Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme that was started by @Lauren’s Page Turners but is now currently being hosted by Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog. This meme is quite easy to follow – just randomly pick a book from your to-be-read list and give the reasons why you want to read it. It is that simple.

This week’s book:

Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles Robert Maturin

Blurb from Goodreads

Created by an Irish clergyman, Melmoth is one of the most fiendish characters in literature. In a satanic bargain, Melmoth exchanges his soul for immortality. The story of his tortured wanderings through the centuries is pieced together through those who have been implored by Melmoth to take over his pact with the devil. Influenced by the Gothic romances of the late 18th century, Maturin’s diabolic tale raised the genre to a new and macabre pitch. Its many admirers include Poe, Balzac, Oscar Wilde and Baudelaire.

Why I Want To Read It

It is the start of a new work week! Woah. Today is the second to the last Monday of October. Time does fly fast. Before we know it, we will be welcoming 2023. Where did the time go? As 2022 slowly approaches its twilight days, I hope that you all get repaid for all the hard work you’ve poured in. I hope that all your prayers get answered. With the start of a new week, I hope that your Monday went well and was not manic. I hope you started it on the right note. I hope that the rest of the week will go great for everyone. More importantly, I hope that you are all doing well and are in a good state of health, both in your mind and body. My biggest wish, however, is for COVID-19 and monkeypox to be finally eradicated. With this, I remind everyone to be diligent in observing minimum health protocols. I wish that everyone will have a great week ahead!

To kickstart the blogging week, I am posting a new Goodreads Monday update. In the past two months, I have been focusing on ticking off books from my active reading challenges. As most of these books are under American literature, the past two months have been an immersion into this vast literary territory. I am currently reading Paul Auster’s Moon Palace. This is my second book by the highly heralded American writer, but my first since 2018 when I read The New York Trilogy. The book is also part of my 2022 Beat the Backlist challenge and is also listed as one of the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die; my goal is to read 20 books from the said list. However, with Halloween looming, I am going to feature a book that has elements of horror, Charles Robert Maturin’s Melmoth the Wanderer.

Interestingly, I have never encountered Maturin or any of his works until today. I was just randomly browsing through the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die when I came across it. Curious, I did a quick search on Goodreads and I noted that it had elements of horror, which was perfect because it aligns with the theme of the month! To be honest though, if there is a part of the vast literary world I would rather avoid, it would be horror fiction. I am no fan of the genre. With my obnoxiously playful imagination, I have learned to avoid the genre although I did try dipping my fingers in some works of the genre. I am also considering reading some of the works of Stephen King – I have a copy of IT and I watched the latest adaptation of the book – and Anne Rice.

Like in the case of King and Rice (perhaps), I can make exceptions. This is the case with Melmoth the Wanderer. I am willing to let go of my apprehensions to explore a new world. Besides, the book being listed as one of the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die is more than enough to convince me to give the book, and, for that matter, Maturin’s prose a try. I am just hoping that I get to obtain a copy of the book. How about you fellow reader? What books have you added to your reading list? Do drop it in the comment box. For now, happy Monday and, as always, happy reading!

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