#we have the costumes for them at spirit and they give me the heebies

[scarah-screeeaaammss]

manager had his kid at work today and I know she's 4 but my GOD she is too much and she disrespected me in my own home so I have to throw the whole kid away

called my slimes "little poopies" and decided my lalaloopsy was poppy of that horrid poppys playtime HAAAATEEEEE

[tallstales]

Day 4 Books (13 Days of Halloween)

There are so many books perfect for reading in the fall. Many people read with Halloween in mind at this time of year and I happen to be one of them from about July through mid November. At this time of year, we gravitate towards Stephen King and now Joe Hill or the latest big name. Sometimes we forget about the classics that started it all or we don’t think to look in our own backyard for new favorites.

Today I’m going to share a list of 13 of my favorite spooky classics mixed in with brand new hits on my to read list. And as a bonus, I’m including a list of Rhode Island authors of Supernatural fiction, Mysteries, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror, Thriller, and more to keep you enthralled as we get closer to Halloween.

Let’s check them out!

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

For those who know me well, they know the special love I have for The haunting of Hill House. Last year I even got the crazy opportunity to direct the play at the Rhode Island Stage Ensemble because they knew of my crazy obsession. I might talk about this book too much. That being said, I will keep it brief today. Read it! Go! No, you have not experienced it through Netflix or even the play. They’re wonderful, amazing interpretations, but they are very different.

To truly know Hill House and the people staying there to study it, you need to read this book and get trapped in the mind of its not quite reliable narrator.

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

Speaking of Netflix, on this list is another psychological haunted house thriller that has just been made into a streaming hit in The Haunting of Bly Manor.

The Turn of the Screw is a short but not so sweet story with an atmosphere of slowly growing tension. This is a great quick read for a rainy day home alone to get your nerves just the right amount of frayed for when the trick or treaters start knocking.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Another classic is the travelogue Dracula! With any other title, people would question how a travel journal could be scary, but Dracula needs no introduction. If anything, time and popular culture has added so much to this story that when we go back and look at the original tale we are terrified all over again by the simplicity of atmosphere and characterization over props, costumes, and all the other added layers.

There’s a scary bit of truth to this tale as well, one that even connects back to Rhode Island! Did you know that Bram Stoker was inspired by the story of Mercy Brown? Yes, news of her tragedy and horrific exhumation made it all the way to London! Stay tuned this week for our 13 Haunted RI Tales for more on Mercy.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

While we’re in the Victorian Era and talking about classic monsters, we can’t forget about Frankenstein’s monster! This is another one that’s been taken apart and put back together by so many different writers, directors, and actors that we forget how terrifying the original is.

What really makes this story stand the test of time even past the language changes that can make other stories written in the same period slog along, is Shelley’s understanding of human nature.

We all question the meaning of life and death and Frankenstein has a way of helping our imagination come up with the most terrifying answers.

Edgar Allan Poe

How could we discuss Horror classics without the twisted tales of Edgar Allan Poe? I can’t even pick a single story to discuss for this list, just trust me and get a collection of his stories if you don’t already own one. You won’t be disappointed.

Haunted houses? Evil animals? Disease? Death? Human Nature? Poe has covered all of the best horror tropes and even invented a few himself. If I had to choose a favorite to start with… one that sticks with me and makes me shudder to even think about is The Lighthouse. It’s the rats. They get me everytime and unlike the suspense they bring in The Pit and the Pendulum, the rats in The Lighthouse just bring terror and an overall sense of disgust. Happy reading!

His Hideous Heart Edited by Dahlia Adler

While we’re on the subject of the laste, great E.A.P. I bring you a fairly recent edition to his fandom.

His Hideous Heart is an anthology put together by 13 well known YA authors for a new, contemporary audience. Edgar Allan Poe may be gone, but his works and their themes have stayed with us and in our classrooms with a love their surprising and unsettling nature.

Contributors include Dahlia Adler (reimagining “Ligeia”), Kendare Blake (“Metzengerstein”), Rin Chupeco (“The Murders in the Rue Morgue”), Lamar Giles (“The Oval Portrait”), Tessa Gratton (“Annabel Lee”), Tiffany D. Jackson (“The Cask of Amontillado”), Stephanie Kuehn (“The Tell-Tale Heart”), Emily Lloyd-Jones (“The Purloined Letter”), amanda lovelace (“The Raven”), Hillary Monahan (“The Masque of the Red Death”), Marieke Nijkamp (“Hop-Frog”), Caleb Roehrig (“The Pit and the Pendulum”), and Fran Wilde (“The Fall of the House of Usher”).

