The Smell of Ink/Lukten av Trykksverte

As I've got a weak spot for Scotland and all things spooky, I couldn't resist buying and reading Hidden Haunts: Scotland by W. J. Gilbert for obvious reasons and today I'll post my review of this book. Description from Goodreads Uncovering the world's hidden hauntings, one chilling story at a time. Hidden Scotland delves into the lesser-known ghost stories that quietly persist in the shadows of Scotland's rich supernatural history. As you turn each page, you’ll discover eerie tales often overlooked by mainstream paranormal accounts, with a focus on both Edinburgh and the broader Scottish landscape. Embark on a journey through the haunted streets of Edinburgh’s Old Town, where sites like the Governor's House in Edinburgh Castle and Chessels Court unveil the city's dark and mysterious past. Beyond the Old Town, explore ghostly echoes in places like Craigmillar Castle, George Heriot’s School, and Royal Circus, offering a fresh and chilling perspective on Edinb

I recently read the non-fiction book Every Camp Has A Crystal Lake by Connor Flynn and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads Summer camp, recess and amusement parks provided me many thrills during my childhood and no doubt for many of you. They are places of fun and enjoyment, however; when the sun goes down and the lights turn off, there are chills that lie beneath. From haunted dorms, ghost coasters and monsters under the staircase, my friends and I have had to fend off many spooky things. The historical locations in the pages of Every Camp Has A Crystal Lake are filled with many puzzling stories... try not to become the next chapter! My Thoughts on the Book I liked the idea of this book, but I felt it was so poorly executed, with little talk about the paranormal encounters and stories, and the backstory of locations and what-not, I almost felt a bit cheated. Perhaps I'm a bit spoiled in the sense that I've read quite a few well researched boo

I found the book tag called The Official Spooky Season Book Tag over at The Artsy Reader , and I honestly couldn't resist doing this one. 1: You hear a strange noise in the night – the monsters got inside! Which book character would you choose to protect you from harm? Clive from The Slaughtered Lamb Bookstore & Bar by Seana Kelly 2: You go on vacation and your hotel is located right next to a cemetery. Which book character do you really hope is not hiding in the shadows? The Dover Demon from, you guessed it, The Dover Demon by Hunter Shea 3: It’s a particularly cold night and you decide to stay inside. Which three book characters would you like to spend a trivia quiz and board game night with? Keira, Zoe, and Mason from The Whispering Dead by Darcy Coates 4: Time for a big adventure! The scary book you pick transports you into its world. Where do you end up? I would end up in the Scottish Highlands if I pick up Hearthstone Cottage by Frazer Lee 5: No Halloween without Trick o

It's perhaps time for another Book Blogger Hop post courtesy of  Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer  and today's topic is " Which horror-themed book or novel is your all-time favorite? Which one made you shiver or made you feel like it was Halloween? ". Book Blogger Hop For some, it may not come as a surprise when I say Bram Stoker's Dracula is my all-time favourite when it comes to horror-themed novels. While I can't deny it's fairly mild on the horror by today's standards, I still love it. I even wrote my final paper on that novel when I majored in English at university, so I am a bit of a geek when it comes to that gothic novel. Funnily enough, it was the movie Dracula - Dead and Loving It that made me interested in Dracula in the first place.

As it's soon Halloween, it's only fitting that I review some Halloween-themed books. A good while ago, I read the short story collection Dead Leaves: 9 Tales from the Witching Season by Kealan Patrick Burke and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads Two brothers find themselves drawn to the only house in the neighborhood not decorated for Halloween…A man returns to his hometown to bury his overbearing mother, and finds more than memories awaiting him in the shadows of his childhood home…A young girl walks a lonely country road, recalling a rhyme that brings with it memories of death…A teenager hoping for romance gets more than he bargained for when the object of his desire introduces him to the object of hers…An aging millionaire awakes buried in a cheap coffin with only a lamp and a bell for company…The son of a woman accused of being a witch accepts the villagers' peace offering at her funeral, but all is not quite as it seems…A woman with

