Mstrust #3- Wanna Get Weird? Autumn & Halloween

I'm so glad you dropped by. Let me just lock the door behind you. It's a bad neighborhood, as the locals keep telling me. I hear it was a lot safer before I moved in. Did you know the people next door are missing?


I'm Jennifer, aka your Scary Godmother. This is my 9th year of making things creepy and weird on LT for the season. You're invited to drop in often to see Autumn foods and fall foliage, Halloween decorations, sweets, movies and lots of books.


I'll be reading as many seasonal books as I can, and using my handy and patented Scare Scale(TM), which is proven to be the most accurate technique for weighing the amount of terror a book contains.
1 Severed Finger: Not scary, but may not be intended to scare. Could be a cookbook, could be the author just sucks.
2 Severed Fingers: Some tension or spooky passages.
3 Severed Fingers: Pretty scary. Read with one eye closed.
4 Severed Fingers: That's a lot of severed fingers! Excuse me, I need to go change my pants.


I hear you asking how can I be as creepy as you? I'll tell you.

1. I'm hosting September's haunted house themed ScaredyKit. You're invited!
https://www.librarything.com/topic/353004#n8222375

2. Read a seasonal book or watch a scary movie, then give us a brief review. Just a line or two to point us towards or away would be great.
3. Let us know when you spot a new Autumn product or if you have a favorite.
4. If you need more, more, more Autumn and Halloween, if you long for creepy locations, weird articles, terrifying true crime or just a good maple cocktail recipe, head over to my year round Substack, Autumn Lives Here. Half the posts are free, no joining required unless you want to have access to them all.
https://jennifermorrow.substack.com/

Ready to celebrate Autumn? Have you stocked up on pumpkin puree, maple syrup, and those bags of fake cobwebs? Do you have a weapon of some kind? You do? Okay.....let me just put away my raincoat and roll up this tarp. Ha, no, I don't know why the walls are covered in plastic. Crazy, huh?

Don't make me chase you, I'd have to get the car.

AUTUMN & HALLOWEEN READS

48. Bedside Manor- 4.5
49. Mothered- 4.5
50. American Vampire Vol. 1- 3.5
51. The Walking Dead Psychology- 4
52. 30 Days of Night: Run, Alice, Run- 3.5
53. The Broken Girls- 4.5
54. Fifth Grade Zombies- 3.5
55. Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee- 3.5
56. Blood & Ivy- 4
57. The Visitors- 5

Happy new thread Jennifer!

Happy new thread! Already thinking about October reads.

>1 mstrust: Great first post! Happy new thread!

That first picture is from one of my favorite shows, The IT Crowd. So funny, so smart (in a silly kind of way). It was a real treat to see it here!

Karen O

Hooray, people came to my party! I thought I might be experiencing a Schrute family shunning. Seems like everyone is going all out for Labor Day this year.
>4 quondame: Hi, Susan! I'll have to open some closets and find your "I'm #1" prize.
>5 drneutron: Thanks, Jim! Get your stack of Halloween books ready, we've got two months of fun.
>6 klobrien2: Good to see you, Karen! I too love The IT Crowd, and Richmond fits right in here!

>4 quondame: Here you go, Susan! Halloweenie, yet profound:

48. Bedside Manor by Jack Townsend.

Jack and his best friend Jerry go on a road trip to take Jack's mind off his problems. Their car breaks down on a lonely road that has no cell reception, but luckily there's a big, spooky mansion in sight. They ask for a phone, but with a storm approaching, it will be a long wait for a tow truck. They're offered a room, dry clothes and a strong invitation to join the murder mystery party downstairs. Jack feels something off about the manor and the people who have gathered for the game, but things are much worse than he could have guessed.
Part horror, part sci-fi, part Clue, this fun mystery is all unpredictable twists, you never know where it's going next. If you've read Townsend's Tales from the Gas Station, this is station attendant Jack's horrible vacation.
Scare Scale: 2.5 severed fingers

Happy new one Jennifer.

Don't really get chill breezes here so I can't yet feel the onset of halloween!

Happy new thread! I'm here for recipes and general entertainment! Boo!

Yay—the Autumn thread means the Halloween season is just around the corner! Thanks mstrust!

