#sbbookclub spooky month

[skepticbeliever-bookclub]

Hello loves!

Ever wonder about the fics that don’t make it through the final round of voting for the bi-weekly read in the book club? You’re in luck!

The book club is structured so that we solicit nominations from our members, either based on a theme or a trope or simply a request for their favorites, and develop a list of ten nominations, which are then narrowed down to a top three. The top three fics end up in our weekend vote and the winner of that vote becomes our book club fic for that week.

This will be the only runners-up post this month, 'cause it's SPOOKY SEASON and that means we'll be reading a fic a week for the duration, so these are the runners-up to the vote to select our three seasonal selections.

Coax the Cold Right Out of Me - sequence_fairy

“Shane,” Ryan says, insistent, eyes gleaming in the dark. Shane lets his eyes fall shut, and sighs. The little red and white cooler they usually bring on shoots got left behind at the hotel, an hour and a half away in Jackson. “I’ll be fine,” he says, not looking at Ryan, and ignoring the ache in his gums. He’s gone longer without, he can make it through one shoot and then the drive back before being sated. “You don’t have to be.”

OR: It's reckless, what Ryan's offering in the shadows of an abandoned church in rural Mississippi, but Shane can't find it in himself to refuse.

the living transcend - georgenapity (darlinghorchata)

Breath hitched, and body trembling, Ryan stared at the musty ceiling of the attic with an intent focus on the paint peeled paneling. The air was thick and cold, and there was a pressure on the other end of the room, near the window, like someone was sitting next to it. Ryan could imagine him with ease: when the house was in its’ prime, a young man sat against the windowsill, his leg propped up with an arm around his knee, staring contently outside at the pasture. The room was well lit by the buttery sunlight of the morning and the room was littered with small decorations, and full wool blankets, and rickety furniture. He was probably happy; at least, that’s what Ryan hoped. He blinked slowly, and the visage was gone, leaving in its place the heavy weight of death, despair, and dusty boxes cluttering where any semblance of a bedroom had now gone. The golden rays are grey and black, and the living had transcended.

Communication (Series) - quackers

Shane thinks Ryan knows about his feelings. Ryan thinks Shane is a vampire.

Little Bit Magical - blacktofade

Shane is a demon in need of healing and Ryan just so happens to have magic that can heal him. When Ryan needs protection from someone trying to steal his soul, they strike a deal to save each other.

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[skepticbeliever-bookclub]

Happy First Read of Spooky Month Darlings!

This month, the book club got our vote on and picked three spooky fics to read together for three weeks in a row. Our first selection is an eerie timeloop that left us scratching out heads and wondering what fate might have befallen out intrepid heroes in an empty train station on a cold night in Chicago.

the train is expected in five minutes by miraclesofpaul is spooky, ambiguous, stylistically gorgeous, and left us with many questions and not very many answers.

Rating: Teen

Summary:

Ryan finds himself in an abandoned train station with no memory of how he got there.

Book Club Thoughts:

i just love the mid sentence start. the ellipses, being thrown right into the confusion with no rope to hang onto

[the author] really set the scene so well that you travel with ryan through his entire confusion

Love the choice to have us know things that Ryan doesn't

dramatic irony is tricky to use, but in this fic it really pays off emotionally

the thing that really gets me about shane in this is that, instead of doubting for a moment, instead of coming up with a plan, he just throws himself into whatever nightmare ryan is in with the hope that he can get him out

it felt like reading something new even though i'd read it before and i love that feeling

Let me kick this off by saying that there is an untapped market of fic where Ryan vanishes for some reason and Shane drops every inhibition to dive in and go after him

The mood of this is fantastic, being dropped right in the middle of the scene immediately gives you this sense of eerieness, and because the timeloop is just five minutes long, it makes you feel trapped and claustrophobic.

also more people should write experimental shit. this was SO GOOD and the pacing was phenomenal and i love a fic that makes you work to put pieces together slowly instead of just heavy exposition doing the work for you.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT DISCUSSION? CHECK OUT THE FAQ, AND SEND US AN ASK! IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR FIC RECS, PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR READS, NOMINEES AND BOOK CLUB REC LISTS!

[skepticbeliever-bookclub]

Happy Halloween, spookies! 

