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Berenice

Berenice is a gothic short story by Edgar Allan Poe, centering on obsession and psychological torment as the narrator fixates on his cousin’s teeth, culminating in a macabre and unsettling revelation.

Alpha Nocturne's Contracted Mate

“Fuck, Ada…”“Brad...oh, fuck... deeper... harder!” Ada’s shrill voice begged between breathy moans.The banging of the headboard against the wall intensified as Ann froze. No... it couldn’t be!Ann took a deep breath and nudged the door a little more. Her chest felt like it would explode as she held her breath whilst the crack widened.When it revealed her sister lying underneath her husband-to-be, her hands flew to her mouth to stifle the gasp of horror as her heart shattered instantly.As Brad roared his release inside her sister, Ada turned her head towards the door with a smirk.An icy chill descended over Ann as if a bucket of ice water had been thrown over her and she stood and stared, her eyes wide and mouth slightly open in disbelief.Ada lifted her hand and waved in Ada’s direction with a smug smile plastered on her face as Brad collapsed on top of her, kissing her neck tenderly.Is there anything you can do if your mate had sex with your sister?

9.7

302 Chapters

BURNING PASSION: MY FORBIDDEN LOVER

Eighteen years old Marilyn Muriel is shocked on one beautiful summer by her mom when she brings in a strikingly, handsome young man and introduces him as her new husband. An instant unexplainable connection is formed between her and this Greek god as he secretly begins to cast various unwanted signals towards her. Marilyn soon finds herself going through various, irresistible sexual escapades with this charming, seductive fellow in the absence of her mom. What will be the fate or outcome of such an act and will her mom ever get to know the atrocity going on right under her nose?

9.6

115 Chapters

Barren Mother Give Birth To Sextuplets For The HOT CEO

Amy didn't expect that her husband whom she had loved and trusted earnestly for many years would be cheating on her by having sex with his secretary. When she confronted him, he and his secretary mocked and ridiculed her, they called her barren to her face, afterall, she had not conceived for the past three years that she had been married to her husband, Callan. Terribly Heartbroken, she filed for divorce and left to the club, she picked a random gigolo, had a hot one night stand with him, paid him and dissapeared to a small city. She came back to the country six years later with three identical cute boys and three identical cute girls of the same age. She settled and got a job but soon find out that her CEO was the gigolo she had sex with six years back at the club. Will she be able to hide her six little cuties from her CEO, who happens to be the most powerful man in NorthHill and beleived to be infertile? Can Amy and the most powerful man in NorthHill get along considering the social gap between them?

7.9

176 Chapters

An affair with my billionaire boss (seducing his maid)

A seductive boss and his maid…… Note: This book contains a lot of steamy scenes….. "What can I help you with, sir?" Quinn asked, trying very hard to make her voice sound steady. "Your sexy body," he replied. She couldn't believe that he had just said such a thing. "Sir Henry, how could you say such a thing to me?" She asked, with innocence. "You act too innocent Quinn. I'm glad I wasn't deceived by your innocent face, if not I wouldn't have gotten to feel how good you are in bed." (Indeed he was a shameless Boss) When a billionaire falls for his maid, what lengths must he go through, in order to make her his??? Using dubious means to get into her panties, does that make him the antagonist or the protagonist???? Read this interesting boss/maid affair story to find out more …..

8.7

148 Chapters

Accidental Surrogate for Alpha

After struggling with infertility for years and being betrayed by her lover, Ella finally decides to have a baby on her own. However everything goes wrong when she gets inseminated with the sperm of intimidating billionaire Dominic Sinclair. All of a sudden her life is turned upside down when the mix up comes to light -- especially because Sinclair isn't just any billionaire, he's also a werewolf campaigning to be Alpha King! He's not going to let just anyone have his pup, can Ella convince him to let her stay in her child's life? And why is he always looking at her like she's his next meal?! He couldn't be interested in a human, could he?

9.5

992 Chapters

Dangerous Desires

'I have waited for this moment. This very moment when you finally see me. Tonight I claim what is truly mine. Your heart, love, and body, Tia, just as it should be. Me and you." Luke Moon."I see you, Tia, I always have. I thought we had time, but I guess I was wrong. They took you away from me, but I will not give you up, Tia. I will fight for your love as I should have. Even though you are married to my brother, I will take you back," Caleb Moon.Tia Lockwood has had a crush on her friend, Caleb Moon, for most of her teen years. When Caleb's older brother, Luke, lost favour with their father because of his bad behaviour, Caleb had to train to take over from his father as the future Alpha of their pack. Tia sees this as an opportunity to remain close to her friend. She dumps her studies as a medical doctor to join the academy as a warrior hoping to finish as the strongest wolf and become Caleb's Beta when he assumes the Alpha position. Tia tried hard and finished second place, which qualified her for the Gamma position. It was close enough for her, and she hoped Caleb would eventually see her. Unfortunately for them, things take a turn when Tia is married to Caleb's older brother, Luke, and forced to bury her feelings for Caleb.Living in the same house with her husband and long time crush, would Tia eventually understand the difference between true love and infatuation?

