Happy holidays! Gearing up for that precious holiday reading time and book gift giving. What are your go to book gifts (definitely want to hear about those #gothic picks)?

This Danish gothic collection tends to be a popular one on the bookshelves these days, and I always gravitate toward it on these harsh weather cold days. Karen Blixen (aka Isak Dinesen) has a truly gifted knack for creating claustrophobia out of atmosphere alone. Most of these stories have a “Nordic strangeness” to them, something that seems familiar on the surface to an Anglo-English eye but becomes unfamiliar in the details. It’s almost fairytale like and absolutely suited to the Gothic genre. All these stories, especially the opening and most popular story, “the Deluge at Norderney” are slow burns, and we mean like VERY slow burns. These stories will not be for everyone. Even my own patience was tested at times, but so much of the writing is indeed breathtaking. I tend to buffer my time in between novels with short stories for some quicker, varied reading before recommitting myself. This collection did not work for that purpose. This collection is a commitment in and of itself—one that’s worthwhile if you focus is in the right place. Happy reading!