I am trying to stay all inside this Labor Day, as our heat index was ungodly. I even heard Lucifer say he was going to come up this way for a visit since it was his kind of weather.

Would have visited sooner but I’ve had a heck of a crazy time: start of a new semester, we have been nursing our collie mix for weeks in hospice and we finally said goodbye to her this weekend, and are dealing with the grape harvest on top of that. We’ll have some fresh grape juice this winter—mostly because grape juice is the fastest, easiest thing to do with them.

I just finished a 1 Severed Finger book called Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater, a YA romance fantasy horror light that centers around the Good Folk (faeries for those unfamiliar with folklore terms) who are plotting something diabolical for Halloween. At the same time, the main human character James is the recipient of unwanted attention from a fae whose habit is to trade exceptional musical talent for some of your life force. That seems fair, right? I’m calling this horror light because despite the diabolical plan, there’s no real tension for those of us who are true horror aficionados. Don’t worry—I have more potentially scary books in the wings….

Happy new thread, Jennifer!

>10 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul! It's super hot here too, but the fans are going and I've started putting up decorations :-D
>11 Carmenere: Boo to you, Lynda! I'm glad you're here, and I'll come up with some good recipes!
>12 CassieBash: You're welcome, Cassie, thanks for stopping by!
I'm sorry your dog is so ill, that's really hard. But thanks for the review.
>13 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Anita!

I took a week long break from my Substack, a line in the hot sand between Summer and Autumn. That's right, I'm calling it.
I've posted my new Autumn Lives Here this morning. I've got death in the Paris catacombs, a visit to the Eloise Asylum Haunted Attraction, and a big pile of pumpkin books, for cooking, baking and growing. With recipes! This first week of official Autumn is just for my Gloriest Goriest subscribers, next week will be free-to-all.
https://jennifermorrow.substack.com/

Happy new one!

>16 figsfromthistle: Thanks!

Well, yesterday sucked LT-wise, but thanks to the LT staff of tech wizards for getting us back up. That must have been a hair-pulling day for them!

Happy new thread, Jennifer! I think I am only 2 or 3 threads behind at this point. . .a true horror story.

>17 mstrust: Yesterday did suck LT-wise and I am very happy to see that Tim and co. have us back up today!

Let's try this again.


Baked Apple Rings
from The Delectable Apple

1/2 c sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
3 tbs melted butter
2 tbs lemon juice
4 med cooking apples, such as Pippin or Golden Delicious. They need to hold their shape in the heat.

Preheat oven to 425.
Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish, then combine the butter and juice in another.
Core and peel the apples, trim the ends, then slice into 1/2 thick rings. Dreg each ring in the butter dip, then coat in the sugar mixture.
Arrange on a baking sheet and bake about 15 minutes, until apples are tender and golden.

>18 alcottacre: Glad you were able to catch up with me!
Why would someone take the time to hack a book cataloguing site? What a pointless life.

49. Mothered by Zoje Stage.

Grace and her mother Jackie have had a distant relationship for decades, both literally and emotionally. Grace became a hairstylist and remained in Pittsburgh, while Jackie took off for Florida and ended up outliving two husbands. Grace is a new homeowner when the pandemic hits, leaving her out of a job and with a mortgage, which is when Jackie calls and suggests she become Grace's roommate to relieve some of the financial burden. Eventually, Grace agrees to let her mother move in, knowing it would last for only so long.
Jackie's arrival brings out their old family dynamics. Jackie likes being waited on, but it turns out that she wasn't the meanest in the family. Grace had once been a twin, and her nightmares of those years are intense, leading to sleepless nights that become unbearable when the two women are stuck together in the small house.
2 severed fingers

>20 mstrust: I know, really? Could they not tackle a site that is not this one? I was going through LT withdrawal all day long!

Ha, yes! I'm hoping it was some shitty little teen, but it seems a bit more sophisticated to have taken the site down for most of the day.

>23 mstrust: Yeah, I agree. Given the fact that LT was down pretty much all day long, I think it was probably a bit more sophisticated, as you say. I hope that they leave it alone from here on out.

