankenstein. 

WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY - GOTHIC READS: MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN (1818)

I'm not an expert of contemporary  Gothic fiction nor I can say I'm fond of this genre. I've already confessed I never could get to the end of Bram Stoker's Dracula  and I've only recently read a couple of romances with vampires or werewolves as their protagonists. It was fun: light readings to spend a few carefree hours on. (HERE and HERE)
However, this week's topic is also one of the topics I'm working on with my students at school, and I'm glad of that. At least, they - my teenage students -  are really fond of gothic stories! My last year pupils, and I are studying the spread of the Gothic vogue at the end of 18th century,  when the interest in in that new genre was common to all strata of society after the success of the first "gothic tale", The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole (1764)

The concept of the "Sublime" , or "horrible beauty" , also influenced the rise of the  Gothic novel in those years through the work of the philosopher Edmund Burke,  where the sublime was linked to both the idea of self-divinity and a celebration of terror. The gothic symbols of the wanderer, the vampire and the overreacher who seek forbidden knowledge reflect the wish to go beyond God, nature and human limits: these figures all are individualists who are not satisfied with their own society.

FRIDAY NIGHT MIXED POSTING

1. AN EXHAUSTING HARD WORKING WEEK

It has been a very hard working week, but finally and at last, it is Friday again. I've been at school till 6 p.m. today. Afternoon meetings can be very boring and exhausting sometimes or , at least, they are the task I like the least in my job. Instead, I love the class work, especially teaching literature to my eldest students. We are reading pages from Mary Shelley' s FRANKENSTEIN these days. They seem to enjoy and appreciate it very much . Some of them told me they'll try to read the whole novel  or to watch a film  adaptation. This is the aspect of my job I love the most. If you are interested in Gothic Novels, I've posted several materials and suggestions for my students on LEARNONLINE.

2. BOOK GIVEAWAY AT ANECA'S WORLD: I WON!

I've never, never in my life, won anything and in the last two weeks I have, instead and surprisingly, won two books. You can't imagine how happy I am, especially since I really love books! Thanks to Ana T. and her beautiful blog, ANECA'S WORLD, which  I regularly follow, I've won THE SINFUL LIFE OF LUCY BURNS.

 It sounds rather Faustean... Read what it is about...

Lucy Burns wants a normal life: friends, love, and a family of her own. And she could have it all if only she could break free from the job she hates.

That job? Facilitator to hell. And her boss is a real devil.

At the age of eleven, to save her sister’s life, Lucy writes a desperate letter to “To Whom It May Concern,” but when He writes back, Lucy is bound for life. There are perks, sure—she’s ageless, she’s beautiful, and she can eat as much chocolate as she wants and never get fat—but there are also consequences.

She can never see her family again. She can never have a boyfriend. She must spend her life leading sinners to their demise.

After nineteen years of doing the Devil’s dirty work, Lucy wants out, but it all seems hopeless until Teddy Nightingale, her easy listening music idol, gives her the answer: a little-known loophole.

If she succeeds, Lucy gets love, happiness, and everything she ever really wanted. But the consequences? They’re considerably worse than death. To make it through, Lucy must decide what is evil and what is good, what is right and what is wrong, and if, in the end, there’s ever any way to truly know.

3. A NEW PERIOD DRAMA ON ITALIAN TV

Sort of miracle, indeed. Italian TV rarely tries to offer its audience this kind of productions. This week, instead, on CANALE 5, a commercial TV channel, they started broadcasting a new 6-part series titled THE FALCON AND THE DOVE, loosely based on Stendhal's novella THE ABBESS OF CASTRO (1839). First of all, I haven't seen the first episode yet, I just recorded it in order to see it at the weekend. I really didn't have time to do it till now. I can just tell you what I've read about it. It is set at the beginning of the 16th century in the centre of Italy, in the papal lands. In those hard years, Italy was a land of conquest and the scene of bloody civil wars. But of course, though it was a time when women couldn't choose the man to marry or couldn't marry the man whom they loved, a beautiful romance is  the main feature of this period drama: a noble young woman falls in love with an extremely handsome and brave man of humble origin and they have to face her family violent objections. Their love will be hardly put to the test.

