#90s teen thrillers

[thehorrormoviechick]

Idle Hands (1999)

[nighttimefrights]

A page from my book "Midnight Hunger: the Undying Curse" From the Nighttime Frights Series available only on Barnesandnoble.com

Midnight hunger - the undying curse: ( NightTime Frights Series #01) by Jason Edwin, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

[jimsmovieworld]

TEACHING MRS TINGLE- 1999 ⭐️⭐️

Leanne (Katie Holmes) wants to become valedictorian so she can get a scholarship to go to college. The only thing that stands in her way is her vicious old bag of a history teacher, Mrs Tingle (Helen Mirren).

Leanne and her friends go to Mrs Tingles house to reason with her but accidentally end up taking her hostage....

This film had a lot of elements that i can enjoy in a film but they didnt really come together or werent done well.

Was nice to see Katie Holmes and Molly Ringwald. Didnt find the dialogue that great and wasnt really bothered by the many scenes where the three main people go back and forth with Tingle.

The ending made no sense? Like ok Mrs Tingle admitted she wanted you to fail her class but you still abducted her and broke many laws, how did she still get the award?

Written and directed by Kevin Williamson.

[ogwnostalgia]

Just a quick tongue-in-cheek "how-to" video: Write a Classic Point Horror in 6 Easy Steps!

[stuffnonsenseandotherthings]

I've briefly mentioned this before but I'm falling head over heels in love with how Jojo is coding Mew as living in a entirely different GENRE to the rest of the characters in the series.

Ray, Boston, Top, Sand, and Nick? They're all inhabiting the same world/genre. It's a bit grimy, it's gritty, it's messy, the morals are (50 shades of) grey... it's a young adult TV series/movie at its most angsty and hormonal and the way they act and their story arcs reflect that.

But Mew?

Mew gets a voice over introduction:

Mew gets a "lead girl in a high school movie" wake up scene:

Mew gets a week long montage of the guy he likes trying to woo him, a grand gesture confession (which Sand even says outright it's like something out of a romance movie), TWO full dates (in the wakeboarding everyone is there but the camera focusses on the two "couples" Chueam/April and Top/Mew), and he EVEN gets an "I like reading, it takes me somewhere else" library scene:

All of these scenes are taken directly from the teen romances of the 90s, in fact they are literally some of the most key and recognisable scenes from any 90s teen romance worth their salt.

Mew doesn't just live in a different world to his friends, he's from a completely different genre.

@chicademartinica posted here about how Jojo is queering 90s erotic thrillers in Only Friends and I want to take that a bit further and say Jojo is actually going so far as to queer the 2 most popular representations of young adults in the 90s: the Cruel Intentionseque erotic thrillers AND uni/high school teen romance of She's All That fame.

Furthermore he's breaking down the barriers between the two. By having the two very different (also completely opposite) genres inhabit a single show, by blurring the boundaries between them, by having them leak into one another in a way their original creators never intended them too, Jojo is queering some of the most recognisable storytelling structures of some of the most popular forms of 90s media.

And now as an audience we get to sit back and watch what happens when the binary dissolves and it's probably going to be glorious chaos (followed by a deep sense of catharsis).

[veronasfilm]

sex scene discourse is bonkers because you assume the people rallying against them just watched a 90s erotic thriller when in reality it’s always some cw teen show where two characters kiss topless on a bed. 

[halflingkima]

I'm doing a reading challenge next month and one of the prompts is a rec from someone who doesn't read for fun. I live among a community of teachers, academics, and librarians, so I thought I'd ask the internet. (the social media poll prompt isnt on the list this time, so this feels like a legal loophole.)

I'm also not gonna read something like game of thrones or atomic habits, so here's what's on my 2024 tbr.