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

Continuing to move forward in time, I find myself thinking of Ray Bradbury. Bradbury has a wonderful way of slowly seeping discontent into the reader but with Something Wicked he seems to put pedal to the metal.

This is the only book on my list to feature a nightmarish carnival and Bradbury might be why. I somehow walked away without a fear of clowns or carnivals but reading about them… still gives me the heebie jeebies. Now that I think about it, this book might have something to do with why mirrors creep me out too.

Readers be warned. Something Wicked This Way Comes has all the marks of a beautifully written coming of age tale, but the themes stick with you like a shadow well into adulthood.

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

If you haven’t read this book, you have definitely heard of it. That book with the weird typography, with the backwards words and print in the margins and all that weird stuff? Yes, it’s House of Leaves and “all that weird stuff” makes for one exciting and unsettling ride. People I give this book two either firmly LOVE it or HATE it, but I recommend it today because 8 out of 10 are on the love side and passing around their copies to others because it’s hard not too.

As you read, you follow two stories. The main story is about the Navidson family moving into a new home where some very strange things begin to happen. The second story takes place in the footnotes where we follow a man named Johnny as he finds, reads and obsesses over the first story which is referred to in the book as The Navidson Record. Now, I have set out with the mission of not spoiling anything for anyone today, especially since most the books on this list are of the thriller or suspense genre so I will stop here, but know I really, really want to tell you everything that happens and everything I think of it! Go read this crazy work of art and message me. We’ll talk.

Twelve Nights at Rotter House by J.W. Ocker

I said it earlier and I’ll say it again, I have a soft spot for a good haunted house. Now, haunted by people or haunted by spirits… I think both are the best kind. Those who have started reading my series The Monsters Within can probably guess that I love the “Humans are the Monsters” horror trope. And, well, nothing brings out the monsters in humans faster than the particular fear that comes with staying in a haunted house. Or at least, a house perceived to be haunted where your mind can play such glorious tricks on you.

Twelve Nights at Rotter House is admittedly slow to start, but I like and recommend this title because that slow pace is there for a reason. We get comfortable when nothing much is happening, when the pace is slow and friendly. I think it makes everything that comes next that much more exciting. Give it a chance and let me know what you think.

The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher

The Twisted Ones is a delicious cocktail of Suspense, Thriller, Horror fiction, Psychological Fiction, Occult Fiction. It’s everything I wanted M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village to be when the trailers came out back in 2004 and everything it wasn’t for me. Add into it the the main character is cleaning a hoarder’s house in the woods… yeah! Sold, this is creepy and gross and sets off all my alarms, I’m reading it with ALL the lights on.

And somehow, through not being able to put it down and finding myself breathlessly speed reading , I still found time to laugh. There are these little gems in the main character’s personality and the story telling that are so relatable and likeable that it adds an effortless humor on top of the effortless horror. This is the only work I’ve read by this author, but she is absolutely on my follow list and I hope she makes yours as well.

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

Some might recognise the name Leigh Bardugo from popular YA fantasies but fear not (or do for that matter) Bardugo can write the hell out of terrifying adult themes. Ninth House is almost impossible to out down in its fast paced, constantly twisting and turning mystery and terrifying ghost story.

[Now, I feel the need to mention before we move on that this is an award winning piece and it is loved by too many to count, BUT if you are on my blog then you may be here because I write about mental health and mental illness and all the emotions dark and light that come with psychology. I try my best to do so in an educated and realistic way that relates back to what I’m going through with good intentions. I try my absolute best to write realistically without including triggers. That being said, as someone who has mental health issues, this story did trigger me. Did I still enjoy the read and do I think you would too, absolutely! I wouldn’t have it on my list otherwise. But if you have anxiety, depression, ptsd, or are overcoming assault you may want to do some further research into the adult topics of this novel before reading. Please feel free to ask questions or leave comments regarding this topic. Thank you.]

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

Moving into this year’s releases there is the ever popular The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires. This is another one that seamlessly works in some brilliant comedy into the spooky plot.

Some have compared this to Fried Green Tomatoes and Steel Magnolias meet Dracula and I’d just like to throw in Buffy the Vampire Slayer as the cherry on that brilliant summary sundae.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth

I had the pleasure of studying under Emily Danforth while going after my BA in Writing at Rhode Island College. At that point, she had just published The Miseducation of Cameron Post and I was completely enamored. That being said, I have kept up with her writing and oh man am I glad because Plain Bad Heroines was GREAT!