4. SPOOKS 8 IS ABOUT TO START ON BBC 1

For those who visit my blog from time to time it is no news: I love SPOOKS. I've always loved this series, even before the arrival of Richard Armitage as Lucas North in the series. I've seen every and each episode since it started and now I've just read that series 8 is going to start on Thursday 29 October. I hope I will be able to see it as soon as possible. I can't wait!

Meanwhile, I can just read the first interviews and articles coming out which many kind bloggy friends of mine have scanned and posted or linked.

For the latest articles and interviews have a look at  Annette's site http://www.richardarmitageonline.com/

CLICK HERE and HERE

GOTHIC AUSTEN

No, don't worry, I'm not going to review those Austen inspired novels mixing Jane's world with vampires and monsters. I've never read one of those . I was just ordering the notes and slides I used these days in some of my lessons, thought that I could share them because some of you might be interested and decided to post about them.

I noticed that several of the blogs I regularly visit and read are involved in the so-called R.I.V. Challenge, that is Readers Imbibing Peril.

For instance

· Jane GS at Reading, Writing, Working, Playing
· Ana T. at Aneca’s World
· Stephanie at Stephanie’s Written Word

-Heather at Gofita's Pages

They are reading and blog posting about Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Dark Fantasy, Horror Books. I’m not taking part in the Challenge but I’m full immersed in reading and teaching about the roots of all those modern genres. Today’s ghost and horror novels, as well as mystery stories or thrillers, which are so keenly read all over the world, come from the 18th century GOTHIC NOVEL. My lessons to my eldest students are focused on this genre these days.

The adjective Gothic was first applied to architecture long before it connoted literature. HORACE WALPOLE (1717 – 1797) was the first to link the two: his obsession with his beloved miniature castle at Strawberry Hill inspired him for THE CASTLE OF OTRANTO (1764) and the book subtitle, A GOTHIC TALE. This was the first time the term was used in a literary context. Would you be scared by such melodramatic, simpering rather naive prose?

(from H. Walpole, The Castle of Otranto, ch. 1, pp.1-2)