>19 mstrust: Heh, I'd just pop them in the deep fryer....
Delicious either way, I'm sure.

>24 alcottacre: So it's agreed? If LT goes down again we all have screaming hissy fits on the floor?

>25 quondame: They can be fried too! And probably very tasty, but I don't have a deep fryer. I do have an air fryer though. Hmmm.


choy sum

I started my Autumn sowing last week and the results have been astounding. I sowed broccoli seeds 4 days ago and they've sprouted. I sowed radish seeds a week ago and they're already 2-3 inches tall. Nearly everything I've sowed has germinated.
Sowed so far: French breakfast radishes, black nebula and Uzbiaki carrots, bronze beauty, simpson's black seeded and may queen lettuce, mizuna, marigolds, broccoli, black strawberry, terra-cotta and tiger blush tomatoes, choy sum, green onions, Texas grand onion, garlic, black pepper, hot pepper, orange pepper. purple bean, calima bean.
I plan on sowing more tomatoes and a few sunflowers too.

Happy New Thread!! I'm so glad to be almost done with summer and looking forward to seeing what surprises you have in store for us. Love the IT Crowd opening. That series of episodes with Noel Fielding were some of the weirdest I've ever seen.

Hi, Harold! Good to see you here, and that you're also a fan of the IT Crowd!
I'm going to make this the most Autumn-y and Halloweenie thread on LT. As long as I have visitors, it'll be a hoppin' place.

Hi! Happy Almost Time To Not Have Your Skin Burn Off Your Body Every Time You Go Outside!
That's cool you have so much growing!
I bought a jack o lantern from Lowe's last weekend. Let's go!

Happy New thread, Jennifer!
Looking forward to many new recommendations - I love severed fingers, unfortunately it takes so many to get fed up...

🎃 I'll be following along for the spookiness! 🎃

>29 PaperbackPirate: This weekend will be brutal, but hopefully the last of the year.
The heat is great for germinating seeds, but after they've sprouted they need less. I've got everything in indirect sunlight, but fingers crossed they get through this week's temps.
I was at Aldi a few nights ago and snatched up so much of their Autumn stuff. Need to hit Trader Joe's.

>30 SirThomas: Hi, Thomas! Fingers are more of a snack, you need to at least have it up to the wrist to make a meal. But that's just my opinion.

>31 LibraryLover23: You came to the right place!

Here are Jeff's block of fall foliage live cams covering New England. Some have become Youtube-affiliated, but you can still scroll through a bunch of spots. Youtube cams need a click of the button now. Things are just starting to turn, it's at the very beginning. I tend to go back and look throughout Fall, you'll see gorgeousity.
https://jeff-foliage.com/new-england-webcams/

50. American Vampire by Scott Snyder, Stephen King and Rafael Albuqueurque.

This contained the first five issues of the comic series. There are two separate stories here that intersect in the beginning and end. Snyder wrote the storyline that follows a movie extra in 1925 Hollywood as she and her best friend hope for stardom. When Pearl is plucked out of the group and given a scene with a famous leading man, she thinks this is her big break, especially when he invites her to the director's party.
King wrote the storyline of Skinner Sweet, a vampire in the Old West who is destroying every man who tries to hunt him.
Both stories create new vampire "rules", and it's an exciting series.
Scare Scale: 2

Slot Machine Fever Dreams by Chris Bohjalian.

This is a 39 page story in Kindle's "Obsessions" collection. A man who has been winning big at a Vegas casino takes a break and goes to the bar. He strikes up a conversation with the bartender, a woman covered in tattoos of Emily Dickenson quotes. They leave together when her shift is over. He gets a room in the hotel and they go up, but the man isn't the restaurant manager he says he is, and she has a more dangerous history too.