There are so few great additions to their horror genre that I just want to paste gold stars all over this beautifully written, funny, sexy, and utterly disturbing coming of age hit. I hope you love it as much as I did and if you do, be sure to review! This book is brand spanking new and new book sales depend on reviews to help audiences find them. Get out there and post what you liked or even what you didn’t about everything you read. In the end, even negative reviews help new readers find something they will enjoy.

Supernatural/Paranormal

Lorne J. Therrian Sr.

Jeanine Duval Spikes

Alexander Smith

Elizabeth Splaine

D. R. Perry

Sheryl Lynn Kimball

Lisa Jacob

Paul & Ben Eno

Christine Depetrillo

Roland Comtois

Daniel Cano

J. C. Brown

Horror

Alexander Smith 

H.P. Lovecraft Lisa Jacob

Christa Carmen

Science Fiction

Rachel Menard

Tabitha Lord

R. K. Bentley

Fantasy

J. Michael Squatrito, Jr.

Lorne J. Therrian Sr.

Angelina Singer

Scott William Simmons

C. K. Sholly

Heather Rigney

Rachel Menard

Paul Magnan

M. A. Guglielmo

Heather Dunn

Susan Catalano

A. Keith Carreiro

Daniel Cano

Noel Anne Brennan

Tim Baird

Mystery

Anne-Marie Sutton

Elizabeth Splaine

Dusty Pembroke

Risa Nyman

Rick Marchetti

Jean Kelly

Sam Kafrissen

Ilhy

Daniel Currier

Judy Boss

Julien Ayotte

Thriller

Heather Rigney

Glede Browne

Judy Boss

David Boiani

David Aiello

DON’T FORGET TO COMMENT BELOW!

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN IS A SPECIAL TREAT FOR ME AND MY READERS. ON HALLOWEEN, THERE WILL BE A VERY SPECIAL GIVEAWAY I’D LOVE FOR YOU TO TAKE PART IN. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO TO ENTER IS COMMENT OR SHARE THIS POST TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA.

THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING AND BEST OF LUCK!

[banbryce-blog]

self para.

It only takes a moment.

      Benjamin was aware that he was being stalked, a figure that stayed just far enough away that he couldn't identify it but it was there in the corner of his periphery. He didn't know if it meant harm, or if it was just curious, but he was accustomed to this sort of behaviour from spirits. He saw them all the time at the Institute—he didn't want to think about how many might be slaves that had died here. A few were relatives or friends of people he knew, eventually he may put them in contact when spirits decided they wanted to be known. Some just wanted to stay on the sidelines and watch.

Either way Nat and Lily didn't seem to be perturbed by his new stalker so Benjie didn't put much thought to it.

If he was in danger he'd be warned.

Besides, with All Hallows Eve approaching it was normal for him to see more and more through the veil—it was then when it was at it's thinnest.

Benjie grinned to himself as he carried a bag full of feathers back home—he was working on his Halloween costume. He had a brilliant idea last Halloween and had waited all this time to reveal his new costume.

Nat was at his side, playing idly with one of the feathers that had fallen out the bag and trying to keep it up in the air for as long as possible. He wasn't sure where Lily had got to, but she was like that. If there was something she wanted she would find him and if he needed her she would come.

His spectral visitor was darting between trees, just a flicker of a shadow here and there. Benjie spotted a few others too, watching him walk through the woods and the hairs on the back of his neck stood up.

He always had a good sense for things, and suddenly Benjie had the overwhelming sensation that he should pick up the pace and get home.

He did just that, Nat abandoning her game to vanish out of sight. He knew she was protecting him, keeping away the spirits to give him some peace of mind, and for that he was always grateful.

Benjie felt like he made it home without a moment to spare, a creeping sensation working it's way up his spine. Great now he had the heebie jeebies. He just wanted a quiet day where he was working on his costume and annoying Sam by trailing feathers through the house.

The house was quiet, Benjie called out for Tenanye and Samuel both, but found no answer. He shrugged and started to walk towards the kitchen to drop his feathers on the counter and resume work.

There was something wrong in the house Benjie realized as soon as he got a few footsteps in. He looked around, eyes instantly catching the door to his office closing—which was funny considering he never left it open in the first place.

“Alright, alright.” Benjie said aloud as he put down the bag. “I'm coming, I'm coming. You don't have to keep dancing around you know.”