If you don't read for fun, what book should I read next month? If you do read for fun, you can also vote, how would I tell? (propaganda/synopses & covers under the cut)

There You Are: Octavian, a Black man, and Mina, a white woman, were childhood sweethearts in St. Louis, but grew estranged in adulthood. During the awakening of the Black Lives Matter movement, both are drawn back to their hometown as the record shop where they first fell in love in the 90s is closing. (I would like to read it because I have not read many Black stories involving the emergence/birth of the Black Lives Matter movement, which was a very formative time in my life.)

Mortal Follies: In an 1814 England full of fairies and sorcerers, Miss Mitchelmore attempts to enter society and is faced by a frustrating curse. Lady Landrake – who is rumored to have killed her family to inherit her title – may have the magic Miss Mitchelmore needs to survive. (I would like to read it because it's the first sapphic romance from my favorite romance author.)

Chain-Gang All-Stars: In a dystopian near-future where prison convicts star in reality-style television competition shows, two women – a couple – must fight each other for freedom. (I would like to read it because it seems like a unique approach to social-issue sci-fi, and I have not read many stories directly critical of the US prison system.)

Wordslut: A nonfiction linguistic exploration of how language has been used throughout the history of English to oppress, degrade, and subjugate women. (I would like to read it because I find linguistics fascinating, and I get very passionate about gender equality.)

Why Women Have Better Sex Under Socialism: A spirited, deeply researched exploration of why capitalism is bad for women and how, when done right, socialism leads to economic independence, better labor conditions, better work-life balance and even better sex. (I would like to read it because the author seems both extremely educated and funny, and I get very passionate about gender equality.)

The Pallbearers Club: Art started an after school club for volunteer pallbearers at poorly attended funerals, and makes a friend who seems fascinated by the resulting death that surrounds him. Strange things happen when this friend is around, but he brushes it off in the name of friendship. As an adult, Art is writing a memoir, attempting to make sense of everything that happened when they were teens; but this friend got her hands on the manuscript, and she has some notes. (I would like to read it because I have a deep fascination – perhaps obsession – with meta-texts, or books about books, or books involving books, particularly if they lean in a horror/thriller direction.)

10 Things That Never Happened: When Sam's boss Jonathan schedules a difficult meeting, Sam's nerves lead to him tripping and bumping his head – and then accidentally implying he's lost his memory. Faking amnesia started as a plan to avoid getting fired, but now Sam has to deal with Jonathan's guilt and figuring out how to break the truth to him. (I would like to read it because it's in the London Calling universe, which is my favorite books from my favorite romance author.)

Black Sun: In a high fantasy world, the celestial phenomenon of a solar eclipse aligns with the winter solstice. A cast of characters are poised at the start of a journey. (I would like to read it because I haven't read a Rebecca Roanhorse before.)

The Child Thief: A re-imagining of Peter Pan from the mind of the horror artist Brom. (I would like to read it because I love Peter Pan as a horror story, and I've not read a Brom book before.)

Maurice: As a young man in Edwardian England, Maurice struggles into adulthood, grappling with unrequited love and coming to terms with his homosexuality. (I would like to read it because I find the movie achingly beautiful, and I have seen quotations from this book that feel the same.)

White is for Witching: Twins Miranda and Eliot – along with their father Luc – mourn the loss of their mother Lily, who simply disappeared one day. The house is also unhappy, trapping visitors and forcing plants into overgrowth. Miranda is more attuned to the ghosts of women in the walls than she is to her brother & father, and one day, vanishes altogether. (I would like to read it because I've enjoyed other works by this author, and this one seems sufficiently spooky.)

[thequiver]

you got any indie comics recommendations?

OH BOY DO I

So some of these are educational graphic novels bc of who I am as a person but they're SUPER GOOD and you should still read them - but here's my list of recommendations in no particular order

Marie Curie: A Quest for Light (a graphic novel bio of the famous scientist that highlights her politics!)

