Some background: I'm 26, I moved out three years ago, I live about 25 minutes from my parents. My mom and I have a decent relationship overall but she has never fully adjusted to the fact that I have my own life with my own schedule. She doesn't call before coming over. She just shows up. The first time I brought this up she said "you're my daughter, I shouldn't have to make an appointment to see you" and that was kind of the end of that conversation. Last saturday I had plans with friends starting at noon, people I hadn't seen in a while, we'd booked a restaurant weeks in advance. At 11:15 my mom knocked on my door with a bag of groceries saying she wanted to cook lunch together. I told her I was actually heading out in about 30 minutes and had plans. She came in anyway, started unpacking the groceries on my counter, and said "I won't take long, I just thought it would be nice." I said mom I genuinly can't today, I have a reservation and people are waiting on me. She stopped unpacking and looked at me like I'd said something hurtful and said "I drove all the way here." I said I know and I'm sorry but I didn't know you were coming, which is kind of the point. She repacked her bag very slowly and quietly which is her way of making sure I feel bad about it, and on her way out said "I just miss you, I didn't think that was a crime." I texted her later that evening and she took six hours to respond with "it's fine." It is not fine and we both know it. I don't know how to make her understand that showing up unannounced and then being hurt when I have a life is not fair to me, and I'm genuinely tired of feeling guilty for existing on my own terms.
u/Dravionex
I finished Piranesi last night and I’m still not sure I know what to do with myself. I picked it up because people kept calling it short and beautiful, which usually makes me suspicious, but this one actually got me.
The weird thing is, I didn’t love it because of the mystery. I did want answers, obviously, but after a while I cared way more about the House than about what was “really” happening. The statues, the tides, the birds, the way Piranesi keeps records like everything deserves to be noticed. It made me slow down without meaning to.
I think I’ve gotten used to reading fantasy like I’m trying to finish a quest log. Who is lying, where is the magic system going, what is the big reveal, who is secretly royal, etc. This book made that feel kind of silly for a minute. Not bad, just noisy.
Now I keep trying to start other books and bouncing off them because the opening chapters feel like they’re grabbing me by the collar. I’m sure that’s not fair to those books, but my brain is still wandering around those flooded halls.
Has anyone else had a book mess with their reading pace like this? And if you have recommendations for fantasy that feels quiet, strange, and patient, I’d love them.