M.M. Hattab is UK-based and writes on books, film and TV: her work has appeared in PopMatters, The Mary Sue, Xenith, and Dark Paradigm, among others.
In life and in business, leadership proves easy to see and feel, though a slippery thing to define. It’s also difficult to teach, though many in the business and coaching worlds assert it’s a skill like any other, one to learn and develop.
In a world that still has at least a few glass ceilings intact, learning and teaching leadership in ways that might look a little different from the typical office model retains the power to supercharge careers and change lives.
Replete with addictive, twisty plots, unreliable narrators, and the exquisite tension of inter generational strife, or the peculiar second hand-anxiety of fictional gaslighting and domestic terror: a good thriller provides the chills and spills of a rollercoaster.
It can also provide escape or even a lens through which to glimpse and process our own difficult feelings or questions of identity. Many of the thrillers on this list have found second lives on large and small screens, too. Our ten best psychological thriller books picked by BookScouter feature contemporary and classic titles.
What does ‘spicy’ mean to you? A fluid, sometimes contentious definition amongst Booktok-ers, Reddit-ors, Tumblr-ites and even the (usually) gentler denizens of Goodreads, this romance novel subgenre covers a surprising range.
For some, ‘spice’ might be anything more than coy, bedroom-door-closed, fade-to-black hints at (vanilla) sexual congress between leads, for others, no less than the darkest hinterlands of kink, dirty talk occasionally dubious consent and explicitly anatomical description will do. It’s also a definition that’s loose, welcoming, and democratic enough to take in sex more likely to feature participants of colour, LGBTQ partners, a spectrum of abilities and body types, as well as humour and dalliances with mythology or the supernatural.
Thinking about investing and not sure where to start? One key principle you’ll come across on your journey to independent trading: is technical analysis. This perhaps opaque term has a highly specific definition in the finance world: ‘…a methodology for analyzing and forecasting the direction of prices through the study of past market data’.
It’s a subject rich with its own language and terminology, which can exclude outsiders but can be deciphered, according to the many guides out there, with the right help, the right attitude, and perseverance.
Much like bookishness granting a toned physique, reading your way to wealth seems like pure wish-fulfillment. Per our current obsession with #bossing, #smashing, #crushing or (insert corporate cliche of choice) your personal growth, there’s a sizable chunk of the publishing houses dedicated to helping the financially hapless achieve their dream. Of course, we at BookScouter reckon the best of dreams, financial or otherwise, begin with a good book (or ten)
Got your Halloween party costume sorted yet? Maybe you’ve had something in the works from the end of August. Maybe you’ve had it all planned from the moment over-sweetened PSLs, scarves, turning leaves, and endless memes on the same appear on our horizons and screens.
If not, no excuses for your witch and black-cat basics – here at BookScouter HQ, we’d like to think you can do a little better. Don’t believe us? We come to the rescue with 10 curated and fabulous picks from YA and classic lit:
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