Vocabulary List #6

Beatitude- Supreme blessedness

bete noire (anathema)- someone or something which is particularly disliked or avoided; an object of aversion, the bane of one’s existence.

Bode- Be an omen of a particular outcome; announce beforehand

Dank- unpleasantly damp, musty, and typically cold

Ecumenical- general; universal; Promoting or relating to unity among the world's Christian churches

Fervid- Intensely enthusiastic or passionate; heated or vehement in spirit or enthusiasm. 

Fetid- Smelling extremely unpleasant or having an offensive odor

Gargantuan- gigantic; enormous; colossal:

Heyday- The period of a person's or thing's greatest success, popularity, vigor, strength, or success; an exclamation of cheerfulness, surprise, wonder

Incubus- A male demon believed to have sexual intercourse with sleeping women; a cause of distress or anxiety like a nightmare

Infrastructure- the basic, underlying framework or features of a system or organization

Inveigle- to acquire, win, or obtain by beguiling talk or methods

Kudos- Praise and honor received for an achievement  

Lagniappe- Something given as a bonus or extra gift.

Prolix- Using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy

Protégé- a person under the patronage, protection, or care of someone interested in his or her career or welfare

Prototype- the original or model on which something is based or formed

sycophant-A person who acts obsequiously toward someone in order to gain advantage; a servile flatterer

tautology- A phrase or expression in which the same thing is said twice in different words

truckle- to submit or yield obsequiously or tamely; A small barrel-shaped cheese

Vocabulary List #5

acumen (noun)- keen insight.
adjudicate (verb)- to settle or determine.
anachronism (noun)- something or someone that is not in its correct historical time.
apocryphal (adj)- of doubtful authorship or authenticity. 
disparity (noun)- inequalityThere will always be disparity of wealth within this society.
dissimulate (verb)- to disguise or conceal under a false appearance.
empirical (adj)- derived from or guided by experience or experiment
flamboyant (adj)- strikingly bold or brilliant; showy
fulsome (adj)- offensive to good taste, especially as being excessive;overdone or gross
immolate (verb)- to sacrifice
imperceptible (adj)- very slight, gradual, or subtle.
lackey (noun)- a servile follower
liaison (noun)- a person who initiates and maintains such a contact or connection. 
monolithic (adj)- consisting of one piece; solid or unbroken
mot juste (noun)- the exact, appropriate word 
nihilism (noun)- total rejection of established laws and institutions.
patrician (noun)- a person of noble or high rank; aristocrat. 
propitiate (verb)- to make favorably inclined; appease; conciliate.
sic (verb)-to incite to attack 
sublimate(adj)-to make nobler or purer

Vocabulary #4

apostate: a person who forsakes his religion, cause, party, etc.
effusive: unduly demonstrative; lacking reserve.
impasse: a position or situation from which there is no escape.
euphoria: a state of intense happiness and self-confidence.
lugubrious: mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner.
bravado: a pretentious, swaggering display of courage.
consensus: majority of opinion
dichotomy: division into two parts
constrict: to slow or stop the natural course or to contract or shrink
gothic: noting or pertaining to a style of architecture, originating in France in the middle of the 12th century and existing in the western half of Europe through the middle of the 16th century, characterized by the use of the pointed arch and the ribbed vault, by the use of fine woodwork and stonework, by a progressive lightening of structure, and by the use of such features as flying buttresses, ornamental gables, crockets, and foils.
punctilio: a fine point, particular, or detail, as of conduct, ceremony, or procedure.
metamorphosis: a complete change of form, structure, or substance, as transformation
raconteur to tell
sine qua non: an indispensable condition, element, or factor; something essential
quixotic: extravagantly chivalrous or romantic; visionary, impractical, or impracticable
vendetta: any prolonged and bitter feud, rivalry, contention
non sequitur: an inference or a conclusion that does not follow from the premises.
mystique: a framework of doctrines, ideas, beliefs, or the like, constructed around a person or object, endowing the person or object with enhanced value or profound meaning
quagmire: anything soft or flabby
parlous: perilous; dangerous

First AP Book

I am choosing to read Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevski.
This book looks very interesting to me about how someone commits a murder and then they try and get out of it. It just caught my eye with the title.