THIS WEEK IN REFLECTION OMG IT’S OCTOBER!!!
Strap into your bras, because the horror holiday is upon us! That’s right, my pets: Halloween. For the entire month of October, I shall be reviewing horror fiction from the 70’s, 80’s, and 20’s…that is, the 2020’s. (Okay, that was weird to write). I can feel some of you sigh from here (ahem, Bill), but I chose a variety of subgenres to tempt you:
- surviving your own slasher scenario
- a girl who wills herself to become a vampire with her rage
- an insidious auctioneer
- a clown in a cornfield
- demons in suburbia
- Lucy from Dracula and Bertha from Jane Eyre meet up in 1970’s Hollywood
- and infected creatures that may not be monstrous
Better still, plan on me yammering about the movies I watch throughout the month, too, including the newly-released My Best Friend’s Exorcism, based on the novel by Grady Hendrix. I’m even organizing a game for my ASL class based on famous horror villains and their pretend dating profiles.
THIS WEEK’S BLOG POST
Thank you so much to Shelia Lamb for sharing her journey writing and publishing and rewriting and republishing her Brigid trilogy. I truly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone interested in history but who is fine with a little magical addition to elevate the pagans of Éire. Yes, there is an element of Saint Patrick meets pagans, which I found intriguing. In particular, I recall the marriage of two individuals from enemy groups to create peace, and what a fraught relationship that was (I got all entangled in it), and the use of herbal potions to help the community. Check out a sample here.
NEXT WEEK’S BLOG POST
It’s so easy to stare at the TV and holler at the characters in a horror movie, demanding they go out the front door instead of up the stairs, stay out of the woods, quit smoking that weed, etc. But what if you were a horror fan who ended up in a situation that is basically the plot of a slasher? Would you do all the right things? Check out my review of the brand-new novel How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine on Wednesday.
BOOKS ADDED TO THE TBR PILE
Owned Books on TBR at Beginning of Year: 202
Owned Books on TBR Last Week: 194
Owned Books on TBR Today: 195 (I ordered two books about ASL linguistics!)
Thank you to Nikki from the Huntsville Horror group for her recommendation!
Grab the Lapels 
I don’t know, you Americans! I just had my weekly letter from my Californian friend and what does she mention but Halloween! And that’s at the end of the month folks. You don’t HAVE to talk about it now you know, haha! (BTW her reference was that the weather has been so warm it’s only Halloween decorations around that remind her it really is Fall (or autumn, to us).
Anyhow, I may not engage with all your posts given my busyness here but I’ll try to open my mind at least far enough to read the posts. I did love your comment about hollering at the TV to characters to not go up the stairs or into the woods, etc. My some characters on TV are stupid aren’t they. My examples are usually crime where instead of fessing up to something minor right at the beginning they dig themselves in deeper and deeper usually from some misjudged sense of protecting someone else or whatever. SO, I holler a bit too.
Enjoy your month!
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It must be toasty in California, because it’s lovely fall weather here in Indiana: cold nights, breezy days, squash and mums all around. I hope to decorate the house today, if I have time. I’m doing some homework.
I tried to choose a variety of horror works that are sometimes less horror and more atmospheric. I like old and new works, and sometimes those old ones are more scary in the way the Daphne du Maurier can make me shudder and less scary like someone with a hook for a hand.
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I believe it is, in SoCal at least.
I’ll let you know what I think about your horror.
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Best opening line I’ve read on a blog in years. Thank you! Once I stopped laughing I was left sad because I am too wimpy to read horror. Yet, I can watch some degree of it, as proved by my binging Dahmer right now. I may not be able to read anything you discuss, but I’ll definitely be back for the reviews.
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Hi, Catherine, and welcome! I’m not sure to what extent each of these books will be actually scary, so perhaps there will be one for you. I also watch a variety of horror movies. Some of the old atmospheric ones are wonderful, like The City of the Dead from 1960, with Christopher Lee, Patricia Jessel, and Venetia Barlow.
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I wish you joy of all your October reading and watching! As you know horror’s not for me, but I might try and join in a little by watching the film adaptation of Picnic at Hanging Rock, which I’ve been meaning to get to for months now. Seems like the season for it!
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And I still have Picnic at Hanging Rock on my TBR thanks to your review. It sounds subtly spooky.
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Very subtle. Totally atmospheric. The first movie I ever took Millie to, at the local drive in, in my lovely coupe (Holden Monaro HK 186). Didn’t pay Millie any attention at all, I was too engrossed in the movie.
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You are just a hoot. And here Milly probably shaved her legs and everything just meet up with you.
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Your exuberance is delightful! Someone on the next block from me began decorating at the beginning of September. They went big right from the start with a giant 10 foot skeleton anchored to the big maple tree in the front yard. And after that, every day or so, the smaller skeletons began to assemble. I bike by the house every morning but now it’s too dark for me to see their yard, which makes me kind of sad because it made me smile every time.
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It’s like the big skeleton is engaging in mitosis on a bony level. Are you going to decorate? Think about the people who will bicycle by your yard and feel joy!