Folklords (only 5 issues, does some really cool stuff with subverted fantasy tropes, Ansel is a cutie, 8/10)

The Magicians (this is based on the book series by Lev Grossman, and if you're familiar with the FX show you already know the premise, but it's VERY FUN and I like it so it's on here)

The Good Neighbors (this is more of a YA vibe and as the title suggests deals with fae nonsense, very fun)

Something is Killing the Children (some other comics go along with this one like House of Slaughter, all are in the horror genre, and it's a GREAT TIME if you're into that sort of thing)

Shubeik Lubeik (THIS IS A REALLY COOL BOOK ABOUT WISHES AND HOW THOSE WOULD LOOK IN A MORE REALISTIC CAIRO AND I LOVE IT SO MUCH)

Pixies of the Sixties (this is a period piece that deals with things like xenophobia and racism while also playing up the aesthetics of 1960s London and fairies)

Now Let Me Fly: A Portrait of Eugene Bullard (a graphic novel bio of the first African-American fighter pilot)

Little Monsters (a horror story about children vampires in a post apocalyptic setting)

Judas (yes, Iscariot, it's a really fascinating look at the Biblical figure)

Heavy Vinyl (wlw, late 90s record store, teen girl vigilante fight club- good times)

Grimm (based on the NBC show of the same name, there are other titles set in this world too, I'm very fond of this extremely trashy fairtytale-cop show mashup and how poorly it represents cops)

Godshaper (there's a god for every person, except one and he teams up with a god who doesn't have a person and together they travel around looking for a warm welcome and a paying rock gig)

Evita, the Life and Work of Eva Perón (a biography of the former Argentinian first lady)

Eat the Rich (a little bit like Knives Out)

Carmilla: The First Vampire (queer feminist murder mystery inspired by the gothic novel, Carmilla, and pulling from Chinese folklore)

Bone Parish (a necromantic horror story about the rich peddling drugs made with the ashes of the deceased)

Blue Book (true tales of ordinary people encountering the strange and impossible - ex. alien abductions)

Art Brut (equal parts police procedural, hyper-fantasy, and psychological thriller set on a backdrop of a trip through art history)

Aristotle (biography of the philosopher dealing with more than just his ideas)

Alienated (a story about having the power to change the world but not being ready to wield that power- more YA vibes but a good read for any age imo)

Abbott (and Abbott: 1973- a tabloid reporter investigates grisly crimes she knows the police have ignored and that she knows are occult in origin)

[booasaur]

Any new upcoming series with w/w?

Lol, I had a whole answer typed up and almost completed last night, I could only remember a few upcoming shows but added a bunch of ongoing and recent with descriptions and then the post editor hiccuped and removed most of it so I angrily went to sleep instead.

But maybe that was for the best, because this morning a video of upcoming f/f shows in April came out so now I can add a few more.

There's Dead Ringers, that show with Rachel Weisz playing twin gynecologists and since it's a genderbent adaptation of an existing movie we already know it's gonna be super messy. It would be pretty wild for Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies to not have some wlw and luckily it does, the trailer itself reveals a couple. Tiny Beautiful Things, with Kathryn Hahn and Sarah Pidgeon (Leah in The Wilds) playing her younger self, apparently Kathryn Hahn's character's daughter is queer. Slip is a kinda scifi, where a bored wife cheats on her husband and realizes every time she has sex with someone, she wakes up married to them. The show's about her trying to get back to her original life, and there are a series of different husbands, but also a few wives (also, the first "replacement" husband is played by Boorman's actor from Willow!). There are also the upcoming Thai dramas Be Mine, Reverse 4 You, and 23.5, as previously mentioned.

In terms of returning series coming back, there's the Disney cartoon The Owl House, getting its final ep. Single Drunk Female's second season is returning soon. It has a bi lead, and she did have a female love interest but it was pretty temporary compared to the will they/won't she has with the main character male love interest. Her Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor, also a very main character, is a lesbian, and she's married but her wife's actress is a regular on another show now so I dunno if she'll be back.