He was used to this, spirits wanting his attention for something or other—it was part of the whole deal really. He would help spirits with things, help them move on. Sometimes they stayed afterwards and protected him, none of them stayed for long. He never wanted them too. They should have a peaceful rest.

He walked over to his office and stepped inside, shutting the door behind him.

“There's no need to be shy you know.” Benjie said. “ I don't bite. How can I help you?”

He felt a scratching at the back of his mind and heard the rattling of the dice on the shelf behind his desk.

“There we go.” Benjie said. “Nice to finally hear from you. I was wondering when you'd want to talk, you've been following me for a while now after all.” As he spoke he walked over to the shelf and picked up the blank dice. He rolled them around in his hands before tossing them down on the desk.

The blank dice were burned with letters the moment they had left his hand and Benjie leaned over to read them.

H-A-R-D  T-O  H-E-A-R.

“You can't hear me?” Benjie asked. It was true even he was struggling to feel the influence of the spirit. It was like he had cotton wool stuffed in his ears. They were pretty far away then but that could be easily fixed with a little bit of magic.

“Alright, one moment.” Benjie said. He looked around for Nat but didn't see her. He assumed she was still scouting out. She'd come if there was an issue.

He moved over to the rug in his office and pulled it aside, revealing the sigils underneath.

“Bear with me, just setting up.”

He reached out and closed his eyes, grasping on the threads of magic that lay dormant around his feet until activated. It was a complicated set of sigils really, summoning, searching, visuals and a locking system that keeps the spirit bound to the circle.. he was proud of it, a ward of his own creation.

Benjie searched through the veil until he found that faint glimmer of energy that he had sensed when he cast the dice. He pulled on it lightly and reached out.

The room was deathly silent until the soft sound of sobbing filled the room and a woman appeared. She had dark hair, thin in frame. That was all he could see since she was crouched down on the floor, hugging herself.

“Hey there.” Benjie said. The woman didn't respond and Benjie's heart ached for her. “I know this is all confusing and you're probably scared but you're not alone okay?”

He looked around for Nathalie, for an early warning. No Nat, no Lily. Seemed to be safe then. There wasn't even any other spirits around.

Benjie should've realized that was odd but his mind was elsewhere.

He stepped across the threshold of the circle to comfort the spirit.

And then that's where everything went wrong.

The woman's head snapped up and she fixed him with a hard stare.

Her eyes were souless dark pits, black.

“Wha-”

Benjie didn't get to finish his sentence before he was thrown back across the room. He hit the shelves behind him with an almighty crash, dislodging books, breaking crystals. Benjie smacked his head hard enough that he was dazed. He was still pinned there in midair. He couldn't even move no matter how hard he struggled.

The woman smirked at him and straightened before stepping to the edge of the circle.

“What a pitiful attempt at a holding spell, boy.” She spat. She waved her hand and there was a thunderous crack as the floorboards bent out of place and distorted the ward.

“It might hold some poor baby poltegiest but me? Now now Benjamin I thought you was smarter than that. I guess I overestimated your intelligence.” She walked towards where she had pinned Benjie to the wall and brought her hand down, pulling him to her level while still keeping him immobilized.

“Tut tut, you made the oldest mistake in the book, boy.” Weor continued as she grabbed Benjie by the jaw and turned his head towards the door. He didn't notice when he had walked in but the warding on the door had been changed, distorted by lines cut deep into the wood.

“You got complacent. Just because you consort with the divine and have a little demon as your pet pal.” Weor leaned in, one hand pressing to Benjie's chest.

“Can't help you if they can't get in.” She laughed as she felt Benjie's feeble attempts to force her away. His magic felt like rain against this corporeal form, light patters that did nothing but irritate her.

“Come now Benjamin, you know the jig is up. I've been watching you for a while now. Just waiting for the right moment. You’re mine.” She pressed her lips to his and Benjie wanted to scream.

He could feel himself losing control, no matter how much he tried to rage against it. He was being pushed back into a box in the corner of his mind.

He was powerless to stop her.

Weor smiled to herself as she rolled her neck from side to side with a satisfying crack. It was always interesting breaking in a new vessel and this one was powerful. She would've preferred a woman, but she'd take what she could get. Possessing a less powerful witch meant she couldn't stay on this plane as long, it wouldn't be able to contain her—rot the vessel from the inside out.

But this one was well suited to her, steeped in death and power.

She walked over to the mirror in the room and glanced over her new vessel. Not bad. She would have some fun with this one,  this place.

She already liked it—having been watching the torture and misery through the veil.

Yes, she'd fit in just fine here.