"The Picture of Dorian Gray"

“The Picture of Dorian Gray”

Written by Oscar Wilde

Review written by Diana Iozzia

            My, oh, me. This is probably one of the most hyped classic stories, along with the stories written by the Brontes, Shakespeare, Poe, and Jane Austen. However, I really do not think that the hype is well deserved for this book. I realize I’m a bit late to the game, but I am twenty-one, so I could have waited a longer time. If I’m correct, I read this in January 2016 as a Christmas gift.

            For the time period, it was an iconic, scandalous, crude, and creepy tale. It just doesn’t hold up as well in today’s society. Dorian Gray is an interesting villain, in theory. He’s a young, charming, charismatic, and licentious man, but he has a taste for the darker side. Slowly, the book unfolds how distorted he is. (But to be honest, he’s not really all that bad). For the time period and years after that, he was creepy. I just didn’t get an uncomfortable, creepy vibe from him. It’s interesting how he pursues his female love interest, but when he gets his way, he pouts like a little boy. In addition, there's a strange narration. 

            I was just disappointed in this book, in comparison to all of the other spooky classics out there.

"The Tommyknockers"

“The Tommyknockers” by Stephen King

Review Written by Diana Iozzia

            I can tell you right now that Stephen King is my favorite author. He writes horror fiction, which is one of my favorite genres, and he’s damn good at it. Everyone either despises him or worships him. “The Tommyknockers” was one of the only books I’ve read by him that I despised. You read about a very uninteresting and depressed protagonist named Bobbi Anderson. Bobbi is walking in her backyard with her old dog, when she finds a hunk of metal protruding from the ground.

            There are many ways to spoil this book, but I’d rather not completely ruin it for you. It’s very reminiscent of an episode from The Twilight Zone, or at least the beginning is. In many of King’s books, he writes of his inspirations and his connections, but sometimes, they feel so much more coincidental and slightly like he rips off some of his stories.

            I love Mr. King, but this was a very skippable book. It’s absolutely gigantic, and I just could not finish this with my sanity full intact. I was tired and bored of it by the first three chapters. Perhaps, I’ll re-read it in ten years and see if my thoughts have changed. Unfortunately, for now, I wouldn’t recommend this book. If I had a heart, it'd be broken by this book.

"Ruined"

"Ruined" by Paula Morris
Review written by Diana Iozzia






"Ruined" is a young adult fiction novel starring the main character, Rebecca. She recently moved to New Orleans, near the French Quarter, to live with her aunt and her younger cousin. Rebecca starts making new friends at her new school, and naturally, she makes a few enemies. Rebecca visits a cemetery nearby her apartment, which is practically in shambles post Hurricane Katrina. Rebecca meets a girl who she later finds out is a ghost named Lisette.

Throughout the novel, Rebecca finds herself hallucinating that she is back in the times of slavery, when Lisette's family were slaves. Not to give away the ending, which is pretty climatic and intriguing, Rebecca finds out that her ancestors are much more involved in the history of New Orleans than she'd like them to be.

I've read this book at least three to four times as a teenager, and it still holds a place in my heart as probably the first thriller book I read other than "Goosebumps".

"Doom Sayer"

“Doom Sayer” by Zachary T. Owen

Review written by Diana Iozzia

            Tonight, I finished this second collection of horror short stories written by the independent author, Mr. Zachary Owen. I thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Owen’s first short story collection, “Burn Down the House and Everyone in It.” When I had the chance to read his second book, published just this February of 2017, I was very interested.

            If I count the days, I think it only took me three afternoons and one night to read this, so it’s very easily read and digestible. In comparison to his first book, Mr. Owen created more creepy and unsettling stories in his second novel than the first. The first felt more comical, but the second felt more gruesome and outlandish.

            The first half of the stories were okay to me. I enjoyed them, but the second half of the book was filled with interesting stories. As I spoke about in my review of his first book, Mr. Owen uses common fears and exemplifies them in his stories. These fear-filled felt much more natural and realistic than the first collection. Owen’s worlds that he creates are natural, but they are just at the fringe of your worst nightmare.

            Personally, my favorite stories from this collection were:

            “The Orphan Room”, which wasn’t as realistic and natural, but it reminded me of “Coraline” by Neil Gaiman.

            “Lucifer’s Dream Box”, an interesting story about modern art and secret pleasures.

            “What We Do for Love” felt like a haunting, cautionary, fairy tale. An interesting story, leaving you wondering who indeed was the beast.

            The last 60-70 pages (I didn’t do the math) were a fantastic, eerie tale about a pond in the woods, with macabre secrets hiding in said woods. “Beauties in the Deep” was a really vivid and interesting story. I’d love to see it played out in a short film.

            This second collection of horror stories by Zachary Owen were great, but I can’t even pick which novel I enjoyed more. I would seriously consider reading both.