Because we are a book club, and our faves released a whole entire book, what better what to round out October with a discussion on Buzzfeed Unsolved Supernatural: 101 True Tales of Hauntings, Demons, and the Paranormal! 

We gathered round the proverbial campfire and shared our favorite tidbits from the book. It’s delightfully written, with excellent stories in between the sometimes-chaotic commentary Ryan and Shane offer throughout the stories, exactly like you’d imagine an episode of BFU to be written. We had so much fun laughing at the jokes, and being genuinely curious about the writing process.

Quite the send off for such a phenomenal series that brought so many people together. If you haven’t read it yet, we urge you to if you can, though listening to the audiobook was worth it for a few tiny little surprises that weren’t included in the text version! 

Title: Buzzfeed Unsolved Supernatural: 101 True Tales of Hauntings, Demons, and the Paranormal

Rating: N/A

Summary: Based off one of the most popular web series on the internet, Ryan Bergara and Shane Madej present BuzzFeed Unsolved Supernatural, 101 of the scariest, spookiest, and creepiest locations around the USA and a few abroad, with 50 percent brand-new content and locales exclusive to the book. 

Hey there, demons! BuzzFeed Unsolved Supernatural has entertained viewers over the course of seven spooky seasons, covering the supernatural and otherworldly spirits, to ghosts, ghouls, unexplained paranormal activity, and everything in between. In their thrilling debut book, cohosts Shane Madej and Ryan Bergara (lovingly known as the “ghoul boys” to fans) deep-dive into dozens of haunted locations around the USA and a few abroad, including subjects from some of their most favorite and talked about episodes, as well as brand-new locations not previously seen before on their show.  

As they explore the history behind haunted houses, creepy graveyards, former insane asylums, abandoned buildings, and horrifying hotels, Shane and Ryan use their trademark wit and humor to dissect each terrifying tale with their most hilarious highlights and biting commentary. So hold on to your hell-bound soul, boys and ghouls—it’s about to get demonic up in here. 

Book Club Thoughts: 

i loved getting one last bit of classic bfu goof 'em ups

yes! i thought the writing process was really interesting that they were just doing it in a google doc essentially

The intimacy of cowriting in a gdoc together is something I thought only fic writers share

i don't know if this was in any way on purpose but the one time the narrator talks back to them made me howl because they waited so far in the book to actually do that

i didn't actually read the book, so whatever differences pop up are lost on me, but i appreciate the way the book is crafted, with the pictures and differences in their "hand writing"

my favorite bits by far were the places they covered that they never covered in unsolved

i think the differences is because the writing feels a bit scripted-- which makes sense, a lot of writing does because it is, but they wanted the audiobook to have the authentic off-the-cuff banter feeling of the series. so lines were altered a bit to sound more natural and less like they're reading off a script, and sometimes that would lead to new riffs or bits

it's the way my brain protects me and erases everything ryan and shane say

WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT DISCUSSION? CHECK OUT THE FAQ, AND SEND US AN ASK! IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR FIC RECS, PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR READS, NOMINEES AND BOOK CLUB REC LISTS!

[skepticbeliever-bookclub]

Hello lovely followers,

Ever wonder about the fics that don’t make it through the final round of voting for the bi-weekly read in the book club? You’re in luck!

The book club is structured so that we solicit nominations from our members, either based on a theme or a trope or simply a request for their favorites, and develop a list of ten nominations, which are then narrowed down to a top three. The top three fics end up in our weekend vote and the winner of that vote becomes our book club fic for that week.

It’s almost October—and that means it’s spooky season! Here at the book club, we celebrate annually with not two but three reads during October, followed by a little members-only soiree on Halloween weekend itself. We’re getting our fangs sharpened in preparation.

Since we vote for all of our spooky reads in one round of voting at the start of the month, there will only be one spooky runners-up post this month, but it’s an extra-special one: we’re giving you all our nominated fics to read. That’s right—all of them! Happy spooky reading!

the train is expected in five minutes - MiraclesOfPaul | 6.7k, T, complete

Ryan finds himself in an abandoned train station with no memory of how he got there.

The Shine of Obsidian - VictoriaAGrey | 21k, M, complete

After months of negotiations, Ryan and Shane are given permission to do a weekend long investigation for Unsolved at The Overlook, a famously haunted hotel which is left abandoned during the fall and winter seasons due to severe weather conditions and its relative isolation.