A free Autumn Lives Here is up. This week we meet the owner of Ben's Sugar Shack in New Hampshire, and look at the career of Universal monster makeup artist Jack Pierce, the guy who turned Karloff into Frankenstein and Chaney into The Wolfman.
https://jennifermorrow.substack.com/

51. The Walking Dead Psychology by Travis Langley.

A book of essays that cover subjects such as survivor guilt, the effects of long-term fear and stress, what turns normal people into sociopaths, and how we perceive our own role in a group. Most of the essays are contributed by mental health professionals, professors, and one forensic examiner, so while the psychiatric insights are solid and in many cases could apply to real life situations, the traumatized characters of The Walking Dead are the ones being examined. There's a particularly good essay about season two bad guy Shane.
I'd read another Walker psychology book years ago and found it pretty dry. If you're interested in the subject, which covers trauma and survival, this is a good choice. The essays are pretty riveting. 4 stars, S.S. 1.5

Seems like I need to employ the old icebreakers to get people chatting.
1. Seen any new Autumn products? I saw big jugs of Softsoap liquid in apple cider and pumpkin spice scents. I also picked up a bag of maple mini marshmallows from Trader Joe's, but haven't opened them yet. And I picked up a pint of pumpkin spice ice cream at Aldi which was very good, but I still prefer Trader Joe's. Which I've also picked up.

2. What Autumn/Halloween event or thing are you looking forward to? We're still not sure if we're going to Vegas for Halloween. But I'm looking forward to going to see a classic Halloween movie at our grand dame theater, which is fundraising throughout Autumn. I'm also a big, big fan of the Halloween baking competitions, and the best one started last night. Oh, and my state fair entries will be delivered next week, so next Monday I'll be baking all day.

What about you?

Our annual party is always fun; this year’s theme is dark faerie tales. I’m The Wolf (as I’m big, bad) and am setting my character up as a lawyer taking on villain cases: my Snow Queen sister was not responsible for Kay’s behavior as in the original tale a broken demonic mirror freezes Kay’s heart, and my other sister, a dark unicorn, should be on the endangered species list and her habitat protected. As for my troll fiancé, the billy goats neglected to pay the troll to cross his property (the “troll bridge”) as well as assault and battery charges. My law firm of Wolff, Lambkin, and Oddsbodkins, seems to be off to a good start!

I remember that you and your family do it up big for Halloween. This year's theme sounds like it has quite a backstory!

>39 mstrust: TJ's maple mini marshmallows!?! Tomorrow it will have to wait until tomorrow - or well I do have a slice of pecan pie from the fried chicken (it was sooo good!) place so maybe I should hold off - nope!

Yes! If I don't eat them straight from the bag I'll mix them with regular marshmallows and make Rice Krispie treats for a vanilla/maple twist.

I just purchased some cozy coffee. From Target, Maple Bourbon and from Aldi's, Maple Pecan Pie. Let the leaves fall!

I was at Aldi about an hour ago and picked up pumpkin spice and bourbon caramel whipped creams. I had the pumpkin spice flavor last year and loved it, but I was hoping the maple vanilla whipped cream would return too. Anyway, it's fantastic on coffee!
I'm currently adding pumpkin pie creamer to my dark roast coffee and really like that.

Let's just go ahead and switch from summery cocktail to Fall already. Here's a quick tutorial of 10 Autumn drinks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tU8czpWIyM&t=613s

>26 mstrust: I do not know about you, but I was just short of hissy fits on the floor when LT was down. I complained a lot to my husband, that is for sure. I am very sure he was tired of listening to me talk about the withdrawal I was going through when LT was not available.

>33 mstrust: That is just beautiful. It makes me long for Pennsylvania. Why am I in Texas???

I did tell Mike how weird it was for LT to be down all day, then I looked for updates on, was it Twitter? I think so.
Isn't New England the most beautiful place in Autumn? I looked at the foliage cams yesterday and saw just the bare beginnings of the turn.


I got an email from Full Body Chills today. My story is definitely going to be in this season!

>48 mstrust: Yes, New England is the most beautiful place in Autumn! I wanna be there, lol.

Me too!

>43 mstrust: I made good on this threat and made Rick Krispie treats with half maple, half regular marshmallows. It's really good! The maple marshmallows by themselves are much softer than a regular grocery store marshmallow, they have no chew at all, but a nice maple scent and a mild maple flavor.

