Fortnight of Fright: Dionaea House & Other Scary Stories by Lindsey of A Bookish Sinister Kid

October 26, 2015 by Alyssa

Hello dears! Lindsey is here to chat all about Dionaea house and other creepy places! Lindsey always has the best stuff, she is the one who found me some of the ONLY stories that have ever scared me (thank you, Reddit) and I can always count on her to send me the creepiest and most perfect things that only a select few cool (okay, maybe weird) peeps would enjoy. Also, she is totally traveling to CT to see a LORE show (which she hooked me on) with me this month!! Anywho, take it away, Linz!

You can pretty much find anything on the Internet these days, which means there’s no shortage of creepy stories, websites dedicated to spreading the scariness around!

I religiously go to a livejournal that dishes the best celeb gossip called Oh No They Didn’t. Besides celeb gossip, they cover all sorts of entertainment news as well as current events once in a while. Every now and then there’s a tag that pops up with a post that’s called: “creepy post” usually associated with the horror genre releasing something. One of the reasons I love this livejournal so much is for the comments section! I live for their comment section–I’ve read new books because of them, looked up items mentioned, watched various films, and listened to great new artists because the comment section has a ripple effect.

During a creepy post a few years ago, close to Halloween, someone posted about this website called the Dionaea House. The comments I had been reading mentioned that it was “supposedly” an abandoned film project that created a website to hype up the movie before release. With it being like 1130pm and my parents downstairs I decide, eh, why not–I like being scared, let’s start reading…which was so foolish because OMG I WAS SO FREAKED and panicked to go to sleep. Continue reading →

Fortnight of Fright: Mini Book Reviews by Emily of Emily Reads Everything

October 22, 2015 by Alyssa

Hi loves! Today we have my friend Emily sharing some creepy reads with you! Em is one of my favorites and as we both love horror, I am going to comment after her recommendations so you can hear my thoughts as well! Take it away, girl!

I’m so excited to have the chance to join you today and grateful for the opportunity to guest post! Alyssa is so fun to follow on twitter. She’s snarky, honest and hilarious. We share a love of Neil Gaiman, the fall season and Halloween. Obviously, since she loves Gaiman, she has great taste in authors and books. Obviously some of you are not as refined as we are and might not enjoy horror. That’s ok, we can work on it. Today I’d like to share with you some Halloween reads, in order from slightly creepy to scare your socks off. I tried to choose a mix of older stories and newer releases. These perfect for a dark night when you are home alone and need some company. (She’s right, I am snarky and honest. Okay, and hilarious ;D)

Odd Thomas

This is not your typical horror series. Odd is quick to point out that he’s just a simple fry cook at the local diner. He just happens to be able to see the dead. Dead people don’t talk but they do try to communicate with odd and send him messages. This series is different. There’s always something dark lurking around the corner. However, Odd is such a ray of light, it’s hard to be too concerned. (Okay so I have never read any Koontz…I don’t know why but I have never really been interested! I do like the whole “I see dead people thing” this has going on though..)

John Dies at the End

So weird. That’s the only way to describe this book. Without ruining anything, the basic premise is that when two burnouts take a new drug called soy sauce, it causes them to see a whole new layer of the world. Suddenly they can see all sorts of things that people weren’t meant to see. They can’t unsee it and now everything in this hidden layer of the world can also see them. (I have NEVER heard of this and it sounds so trippy!! Adding it to the TBR)

Through the Woods

I never would have thought a graphic novel could be so creepy before reading this one. It’s a series of short stories. Several of them are gruesome fairytale retellings that would be right at home in the original Brother’s Grimm. I think what really sets the tone is the art style. It’s dark with muted colors and then brilliant pops of red for emphasis. If you aren’t sure about this, I would highly recommend checking out this website http://emcarroll.com/comics/faceallred/01.html His Face All Red is included in this book and it’s a great example of the style and tone of this collection. (I LOVE THIS BOOK WITH A FIERY PASSION!! IT WAS WRITTEN JUST FOR ME!! That is all.) Continue reading →

Fortnight of Fright: Eastern State Penitentiary by Kathleen

October 21, 2015 by Alyssa

Hi friends!! Today we have Kathleen chatting all about her trip to Eastern State Penitentiary!! This is a place dear to my heart, it is in Pennsylvania and I cannot tell you how many ghost tours I have read and watched that went to ESP (see below for basically every single one that they have shown, and that I have seen!) So jealous of your trip, Kathleen! Take it away, girl!

Hi my name is Kathleen, I live in Delaware, and I love all things scary, especially with a historical twist. I first visited Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP) in Philadelphia when I was a freshman in college. We took a “class trip” there as part of our First Year Experience class. We went during the day and got a full tour of the first ever US penitentiary. We were shown Al Capone’s cell, death row, a regular prisoner’s cell, and everything in between.

