The Absolute Fucking Smoke Show of the 1920s

My grandmother was obsessed with Art Deco design and fashion. She had works of Erté all over her house. When I was a young girl, my grandparents took me to San Francisco to see a fashion show with gowns inspired by Erté’s designs. It left a lasting impression on me.

One of my all-time favorite books that was required reading in high school is, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

And I love both the Leonardo DiCaprio/Carey Mulligan film from 2013 and the Robert Redford/Mia Farrow one from 1974

I have an Instagram post from this morning with more icons and inspiration for you to browse. The focus is on the book recommendations/suggestions here for you with links

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald- quintessential novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the mysteriously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.

In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts by Gwendolyn Kiste- Stoker winner Gwendolyn Kiste holds up a dark, queer mirror to The Great Gatsby in IN THESE GILDED, GHOSTLY HEARTS, a haunting exploration of the obsession and control at the edges of an American classic.

Our Sister’s Keeper by Jasmine Holmes- Mississippi, 1927. The groanings are coming. A gripping blend of historical fiction and Southern gothic psychological horror, Our Sister's Keeper is a fierce exploration of Black sisterhood, rage, and resistance.

Below the Grand Hotel by Cat Scully- The Great Gatsby meets Hellraiser. With stylish art deco design and beautiful illustrations by the author, this stunning debut novel by renowned New England artist Cat Scully is a crown jewel for the dark gothic horror lover's collection. Welcome to The Grand Hotel. We hope you enjoy your stay.

Blood & Breath by Qurratulayn- beguiling paranormal revenge thriller, Qurratulayn effortlessly draws real-world parallels by threading in themes of oppression, class struggle, and prejudice.

Creatures of Want & Ruin by Molly Tanzer- Amityville baywoman Ellie West fishes by day and bootlegs moonshine by night. What Ellie doesn’t know is that this booze is special. Distilled from foul mushrooms by a cult of diabolists, those who drink it see terrible things

Spoiled Milk by Avery Curran -1928. A thrilling gothic debut • The untimely death of a student at a girls’ boarding school marks the first in a haunting series of escalating supernatural events, and uncovers buried truths of teenage repression, queer desire, and the everyday horror of coming of age.

Bochica by Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro-A real-life Latin American haunted mansion. A murky labyrinth of family secrets. A young, aristocratic woman desperate to escape her past. This haunting debut “introduces a powerful new voice in gothic horror” (Ana Reyes, New York Timesbestselling author) and is perfect for fans of Mexican Gothic and The Shining.

Wild and Wicked Things by Francesca May- In the 1920s, a decadent gothic tale unfolds as a young woman slips into a glamorous world filled with magic, romance, and murder.

The Fortune Tellers of Rue Daru by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore- A fearless fortune teller in 1920s Paris must use her powers to divine who she can trust when an exiled Romanov princess and her brother come to her seeking answers about a decades-old mystery…

Cape Fever by Nadia Davids-From award-winning South African author Nadia Davids comes a gothic psychological thriller set in the 1920s, where a young maid finds herself entangled with the spirits of a decaying manor and the secrets of its enigmatic owner.

The House on Biscayne Bay by Chanel Cleeton- As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton’s atmospheric new novel.

Jazz by Toni Morrison- From the acclaimed Nobel Prize winner, a passionate, profound story of love and obsession based on the hopes, fears, and deep realities of Black urban life. With a foreword by the author.

Siren Queen by Nghi Vo- offers up an enthralling exploration of an outsider achieving stardom on her own terms, in a fantastical Hollywood where the monsters are real and the magic of the silver screen illuminates every page.

The Haunting of Maddy Clare by Simone St. James- A woman of limited means and even less experience must confront a vengeful spirit in this haunting novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Broken Girls and The Sun Down Motel.

Hazardous Spirits by Anbara Salam- Cloaked in the moody, beguiling backdrop of twentieth-century Scotland, Anbara Salam’s Hazardous Spirits brings a sparkling sense of period detail and dry humor to the life of a young woman whose world is unsettled by mediums and spirits, revealing the devastating secrets that ghosts from the past can tell when given the voice to do so.

The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle- One of NPR's Best Books of 2016, winner of the Shirley Jackson Award, the British Fantasy Award, the This is Horror Award for Novella of the Year, and a finalist for the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, World Fantasy, and Bram Stoker Awards

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia-The Mayan god of death sends a young woman on a harrowing, life-changing journey in this dark, one-of-a-kind fairy tale inspired by Mexican folklore.