So, I checked out These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly at my local library, and holy crow, it is SO GOOD that I am completely obsessed with it. I don't want to eat or go to work or really do anything at all except read this book! I'm not even done yet but I've already bought my own copy to keep and the first book in her Waterfire saga YA series Deep Blue to start when I'm done with this. These Shallow Graves has everything I was looking for: a murder mystery, romance, high stakes, more murder, more romance, mystery mystery mystery, girls doing what they s[...]
2 When I was a teen, there were two things you did at a sleep over. Chant "light as a feather, thick as a board" while trying to pick your friend up using only your index fingers. Say Bloody Mary into the bathroom mirror. 3 times. One, was lighthearted and fun. The whole Bloody Mary thing though...terrifying. There are so many different versions of this out there. Who Mary was before this game even came into being. I remember telling the story of a girl named Mary, who was so beautiful that she couldn't tear her eyes from the mirror. One day, she's in a terrib[...]
I'd bet that everyone has, at some point or another in their lives, heard various urban legends. Maybe you heard it in a nursery school rhyme while playing hopscotch on the playground. Maybe it was something whispered to you at a sleepover when you were a pre-teen. Maybe it was something that made the rounds in the hall at school that you heard from your best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend who heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with some girl. LOCAL LORE When I was a kid living in the suburbs of Toronto, we moved down the s[...]
Clive Barker is my favorite modern horror author, and he's had a tremendous influence on my own horror writing. My Parted Veil series is heavily inspired by Barker, in particular by his ability to weave dark fantasy with horror to create worlds that both ignite your imagination and terrify you at the same time. But while I love Barker's longer works like Weaveworld, The Great and Secret Show and Everville, it's his short stories that first made me fall in love with him. And my first introduction to them was the Books of Blood. Like many kids in the '80s, my fir[...]
Every month I get together with my horror-loving friends and live-tweet a scary movie. Because it's more fun with friends. This month I will be watching the 2007 psychological horror movie 1408, based on the Stephen King story of the same title. If you haven't read the story...do. I love it! Super creepy and weird and mind warping fun! You can find it in one of his anthologies. The movie is pretty different than the written version. The main story is the same, just amped up a bit. When making a short story, rather than a full novel, into a movie there'[...]
Are you ready to tour the web with Faith’s Favorite Frights? It’s Wednesday, and I’m your undead host, Faith McKay. Let’s start with a book... People whisper rumors about a family murdered at Ashburn House. They say its old owner, Edith, went mad in the building, and that restless ghosts walk the halls at night. When Adrienne arrives on the gothic house’s doorstep, all she has is a suitcase, twenty dollars, and her pet cat. She doesn't know why her estranged Aunt Edith bequeathed Ashburn to her, but it's a lifeline she can't afford to refus[...]
Our theme for the month of May is urban legends! YAY! I've been watching the TV show, Constantine and have found many urban legends intertwined in the show. One of my favorites is the one involving Kuchisake-Onna...aka the slit-mouthed woman. The story has it that a beautiful Japanese woman cheated on her samurai husband. In a jealous rage, he cuts her mouth open with a pair of scissors. Giving her a permanently haneous smile, he asks her, "Who will think you're beautiful now?" The woman dies and then returns as a malevolent spirit known as Kuchisake-Onna, the[...]
Hello, lovelies! Sorry for the lame title but I can't think of any other way to express my fondness for middle grade horror. I LOVE it, and not just because I write it. There's something so magical about scaring kids. I remember hiding in the back shelves of the library, pouring over SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK. I was hooked on the shivers and the adrenaline I felt coursing through my veins when that girl's sore split open and spiders went ALL OVER HER FACE. When I read IN A DARK, DARK ROOM (and other scary stories), I became obsessed with the story, "Th[...]
Are you ready to tour the web with Faith's Favorite Frights? It's Wednesday, and I'm your undead host, Faith McKay. Let's dive right in with this beauty... That's right! You're looking at a glittering stache, for a vampire. With fangs. And oopsy! A little bit of blood in that mustache. Must be a hazard of the life. #VampireProblems. I super love K. Flay's new album. You've probably heard a song on there, Blood in the Cut, because it was on an EP and it was awesome. This week when I was daydreaming of seeing K. Flay in concert, I went over to the website[...]
What screams “read me!” more than a resurrection and possession?! You know me, if there’s one thing I love, it’s horror books! I found this one today and it sounds pretty awesome. Also, I started a YA horror 2017 reading list on Goodreads. If you’re interested, add me or keep this link handy to check out upcoming scary reads. I also have a ton of other Goodreads book lists like ghosts, serial killers, and more. Book: When I Cast Your Shadow Author: Sarah Porter Publisher: Tor Teen Release date: September 12, 2017 A teenage girl calls[...]