Outside of ESP

First I wanted to give you some background and history about this amazing place. Some very important people supported it; Ben Franklin was one. In 1787, a group of men got together and said we need get rid of the overcrowding in prisons. So they came up with the idea of a penitentiary, a place designed to create penitence. The state didn’t want to fund the building of ESP and instead built small penitentiaries. However, they were not adequate for the growing population and in 1822, construction on ESP finally started. The layout of the penitentiary was unique in that it had a central hub and then seven cellblocks that branched off of it (this grew as the years went on). There was a recreational yard, running water, flush toilet, central heating and a skylight for each cell. This was more than the White House had at the time. When it first opened, solitary was taken very seriously and inmates wore masks over their head when being transported so they couldn’t see anything but their cell. Things change drastically with the growing population and the number of cells increased from 250 to 980 with two to three men in a cell. By the 20th century, the idea of a penitentiary was left in the dust and some of the most violent offenders and those sentenced to execution were housed at ESP. The last cellblock to be built in 1959, was number 15 and that was considered death row. Continue reading →

Fortnight of Fright: “Beyond the Wall” by Danielle E. Shipley

October 20, 2015 by Alyssa

As of October 10th my latest project with Xchyler Publishing has launched: “Beyond the Wail: 12 Grave Tales of Love and Loss”. My short story, “Date Due”, has the honored grand finale spot at book’s end. In brief summary:

For an eccentric bibliophile, any and every book is magic. Even more so when the book’s home is a hidden library with an impossible secret: Every story on its shelves has yet to be written. And the library’s self-appointed guardian means to ensure they never are, no matter whether the future authors elect to do things the easy way … or the fatal one.

You read that aright – a library full of books unwritten! Say… I’ll bet that means even “Beyond the Wail” will have sat upon one of its shelves, once upon a time. What would its librarian have made of the anthology, I wonder?…

All right, my lovelies. Which new friend should I meet today? Someone from right here in the Red Fireplace Room, I think. I’m feeling a bit tired to go roaming through our Library’s unexplored spaces; I just want a nice new read today.

Hmm, what have we on this shelf? Beyond the Wail: 12 Grave Tales of Love and Loss. A paranormal anthology? Perfect! Let’s see what chills and thrills are in store.

Of Mice and Monsters by Tirzah Duncan. “There is a man who twists the necks of caged mice…” Oh, Benjamin, what a beastly creature you are. A fine conversationalist, though, I must give you that. But that phantom wind will do for you if Tina comes to harm – any harm that she’s not already inflicting on herself, the poor, sick thing. Some lovely writing, here. Passionate. Unflinching. Continue reading →

Fortnight of Fright: A “Must” List for October by Morgan of Gone With the Words

October 19, 2015 by Alyssa

Hello my dears!! Welcome to the first day of Fortnight of Fright!! Today I am lucky enough to have Morgan from Gone With the Words on the blog and she is chatting all about the awesomeness of Autumn, October, and Halloween!! As you guys know these are my favorite things too, so I can’t wait to hear what Morgan has to say! Take it away, girl!

My October MUST List

I am definitely a fall kind of girl. As much as I love summer (the beach! my birthday! bonfires and hot dogs!), fall has always been my favorite. I love how cozy it is, the rich colors, the cool weather (in theory. Oy.), and most of all Halloween! I’m not big on gore or being truly scared but I love all the cute/creepy aspects of the holiday. And the candy. Here is my must list for the month of October, in no particular order.

mini pumpkins: one of the first things I look for when October hits! They are so cute and I love putting them around my house and on my desk at work. I incorporated gold pumpkins into my October beach wedding decor too.

apple orchards/pumpkin patch: I have yet to find a good orchard close to me which is sad because I want to go apple picking!!! Yeah yeah, basic white girl, whatever. I LOVE APPLES. And it’s soooo fall. Plus fresh apple cider, hot or cold, is basically the best thing ever. Also apple pie. And apple cider donuts. So if you can find an orchard or farm or pumpkin patch near you, you should go!

colored leaves: I grew up in a really leafy, green part of New Jersey which meant that every fall it burst into a riot of beautiful fall colors. Luckily where I live now in California has a surprising amount of fall, which makes me happy! I love watching the trees turn red and gold and orange. I also spend way too much time looking at pictures of leaves and pumpkins and cups of cocoa and sweaters on tumblr. So there’s a way to get your fill whether you live somewhere with seasons or not.

football and tv: I’ve been waiting all day for Sunday night! And football season in general, I loooove football! This year I’m in a fantasy football league with 11 other bloggers so it’s been even more fun. And if you’re not a sports fan, there’s always new episodes of your favorite tv shows to look forward to! I’m behind on almost everything but back in the day I used to count down to the season premieres of my faves. Especially CW faves. I’ve heard Sleepy Hollow is getting better again so I want to hop back on that train- what could be more perfect for Halloween?!

Continue reading →

Fortnight of Fright (4)

September 9, 2015 by Alyssa

Wow. We are back here for a FOURTH year for Fortnight of Fright and I can hardly believe it!! As many of you know, September – January is my very favorite time of year and Halloween is my one true love! Therefore, it is no question that Fortnight of Fright is something that I love hosting along with Brittany (The Book Addicts Guide) and Amy (Tripping Over Books)!

For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about (hello, and welcome!) Fortnight of Fright is a time in which we host and share different posts related to fall and Halloween! We work with you guys and some amazing authors to showcase some creepy books, interviews, movies, and SO MUCH MOAR! There is no limit on what you can post about! Do you have a signature Halloween or Autumn cocktail recipe? Pinterest board filled with DIY decorations? A book recommendation for those of us who love to be scared? We want it all!! JOIN US!!

Sign ups will be open from 9/9-9/20 and you will be notified the following week to confirm your post topic, and so on. We are going to ask that all posts get to us the week of 10/12 as we will be hosting you during the event which runs from 10/19-10/31! As always, the more the merrier, so scroll on down to our Google Doc and sign up to help us out!

Also don’t forget about All Hallow’s Read and the giving of books in lieu of candy!