Ling's Report

Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock is a book that immediately caught my attention from the moment I saw its summary. A labyrinthine forest filled with primeval magic? Entities born from old legends and fairytales? A place where fascination can turn into obsession and insanity? I was sold as soon as I finished reading the summary.   Mythago Wood is about a young man named Steven Huxley. His father, George Huxley, had been obsessed with the Ryhope Woods up until his death. George was convinced that Ryhope Woods was a place where legends and stories came to life, and he was particularly obsessed with the story of Guiwenneth, a warrior’s daughter who was rescued and raised by magpies after her aunt tried to take her for herself. Steven finds that his brother Christian is slowly starting to become just as obsessed with the Woods and Guiwenneth as their father was. When Christian disappears into the Woods to search for Guiwenneth, Steven soon begins to be drawn into the strangenes...

Since October is the month of frights and monsters, I figured I’d start the month off with a review of a book that had recently caught my eye: Asylum by Madeleine Roux. I have always been a fan of horror stories, and the combination of title and cover was enough to pique my curiosity. Asylum is about a boy named Daniel Crawford who is enrolled in the New Hampshire College Prep program. Once he reaches the place, however, he discovers that the usual summer housing program is closed, so students will need to stay at the Brookline dorms. As usual, there is a catch: Brookline dorms used to be a psychiatric hospital that housed the criminally insane. Dan still does what he can to make the most of his stay, even making friends with a girl named Abby and a boy named Jordan. However, Brookline hides many dark secrets, and Dan soon finds that he might be connected to its grim past. And then, strange things start happening: it starts with emails that only he can see, and then he...