Welcome to Eden, a Spanish thriller about people trapped on an island with a cult, ended the first season on a major cliffhanger so it'll be exciting to see what happens now, though it feels like anyone could die so that's a bit nerve-wracking. It has a lot of different kinds of rep, f/f, m/m, trans, one of the gay guys is deaf too and it's a plot point that his boyfriend won't learn sign even though his friends have.

The Epix series From is a pretty well done horror series about people trapped in a town and who get hunted at night, it's more ominous and suspenseful than outright gory. It actually has three wlw, though one is mostly with one guy, the one who's engaged to a woman outside the town seems to be about to start a romance with another guy, and one is a teen who's crushing on the first woman, feels unrequited. I didn't know about any of them when I started, so they're a bonus, the show itself is rather compelling.

As for current shows, The Power (lol, get it, current) started last night on Prime, it's nice that after the misreading of Class of '07, this new show about girls does immediately have a wlw. Gap's already finished but it made such a splash, if you haven't watched, I'll mention it again. The other Thai drama, Show Me Love, is still airing. Fantasy Island is honestly kind of sweet, it feels like one of those '90s shows, episodic, bright colors and optimism, and great guest stars. One of the two leads, I'd say, or at least the second billed main, is queer.

We got our three firefighter shows, 9-1-1 with a solid (now) established relationship, Fire Country, a lesbian character but not much screentime, and of course Station 19, which is honestly winning me back in a huge way with their current storyline (if they land it).

Cop wlw update (why are there so many of them!): NCIS Hawai'i remains super cute, especially when Lucy is on, looks like Ayanna on Law & Order: Organized Crime got herself a new gf with a super hot voice, The Rookie: Feds still has Niecy Nash playing a super likable and bi lead. I couldn't stand the egregious copaganda in FBI: Most Wanted, and like, imagine how bad it'd have to be, when I can still watch all the rest of these shows, but Sheryll's still there, so. Sin Huellas (No Traces) has already finished but gets another mention for being as funny as it was, with a cute, hot couple at the center. Rabbit Hole's just started, but the initial antagonist/probable grudging ally's an FBI lady who within the first 10 minutes of the first ep dropped that she had a wife. Van der Valk has started its third season and though I'm gonna keep hoping Lucienne's INCREDIBLY hot ex from 2x03 returns, Lucienne, second billed, is plenty hot by herself. Ariana Guerra, who played the novitiate in Helstrom, has joined the second season of CSI: Vegas. Her character's bi and has a main character boyfriend but he seems like he'll most likely end up with a different character.

I'm not really going through these in any particular order, except combining the above two types, but let me just blow through the rest of the ongoing shows: the Canadian family comedy Run the Burbs has been quite sweet in how it's written the teen daughter, How I Met Your Father comes across as an old fashioned sitcom, except one of the characters is a lesbian. It's kind of fun in its familiarity and low stakes. I didn't expect to be as drawn into The Watchful Eye as I did, the trailer felt quite soapy and it was, at times, but all the nannies were great, and I ended up quite liking the f/f side couple. It's amazing what actual personalities can do. :o A Million Little Things is winding down its final season and Grace Park's character is engaged to Cameron Esposito's character so it feels pretty endgame at this point.

If you didn't watch or stopped watching Carnival Row because the main m/f relationship seemed so especially trite, you maaaay want to give it another look. I'm not nearly caught up with Bel-Air, but in the first season they wrote Ashley's sexuality really well, especially since she's so young. I'm sure you can't have missed my Perry Mason gifsets by now, but I can only reiterate what a great character Della Street is. One of the kids in Gotham Knights is bi (and her brother is trans!) but I'm not sure it's worth getting invested before cancellation. Unless the CW is only going to keep projects involving the Supernatural trio?

At this point, hoping everyone who's into wlw has at least tried Yellowjackets or is aware enough of it to know they don't want to try it. Las Pelotaris 1926 is a Spanish language historical drama about female athletes playing--well, the sport is basque pelota but if you need a reference point, it's like squash or racquetball. If you haven't yet caught up with RWBY, now would be an okay time. Lastly, I've still never watched any of Riverdale or even Choni clips, but its final season has just started and you know, I gotta respect the longevity of whatever they've been doing with them, however up and down they seem to have been, and perhaps this final season will be an up. From what I've seen on SM, they seem to get endgame soulmatey treatment more than any of the other ships and I can respect that.

