Recommendations
Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (1990)
an angel and a demon in love, the end of the world. The height of British comedic nonsense. God those kids were annoying.
season 2 of Good Omens is out now! go watch it. you will love it. you will be emotionally devestated.
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (1938)
haunting, the horror of an old house and not quite knowing what has happened or what is happening - the horror of losing your mind to other peoples' expectations and secrets
Read for free at the Internet Archive in English here,
and in French here.
Heidi by Johanna Spyri (1880)
This book will make you want to leave everything and go live in the Swiss Alps. You have been warned.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson (1962)
A personal favourite - this book is disturbing and strange and so interesting. (sparking an interest in poisonous plants and fungi that could be considered concerning)
An in depth look at the first chapter can be found in this article. Wayback machine
"My name is Mary Katherine Blackwood. I am eighteen years old, and I live with my sister Constance. I have often thought that with any luck at all I could have been born a werewolf, because the two middle fingers on both my hands are the same length, but I have had to be content with what I had. I dislike washing myself, and dogs, and noise. I like my sister Constance, and Richard Plantagenet, and Amanita phalloides, the death-cup mushroom. Everyone else in my family is dead."
- We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, opening chapter
The startling honesty and darkness that you are immediately confronted with, mixed with a child-like tone and a petulance that extends from the title (We Have Always Lived in the Castle suggesting a more determined "and we always will") just grabbed me, and the mystery that is so carefully contained for so much of the book is both unnerving and very well done.
Published in 1962, just three years before Jackson's death in 1965, the book was written while she was very ill, suffering from severe anxiety, agoraphobia and many health conditions. The influence of her life and circumstances on the overall tone and plot of the book is something that can be seen pretty easily: Merricat's feelings of being ostracised from the rest of the town, Constance's fear of leaving the garden, and the ultimately happy ending and glorification of a separation from the rest of society is something that could have reflected Shirley Jackson's own state of mind, and I think that is what makes the book so unnerving and compelling: it is written with such truth. Merricat's fears and beliefs become believable the longer you are stuck in her head, as they are so consistent and so entirely normal to her.
Shirley Jackson's ability to turn the domestic into something both beautiful and horrifying makes this book a love letter to food, family, and the safety of routine. Merricat's actions, fears, possessiveness, and desperation to maintain their perfection and safety is shown to amount to no negative consequence. Jackson's final story acts as a sort of fairy tale: the evil townspeople repent, the sisters have plentiful food and are safe to never have to leave their 'castle' again.
'Oh, Constance,' I said, 'we are so happy.'
Read for free at the Internet Archive.
(And at the Open Library here.)