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We used to decorate but haven’t for years because we never got more than 5 kids at our door so the decorating seemed pointless 😦 Halloween in my area has turned into kids going only to the houses of family and friends, or trick-or-treating at the nearby Mall of America where it is indoors and no one has to deal with the weather or wear coats over or under their costumes. There are some neighborhoods that get loads of kids, even big groups that drive in from elsewhere, but mine is not one of them. So we no longer decorate and leave our porch light turned off, which makes me sad every year.
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That’s a bummer. I have no clue what the trick or treating situation is like at our house, as this is our first Halloween in it. I might text the neighbor and ask if she’s going to send her kids over, then I’ll get something for them.
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I hope you get lots of trick-or-treaters!
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Horror isn’t for me sorry – I am far too squeamish. We’re watching a drama series right now which is set in the gynaecological/obstetrics dept of a hospital. We have to keep looking away when they enter the theatre all togged up in masks and gowns.
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Ooooh, science horror is definitely scary, especially if you imagine what people actually used to endure. Just think, in 20 years I’ll be surprised at what I let my doctor do to me.
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I AM READY FOR ALL OF THIS. Bring on October, baby!
I did not end up watching My Best Friend’s Exorcism last night. Moth distracted me on Discord. I will try again for tonight after schoolwork!
That dating game sounds hilarious, and I cannot wait to see how that plays out.
Did you decorate on Saturday? I haven’t yet, gotta bust out those decorations this week.
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I decorated late Sunday night, I had a lot less stuff than I thought I did, but that’s okay. We don’t decorate outside, just the living room, basically. I need to get some of those battery-operated tea light candles, too.
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It’s still so warm and dry here, it doesn’t feel like October at all! Is it really Halloween if you don’t have to find a way to include gumboots in your costume so you can trick-or-treat in the rain??
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And a coat to cover up the entire costume, lol. It used to be like that when I was a kid. Now, October is fairly hot.
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Haha, yes, the coat too! It’s often nice here until around Thanksgiving but generally by Halloween it’s starting to be pretty cold in the evenings and rain is more the norm than not.
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I recall both snow and whipping rain on different Halloween’s. Now they don’t even do Halloween when it’s dark. The city sets the time limits here.
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What time does it get dark for you? I feel like that would cut us off too early? And how does the city enforce that? I haven’t heard of a time limit around Halloween! I’m imagining police officers arresting tiny children dressed as cats and princesses who dare to trick-or-treat at dusk!
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It’s really about safety. Is it light enough that drivers can see children? Basically, that. It’s not about getting people into trouble. In a way, it lets you know when to expect trick-or-treaters, too. It’s always earlier than I want it to be, but I’d also have alive children in the daylight hours. I grew up in a rural area, so my mom just drove us around and stopped at each house. Homeowners knew we were there because there were headlights!
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Ok, that makes sense. I was picturing cops appearing as soon as the sun set, out there fining trick-or-treaters, and I was thinking, “Wow, America’s wild!” Here you kind of get 2 waves. Little kids before dinner who start while it’s still light and then older kids who come after dark. Our neighbourhood is more suburban so I think people basically know to drive really carefully or avoid it. People from more rural parts will come here so they can walk around.
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I remember trick-or-treating on foot in cul-de-sacs, or really well-lit neighborhoods, and that was fine, too. No, we did not go wild west, lol.
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And by Thanksgiving, I mean Canadian Thanksgiving which is early October!
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I’m so glad you clarified, because I assumed for a hot minute that your weather was just totally wacky!
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We decorated for Halloween around Sept 23 and that feels right for me. My son is into it which is fun. I love spooky stuff (with limits) but don’t care for horror, but definitely will be reading along with your reviews! Happy October!
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Some of my reviews are for funny books, or more atmospheric. If you have any questions to narrow down whether a book is for you, please ask!
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My spooky reading for the month is beginning too! But, I’m still catching up on posting my old reviews, so it may be awhile until you see it haha
So does R.L Stine typically blurb books? I was shocked to see his endorsement there. Can’t wait to see your movie AND book reviews this month!
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I think R.L. Stine ends up on a lot of YA novels, and How to Survive Your Murder is YA. Stine has a whole series of YA books himself, beyond the children’s Goosebumps books.
Are you decorating at all? Do the kids have costumes yet?
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We just decorated yesterday (Thanksgiving here) and we are in the midst of costume brainstorming. My daughter wants to be a witch and my son wants to be a pirate LOL
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Awww, little cuties. Does she want to be a “good witch” or a “bad witch”? (Of course I can hear Glenda in my head, lol)
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hmmm you know it’s never come up? Just ‘witch’ but her costume (my husband took them to the thrift store to put them together) entails a long purple dress, black coat and hat, and black boots. Oh, and a sparkly black necklace with a black cape, so perhaps we are leaning towards ‘bad’ witch
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Awwww, she’s Fashion Witch.
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Eeps, a lovely month for you but not for me, if I skip away for the month, know that I’m happy you’re happy but can’t read about horror! Have fun and see you in November …
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Ok, Liz! I shall picture you as a burrito in a blanket, totally happy, full of joy. See you in the frosty fall!
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