Bonus! Books!!! I’m joined by Betsy Tomszak, bookstagrammer and podcaster behind Books with Betsy (from episode 5 where we talked about The Evil Dead), to talk about ten horror books that we read this year (and mention about a gazillion more). We chat about books released in 2026 (starting at 09:00) but also a few new-to-us books, what all of our book clubs have been reading, our experience with the Chicago Public Library Summer Reading Challenge, Creepypasta-inspired horror, how horror fiction makes us make sense of the horrors of the world, and more!

What horror books have you been reading this year? If books aren’t your thing, never fear! We will be back to our regular format on August 18.

Main books we talked about:

* The Staircase in the Woods by Chuck Wendig

* Back for Blood: Never Whistle at Night II (release: 8/18/26)

* Trad Wife by Saratoga Schaefer

* You Too Can Have a Body Like Mine by Alexandra Kleeman

* The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer

* Old Country by Matt and Harrison Query

* Warning Signs by Tracy Sierra

* The Extra and The Other novellas by Annie Neugebauer

* Whalefall by Daniel Kraus

* The Morgue Keeper by Ruyen Meng (not technically horror but graphic & violent historical fiction)

Other books mentioned:

* Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler

* The Road by Cormac McCarthy

* It by Stephen King

* The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones

* Witchcraft by Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

* The Dark Descent anthology

* Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix

* Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology

* The Mobius Book by Catherine Lacey (not horror)

* Trad Wife by Sarah Langan

* The Mad Wife by Meagan Church

* Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

* A Better World by Sarah Langan

* You Weren’t Meant to Be Human by Andrew Joseph White

* We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer

* House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

* Night Watching by Tracy Sierra

* Angel Down by Daniel Kraus

* A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing by Alice Evelyn Yang (not horror)

* Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Family by Patrick Radden Keefe (not horror)

Find us online:

* Betsy’s Instagram

* Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram

* Books with Betsy Podcast

* Follow Off Color Brewing (Chicago) for info on Betsy’s Book Club. The Off Color Book Club meets 3rd Tuesday every month. A beer is paired with each book!

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

Writer and critic Rachel Bellwoar joins me on the podcast to discuss the glam-rock campy classic of our dreams, Brian De Palma’s The Phantom of the Paradise (1974). I’m so excited to talk about our first horror musical on this pod, so Rachel and I fully take advantage of our mutual love of musicals to go kinda long about our favorites (13:00-18:00). But mostly we chat about Phantom, specifically the loveable awkwardness of Winslow and Phoenix, mask horror, surveillance and homages in De Palma movies, and of course, BEEF. Be sure to check out Rachel’s writing on Comicon and The Physical Media Advocate, and follow her on Bluesky! FYI- she writes about books too!

Find “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Instagram or email me at [email protected]. Subscribe to Substack for exclusive bonus episodes.

00:00-22:00- Intro / Rachel’s Horror History / How We First Saw The Phantom of the Paradise / Our Experience with Musicals and De Palma

22:00-39:00- Brief Synopsis / Songs / Characters / Direction

39:00-50:30-Faust & the Music Industry / Beef

50:30-01:04:00- Imagery / The Ending

01:04:00-01:22:30- Double Feature Ideas / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References:

* Rachel on Director’s Club (Jack Clayton episode)

* Phantom of the Paradise Shout Factory BluRay (interview mentioned by Chloe)

* Popcorn Disabilities by Kristen Lopez (book mentioned by Rachel)

* Uncanny Valley Girls by Zefyr Lisowski (book mentioned by Chloe)

* Both of us wish we’d had time to properly research queer readings before the discussion, so if you’re craving that, here’s an episode of our beloved and often-mentioned Horror Queers podcast talking about The Phantom of the Paradise!

Find Us:

* Follow Rachel’s writing on Comicon, The Physical Media Advocate and Bluesky.