Aside from the Thai dramas that might air after April and a few of the other shows that ended their seasons in March (or February in Gap's case), all of these have eps airing this month. After this year of cancellations, I think it's worth enjoying what we can, even as we acknowledge how much lead/main character rep and longevity we're losing. :o

[danger-jazz]

FACERIPPERS CHAPTER 1

Facerippers is a comic about nasty terrible teenagers stuck in detention on a friday night.

If you like Horror, Teen drama, Gore and specially 90's & 00's horror flicks, you might enjoy this one.

TW: Gore, Bullying, Slurs, Violence.

Reblogs are welcome!

You can also read everything I've posted so far on tapas, I'm currently finishing chapter 2.

[tiffsflickpicks]

pictured above: Thirteen (2003)

Drama

Dir. Catherine Hardwicke

“A lot of the time we feel that our lives the worst, but I think that if you looked in anybody else's closet, you wouldn't trade your shit for their shit.”

Mid-90s (2018)

Drama/Comedy

Dir. Jonah Hill

“No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world.”

Dead Poets Society (1989)

Comedy/Drama

Dir. Peter Weir

“I don’t know what kind of girl I am.”

Juno (2007)

Comedy/Romance

Dir. Jason Reitman

“We knew the girls were really women in disguise, that they understood love, and even death, and that our job was merely to create the noise that seemed to fascinate them.”

The Virgin Suicides (1999)

Romance/Thriller

Dir. Sofia Coppola

“I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?”

Stand By Me (1986)

Thriller/Adventure

Dir. Rob Reiner

“When you get older you realize that's kinda all life is. It's just a bunch of scribbles and dicks and, violence all in a void.”

Big Time Adolescence (2019)

Comedy/Drama

Dir. Jason Orley

“Women, they have minds, and they have souls, as well as just hearts. And they've got ambition, and they've got talent, as well as just beauty. I'm so sick of people saying that love is just all a woman is fit for. I'm so sick of it.”

Little Women (2019)

Romance/Drama

Dir. Greta Gerwig

“You have so much love to share with the world and so much life yet to live.”

Waves (2019)

Romance/Drama

Dir. Trey Edward Shults

“Don't you think maybe they are the same thing? Love and attention?”

Ladybird (2017)

Comedy/Drama

Dir. Greta Gerwig

“Can I Have 13 Beers To Go, Please?”

Superbad (2007)

Comedy/Teen

Dir. Greg Mottola

“Are we gonna be like our parents?”

The Breakfast Club (1985)

Comedy/Drama

Dir. John Hughes

“We accept the love we think we deserve”

The Perks of being a Wallflower (2012)

Romance/Drama

Dir. Stephen Chbosky

“As soon as you came out, you said, "Mom, I'm still me." I need you to hear this: You are still you, Simon”

Love, Simon

Comedy/Romance

Dir. Greg Berlanti

“I can’t believe it. They forgot my fucking birthday.”

Sixteen Candles (1984)

Comedy/Romance

Dir. John Hughes

“You know, you don't always get the dream house, but you get awfully close.”

13 going on 30 (2004)

Comedy/Romance

Dir. Gary Winick

[nighttimefrights]

Dear Friends,

I grew up devouring 90s horror books, and it breaks my heart that these amazing stories have faded into obscurity. But guess what? I'm on a mission to resurrect that classic nostalgia and the jaw-dropping artwork we all loved.

Available now at BarnesandNoble.com

I'm writing a series of ( One book per month! ) that will transport us back to those spine-tingling days. It's time to bring back the thrill, the chills, and the excitement that made our hearts race. Join me on this radical journey to relive the scares and keep the legacy alive!

