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Oh, mah GAWDT. I still think about High Beams TO THIS DAY. I always check the back seat when I get in the car. Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark was always fun. I never got nightmares as a child, not even after my brother and parents died, which was weird and unique. I am very grateful for that.

La Llorona scared me as a kid. It's a story that Mexican parents use to scare their kids to come home before dark and/or stay away from water. My dad used it to keep us from the creek by our house. It worked. 😂

Joe and I have been doing 31 nights of Halloween horror where we watch a spooky movie every night. or at least try to, sometimes we fall asleep.

I've been eyeing Middlemarch by George Eliot. It's one of the few classics I have not read. That book has crossed my path three times this week and I'm taking that as my sign to read it asap.

Also subscribed to the cut's Book Gossip newsletter. I have a feeling it might be unhinged...hopefully in a good way.

Your tote bag is adorable! And so are the kitties. 😍

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High Beams really ruined us!! I am jealous of your clear nighttime brain.

I had never heard of La Llorona until they made that movie but its TERRIFYING of course your dad used that story lol

Have a favorite spooky movie yet?

Middlemarch is supposed to be phenomenal I would love to read that soon too!

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honored to be featured!!! I LOVED scary stories to tell in the dark as a kid, I remember the covers being terrifying. not a book, but I remember vividly being in a dvd rental store and my dad pointing out the blair witch project & me reading the back of it, and for years it was almost mythologized in my mind and when I finally watched it years later it was nothing like I thought but still one of my favorites

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I was 13 when Blair Witch came out and there was SO WAY I was going to watch that. I still havent seen more than a few clips here and there... I feel like the magic may be ruined now after so many years

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Schwartz was a part of my childhood too, and Green Ribbon stuck with me for years. Dear God, her head falls off!

I think Hereditary delivers the scares so hard. I agree about Charlie.

I've just finished a rewatch of My Roanoke Nightmare, which is very scary and gory, and the first two seasons of Evil. I've also gotten hooked on Grotesquerie. 👻

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I have been thinking about this post since you shared it to come up with an answer - and I think honestly ALL I can think of is Nanny McPhee - the Emma Thompson version. My mum took me to watch that in the cinema when I was 6 or 7 and I actually don't think I have ever been more scared in my life lmaoooo. Creepy McPhee on the big screen was literally too much for me. I also used to hate the child catcher - for obvious reasons

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I have never seen that but Creepy McPhee 😂 well you know what you like and scary aint it and thats perfectly fine - my gal is posh spice not scary spice!!

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I just finished reading DIAVOLA by Jennifer Thorne, and I want to shove it into everyone's hands. Have you read it?

The setup is 'haunted house story set in a vacation rental villa in Italy.' And is it that. But so much more.

Anna, the heroine, is the black sheep of her family, and I found the family dynamics VERY relatable. The conversations among Anna, her twin brother, her sister, and their parents are perfect... if you come from a certain kind of family. I strongly related to Anna and her role in the family dynamic.

Alongside all of that is a gloriously written haunting. The descriptions are so vivid and clear — I could see and feel exactly what was happening in that creepy villa. How much did I love it/did it affect me? I had to turn on all the lights the other night to go to the bathroom. Yes to that!

The tension and suspense lasts all the way through, and she really stuck the landing at the end.

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I havent read Diavola yet!!! good to know its worth it!! I dont think i have time for another before spooky season is over but I can read horror anytime...

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I love to watch The Others and/or Hocus Pocus. I am reading The Mighty Red (a bit campy but good so far) and will start The Parable of the Sower this weekend… COVID shot permitting.

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oooof covid boosters will get you!!! I bought Parable of the Sower to read this summer and just failed miserably. Cant wait to hear what you think of it.

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I am on Chapter 5 and I am not sure how much of this I can take…

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uh oh!!!

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I don’t know how I learned about his existence (I wasn’t a spooky story kid), but when I was a kid I had a recurring nightmare about Jack the Ripper. My id balanced this out with a recurring dream about my crush, The Fonz 🤭🫠.

Still reading Trust and kind of wondering what all the hubbub is about, but I’ll push through and see what I see. Also just started An Immense World by Ed Yong. It’s non-fiction and all about animal’s senses (including us humans). This one may take me until the holidays to finish - it’s pretty dense, interesting, well-written. It’s more of a slow savor.

Any fun Halloween plans for you, the hubs, the felines?

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Jack the Ripper!!!! a gal after my own heart, having nightmares about real people lol. The Fonz wow mine was Zack Morris so I guess not that much better hahah

Interesting on Trust.. It is one of those when you see the big picture, its either impressive to you or its not. a lot about story telling and who gets to tell what story. I imagine its best consumed with a guide, or read an in depth review after to see what you might have missed, because I certainly missed a bunch

My coworker invited us over to pass out candy in their busy neighborhood, apparently a vat of spaghetti is involved so im there!!!

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Zack Morris!! You and I just both established that you’re getting old, but I’m definitely older 😂.

I think you are exactly write about Trust. I have a feeling I’ve probably judged it too soon. Reading it right before bed is probably not helping with my ability to connect the dots either.

Carbs, costumes, and candy?? What could be better?! 👻

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I read one maybe two Goosebumps and that was enough for me. I think it's the haunted house one that did me in??

I'm currently reading the Trees which may fall into the horror category but I haven't fully decided yet.

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Ah just picked up The Trees at a used bookstore!! and Goosebumps was TERRIFYING

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Oo whenever you get to it I'm excited to hear what you think

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Can you report back on Jawbone? Is it the one by Monica Ojeda? I'm intrigued too! - To answer your q, R.L Stine had a more obscure series called Fear Street and those were like two notches above Goosebumps. Truly spooked me and I think about the stories two decades after. IRL I'm originally from Colombia and we have so many spooky stories about getting lost in the woods that I feel fearful when I feel kind of lost during a hiking or in nature

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Yes I can!! about halfway through Jawbone now and I have thoughts, mostly good so far!

I loved loved fear street, they were the more girly series (I thought) with like the cheerleaders and all that.

Colombia trying to keep kids out of the woods it sounds like!!

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Jane Emily by Patricia Clapp! Super creepy little girl ghost that terrified me as a child. And Sabriel by Garth Nix when I was a little bit older.

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Jane Emily just sounds like a creepy ghost name!!

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Reading the Hereditary bit and immediately thinking "wow she's onto something, they totally should've made that kid normal looking or even extremely cute" bc i'm a lunatic

Did you read Jawbone yet ??? I absolutely loved it

Anthony Horowitz's "Horowitz Horror" was my version of "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark." Author of the "Alex Rider" YA series if you ever read those. I don't really remember any of the stories but am pretty sure it's still on my parents bookshelf...

For three years now I've added to a Horrorthon spreadsheet every October because, again, I'm a lunatic. I'm a year-round horror type of gal so I like to use the month to focus on festive monsters like vamps & werewolves, since that isn't my usual bag, and hit some genre classics I haven't gotten to yet.

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a lunatic hahahah but right?? Why does she have to be so strange looking??? I need to think more about this.

Reading Jawbone now, about halfway its quite the ride! it takes all my brain power to get into flow with that one. Like it so far

Never heard of Horowitz Horror or Alex Rider!

and i agree this is the time of year to get festive with the spooks, like Mad Monster Party from 1967 lol

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