LSi Valentine’s Day reads for…
The slightly masochistic lover: Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
You may think you know the story from the various adaptations and Kate Bush song, but aside from the passionate love between the rugged Heathcliff, a man after my own heart, and the gentle Cathy, there are many more levels to this great novel. Violence, anger and destruction are dominant themes in a novel that blurs the lines of hate and love, making it a novel to appeal to both singletons and lovers.
The desperate teenager obsessed with fantasy: The Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyer
Okay, so The Twilight Saga may be the punch line of many jokes and not the best series of books, but for teenagers around the world Edward is the new dreamy Heathcliff and Bella the new Cathy. If you can ignore the images of a moody K-Stew, you might enjoy this modern love story of a girl who has to pick between a vampire and a werewolf… clearly something all us ladies can relate to.
The sexually frustrated man or woman: Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James James’ Fifty Shades series transformed the world of erotic fiction, making literary porn appear in the bestsellers and a key feature at pool-sides. Sure, it is embarrassingly badly written, repetitive and silly, but people around the world are still getting a kick out of the kinky BDSM adventures of Anastasia Steele and the magnetic Christian Grey. Clearly, there is something about it…
Those who don’t mind that their husbands locked their wives up: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë Mr Rochester is a literary character longed for by female readers throughout time, but seriously ladies why would you want a man who locked up his previous wife? To make things worse, this dark secret is also revealed on Jane’s wedding day to Rochester, and although she runs away she returns after his wife has died whilst setting their house on fire. Blimey!
The adulterer: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Considered one of the greatest novels ever written, Fitzgerald’s novel set in the extravagant roaring twenties is a story of affairs, more affairs and the devastating effects of pining for someone you can’t have. Going after a long lost love is clearly not the best idea in the world, only leading to sadness and destruction. Fitzgerald has many things to say on the matter of love in this novel making it a great one for Valentine’s Day.
Emily Murray