9.8

346 Chapters

How Does Poe Build Suspense In 'Berenice'?

4 Answers2025-06-18 04:39:08

Poe crafts suspense in 'Berenice' through slow, creeping details that unsettle the reader. The narrator’s obsession with trivial things—like teeth—escalates unnaturally, making his fixation feel both absurd and terrifying. Poe’s signature unreliable narration plays a huge role; we can’t trust the protagonist’s sanity, so every word feels like a potential trap. The gothic atmosphere drips with dread: dim chambers, whispers of illness, and a marriage shadowed by decay.

Then there’s the pacing. Poe withholds key details, like Berenice’s fate, until the horror is unavoidable. The narrator’s disjointed thoughts mimic madness, leaving gaps for the reader’s imagination to fill with worse scenarios. When the truth about the teeth surfaces, it’s delivered with chilling matter-of-factness, amplifying the shock. The story’s power lies in what’s implied—the unspoken horrors lurking between lines.

What Mental Illness Does Egaeus Have In 'Berenice'?

4 Answers2025-06-18 13:47:37

Egaeus in 'Berenice' is plagued by a chilling blend of obsessive-compulsive disorder and what we'd now call morbid fixation. His mind latches onto trivial details—like Berenice’s teeth—with grotesque intensity, warping them into all-consuming obsessions. The story paints his illness as a descent: initially, he’s merely absorbed in abstract musings, but it spirals into violent compulsions, culminating in the infamous teeth collection. Poe’s genius lies in how he intertwines Egaeus’s madness with Gothic horror. The character doesn’t just suffer; he becomes a vessel for exploring how obsession erodes humanity.

Modern readers might also spot traits of schizophrenia in his disjointed narration, where reality and delusion blur. His fixation isn’t romanticized—it’s visceral, unsettling, and ultimately destructive. The tale predates clinical diagnoses, but Egaeus’s symptoms mirror real struggles, making his horror eerily relatable.

Is 'Berenice' Based On A True Story?

4 Answers2025-06-18 03:15:19

Edgar Allan Poe's 'Berenice' isn't based on a true story, but it's steeped in psychological dread that feels hauntingly real. Poe crafted this tale during his Gothic horror phase, drawing from his fascination with obsession and decay rather than historical events. The story's macabre twist—Egaeus’ fixation on Berenice’s teeth—mirrors 19th-century fears about mental illness, a theme Poe explored repeatedly. While no real-life Berenice or Egaeus existed, the story’s visceral horror resonates because it taps into universal anxieties: love warped into madness, the body betraying the mind.

Poe’s genius lies in making the unreal feel tangible. 'Berenice' borrows from Romantic-era tropes, like the unreliable narrator and buried secrets, but its originality is undeniable. The teeth motif might’ve been inspired by Poe’s wife Virginia’s tuberculosis (though this is speculative), adding a layer of personal tragedy. It’s fiction, yet its emotional brutality makes it eerily plausible—a hallmark of Poe’s best work.

Who Dies At The End Of 'Berenice'?

4 Answers2025-06-18 11:22:41

Edgar Allan Poe's 'Berenice' is a chilling tale where the narrator, Egaeus, descends into madness. Obsessed with Berenice's teeth, he fixates on them grotesquely. After she falls ill and is presumed dead, Egaeus, in a trance-like state, exhumed her body and removed her teeth. The horror climaxes when Berenice, still alive, awakens during this violation. Her death is implied—whether from the trauma or Egaeus’s actions, Poe leaves hauntingly ambiguous. The story’s power lies in its psychological horror, not graphic details. Egaeus’s unreliable narration twists reality, making Berenice’s fate even more unsettling.

The final lines reveal Berenice’s burial, but the narrator’s sanity is shattered. Did she die before the exhumation, or was she alive until his monstrous act? Poe’s ambiguity lingers like a shadow. The servants’ horrified reactions hint at the truth, yet Egaeus’s delusion obscures it. The story isn’t about who dies—it’s about how obsession obliterates humanity. Berenice’s death is a whisper, Egaeus’s guilt a scream.

What Is The Symbolism Of Teeth In 'Berenice'?

4 Answers2025-06-18 14:57:32

In 'Berenice', teeth become a grotesque symbol of obsession and the fragility of sanity. Egaeus fixates on Berenice’s teeth not as part of her beauty but as detached objects, mirroring his descent into monomania. The teeth, white and unblemished, contrast starkly with the decay of her illness, representing an unnatural purity that consumes him. Poe twists a mundane body part into something horrifying—a relic stripped of humanity. Their eventual removal mirrors Egaeus’s own psychological dismemberment, where love warps into morbid possession.

The teeth also symbolize the inevitability of decay, both physical and moral. Berenice’s wasting body contrasts with the enduring teeth, suggesting something unnatural in their preservation. Egaeus’s obsession reflects the Gothic trope of fetishizing death, where teeth become trophies of his derangement. Poe’s imagery forces readers to confront how fixation can distort reality, turning the ordinary into the monstrous. The teeth aren’t just symbols; they’re the physical anchors of a mind unraveling.