Stay spooky,

Your friend ~Jason Edwin

Direct Link to book: Midnight hunger - the undying curse: ( NightTime Frights Series #01) by Jason Edwin, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

[silverslipstream]

writeblr intro!

Well, hello there! Welcome to my page! Thought I'd finally get around to writing and pinning an intro, seeing as my writeblr recommendations post has gone STRATOSPHERIC and I've followed so many new accounts!

I'm Jeb (he/him), 20 years old, and an aspiring writer, poet and disaster dork from New Zealand (who currently lives in the UK - England, to be more precise). I'm a huge lover of writing and reading science fiction works, particularly hard sci-fi - Arthur C. Clarke's Space Odyssey series and his novel The Songs of Distant Earth were the works that inspired a young me to start taking writing seriously. I also write fanfiction, romance, horror, a smidgen of fantasy, spy fiction... whatever takes my fancy, basically! I also love writing and reading poetry, and hope to have some of my poems published professionally by the end of 2023!

Outside of writing, I'm a huge motorsport lover. Formula One is my main passion, and in fact I originally joined tumblr to post about my then-WIP, The Edge Of Control. TEOC may be in cryogenic storage, but my love of speed and high-octane racing remains: I regularly watch F1, IndyCar and the World Endurance Championship. I also love spaceflight, astronomy, Shakespeare, teen movies from the 80s/90s (ESPECIALLY John Hughes' work), many cheesy romcoms and lasagna. (What? It's literally the perfect food!)

Right, now with all that out of the way, let's get onto the real good stuff... (sorry in advance for the lack of taglists, I haven't remembered how they work!)

links to my work:

jebberjabber on AO3 (my main account, for fanfiction) degnercurve130R on AO3 (for F1/racing works) KesslerCascade on Wattpad (for original works)

works-in-progress

You Can't Take It Back Now!

type: fanfiction (fandom: Bittersweet Candy Bowl, Webcomic) genre: romance (of the sapphic, friends-to-lovers variety) summary: Sue and Amaya have been best friends ever since they met in second grade. They're proudly inseparable, but when a secretive confession from Amaya turns into a sudden kiss from the assuredly-straight Sue, everything changes. Can they navigate their friendship while dealing with their rampant emotions? Is it just drama, or did Sue have more investment into their kiss than she let on? status: six chapters currently complete, with two published on AO3! Bi-weekly updates planned. link: You Can't Take It Back Now! on AO3

White Sky

type: original work genre: hard science fiction/mystery/thriller summary: It's 2094, and the Earth-Luna Treaty Organisation (ELTO) is planning the upcoming 125th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. Meanwhile, Katarina 'Kat' Lloyd, a reclusive scientist, is framed for a crime she didn't commit and forced into outer space. Seeking refuge aboard the cislunar debris hauler Dowager Caroline, Kat and the Caroline's motley crew discover that her framing was simply a cog in a much bigger plot - one with dire consequences for mankind... status: currently in the planning stage, rough draft established and plot outline written

works published on Tumblr:

An Acquired Taste - In a post-cyberpunk/solarpunk imagining of 22nd-century New Seoul, a corporate engineer makes a chance meeting with a street vendor and makes an important discovery.

Executive Decisions - In an alternate history where the Cold War went hot, a US Air Force nuclear-bomber crew face a moral dilemma as they near their Soviet target. Operation Trident - A soldier experiences a combat drop on the Belgian coast, as part of an ongoing human offensive against an alien occupation force. Ignition Sequence - An experiment with a second-person perspective where the watcher observes a Space Shuttle launch in Florida.

[hpowellsmith]

July Books

I can't remember when I last did one of these but as I ended up reading a lot this month, here it is! Bolded are my favourites.

Saturnalia - Stephanie Feldman: a near-future alchemical horror? thriller? in which a former fortune-teller who was ousted from an occultist club gets dragged into her old life. I happened to spot this in the library and enjoyed it quite a bit.

