Just finished Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson (spoilers)
What a deliciously weird book. This was my first Jackson novel, and I know it's one of her less popular ones. But I have to say that she did a stellar job of creating an environment that felt extremely uncanny and uncomfortable.
From the outset I was confused reading this, unsure of what was actually going on. The first scene that really unsettled me was near the beginning when Natalie's parents threw a party. Everything about it just felt plain wrong. The mom upstairs locked in her room, the dad groping another woman, and Natalie being led into the woods by a stranger, presumably assaulted. Really horrifying.
Then we get to the college and things aren't right there either. The professor is drinking with his students, inviting them over, while being married to an ex student himself. The whole novel just feels predatory and gross. Jackson brilliantly captures the inner mind of a girl trying to make sense of a world that feels sinister. Also Natalie's dad gave off major bad vibes.
Tony shows up and things get weirder. The college setting that grounded the story is stripped away, and bizarre liminal cityscapes appear, as well as abandoned theme parks, labyrinth-like forests....
I will need to reread this one. As someone who has dealt with pretty severe depersonalization/derealization in the past, this book captured that feeling so well. Really loved it.
Interested to hear your thoughts too!