52. 30 Days of Night 3: Run, Alice, Run by Steve Niles

Alice and Hendrik are cornered in the FBI building by Eben and his vampires. All the agents have either been killed or turned and have joined Eben's army, helping him get closer to Alice. This is all Eben is interested in because Alice is the cop who killed Eben's wife, Stella.
Vampires and lots of gore, though in some panels I couldn't tell what was happening.
SS: 1.5

Have you seen The Exorcist Legacy: 50 Years of Fear? Fun little book on the novels, movies, etc. Hard to believe it's been 50 years...

I noted it on Autumn Lives Here when it had a release date, but I haven't read it yet. You recommending it?

53. The Broken Girls by Simone St. James

Fiona is a writer of fluff magazine pieces, the kind that don't take much effort, and she's been fine with that even though her career is a disappointment to her famous father, an iconic writer and photographer. Fiona and her dad's lives were derailed twenty years before when Fiona's older sister was found dead on the grounds of isolated Idlewild Hall, an abandoned girl's school that has the reputation for being haunted.
Suddenly the crumbling school has a new owner who plans on renovating and reopening the school, and this is what gets Fiona to the place her sister was dumped. She begins investigating the new owners, which leads to an investigation into multiple other deaths connected with the school, including the source of the rumored school ghost.
A spooky Victorian school, angry teens and an investigative reporter, all set in shiveringly cold Vermont. Recommended.
SS: 2

>54 mstrust: I have only read one of Simone St. James' books and I enjoyed it (The Book of Cold Cases), so I will have to see if I can track down a copy of that one. Thanks for the recommendation, Jennifer.

Have a super Saturday!

I have that one on my TBR pile, so I'm glad to hear you liked it. I highly, highly recommend The Sun Down Motel, which is remarkably creepy, but just so good.
You have a great weekend!

>54 mstrust: I enjoyed this book a lot.
Have a wonderful weekend!

>56 mstrust: The Sun Down Motel was great!

>57 SirThomas: You too, Thomas!
>58 reconditereader: It is!

I bought Speaking From Among the Bones and Unmasked: My Life Solving America's Cold Cases yesterday, both books I'd had on my WL for a while. I also sowed red sunflower seeds in the backyard. They were gorgeous last year. And I made mini loaves of pumpkin walnut bread. We're supposed to drop down to the 90s this coming week!

What I'm watching: Just gobbled up the whole "Painkiller" series on Netflix. It's about the Sackler family and the opioid crisis. Also watching the Halloween Baking Championship, which started the season last Monday, and The 101 Scariest Horror Movie Moments of All Time on AMC.

>53 mstrust: I enjoyed it!

Thanks for the rec!

54. Fifth-Grade Zombies by R.L. Stine.

Todd's parents have gone away on a year long business trip, sending him from Queens to cousins in Wisconsin. Todd is a twelve year-old who doesn't complain, in fact, he's looking forward to living with his cousins Mila and Skipper and his aunt and uncle. But it doesn't take long before Todd is catching on to his new family's strange behavior when it comes to the weird sounds coming from their cornfield, or that everyone in his new school must be in their classrooms before the gray bus pulls up to let the last load of kids out.
The Slappyworld books are the newer series of Goosebumps, written for the current generation. This 2021 book is faster paced, a little more graphic with gore, and the kids are smarter. But you still get Stine's trademark "noooo!"
SS: 1.5

I’ve read 4 of Simone St James’s books . Good creepy fun! I especially loved The Broken Girls. You have such a fun thread!

Thanks very much, Deb, and I'm glad you found me!
It seems like St. James was busy publishing a bunch of great books, and then The Sun Down Motel came along and we all "discovered" her, ha!

This week at Autumn Lives Here, we delve into the Walker Stalker convention scandal. What happened when 70,000 Walking Dead fans dropped to 25,000? Financial chaos.
Also, we celebrate Stephen King's birthday. Here he is, just wondering why you haven't subscribed yet.

https://jennifermorrow.substack.com/

Here's a little video from Michigan's Robinette Apple Orchards. Apple picking is fun, apple cider is delicious, and apple cider donuts are fantastic. See, I can be wholesome!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENCYdB_zU0w

55. The Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee Book by Jerry Seinfeld.

I love this Netflix series that has Seinfeld taking classic cars to pick up comedians and go get coffee. They talk, crack jokes, get something to eat, and drink coffee. They drive around, see the streets and often say hello to people who are staring at them.
This coffee table sized book has excerpts from these talks put into chapters about childhood or discussing other comedians. If you've watched the show, you've heard these discussions. The surprise in this book was Seinfeld's taking the reader through the steps of how the show was made. Since getting coffee was always in the plan, he had a meeting with Starbuck's CEO to pitch them being the sponsor, having the show be filmed in a Starbuck's. The CEO couldn't grasp the concept and passed, which is why Lavazza is in every episode.
0 Severed Fingers

Nothing? Okay, how 'bout this...


