Tag Archives: Halloween

October 29, 2025 · 1:00 am

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Scary Books I’ve Recommended and Why

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

Black and white sketch of a ghost who is floating through the air with their arms outstretched. They look like a cartoon ghost covered in a white sheet with two eye holes cut into the sheet. Very cute. I feel like I recommend a lot of the same books here over and over again.

In an attempt to break out of that pattern, here are some scary and I’d argue also Halloween-friendly books I think anyone who likes that sort of stuff should read them.

So far as I recall, I have only occasionally talked about (most of?) them on my blog in the past.

 

1. The Lost Girls by Sonia Hartl

Why: If you’ve ever picked up a book about a teenage girl who is seduced by a 100+-year-old vampire and wondered what their lives would actually be like a few decades after they met, you might really like this twist on that trope. Let’s just say it’s not exactly Twilight. 😂

2. Beloved (Beloved Trilogy, #1) by Toni Morrison

Why: The most terrifying moments in this story have nothing at all to do with the paranormal. To me, that realism and willingness to dive deeply into real-life issues makes a tale ten times scarier!

 

3. I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

Why: The twist ending is fantastic. If you haven’t seen the Will Smith film based on this story, it was also really well done and is definitely worth watching.

 

4. The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

Why: It’s a deeply satisfying ghost story that feels more realistic and tragic to me than many other corners of this genre due to the Woman in Black’s reason for not finding peace after death.

 

5. The Last of What I Am: A Novel by Abigail Cutter

Why:The character development was excellent. Don’t allow the idea of reading about a Confederate soldier turn you off from picking this tale up. This was in no way a defence of racism, slavery, or anything abhorrent like that. Tom was a well-rounded and interesting person who was tangled up in something much bigger than himself and who had grown in all sorts of incredible ways since his death.

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October 28, 2025 · 1:00 am

Top Ten Tuesday: Non-Gory Halloween Movies


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

 

A grey background filled with drawings of dozens of pieces of candy corn that are more or less spread out equally. Here are the Halloween posts I’ve written for Top Ten Tuesday in previous years: Free Horror Stories, My Favourite Halloween Treats, Halloween Picture Books,  Halloween Things I’ve Never Done,  Things I Love About Halloween, and LGBTQ+ Horror Novels, and The Best Ghost Stories I’ve Read.

I love this holiday! Happy (almost) Halloween to everyone who will also be celebrating it in a few days.

As I’m really not a big fan of blood or gore, most but certainly not all of the Halloween movies I watch are marketed to younger audiences. I love the fact that there’s such a wide range of options for this holiday. Not everything Halloween-related has to be terrifying, after all.

These were all great films. Some are better for teens and adults while others can be enjoyed by all ages. So much depends on the specific ages and interests of everyone involved.

1. The Nightmare Before Christmas

2. Hocus Pocus

3. A House With a Clock on Its Walls

4. Coco

5. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

6. Monsters, Inc.

7. Beetlejuice

8. Edward Scissorhands

9. The Sixth Sense

10. I Am Legend

11. The Others

12. Get Out

13. The Babadook

14. The Addams Family

15. The Witch

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October 22, 2025 · 1:00 am

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Things That Scare Me

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

We’ve done this topic before, but I’m once again not looking at my old answers. I think it’s more fun to mix things up and maybe give some responses I didn’t share previously. (Or maybe they’ll all be the same? Someday I may go back and check, but today won’t be that day.)

There are plenty of serious things in real life that scare me, of course, but I’m trying to focus on lighthearted Halloween-themed answers today so that everyone will feel comfortable responding.

Please don’t take this post as a sign that I’m ignoring the troubles of the world because I’m not. I’m just trying to avoid topics that will spark unwanted debates on hot topics in my comment section. Ha!

A brown skinned’s person’s handed holding up a paper sign that has the word “scary” written on it. The words have been mounted on a few decorative layers of purple and blue paper for added effect. The Woods 

There’s no one around to help and no street signs to guide you if you get lost. You’re on your own.