It's Wednesday yet again, which means it's time for another Top Five Wednesday post courtesy of  the Top Five Wednesday Goodreads group . As the theme of the week was national horror movie day, I decided to write a list of five underrated horror novels. Here's my five spine-chilling reads. Slash by Hunter Shea Description from Goodreads Five years after Ashley King survived the infamous Resort Massacre, she’s found hanging in her basement by her fiancé, Todd Matthews. She left behind clues as to what really happened that night, clues that may reveal the identity of the killer the press has called The Wraith. With the help of his friends, Todd goes back to the crumbling Hayden Resort, a death-tinged ruin in the Catskills Mountains. What they find is a haunted history that’s been lying in wait for a fresh set of victims. The Wraith is back, and he’s nothing what they expected. Greyfriars Reformatory by Frazer Lee Description from Goodreads Nineteen year-old Emily's acute

Earlier this month, I read the short story collection This Is Halloween by James A. Moore and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads Author James A. Moore offers up ten autumnal tales of the darker things that lurk just around the corner of Indian Summer. A man learns of a town's obsession with scarecrows and tries to find the answers as to why they are so important. Children move through familiar streets and find that Halloween makes everything different. Tis' the season when ghosts are real, witches soar through the night, and things in the Beldam Woods are not always what they seem. Sometimes it's the monsters that wear the masks. My Thoughts on the Book James A. Moore has a writing style that sucks you into the short stories and almost makes you feel like you're tagging along. I especially enjoyed some of his descriptions in the short stories. As with the short stories themselves, there were of course some I liked more than others, su

As much as I love reading horror and/or paranormal novels featuring vampires or haunted houses, I read other spooky books as well, such as cryptids and creature feature. So in this blog post, I wanted to share a few book recommendations with creature feature and/or cryptids. Well, technically you could say that cryptids go in under the creature feature category, but anyway, here's five books worth picking up, and just for the sake of it, there's five different cryptids/creatures. Loch Ness by Matt Shaw Description from Goodreads For decades the Loch Ness monster has been a creature of legend. Seen by only a few but doubted by many, is there really something lurking beneath the waters of Loch Ness? According to scientists who have studied the waters for years, the chances of Nessie being anything other than a giant eel are slim to none. Even so, that doesn't stop millions of people travelling to the loch on a yearly basis in the hope of seeing the creature for themselves. To

Quite a while ago I read the novel Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads Emmy Harlow is a witch in exile. She hasn't been home to the magical town of Thistle Grove in years, which has a lot to do with a complicated family history and a desire to forge her own way in the world, and only the very tiniest bit to do with Gareth Blackmoore, heir to the most powerful magical family in town, casual breaker of hearts and destroyer of dreams. But when a spellcasting tournament approaches, it turns out the pull of tradition (or the truly impressive parental guilt trip that comes with it) is strong enough to bring Emmy back. She's determined to do her familial duty; spend some quality time with her best friend, Linden Thorn; and get back to her real life in Chicago. On her first night home, Emmy runs into Talia Avramov - an all-around badass adept in the darker magical arts - who is fresh off a bad breakup . . . wit

As I'm a fan of the paranormal investigation show Kindred Spirits, I couldn't resist Amy Bruni's new book Food to Die For: Recipes and Stories from America's Most Legendary Haunted Places, and today I'm reviewing the book. Description from Goodreads Discover tantalizing recipes, spine-tingling stories, and historic photos from the most notoriously haunted locations across America in this fun and fascinating cookbook. Paranormal investigator and Kindred Spirits co-host Amy Bruni leads you through eerie hotels, haunted homes, hellish hospitals, and spooky ghost towns, giving you stories and a recipe from each place. Whether you're in the mood for Lizzie Borden's meatloaf or want to serve up spooky prison stories along with sugar cookies from Alcatraz, Food to Die For is your guide to ghoulish gastronomy. One of America's favorite ghost hunters, Amy Bruni takes you to mysterious hotels, eerie ghost towns, and possessed pubs in this delightfully sinister co

At long last I've read psychological thriller/horror novel Brother by Ania Ahlborn and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads Brother follows a teenager determined to break from his family’s unconventional—and deeply disturbing—traditions. Deep in the heart of Appalachia stands a crooked farmhouse miles from any road. The Morrows keep to themselves, and it’s served them well so far. When girls go missing off the side of the highway, the cops don’t knock on their door. Which is a good thing, seeing as to what’s buried in the Morrows’ backyard. But nineteen-year-old Michael Morrow isn’t like the rest of his family. He doesn’t take pleasure in the screams that echo through the trees. Michael pines for normalcy, and he’s sure that someday he’ll see the world beyond West Virginia. When he meets Alice, a pretty girl working at a record shop in the small nearby town of Dahlia, he’s immediately smitten. For a moment, he nearly forgets about the monster he’s