Once left on their own, what Shane had thought would be a fun weekend turns into a fight for survival when Ryan becomes possessed by the very demon he was hunting.

Calming if you look at it right - Agf | 2.3k, Not Rated, complete

There's no reason to panic. None at all. He's woken up in bed beside his boyfriend- partner- ghoulfriend, like always. It's a nice day. Shane is wearing the blue shirt. Like always.

i don’t need a dozen roses - weakspots | 13k, E, complete

They're not… dating, or boyfriends, or in love, or any of these things. Ryan's pretty sure on that front.

two to fall apart - orphan_account | 38k, T, complete

“I know you’re sitting over there, probably like, ‘oh, Ryan’s such an idiot, he’s afraid of ghosts but not serial killers.’”

“I’m thinking your sense of self-preservation is a sham. You absolutely seek out things that you believe are a danger to your person.”

“And you're so incredibly invested in my person?”

“I am! I enjoy your person. I would like it not to be carved up and put on a Christmas display.”

Ryan laughs, and Shane can’t begin to fathom how that’s even remotely funny.

or

Ryan wants to investigate a case that's just a little too recent for Shane's tastes.

Tell Me Why The Fear Feels So Good - Books in the Blood | 16k, E, complete

Ryan begins to develop an embarrassing habit of getting aroused on set when scared. Sometimes Shane helps him out.

spinning on that dizzy edge - sarcasticfishes | 7.5k, T, complete

“What are you doing?”

Shane nearly jumps out of his skin. He falls right off the couch and slides onto the floor, his blanket getting tangled up around his ankles as he does so. There’s a man standing in his living room, mere feet away, and he doesn’t look very happy.

“What— what are you doing?” Shane splutters, because that’s a totally normal way to react to a stranger in your living room.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT DISCUSSION? CHECK OUT THE FAQ, AND SEND US AN ASK! IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR FIC RECS, PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR READS, NOMINEES AND BOOK CLUB REC LISTS!

[skepticbeliever-bookclub]

Welcome back, readers! It's Spooky Month!

This month, we've pooled all our nominations and chosen our top three to read for some good frights and feelings! Up first, we read the delightfully unsettling Let It Out, Keep It In by derryderrydown, kicking off our theme with a little demonic possession. We were really captivated by the pacing of this one, enjoying the breathless feeling of trying hard to keep up with everything that happens. The take on possession was good, and of course, the sweet heaps of feelings that came along afterwards made the frightening journey worth it!

Rating: E

Summary:

Ryan isn't acting like himself. Shane's okay with that. At first.

NB. I've tagged this rape/non-con due to identity issues. See end notes for more details.

Book Club Thoughts:

Man this fic just goes up to 100 immediately doesn’t it

Also!! I think the choice of Ryan being the one supernaturally afflicted was really nice, somehow I'm under the impression that in most fics, that role goes to Shane

I think the tossing from one extreme to another put us in Shane's POV as well, like we started realizing something was off but we didn't realize how much until, well...that

it's good in the way that it reveals the possession, in an unmistakable way

i just enjoy when shane is like "something's wrong with ryan, must be a very rare medical condition that google isn't diagnosing" it will forever be my favorite thing

I’m forever going to be a sucker for fics that have a connection to New Orleans

This was a good way to ease into spooky month, more uneasy than straight up scary

him calling the ghost bullshit should’ve been a major clue for Shane but he was prob so happy that Ryan agreed with him for once. oop

I loved seeing Mary return, she’s always a welcome recurring character in fic, and the way she is so powerful is COOL

yeah it really gripped me how that was being described from shanes pov

another favourite of mine is when it's Shane POV and Ryan who is the most readable man on earth manages to hide his feelings under all of Shane's ability to miss cues

i know i have said we've read fics that made me blush before but this one. hsdfjglk. tongue-tied

yeah it's nasty and the sweetness of the end saves it in all the best ways so we're not walking away from that covered in blood and shaking or anything. It's gorgeous; perfectly balanced

WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT DISCUSSION? CHECK OUT THE FAQ, AND SEND US AN ASK! IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR FIC RECS, PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR READS, NOMINEES AND BOOK CLUB REC LISTS!