 

Awakening Angry Spirits

No, movie characters, you do NOT need to steal that trinket from the graveyard or ignore the locals’ warnings about staying out of the woods. You will have a much better time in life if you mind your own business and assume that strangers who tell you something is dangerous are doing so for a very good reason.

 

Time Travel

Visiting the past doesn’t seem that fun to me. I’d rather stay here where we have antibiotics, the Internet, and air conditioning.

 

Sexy Monsters 

I don’t care if they’re vampires, zombies, werewolves, Sasquatch, ghosts, or something similar. The fact that they’re trying to lure humans closer to them is more than enough reason for me to run away.

It’s sort of like anglerfish who emit light from their antennas in order to attract prey. If they’re irresistibly alluring but clearly not human, this could be a sign that you’re about to be turned into dinner!

(But no offence intended to those of you who like these sorts of stories, of course. I just get danger vibes from this type of character).

 

Curses

You can eventually outrun or outsmart most other foes, but you – or a book character –  can’t possibly fool a curse. It will follow you no matter where you go.

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October 21, 2025 · 1:00 am

Top Ten Tuesday: Cozy Halloween Reads


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

An empty spider web that has been woven in a wheat field that looks ready to be harvested. There are a few beads of water in the web, and the sky looks overcast and like it might rain again soon. Jana wants us to talk about cozy stories this week.

Given that we’re deep into Halloween season, I want to talk about scary stories that also have cozy elements to them.

Let’s smash those two ideas and see what I can come up with!

1. Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher

2. Cackle by Rachel Harrison

3. The Broken Girls by Simone St. James

4. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

5. The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

6. A Fever of the Blood (Frey & McGray, #2) by Óscar de Muriel

7. Mooncakes by Suzanne Walker

8. Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell

9. Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol

10. Fangs by Sarah Andersen

11. The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher

If you like these genres, what are some of your favourite dark fantasy or cozy horror reads?

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October 14, 2025 · 1:00 am

Top Ten Tuesday: Halloween Playlist


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Those of you who have followed this blog for a while might remember how much I love Halloween. It’s the most wonderful time of year if you ask me!

A shiny grey pair of over-the-ear headphones against a black background. As this week’s topic is a freebie post that can be about anything other than books, here are some of my favourite songs with Halloween themes or vibes.

1. “This Is Halloween” from The Nightmare Before Christmas

2. “The Addams Family Theme Song”  by Vic Mizzy

3. “Dark Horse” by Katy Perry featuring Juicy J

4. “Bad Habits” by Ed Sheeran

5. “My Oh My” by Camila Cabello featuring DaBaby

6. “Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar

7. “Purple People Eater” by Sheb Wooley

8. “Monster Mash” by Bobby “Boris” Pickett & the Crypt-Kickers

9. “Bad Moon Rising” by Creedence Clearwater Revival

10.” Werewolves of London” by Warren Zevon

11. “Highway to Hell” by AC/DC

12. “Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker Jr.

 

Fellow Halloween fans, which songs would you add to this list?

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October 2, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of October Omen

Book cover for October Omen by Holly Schindler. Image on cover is a black and white drawing of a feather whose uppermost leaves gradually transforms into about a dozen little white birds that are flying away from the feather. Title: October Omen

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

Length: 42 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 4 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #11: Superstitions float around us constantly. We choose to believe or discount them based on where our hearts happen to be at that particular moment.

Kelly Marx, Finley’s premiere wedding planner and dress designer, is on a mission to get access to a Civil War-era shawl for Natalie, the latest bride to hire her. But Mary, the elderly owner of the shawl, isn’t the only force to come between Kelly and her goal. When the shawl goes missing, Kelly also encounters mysterious characters and a slew of bad omens—but what does it all add up to? What does it foretell? Where will Kelly’s skeptical heart lead her?

October Omen is the eleventh installment in Forever Finley, a series of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Previous releases include: Come December, January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, April’s Promise, Mayday Mayday Mayday, Chasing June, A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, and Song for September. Stories following October Omen include the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning:

Review:

Many things are possible as daylight melts into dusk.