Alright, I have a confession to make. I purchased the book Scottish Ghosts by Lily Seafield on my last trip to Scotland back in 2002 and it's been sitting in a shelf ever since. So I finally got my act together and read it, which means it's time to review it. Description from Goodreads Scotland's folklore is rich and varied, with stories passed from generation to generation to generation. This vibrant storytelling tradition is captured in Scottish Ghosts with tales of spectres past and present from all over Scotland, sometimes in the most unlikely of settings. Fairies, white ladies, tortured souls, poltergeists, malevolent phantoms, hideous creatures - Scotland has them all, ready for those who are willing to hear them, see them or sense their presence. There are tales of sightings that convinced the most sceptical of unbelievers. Whether they are the products of over-fertile imaginations, the desire to keep the memory of a colourful character alive, the simple wish to spi

It's Wednesday and time for another Top Five Wednesday post courtesy of the  Top Five Wednesday Goodreads group . Today's theme was originally boarding schools, but as I couldn't find enough books to fit the theme, I decided to go with set in school instead, just to have enough books. Here's five spooky books to fit the theme. Blood Born by Renee Lake Description from Goodreads Maddie is excited about the new adventures college life will bring. She dreams of rallies, weird roommates and exciting courses of study. She's living with her girlfriend and making new interesting friends while watching out for her terminally ill brother. What she doesn't expect is mystery, tragedy, and heartbreak to befall her within the first semester. Is there a monster preying upon the people at her college? Will she betray her friends and succumb to temptation? Can they band together and fight the darkness? Or is the darkness that surrounds her not the enemy...but her only ally? Tr

Alright, as it is October, I thought it would only be fair I did a few book tags. I came across the Spooky Scary Book Tag over at Howling Libraries and decided I wanted to do that one. 1. What goes bump in the night? Name a book that has legitimately scared you while reading it. I can't say I've ever been scared while reading a book, but The Woman in Black by Susan Hill is a good book for those who's into atmospheric ghost stories. 2. Jack O’ Lanterns and Classic Costumes: A book you always reach for during Halloween time. I rarely re-read novels, but I'm tempted to do that with The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova 3. Black Cats and Magic Mirrors: A book you love that is laced with superstition and/or magic. The Whitby Witches by Robin Jarvis 4. Witch’s Brew: Favorite witch character in any book/series. I really liked Natalia Avramov in Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper 5. Ghouls and Ghosts: A book that still haunts you to this day (good or bad). Bluebeard's Cast

A little while ago, I read the gothic novel Bluebeard's Castle by Anna Biller and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads A subversive take on the famous French fairy tale from the acclaimed director of The Love Witch, and for fans of Jane Eyre When the successful British mystery writer Judith meets Gavin, a handsome and charming baron, at a birthday party on the Cornish coast, his love transforms her from a bitter, lonely young woman into a romance heroine overnight. After a whirlwind honeymoon in Paris, he whisks her away to a secluded Gothic castle. But soon she finds herself trapped in a nightmare, as her husband’s mysterious nature, and his alternation between charm and violence, become increasingly frightening. As Judith battles both internal and external demons, including sexual ambivalence, psychological self-torture, gaslighting, family neglect, alcoholism, and domestic abuse, she becomes increasingly addicted to her wild beast of a husband.

