WWW Wednesday – October 22, 2025

www_wednesdays

WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?


Currently Reading

Since last week I’ve started reading the last book on my Halloween reading list for this year: Come Closer by Sara Gran. So far I’m only about 30 pages in, but it’s a novella so that’s about a fifth of the way. I’m liking it well enough so far, but I feel like I’m still getting into it. I know it’s a possession story, and in these first chapters it has done an interesting job of feeding into the ambiguity of the main character’s situation. On the one hand, it seems quite clear that something otherworldly is intruding upon her life, but there are seeds that maybe she isn’t as emotionally well balanced and stable of a person as she wants us to believe. Personally, I always prefer if the monster or supernatural forces in a story are real, perhaps serving as an analogy for something while also being literal, but I can enjoy some well-served ambiguity. Let’s see where this goes.


Recently Finished

After writing my post last week I finished up reading The Thief of Always by Clive Barker. I haven’t got a lot more to say about it, except that I’m surprised such a great all-ages horror story doesn’t have more of a cultural presence. More people should read it, and it deserves a stop-motion animated adaptation. I also started and finished Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu since last week. I’m happy I made such short work of it, as I often worry I will struggle with the writing style of older books, though I will say that Le Fanu could calm down a little with the use of commas, for Pete’s sake. Also, I find it hilarious that the trope of a vampire existing incognito under a false identity by just rearranging the letters in their name dates back to at least this book. Of all the cemented lore and tropes of vampire fiction I expected to come from this book, I’m really surprised that this was one of them.


Reading Next

Since I’m making great progress with my reading list for the month, I’m going to try and squeeze in another for the last week. That book will be The Destroyer of Worlds by Matt Ruff, the sequel to Lovecraft Country, which will also satisfy my inclination this year to finish duologies and trilogies that I’ve left hanging. It’ll definitely be the longest of my selection of books, so I may not finish it until early November, but I can accept that considering how good reading progress has been already. I have no idea what it’s actually about, but I really like the first book so that’s enough for me.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – October 15, 2025

www_wednesdays

WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?


Currently Reading

Since last week I started reading The Thief of Always by Clive Barker as part of my to-read list for Halloween this year. I’d never read any Clive Barker before, despite him being a big name in the horror genre, and it was high time I changed that. I’d always imagined his work as more hardcore, so I was surprised to find this novel is actually more of an all-ages read akin to something like Coraline. The story is about a boy named Harvey who is led away to the Holiday House, a magical manor behind a dense wall of fog where all your needs are met and any desire you may have is but a whim away. But something sinister lurks behind this veneer of perfection, and if Harvey isn’t careful he may never see home again. Despite being suitable for younger readers, it’s really dark and has had some genuinely harrowing moments. Illustrations done by Barker himself are included throughout. I’m really enjoying it and expect I’ll finish it today or tomorrow.


Recently Finished

Nothing this week!


Reading Next

The next book I’m going to read for the Halloween season this year is Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu. I’ve been wanting to read more classic literature this year, though I’ve only made good in a couple instances, so I decided one of my reads for this month ought to be one. I’ve only heard about this book in passing and don’t believe I’ve ever read anything else by the author, but I’m hopeful it will make for an enriching reading experience. Once I’ve read this book, I believe I will have read all the classic, seminal vampire books (at least that I’m aware of). I’m a little worried that this being an older book will slow down my reading pace, but the page count should hopefully make up for that.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.