This was a cozy read that made me want to snuggle under the covers and drink a hot cocoa. The conflicts the characters faced, while important, were ultimately pretty low stakes and relaxing to read about. This wasn’t one of those books where the fate of the entire world lays in the hands of one unsuspecting hero. Instead, it was about sewing, wedding planning, and maybe encountering a few friendly ghosts along the way. There is definitely something to be said for fiction about the simple joys of life, and I look forward to continuing on with these characters in the future.

I found myself wishing for more answers as I dove into my third experience in this universe. Take the genre classifications like romance, paranormal, and fantasy lightly because these books have gently broken many of the tropes associated with all of them so far. Sometimes the descriptions felt more like a dream than a story in that conventional dialogue, character development, plot development didn’t always show up the way I expected them to. Sometimes there are holes in this series that, at least so far, have asked readers to accept certain things without explaining why they were written that way. I don’t mind some of that in moderation, but it was a little excessive for my tastes at times and it is something to keep in mind for readers who have firmer expectations about the genres they read.

Such a whimsical writing style does have its advantages as well, though. If you are curious about stepping into any of these genres, perhaps even for the first time, this could be a good place to begin. There was nothing scary or explicit in this tale. The hauntings could have other explanations depending on how a reader interpreted certain key moments, and the romantic elements of the story were sweet and gentle. It often felt like the literary equivalent of trying various samples of ice cream at an ice cream shop before committing to buying a cone or even an entire pint of which ever flavour – or genre – you might prefer.

This is part of a series that can be read in any order.

October Omen was a heartwarming start to Halloween season.

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October 30, 2024 · 1:00 am

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Superstitions I Secretly Believe In

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

 

Photo of two teardrop shaped mirrors in wooden frames that have been hung on a black wall. Reflected in the mirror you can see the white covers and white pillows on a bed that’s been made but is still a little rumpled. (I received my annual covid and flu vaccines yesterday, so I may be a little late responding to other people’s posts depending on how I’m feeling today.)

I am not a very superstitious person, but these are the superstitions I do follow. Yes, I know most of them are nonsensical, but somehow they still feel important to me.

Crossing fingers for good luck.

When someone I care about is waiting to hear if they’re being offered a job, or what their test results are from the doctor’s office, or any other number of things that could change their lives for the better or worse but that I have no way to influence in a positive direction, I cross my fingers for them and hope for the best.

 

Don’t walk underneath ladders.

I mean, honestly, this is common sense. A collapsing or unsteady ladder could really hurt you or someone nearby.

 

Saying gesundheit or bless you after someone sneezes.

Can I assume that the majority of you know about gesundheit? It’s the German word for health and a pretty common blessing after a sneeze here in North America. I cannot hear someone sneeze without saying either that word or bless you even though logically I know they’re not actually a cure for anyone. It simply feels wrong to ignore sneezes or not wish other people good health.

 

Four leaf clovers bring good luck.

I have never found one, but I have searched for them now and again since childhood. Maybe someday I’ll find one and reap the good luck of not plucking it as I’d rather let it grow in peace!

 

Knocking on wood for good luck and/or to avoid tempting fate.

I didn’t know about the history of this practice. It’s simply something I saw happening occasionally when I was growing up that was presented as a good idea.

 

Don’t place mirrors so that they face each other in a room. 

My spouse taught me this one. It’s apparently bad luck, and I’ve seen too many spooky tv shows about spirits coming out of mirrors to test fate on this one even though I logically know that nothing would happen.

 

Don’t kiss babies

This is a superstition in a few different cultures. In the southern United States, they would warn not to do it because it will make babies drool, but this is also good medical advice in general. Babies, especially very young ones, have underdeveloped immune systems. What presents as a cold in healthy adults or older children could make a newborn dangerously ill if, for example, you happen to be infected with a cold sore, RSV, or the flu but don’t yet know it.

I did not realize kissing babies was so dangerous when I was younger, but I would not do it now! My apologies to the little ones I kissed before I knew better, but so far as I know I didn’t get any of them sick.