Here's Hotel Gracery Shinjuku in Tokyo, aka "Godzilla Hotel"


The view from one of the rooms

On Tuesday we took my fair entries over. Yesterday I made my yearly batch of cheese curry crackers. I don't know why I crave these in the Fall specifically, but I do.
So I was able to read a little more after that, and I watch Things Seen & Heard on Netflix. a spooky haunted house/dysfunctional marriage movie.

>69 mstrust: Hadn't heard of that one, I'll have to check it out. Looking forward to The Fall Of The House Of Usher though.

Oooh, thanks for pointing that one out! I was wondering if Mike Flanagan would have something new for October, and here it is. I'm looking forward to it!

>56 mstrust: Thanks for the recommendation of The Sun Down Motel. I will have to see if I can track down a copy! Creepy I can do, straight up horror - forget it.

You're welcome! I think you can easily pick it up at the library as it was her breakthrough book, very popular. I hope you like it!

>71 mstrust: I love his shows although Hill House and Midnight Mass are my favorites.
I guess this is to be his last for Netflix from what I read.

>69 mstrust: Cheese curry cookies? Sounds delicious!

>74 hredwards: My favorites were the first two, Hill House and Bly Manor. I thought Midnight Mass had too many long sermons and the action took too long to get to, but it was still a well-done series. Have you seen his Ouija: Origin of Evil?
Netflix has a history of contracts where a pay scale change kicks in after the third season, where actors, producers would make more money, and that's why Netflix cancels after the third season. That's what happened to "Santa Clarita Diet", which was doing so well.

>75 figsfromthistle: They are, very flavorful, no sugar, and you can bake them til their soft like a cookie, or crunchy like a cracker. I posted the recipe a year ago on my Substack. I'll dig around.

The September Extra post is up, but you'll have to climb up to the treehouse to read it!
https://jennifermorrow.substack.com/

>73 mstrust: Yes, my local library has a copy. I have it marked to read in October. My September still sees a lot of books I need to read.

Have a fantastic Friday, Jennifer!

Glad you'll be able to read it! You'll have to come tell us what you thought after. Have a great weekend!

>76 mstrust: No I haven't seen it, I was just reading about it yesterday, I'll have to check it out.

I haven't seen the first Ouija movie, but I saw the second because Flanagan directed and it's considered better than the first, a rarity in sequels.

>75 figsfromthistle: Okay, I was able to grab this from back in the 22nd post of Autumn Lives Here. That was less than a year ago, and things have come a long way. My readership has quadrupled since then, but I'd be happy to have everyone here drop by over there. *nudge*

Since posting this, I tinkered with it, but the cayenne recipe is what I won the fair ribbon with. Now I add in 1/4 tsp yellow curry powder and 1/8 tsp tumeric too.
Blue Ribbon Spicy Cheese Crackers
Easy to make and packed with flavor, these have become an Autumn go-to recipe for me. Maybe it's because you can use just about any medium to hard cheese you like, or that you can add as much heat as you'd prefer. Maybe it's just that it's finally cool enough to have the oven on, but I make these at least once every Autumn because they're so good.

This is how I make it, and they earned a blue ribbon at the state fair.

½ c shredded parmesan

½ c shredded sharp cheddar

1 ½ c flour

5 ½ tbs unsalted butter

¾ tsp salt

1 tsp cayenne

1 tsp baking powder

Place all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until large crumbs begin to form. Add cold water one tablespoon at a time, mixing until the dough forms a ball.

Divide the dough in half and flatten into circles. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 375. Place parchment paper on two cookie sheets.