Earlier this year, I read Halloween - A Collection of Short Stories by Matt Shaw and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads October 31st. Halloween. A group of teenagers meet up in the woods, ready to tell camp-stories to a fellow (new) classmate. By the end of the night, the listening classmate has to decide which of the stories she has heard is "real", as opposed to just made up to try and scare her. The problem is, in this cruel world we live in, the "real" story really could be any of them... Is she prepared for the truth? Halloween is A collection of short stories, tied together with a central storyline. My Thoughts on the Book Halloween was a short and really fun read, especially if you've ever read other books by Matt Shaw (spoiler - the stories told in this book can be found in Shaw's other books). If you like gory, twisted, and dark tales, feel free to pick up this one,

As I've got a few spooky cookbooks of sorts, I decided I wanted to try a few of the recipes in those books. The blog  The Intrepid Reader and Baker  hosts this weekly meme called Weekend Cooking, so why not write a few blog posts that combine spookiness and cooking/baking? Anyway, a recipe I tried earlier this week was English Rolls from the cookbook Food To Die For by Amy Bruni (some of you might have seen here on the TV show Kindred Spirits). The book is all about haunted locations in the US, combined with history and recipes that is either inspired by the location or has some sort of ties to it. The English rolls I made, ties up with the Jennie Wade house in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The recipe was easy enough to follow, even if I had to use Google to figure out what a stick of butter is measurement-wise in grams, and do a Fahrenheit to Celsius calculation as I'm a Norwegian living in Norway and we use the metric system and Celsius, but it worked out anyway. The end result w

It's perhaps time for yet another Book Blogger Hop post courtesy of  Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer  and today's question was " Do you have a favorite book or author that you turn to every October to celebrate Halloween? ". Book Blogger Hop Although I obviously read horror and paranormal books all year around, I amp it up a bit more during the autumn, especially around Halloween, but I don't have any particular authors or books that I turn to every October. I can't deny I love a good book with the haunted house trope though.

Recently, I read the graphic novel 30 Days of Night Vol. 1 by Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith and today I'll post my review. Description from Goodreads In a sleepy, secluded Alaska town called Barrow, the sun sets and doesn't rise for over thirty consecutive days and nights. From the darkness, across the frozen wasteland, an evil will come that will bring the residents of Barrow to their knees. The only hope for the town is the Sheriff and Deputy, husband and wife who are torn between their own survival and saving the town they love. My Thoughts on the Book While I enjoy vampire fiction, I felt the plot was way too thin in 30 Days of Night, even for a graphic novel and the story never quite developes properly. Some of the artwork was pretty good though.

It's Wednesday, which means it's probably time for another Top Five Wednesday post courtesy of the  Top Five Wednesday Goodreads group  and today's topic was heroes. Here's my five spooky picks for this topic. His Final Girl by Brooklyn Ann Description from Goodreads DON’T GO IN THE WOODS Computer nerd, Wes Carpenter, dreads having to spend ten days at summer camp with the rest of his in-coming high school senior class. But when he meets strong-willed and confident farm girl, Linnea Langenkamp, everything about being away at camp improves immediately. When a malicious prank awakens an ancient evil, turning their summer romance into a bloodbath, Wes and Linnea pray they make it home alive while fighting for the survival of their classmates. With Wes’s ingenuity and Linnea’s knowledge of the forest, together they may be able to stop the killer, save the camp, and maybe even find their happily ever after on the way. The Whispering Dead by Darcy Coates Description from Goo

As I've heard so much about The Secret History by Donna Tartt, I couldn't resist reading it and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality their lives are changed profoundly and for ever. Truly deserving of the accolade Modern Classic, Donna Tartt's cult bestseller The Secret History is a remarkable achievement - both compelling and elegant, dramatic and playful. My Thoughts on the Book I really enjoyed reading The Secret History and it's one of those books that sucks you in. It's a sort of reverse-mystery, as we know from the start that a group of college students murdered one of their fellow students, a bloke nicknamed Bunny. The author's

A little while ago I read the horror novel The Plague Stones by James Brogden and today I'll post my review of the book. Description from Goodreads From the critically acclaimed author of Hekla's Children comes a dark and haunting tale of our world and the next. Fleeing from a traumatic break-in, Londoners Paul and Tricia Feenan sell up to escape to the isolated Holiwell village where Tricia has inherited a property. Scattered throughout the settlement are centuries-old stones used during the Great Plague as boundary markers. No plague-sufferer was permitted to pass them and enter the village. The plague diminished, and the village survived unscathed, but since then each year the village trustees have insisted on an ancient ceremony to renew the village boundaries, until a misguided act by the Feenans' son then reminds the village that there is a reason traditions have been rigidly stuck to, and that all acts of betrayal, even those committed centuries ago, have consequenc