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October 29, 2024 · 1:00 am

Top Ten Tuesday: The Best Ghost Stories I’ve Read


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Photo of someone walking around outside in a field with a white sheet over their head. Two eye holes have been cut into the sheet so they can see where they’re going while they dress up as a ghost. They are holding up a lantern with an orange flame in it and looking around as if they may be missing something. Interestingly enough, some of the grasses here are taller than this person. They’re huge! They’re also dry, brown, and dead as it’s autumn in this scene. The Halloween freebie post is one of my favourite recurring Top Ten Tuesday topics because Halloween is my favourite holiday of the year and I love seeing what everyone does with this theme.

Here are the Halloween posts I’ve written for Top Ten Tuesday in previous years: Free Horror Stories, My Favourite Halloween Treats, Halloween Picture Books,  Halloween Things I’ve Never Done,  Things I Love About Halloween, and LGBTQ+ Horror Novels.

This year I’m blogging about ghost stories which is one of those genres I return to over and over again and never grow tired of reading. The best ones in my opinion are the ones that end with the spirit finding closure with their death and being able to move on from this earthly plane. With that being said, not every tale follows that pattern as not every ghost was necessarily a good person in life or is currently able to heal.

Here are some of the best ghost stories I’ve ever read and still remember the titles of.

1. The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

2. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

3.The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

4. Beloved by Toni Morrison

5. The Monkey’s Paw by W.W. Jacobs

6. The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe

7. The Shining by Stephen King

8. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

If you like this genre, too, feel free to share your favourites in your comment if you wish!

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October 10, 2024 · 1:00 am

A Review of I Found a Circus Tent in the Woods Behind My House

Title: I Found a Circus Tent in the Woods Behind My HouseBook cover for I Found a Circus Tent in the Woods Behind My House by Ben Farthing. Image on cover is a probably Ai-generated image of a large red and white striped circus tent that has been set up beside a dark and foreboding forest. You can see a few branches of an evergreen tree poking out in front of the tent almost as if the tree is about to touch this strange invader. There is light illuminating the tent that probably comes from the upper right corner of the image. Weirdly enough, though, the sky itself is grey and overcast. So this light almost appears to be emanating from the tent fabric itself because there’s no other logical place for it to originate from.

Author: Ben Farthing

Publisher: Self-Published (I think?)

Publication Date: January 23, 2023

Genres: Horror, Paranormal,  Halloween, Contemporary

Length: 106 pages

Source: I borrowed it from the library

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Lost in a labyrinth of circus tents…

Dave and his four-year-old, Jacob, find a circus tent in the woods behind their house. A strange voice invites them through the dark doorway.

When they refuse, the tent swallows them.

What follows is a nightmare fleeing through a maze of circus tents. Strange performers lurk inside. They want Dave and his little boy to put on a show. The a shifting figure on a platform high above the trapeze wires.

With Jacob perched in the crook of his arm, Dave determines to outsmart the boss of this dark circus, and escape this horrifying tent.

Content Warning: Clowns. Blood. Murder.

Review:

The woods aren’t as safe as one might think.

It was interesting to see how parenthood had changed Dave. He gave several examples of what he used to do on the weekends before becoming a dad and how he had to give those hobbies and volunteer hours up due to having two young children to raise. Most of the fiction I read focuses on mothers, so I liked seeing what parenthood can feel like from a father’s perspective. Despite his other flaws, Dave seemed like an attentive and loving dad who was genuinely trying to give his children the best childhoods he could.

I struggled with the repetitive nature of this novella. Dave kept sharing the same thoughts with the audience over and over again, and he didn’t always make the most logical decisions. While I wouldn’t expect a character in his situation to be eloquent by any means, I did find myself wishing that he’d spend less time talking to the audience and more time either getting himself and his son out of that creepy circus tent or figuring out why the circus performers were so keen on luring humans into their world.  As much as I wanted to give this one a higher rating, this issue prevented me from feeling comfortable to do so.