Roll out one piece of dough to about 1/8 of an inch thick. You can use cookie cutters or just slice into small squares with a knife. Transfer the crackers to the cookie sheets. Using a bamboo skewer or toothpick, poke holes in the crackers. (This is important as the hole will allow the steam out, making a crunchy cracker rather than a chewy one.) Poke one hole for a small cracker, more for larger crackers.

Bake 18-20 minutes, until golden brown. Cool for at least two hours on a wire rack before storing in a container.

It's late, I know, but I kept forgetting to let you know why I didn't include the Halloween card exchange here this year. I moved it to my Substack. I know, I can hear you sighing. But here's the deal: it's not an exchange this year, which means you aren't obligated to send one to me. Look how nice I'm being! Any subscriber can click on my e-mail and request a Halloween card, no strings attached.
Just go to Autumn Lives Here >76 mstrust: It doesn't matter that this week is for paid members only, you can still click on the "subscribe" and choose a free subscription. The email is located in last week's free post, and it will be in Tuesday's free post. It's fun to get a little Halloween in the mail.

Have you heard the hub-bub that one of the most photographed spots in New England doesn't want you to come by?
https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/sleepy-hollow-farm-woodstock-pomfret-vermont...

This is a free week of Autumn Lives Here. Come for the haunted house books, the maple makers at Sugar Oak Farms, and meet The Pied Piper of Tucson, a really terrible guy.
https://jennifermorrow.substack.com/

Great post! Thanks for the mention, I was pleasantly surprised. Interesting about the Pied Piper of Tucson. I had not heard that story. Great photo of him in the wig. Hurt thinking about him wearing a clothes pin on his lip. Youch! Not to mention all that stuff in his boots. When I was a little kid (I don't remember this at all) we had this little girl next door that I was in love with and my Mom says one night I came in to go to bed and while i was getting ready she picked up my shoes and I had crammed a handful of marbles that this girl had given me into the toe of one of my shoes.

I believe in giving credit where credit is due, and the House of Usher would have slipped right past me. Thanks for the heads up!
The Pied Piper is a story that I'd heard about several years ago, and everything about it was so bizarre that it stuck with me. I knew I'd do it for ALH eventually. And his boots were custom made so that he could fill them with 'padding'.
Wow, marbles? Did you ever put a clothes pin on your lip? ;-D
Thanks so much for reading and letting me know you enjoyed it! If you get a chance, how 'bout hopping back to leave a review at ALH?


Clearly a bribe.

56. Blood & Ivy by Paul Collins.

A true story of murder at Harvard.
In 1849, a wealthy doctor, Dr. Parkman, went missing while on his rounds around Boston to collect on money owed him. He had a large amount of cash on him and was a money lender, which is the relationship he had to a Harvard chemistry professor named Dr. Webster, who owed Dr. Parkman a tremendous amount. When a clever janitor at the school grew suspicious about Dr. Webster, he secretly searched the professor's rooms and revealed a murder.
The reader meets the players and is taken through the extensive search for the well-known Dr. Parkman. The steps to discovery and the trial that ensued are covered, with a surprising amount of actual dialogue from the people who investigated and from the murderer.
SS: 1.5. Not really scary but there's some gore.

Are you up for a scare? Here's the horror short "Ignore It". Nice and creepy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs3paMLb9Qg

>88 mstrust: Ooh, that IS scary!

Have you read anything or seen “Werewolf by Night”? It’s on Hulu. “On a dark and somber night, a secret cabal of monster hunters emerges from the shadows and gathers at the foreboding Bloodstone Temple following the death of their leader. In a strange and macabre memorial to the leader's life, the attendees are thrust into a mysterious and deadly competition for a powerful relic--a hunt that will ultimately bring them face to face with a dangerous monster.—Disney+” From last year, filmed in black and white (I think there’s a lot of gore). Might have to watch it.

Karen O

>87 mstrust: Adding that one to the BlackHole. It sounds right up my alley. Thanks for the recommendation, Jennifer!

>89 klobrien2: Wasn't it? I thought it was very good and so was the acting.
I don't have Hulu so I haven't see that one. I rewatched both "Warm Bodies" and "I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House". I hadn't seen either in a number of years. Warm Bodies is fun and about to leave Netflix. Pretty Thing is very, very quiet and spooky, though almost all the scares happen in 15 seconds near the end.

