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smolly_ho1y t1_j2jaeyr wrote

Reply to comment by ccRumandChickenWings in How to read more books and less fanfiction? by ccRumandChickenWings

If you enjoyed the picture of Dorian Gray, maybe you'll like The skin of Shagreen by Honore de Balzac. It has similar plot. Basically, about a man who found the way to fulfill his desires but has to pay his price for it. I also can recommend Steppen Wolf by Herman Hesse. It's a story about a man in the state of constant inner conflict (he basically divides his personality into "wolf" and "human", balancing on the line between them). The book tells his story of finding himself. It was surreal and fascinating book with a lots of food for thought

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ccRumandChickenWings OP t1_j2jd8va wrote

Thank you so much for the suggestions!! They really seem right up my alley!

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EmpRupus t1_j2lh5ti wrote

The classics are not always boring or less representational.

I read Carmilla, a lesbian vampire story (which is older than Dracula) and it was short novella with a pretty quick read. A lot of gothic books are like this.

I also like the mystery genre, and loved reading The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins. This is considered a proto-mystery book older than sherlock holmes, and has very good rep of women and anti-colonial narrative, and also having an easy accessible prose style.

Song of Achiles is a modern take on the classical Greek story, and this one has lgbt+ protagonists. I have other criticisms of the book, but if you like intense romantic slow-burn fanfiction, you can go for this and also, in the process, learn about the classical greek story.

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