Nothing But Blackened Teeth - Cassandra Khaw: a horror novella about rich young people going to a haunted manor house for a wedding, badness ensues. I liked the messy relationships in this and some of the horror elements, but there were some quippy moments that weren't so much my thing: I felt they undercut the tension in a less-fun way.

Vivi Conway and the Haunted Quest - Lizzie Huxley-Jones: second in an adorable kids' series based on Welsh mythology. I loved the first one and enjoyed this one more: it felt tighter and more driven as Vivi has embraced her magical connection to Nimue and the group of pals is a solid team. Lots of good creepy moments and lovely straightforward moments showing and discussing disability, neurodivergence, and queerness. Perfect for kids (I read it to my child for bedtime); a cute read for adults too.

Nevada - Imogen Binnie: weird that this is known as a classic trans book when it's only 11 years old, but that's a whole other thing. Maria is a trans woman in Brooklyn who's perhaps too online for her own good and struggling with her relationships and workplace. She heads out on an unwise road trip. I liked this a lot: it's very much a book about messy early-20s screwups and it felt very human.

Gender Failure - Ivan E Coyote and Rae Spoon: memoirs from two performers about growing up and transitioning. I enjoyed learning more about the authors (I wasn't familiar with them before) but the choppy style was a bit too choppy for my liking and resulted in some repetitiveness in phrasing/subject that could have been smoothed out a bit.

Boys Weekend - Mattie Lubchansky: a graphic novel about Sammie, a transfem nonbinary artist's assistant who attends a stag weekend with their techbro friends on a libertarian-paradise island on which sinister techbro cults are lurking. I enjoyed this a great deal, it was very funny in places, and pretty heartbreaking in others.

Small Beauty - jia qing wilson-yang: a Canadian trans woman is grieving her cousin, and moves into his old, remote house on the edge of a small town while learning more about their family and loved ones, as well as herself. It's an unassuming sort of book, but it packs a punch and stands up for itself. The magical realist moments were lovely. I keep thinking about it every so often: it was pretty lovely, and moving.

Cuckoo - Gretchen Felker-Martin: queer teenagers in the 90s go through the harrowing experience of a wilderness conversion camp, while also trying to escape an entity that wears their skin, returns to the outside world as "perfect" teens, and infests others. This was a really tough read thanks to the intense, ongoing abuse the characters suffer and the unflinchingly awful horror scenes. I couldn't put it down.

Darryl - Jackie Ess: this dramedy? tragicomedy? was a nice palate cleanser after the intensity of Cuckoo. Darryl's a bit of a sad sack in his forties, despite his easy trust-fund lifestyle his life has become stagnant and he's exploring being cuckolded, his own queerness, and the BDSM scene. I just loved Darryl's voice in this: he's such an anxious doofus and I couldn't help but enjoy how silly he, and a lot of the story, was while also having genuine moments of emotion and compassion.

[keplercryptids]

Queer Books for Spooky Season!

i have read and enjoyed all of these, and have organized them in such a way that makes sense to me and hopefully peaks your interest! most are straight-up horror, but some just have horror / spooky themes.

[please note, not all these books have overtly queer characters / relationships, but are included because they have queer authors and/or queer characters, plots or themes. don’t want people to go into any of these books expecting romance.]

Spooky & Sapphic

The Locked Tomb series by Tamsyn Muir. everyone on tumblr knows about this series. it’s a science-fantasy, it’s got lesbian necromancers in space, it’s got mysteries and intrigue, and i would describe it as a “fun” read but please know my idea of fun includes body horror, grief and spooky vibes.

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling. the vibes of this one are off the charts. story is told from the perspective of a lone caver on a foreign planet, as she communicates with her dive suit’s handler. it’s tense and suspenseful, lots of survival-fiction vibes, and it’s exactly how i want characters to flirt: via coms only, as one fights for their life.

Yellow Jessamine by Caitlin Starling. this one’s a weird little gothic novella about a shipping magnate who’s confined to her creepy estate as a mysterious plague runs rampant through the city.

Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca. this novella is told via early-2000s chat logs and emails between two women as they develop one of the most unnerving relationships i’ve ever read. gross things happen! this one’s polarizing! but i loved it so much. absolutely unhinged vibes.

Parasites, but Goth

Leech by Hiron Ennes. most of this book is told from the POV of a parasitic hivemind called the Institute, which uses host bodies to act as physicians for the rest of society in a post-apocalyptic, gothic setting. and it gets weirder from there. it’s an honestly quite beautiful exploration of bodily autonomy, identity, and trauma.

What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher. this is a retelling of the fall of the house of usher, and includes a spooky manor, fungal parasites, possessed wildlife, and the exact kind of unsettling atmosphere that i love in a horror book.

Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon. this story follows a teen mother who’s escaped from a cult and is now undergoing a fungal metamorphosis in the forest. big thriller/survival vibes and some truly excellent commentary about oppression, trauma and societal secrets.

Could Vampirism be Gayer? (yes, actually)

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson. "dracula’s polycule” is what sold me on this book, and while yes, it’s got polyamorous vampires, the heart of the story is about the dynamics of an abusive relationship, with a strong thread of hope throughout.

The Route of Ice and Salt by José Luis Zárate, transl. by David Bowles. i’m not usually one to categorize a book as Important (TM) but this novella definitely is that. it was originally published in the 90s by a mexican author, and it’s a reimagining of dracula’s voyage to england from the POV of the captain, a closeted gay man full of queer yearning. this book is beautiful and painful and challenging and yes, important. it’s also horny as hell so like, you’ve been warned lol. only recently has it been made available in english, too!

Science as Horror

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey. a short novel about a woman who’s recently separated from her husband, who in turn started a relationship with a clone of her. loved the character exploration in this, and it’s definitely got mystery/thriller vibes if you’re into that.

You’ve Lost a Lot of Blood by Eric LaRocca. this is a vibe-heavy, kind of trippy novella which features a story-within-a-story. don’t want to give away too much of the plot here because it’s a wild ride.

and finally, here’s some honorable mentions, at the end here because i didn’t love them. but you might!

Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey (haunted house personified, exploration of dysfunctional family)

The Seep by Chana Porter (post-apocalyptic quest)

Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant (killer mermaids)

Nothing but Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw (creepy mansion, corpse bride)

[tidalpools]

hi hi 👋 do you have any favorite movies? :]

hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i have many lets go through some.

after yang is a major favorite. kinda one of the first i think of. combines very subtle scifi elements and really cool worldbuilding with a meaningful message. like honestly one of the better a24 movies im sorry. makes me feel a lot and combines a bunch of things i love and find touching or significant.

going to say princess mononoke because ive been thinking about it an insane amount recently and im very excited to see it in theaters soon. so heavily focused on environmentalism and colonialism and its just really gorgeous. i think about ashitaka and his curse a lot actually. also reminds me so much of mushishi which is a fave anime of mine and i feel like its has the same underlying themes of shintoism BUT ive only watched it twice so i cant say for SURE. lovely lovely

going to say another is totally fucked up. very of its time fake documentary following a bunch of gay teens in the 90s. i think andy in this movie is particularly relatable and gregg araki just really gets teen angst. one of his more normal films really. the doom generation deserves a lot of critique but its a fave of mine as well, has one of the most impactful endings to me personally.

no exit isnt a FAVORITE favorite but if you like the thriller genre this is one of my go tos. its a tasty single location thriller and it does tension so well and also havana rose liu <3

millennium actress. satoshi kon is one of my all time favorite directors and while its really hard to choose a favorite i have to say this one just kinda takes it for me. so much to chew on when it comes to symbolism, it being a sister film to perfect blue in a way, and how absolutely dedicated it is as a love letter to japanese film while also condemning japanese imperialism. love her to death. also susumu hirasawa ate on the ost