New Slains Castle, George Smiley, Immersive Hobbit, Visit Slovenia & More: Endnotes 16 January

Every Friday, we celebrate the weekend — and all the reading and relaxing and daydreaming time ahead — with Melissa's favorite book- and travel-related links of the week. Why work when you can read fun stuff?!

This post is part of our Endnotes series.

The Romantic ruin above is New Slains Castle, perched on a clifftop above Cruden Bay in Scotland. Although Bran Castle in Romania claims the title of Dracula’s castle, some people believe that New Slains Castle is what inspired Bram Stoker’s description of Dracula’s lair. (The castle is specifically mentioned in two other novels by Stoker: The Watter’s Mou’ and The Mystery of the Sea.) Stoker regularly visited Cruden Bay between 1892 and 1910 — and began writing Dracula there in 1895, perhaps whilst enjoying a tea or a wee dram at the Kilmarnock Arms. The castle ruins are now open to the public for a ramble along the seacoast; this video offers a nice walk-through. You might also enjoy this nifty 25-second video that illustrates what Slain’s Castle looked like in its heyday — and I urge you to treat yourself to this video from Scotland Unplugged for both the interesting content and the charmingly rich Scottish accent of the narrator. If you’d like to visit Slain’s Castle on the page, get swept up in The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley. It’s a novel of breathless intrigue, passionate dalliances, political rebellion, and swashbuckling adventure in 18th-century Scotland, featuring two unforgettable women with a core of steel beneath their velvet and silks.

• Cannot wait to read the entirety of Tillie Walden’s new graphic novel Charity & Sylvia, the true story of an ‘openly Lesbian couple [who] survives and thrives in 19th-century Vermont. Treat yourself to this sneak peek at Drawn & Quarterly.

• If you’re looking for a reading project to deepen your bookish life in 2026, here are 70 (!) reading lists for your ‘personal curriculum.’ Each recommendation includes three primary titles, a secondary recommendation, and a related movie or play across seven themes: Fantasy, myth, and folklore; Spirituality; Horror; Art; Psychology; Music, and Sex and the body.

• When I heard about these classics-inspired Dior totes, I scrunched my nose in judgment, but I have to admit, the Madame Bovary handbag is super cute. (If you have a spare $3k knocking around, I would never say no to such a gift.)

• The delightful Slightly Foxed podcast dedicated a recent episode to Dick Francis, excellent mystery writer, jockey, and human.

• This may be an unpopular opinion, but wow! I really do not like this bookshel. (Am I wrong? Sound off in comments.)

• A deep dive into specific nerdom can be irresistible. Exhibit A: This incredibly detailed exploration of the calendar in Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey.

• Why not?! 8 Reasons to Visit Germany in 2026. The beautiful photos make a very strong case for their assertion.

• Or maybe Slovenia! Discovering the Alpine Delights of Slovenia’s Idyllic Countryside. Can confirm that the capital Ljubljana, Lake Bled, and the countryside are stunningly pretty and welcoming — great food, too!

• What a charming idea! Travel modern railways with a Victorian guidebook in hand. ‘The trains around Europe won’t be old-world sleeper cars… but rather high-speed trains that cut the need for overnight journeys down to a matter of hours. You can, however, still use your copy of Bradshaw’s to trace a historic route across the Continent because there are many historic places recommended in the 1888 guide still operating.’

• ‘I never liked Wuthering Heights as much as Jane Eyre’. Click through for more from Sarah Moss on her reading life.

• I surrender; I am now eagerly awaiting the release of Emerald Fennell’s adaptation of Wuthering Heights. This piece from Vogue on the costumes is very exciting (and the creativity is really inspiring).

• Sorta related: Defining Gothic: A brief introduction to Gothic art and literature. (And here’s my take on Gothic literature.)

• Discuss: Forget Bond, the Understated George Smiley Is Fiction’s Greatest Spy.

• This is a beautifully produced multimedia piece — essay, photos, video — about exploring the snow line near Vancouver. It as everything: nature, childhood, parenthood, pathos, joy.

• 6 Snowy Historic American Hotels to Embrace This Winter. Excellent places to visit the snow and rest your head in Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona.

• Is this the perfect lamp for writers and readers?!

• The fantastic Rosenbach Museum in Philadelphia is hosting a biblioventure to Middle Earth with The Hobbit. Episodes stream live on Mondays, January 26 through April 27, 7:00-9:00 pm ET, with the recordings available to watch on the Rosenbach’s YouTube channel. ’Host Edward G. Pettit and a rotating group of Tolkienian cohosts will have our usual Biblioventures conversational annotation each week, chapter by chapter, providing context and insight about the author, the characters, and this brilliantly conceived fantasy story.’ (Previous bibioventures include Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Dracula, The Pickwick Papers, and Sherlock Holmes stories.)

• Do you know about DEAR? (I did not! But I’m excited to have learned there’s a name for what I’ve been doing most days this winter.)

• Historia, the magazine of the Historical Writers’ Association, recommends Historical Books to Look Out for in 2026.

Wishing you a 5-star read this month to start 2026 right.

Top image courtesy of Martin Bennie/Unsplash.