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The clips used in this episode is from The Phantom of the Paradise (1974) trailer and film, used for educational purposes.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

The Meg Loves Movies x Chloe’s Not Scared crossover that you’ve all been waiting for! Playwright, theater educator and dramaturg Meg Mechelke joins me on the pod to discuss the Y2K cult classic Ginger Snaps (2000). We howl about the sadness of werewolves, the cynical women canon, our upbringing in a cold almost-Canadian climate, funny yet competent moms, and taking angst seriously. If you’re not following Meg, what are you doing with your life? Give them a follow! Meg brings a much-needed critical look at the horror genre with a fun, conversational tone.

Please note that dog death (at 18:00) and suicide (at 21:00) are major plot points so we do briefly discuss these topics.

Find “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Instagram or email me at [email protected]. Subscribe to Substack for exclusive bonus episodes.

00:00-12:00- Intro / Meg’s Horror History / Our Experience with Werewolf Movies / How We First Saw Ginger Snaps

12:00-37:00- Brief Synopsis / Setting / Characters / Themes

37:00-53:00- The Werewolf / Legacy

53:00-1:10:00 - Sequels (mostly Ginger Snaps 2) / Double Feature Ideas / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References:

* Creating the Beast: Behind the Bloody Making of Ginger Snaps Featurette

* Faculty of Horror podcast

* Horror Queers podcast

* The Nottingham Horror Collective (Meg is/will be published here!)

Find Us:

* Follow Meg on Instagram and Meg Loves Movies.

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The clips used in this episode is from Ginger Snaps (2000) trailer and film, used for educational purposes.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

Returning guest and prolific author TT Madden comes back to the pod to discuss a fun classic Bride of Frankenstein (1935), our oldest movie to date and our first sequel (possibly the first horror sequel)! We discuss how new horror reflects the moment, the Hays code, Pretorius’ crypt picnic, how this holds up as a sequel and a queer film to modern audiences, swans, and of course The Monsters Mate…? We go pretty chronologically in this one and it’s a pretty short film, so please watch before listening! And if you’d like to stay updated on all the great sci-fi horror books that TT Madden writes, be sure to follow them (links below).

Let me know if you want a bonus episode of true scary stories!! Find us on Instagram or email me at [email protected].

00:00-13:00- Intro / T’s Horror History / How We First Saw Bride of Frankenstein & Universal Monster Movies

13:00- 31:00- Brief Synopsis / Horror Sequel Tropes / Hays Code

31:00-1:04:00- Pretorius / Blind Man Scene / The Bride

1:04:00-1:21:00 - Remakes, Sequels & Double Features / Legacy / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References:

* All things by TT Madden

* Crossness Pumping Station (mentioned by Chloe, apparently where they filmed the new Frankenstein according to a bloke on the train?!)

* Evolution of Horror podcast- Man Made Monsters Ep. 4 on Bride of Frankenstein (mentioned by Chloe)

* “We Don’t Belong Dead! A Definitive Reclamation of James Whale’s Bride of Frankenstein” Jason Lake on Gayly Dreadful

* Poor Things by Alasdair Gray (mentioned by Chloe)

* The Lady from the Black Lagoon by Mallory O’Meara (mentioned by TT)

* Thou Shalt Not picture (mentioned by TT)

* The Mummy Bumper Sticker (mentioned by TT)

Find Us:

* Visit TT Madden’s website.

* Follow TT on Instagram and Patreon.

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The music and clips used in this episode are from Bride of Frankenstein (1935) trailer and film, used for educational purposes.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

Another returning guest Bree Tighe joins me to discuss her favorite horror movie and a movie she showed me a decade ago, The Descent (2005). We discuss going spelunking while hungover and jetlagged (couldn’t be us), our experience with caves (very little), if we like Juno (yeah, we do) and the UK ending (aka the only ending worth watching). Plus some tangents about behind the scenes, watching library DVD’s, and a crawler’s family tree.

Also, we recorded a bunch of scary stories –including one about a haunted clothes hanger– and then it all deleted mysteriously so, let me know if you want a bonus episode telling our true scary stories!! Find us on Instagram or email me at [email protected].

