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August 20th brought the one hundred and thirtieth birthday of Mr. H.P Lovecraft. Even now, decades after he penned his final weird tale, his work continues to entrance new readers. However, it also repels. In fact, Lovecraft's racist beliefs and use of tropes have tainted his colossal legacy for many. In turn, it has paved the way for a new generation of authors working to reappropriate cosmic horror. Today, we honor those efforts of inclusivity with a roundup of our favorite tentacle-y monsters from modern fiction!
This April, The Walking Dead will be premiering its second television spinoff series, giving audiences yet another way to explore our favorite flesh-eating apocalypse. But The Walking Dead: World Beyond is just one addition to Robert Kirkman's ever-growing Zombie universe. With multiple novels, several spin-off webisodes, Funko Pops, and even an attraction at Universal Studios, it seems there’s no stopping the slow, ambling expansion of this franchise. So we’re pitching some of our favorite ideas for Walking Dead TV spinoffs. Here’s what we’re hoping to see in 2020.
Some situations are so specific, we invent new terms to properly communicate them with others. Take “gaslighting," for example. Ten years ago, we might have struggled to describe the type of person that psychologically manipulates someone into questioning their own sanity. Now, we just say, “That person is a gaslighter, and we should take them off our Christmas card list.” There. Easy peasy.
Similarly specific situations are all around us, and book lovers suffer as much as the next. So, we’ve taken a stab at coining a few terms that might help you better communicate in the future.
Last Friday night, my wife and I got in the car and drove to our favorite movie theatre. This is a bit of a routine of ours when a big movie lands, and we had tickets to one of the biggest: a 7pm showing of IT: Chapter 2. As the sun set, I reflected back on the film’s first chapter and tried to refamiliarize myself with the plot. Having read the book, it didn’t matter that I’d only seen the movie once. The story came floating back. And so I entered the theatre that night, like most, excited to see what the director had in store for the next installment.
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark haunted an entire generation. The combination of spooky folklore and terrifying imagery had a way of getting under your skin. Even today, people are fascinated with them. So, in celebration of the new movie by producer Guillermo del Toro, Quirk has decided to release its own collection of scary stories. But these aren't just any old tales of darkness and woe. These, dear reader, are Scary Stories about books themselves!
We’ve all been there. It’s summer. The weather is finally warming up and your long-awaited vacation has just kicked off. But then, of course, something kind of spooky happens. Maybe the cruise bartender has a sinister scar running down his face. Maybe the cabin you rented suddenly feels a little too secluded. Or perhaps you just ran out of gas on a long and desolate highway. And then someone finally says it: “This is totally how a scary movie would start!” Luckily for you, most vacations don’t play out like a horror film. But if you’re still in the mood for a scare in your downtime, you can always bring some along with you. Here are our top recommendations for scary novels to bring on your upcoming summer vacation.
