Book + Movie Recommendations!

Books:

Nevermore (trilogy) - Kelly Creagh - I've only read the first book in this trilogy, but it's wildly underappreciated in terms of early 2000's (hence why I can't find the other two books). It's the works of Edgar Allen Poe combined with that juicy 2000's YA angst that we all know and love (and a surprisingly well written goth protagonist).

Life As We Knew It (series) - Susan Beth Pfeffer - More of that early 2000's angst, but this time sci-fi! This was one of the first books to make me have to put down the book for a while because I was crying so hard. Definitely heed the trigger warnings for this one, it's intense. It isn't sci-fi in the traditional sense of the genre, but rather a devastatingly sad take on post-apocalyptica (seriously, if you don't want to cry your eyes out and disassociate for the next several days after reading, maybe find a different book in this list to read. Otherwise, READ THIS BOOK).

Dracula - Bram Stoker - We all know and love the mythos of the vampire, and this was the book that really brought it to the forefront of the western literary circles. I recommend reading the unabridged version, it's a little harder to read but the poetry makes more sense in the original wording and punctuation. 

The Arc of the Scythe (Trilogy) - Neal Shusterman - I absolutely adore this trilogy, it's one of the first true dystopian novels we've seen since Hunger Games (I'll do a rant about the death of dystopia as a genre in a different blog post) with a fascinating take on how the future of the world will work. I won't spoil too much, but rather than the "Everything is awful and we're all going to die" take that most works of the genre seem to employ (although there's nothing wrong with that), Shusterman takes a more hopeful approach to the future of society. It's almost refreshing to see such an almost-positive approach to a usually violently melancholic genre. 

Movies:

Warm Bodies (2013) - Romeo and Juliet but make it zombies. That's pretty much the entire plot. I just think everyone should watch this honestly. It's one of my favorites of all time.

Jennifer's Body (2009) - For the same reasons as Warm Bodies; I just love this movie. It's iconic and such an interesting take on the "mean girl" trope. Think "Heathers" but Heather Chandler is also a demon and kills people. Brought us the song "New Perspective" by Panic! At The Disco. Even though it's a cheesy 2000's movie, it's genuinely heart wrenching in some places and hilarious in others.

Suburbia (1983) - Really showing what scene I grew up in with this one, the end traumatized me. Exactly what it says on the tin, pretty sure it's free on YouTube. Definitely heed the trigger warnings for this movie, there's a whole lot of shit that happens in this movie, but it's a cult classic.

I'll probably do more of these eventually, but I'll call it there for now. Add your own suggestions and maybe I'll put them in the next one if I like them:).