With that being said, I did appreciate the writing style of this piece. It reminded me of an adult version of  the old television show Are You Afraid of the Dark. That is to say, it was a little cheesy in a good way and gave the characters plenty of opportunities to escape. The scenes that included scary moments were not emphasized the same way they probably would have been in, say, a Stephen King story. Honestly, I could see a preteen reader who loved horror being into this just as much as the adult audience it was written for, so it could be a good stepping stone into the horror genre for people who don’t mind brief references to blood but mostly want to be scared by imagining what might happen next.

This is the first instalment of a series that can be read in any order. If you do decide to read any of the books in it, though, be sure to check out the author’s explanations of where his ideas come from after the final chapter. The two I have read so far helped me to see their storylines in a new light and were well worth my time. (I will be reviewing I Found Puppets Living In My Apartment Walls in a few weeks, so stay tuned).

I Found a Circus Tent in the Woods Behind My House was a fun Halloween read.

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October 31, 2023 · 1:00 am

Top Ten Tuesday: Things I Love About Halloween


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Happy Halloween to everyone who celebrates it! This is my favourite holiday of the year, so I’m thrilled to see October 31 come around again on the calendar.

In previous years, I’ve blogged about My Favourite Halloween Treats, Halloween Picture Books, and Halloween Things I’ve Never Done  for Top Ten Tuesday’s Halloween Freebie post.

This time I’m going to talk about why I love this holiday so much, especially since I wasn’t allowed to celebrate it as a kid as I’ve mentioned before.

So what’s so fantastic about this holiday?

1. Presents Aren’t Needed

It’s a relief to celebrate without being expected to give or receive gifts. I have a lot of mixed feelings about that tradition.

Two white people are each holding up a sugar cookie that has been decorated for Halloween. One cookie is shaped like a ghost and the other one a skeleton. 2. Candy and Baked Goods

Halloween candy and baked goods are delicious. If I receive something I can’t eat for allergy reasons, there are a lot of other people who can eat it and who wouldn’t mind taking it home.

3. Free Expression

This is the only time of year when it’s socially acceptable for adults to dress in costumes (unless you’re going to a comic conference or something). I love having the freedom to be anyone I want for that night…even if, truth be told, most Halloween nights find me no longer dressing up at all.

4. You Can Eat Anything 

I enjoy cooking, but I do not like the pressure that can come on other holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas to follow a rigid menu and make all of the dishes the exact same way every time. There is no set menu for Halloween. You could eat pizza, samosas, Pad Thai, or a nice, big salad if you wish!

5. Halloween Music

Don’t tell anyone, but I start listening to Halloween playlists in September. I love jumping around from lighthearted kids’ songs to the season finale song of Supernatural to all sorts of other spooky music.

6. Autumn Is Gorgeous 

I love walking through crunchy leaves in the park and seeing the brilliant red, yellow, orange, and occasionally purple leaves still clinging to their trees or bushes.  Halloween is often pretty close to peak colour here in Toronto, so this is yet another reason why I love this holiday.

7. Ghost Stories 

Whether I’m going on a ghost tour, reading a ghost story, or watching a paranormal film, I think it’s interesting to explore the spirits’ motives for haunting a particular location.

A jack-o-lantern is sitting in a patch of glass. There is a candle inside of the lantern that is making it glow orange and yellow. It’s dark outside, so few other details can be seen other than the lush grass it is sitting on. 8. Carving Pumpkins

Am I good at it? Not really, but it’s still amusing. When else are you going to have permission to play with food? (Or potential food, rather).

9. Acknowledgement of Death

A friend of mine died in a car accident when we were in high school. One of the weirdest parts of that experience for me was how quickly people stopped talking about him. We were all grieving, and of course I respected everyone who found it too hard to discuss him or his accident. Halloween is a relief to me because it’s one time of year when more folks are willing to broach such topics and remember the dead.  Yes, there is pain in those moments…but over time there can also be so much joy to be found in retelling funny or touching stories about those who are no longer with us.

10. Fear Is Fun In Small Doses When You’re Not Really In Danger

Wow, that was a wordy sentence! But, yeah, I do see the value in feeling a little fear from a spooky movie or ghost story when you know that it is 100% fiction. This is such a different feeling than being afraid of something or someone who could actually harm you.

 

 

 

 

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