Manfred, Prince of Otranto, had one son and one daughter: the latter, a most beautiful virgin, aged eighteen, was called Matilda. Conrad, the son, was three years younger, a homely youth, sickly, and of no promising disposition; yet he was the darling of his father, who never showed any symptoms of affection to Matilda. Manfred had contracted a marriage for his son with the Marquis of Vicenza’s daughter, Isabella; and she had already been delivered by her guardians into the hands of Manfred, that he might celebrate the wedding as soon as Conrad’s infirm state of health would permit.
Manfred’s impatience for this ceremonial was remarked by his family and neighbours. The former, indeed, apprehending the severity of their Prince’s disposition, did not dare to utter their surmises on this precipitation. Hippolita, his wife, an amiable lady, did sometimes venture to represent the danger of marrying their only son so early, considering his great youth, and greater infirmities; but she never received any other answer than reflections on her own sterility, who had given him but one heir. His tenants and subjects were less cautious in their discourses. They attributed this hasty wedding to the Prince’s dread of seeing accomplished an ancient prophecy, which was said to have pronounced that the castle and lordship of Otranto “should pass from the present family, whenever the real owner should be grown too large to inhabit it.” It was difficult to make any sense of this prophecy; and still less easy to conceive what it had to do with the marriage in question. Yet these mysteries, or contradictions, did not make the populace adhere the less to their opinion.Young Conrad’s birthday was fixed for his espousals. The company was assembled in the chapel of the Castle, and everything ready for beginning the divine office, when Conrad himself was missing. Manfred, impatient of the least delay, and who had not observed his son retire, despatched one of his attendants to summon the young Prince. The servant, who had not stayed long enough to have crossed the court to Conrad’s apartment, came running back breathless, in a frantic manner, his eyes staring, and foaming at the month. He said nothing, but pointed to the court.
The company were struck with terror and amazement. The Princess Hippolita, without knowing what was the matter, but anxious for her son, swooned away. Manfred, less apprehensive than enraged at the procrastination of the nuptials, and at the folly of his domestic, asked imperiously what was the matter? The fellow made no answer, but continued pointing towards the courtyard; and at last, after repeated questions put to him, cried out, “Oh! the helmet! the helmet!”
In the meantime, some of the company had run into the court, from whence was heard a confused noise of shrieks, horror, and surprise. Manfred, who began to be alarmed at not seeing his son, went himself to get information of what occasioned this strange confusion. Matilda remained endeavouring to assist her mother, and Isabella stayed for the same purpose, and to avoid showing any impatience for the bridegroom, for whom, in truth, she had conceived little affection.
The first thing that struck Manfred’s eyes was a group of his servants endeavouring to raise something that appeared to him a mountain of sable plumes. He gazed without believing his sight.
“What are ye doing?” cried Manfred, wrathfully; “where is my son?”
A volley of voices replied, “Oh! my Lord! the Prince! the Prince! the helmet! the helmet!”
Shocked with these lamentable sounds, and dreading he knew not what, he advanced hastily,—but what a sight for a father’s eyes!— he beheld his child dashed to pieces, and almost buried under an enormous helmet, an hundred times more large than any casque ever made for human being, and shaded with a proportionable quantity of black feathers.
The horror of the spectacle, the ignorance of all around how this misfortune had happened, and above all, the tremendous phenomenon before him, took away the Prince’s speech. Yet his silence lasted longer than even grief could occasion. He fixed his eyes on what he wished in vain to believe a vision; and seemed less attentive to his loss, than buried in meditation on the stupendous object that had occasioned it. He touched, he examined the fatal casque; nor could even the bleeding mangled remains of the young Prince divert the eyes of Manfred from the portent before him.
All who had known his partial fondness for young Conrad, were as much surprised at their Prince’s insensibility, as thunderstruck themselves at the miracle of the helmet. They conveyed the disfigured corpse into the hall, without receiving the least direction from Manfred. As little was he attentive to the ladies who remained in the chapel”.

Gothic novels were extremely popular at the end of the 18th century and that taste or fashion involved all social classes. Most of those novels followed the same pattern with few alterations: great importance given to terror and horror – as two different ingredients, since the first was characterised by obscurity and uncertainty and the latter by evil and atrocity; ancient settings like isolated castles, dungeons, secret rooms, mysterious abbeys or convents; supernatural beings like vampires, ghosts, witches, monsters; a triad of main characters including an oversensitive persecuted heroine, a terrifying/ satanic male villain and a sensitive honourable hero. After Walpole’s “The Castle of Otranto” , very popular Gothic tales were Ann Radcliffe’s “The Mysteries of Udolpho” (1794) and “The Monk” by Matthew Lewis (1796) .

In the same years Miss Jane Austen dreamt of “living on her pen”, writing her first novels “of manners”. Between 1795-96 she had finished Elinore and Marianne, later on published as Sense and Sensibility, as well as First impressions then published as Pride and Prejudice. Was she interested in Gothic novels or did she attempt to write one? Since irony and satire were her favourite literary “weapons”, she preferred writing a parody of such sentimental fashionable genre. In 1798 she wrote Northanger Abbey, never published during her life for reasons left unknown, that is in fact an open mocking of the genre.

Young Catherine Morland’s story develops some of Jane Austen’s favourite themes, the initiation of a young woman into the complexities of adult social life and the danger of imagnation uncontrolled by reason and common sense. Catherine’s mistake is that she imposes the melodramatic values of the gothic novels she reads (i.e. “The mysteries of Udolpho” by A. Radcliffe) on the reality around her, making the boundaries between the real and the imaginary quite uncertain.
Here’s are two examples - from ITV 2007 adaptation of Northanger Abbey - of how Catherine is influenced by her reading gothic tales, which will create her "some troubles" once she is invited at Northanger Abbey (clip 1 0:00 /1:36; clip 2 0:00/2:52) by the Tilneys.

CLIP 1

CLIP 2

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