>90 alcottacre: You're welcome! He's written another book called The Murder of the Century that you might like too.

Disappointment! I wanted tickets for a Halloween night event, a showing of Night of the Living Dead at a fundraiser for our oldest theater. I always have to buy lodge seating because Mike is too tall to sit in a regular seat, his kneecaps are painfully shoved into the chair in front of him. For this event, I was told it was first come basis and they couldn't guarantee a lodge seat, so I had to pass.

Got a horror book for you. Just finished listening to Winterset Hollow by Jonathan Edward Durham. How many of you out there loved the Redwall series by Brian Jacques and wished you could meet all those wonderful animals? Ok, now take those animals, give them a grudge and transplant them into a bloody Steven King novel. Still want to meet them? It’s Barley Day. Run.

Thanks for the rec, Cassie! It sounds very strange.

We went to the fair last night. My Autumn trail mix won first place, the cookies and cake didn't win. We had a Navajo taco and funnel cake and saw MiniKiss, a tribute band of little people who were actually very good.

Heads up with you have a Kindle! Amazon has released a whole batch of free reads today in their "Creatures" collection featuring short stories by Joe Hill, Paul Tremblay, Grady Hendrix and more.

>94 mstrust: Thanks, I'll check it out. Blood and Ivy sounds like my kind of read!

I've downloaded about five of the stories so far and I hope to get to them all.
Paul Collins is a favorite nonfiction author and has been for many years. I hope you get to check him out. He also wrote a short bio of Poe called The Fever Called Living.

Mmmmm…. Navajo tacos!

>93 mstrust: Sounds like you had fun, and congrats on your Autumn Trail Mix win!

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>97 drneutron: That's right! And this year they broke down and put a salt shaker on the counter. That's major.
>98 CassieBash: Thanks! I was surprised that the cookies didn't win but I was glad for any blue ribbon. My precious.

October 1st!
We've been out this morning going to Trader Joe's and Aldi so I could hoard my favorite autumn products. TJ's salted maple ice cream: out! Aldi's maple streusel bread: out! Maple mini bundt cakes: nope! I did buy a few of the Aldi pumpkin spice whipped cream cans, which I like to squirt in my coffee.
Reading: The Visitors by Catherine Burns and The Marigold by Andrew F. Sullivan. I've also read this month's issue of Yankee, Mother Earth and Food Network magazines. And painted my nails black yesterday.
I've been watching the Brazilian zombie series "Reality Z", the horror comedy "Slice" and I'm rewatching "The Conjuring" because I haven't seen it in a few years. What about you?

Today's entertainment is a clip from "Freaks of Nature", a horror comedy that is just chock full of recognizable faces:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgAjrtEmWxI

TJ's had some really cute autumn shapes candies, but is still out of candied ginger.

I've seen them! They are really cute but they aren't in Autumn flavors. I used to love their pumpkin sea salt caramels but they haven't had them in a few years.

57. The Visitors by Catherine Burns.

Marion and her brother John live together in their childhood home, in a seaside tourist town in Northern England. Their parents died decades ago, but stupid, dependent Marion never left home, never experienced life, and is now regretting it. John had been a teacher but was fired and came home with his reputation ruined.
He's an angry, manipulative man who Marion both loves and fears, just as she feared everyone in her family. She is also frightened every time she hears those screams that come from the cellar, where John spends his time teaching math and science to the Eastern European women he tricks into coming to their house.
This story is told by Marion in her own memories and viewpoint, of her childhood with her cold parents who preferred their intelligent, deviant son over spineless Marion, and her shame over having nothing to love but stuffed animals. Marion takes the reader from pity to horror, and we see that she's more like her brother than she will admit. Highly recommended.
S.S.: 2.5 Severed Fingers

(Severed) heads up! My Halloween cards are going out tomorrow. If you'd like to receive one, get over to Autumn Lives Here, subscribe for free, and e-mail me your address. It's that easy, and Halloween cards can make you taller and cure hiccups.
https://jennifermorrow.substack.com/

>102 mstrust: oooo, that one sounds good!