00:00-14:00- Intro / Bree’s Horror History / How We First Saw The Descent

14:00- 42:00- Brief Synopsis / Nature is Scary / Characters including Crawlers

42:00-55:00- Behind the Scenes / Fight Scenes / Ending

55:00-01:18:00- Sequels / Double Features / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References:

* Beneath the Scenes Featurette (Bree mentioned)

* Cinephilia Beyond- “Neil Marshall’s The Descent at 20”

* Final Scene (the UK version)

* House of Ashes game (Bree mentioned)

* Into the maelstrom- Roger Ebert Review- August 3, 2006 (Chloe mentioned)

* The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King (Chloe mentioned)

* Bree & I also talked about Rose Red last year (listen here)

Find Us:

* Find Bree watching horror movies at my house.

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The clips used in this episode is from The Descent (2005) trailer and film, used for educational purposes.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

Good evening. I have a returning guest here, my friend and fellow film enthusiast Matt Epp, to talk about the iconic Alfred Hitchcock movie The Birds (1963). We discuss our favorite Hitch films, the ahead-of-its-time special effects, how Tippi is a legend and deserved better, the virality of Risselty Rosselty, the uselessness of Mitch, and a Bodega Bay birthday trip. Plus, a discussion of new movies coming out at the time of recording, how trailers nowadays show all the scares, and sneaking horror films onto the “big” home screen when our respective partners are asleep. This is one of my favorite movies so you know it’s gonna be a great episode!

00:00-28:00- Intro / IFF Boston Recap / Matt’s Horror (and Hitch) History / How We First Saw The Birds

28:00-54:00- Brief Synopsis / Script / Characters (mostly Melanie, Lydia, & Annie)

54:00-01:07:00- Building Tension / Special Effects

01:07:00-01:25:00- Short Story / Sequels / Double Feature Ideas / Score / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References:

* Alfred Hitchcock: The Complete Films ed. by Paul Duncan (mentioned by Chloe)

* All About the Birds documentary (in part on YouTube)

* Daphne DuMaurier’s The Birds (short story)

* Dial P for Podcast on Director’s Club (Patrick Ripoll’s podcast)

* Evolution of Horror episode from Nature Bites Back series (Roar & Grizzly Man)

* Horror Queers Podcast (episode about The Birds)

* Joe Dante/ John Carpenter in a documentary about The Birds (mentioned by Matt, on his DVD)

* Read Chloe’s piece in 5 Years about The Birds

* Sequel to The Birds and The Birdemic Trilogy

* Trailer for The Birds (1963)

* Trautonium (early synthesizer used in The Birds)

Matt and I talked about Hooptober back in 2025 (listen here) and we also talked about Suspiria with the wonderful Jenni Schofield last summer (listen here).

Find Us:

* Follow Matt on Letterboxd and visit Independent Film Festival Boston.

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The sound and clips used in this episode is from The Birds (1963) trailer and film, used for educational purposes.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

This episode is for the bookstagrammers! We have a booksta legend here today: Jade aka Bookish Millennial, co-creator of The Diverse Baseline challenge. On the podcast, Jade and I discuss the excellent movie that traumatized us as teens back in 2007, J.A. Bayona’s El Orfanato or The Orphanage. We discuss how we both were duped by marketing for this film, how you should trust your wives and children (because they’re people with feelings, what a concept, I know!), how nail trauma is worse than teeth in horror, and why you must ask your kid to draw their imaginary friends. We also discuss a record amount of readalike and watchalikes for this one, so be sure to listen to the end!

Please note that child death is a major plot point in The Orphanage (2007) so we do talk about child death throughout.

00:00-18:00- Intro / How Brittany Got Into Horror / How We First Saw The Orphanage

18:00- 32:00- Brief Synopsis / The Haunted House Genre

32:00-56:00- Scariest Scenes (The Games, Bathroom, Medium) / The Devastating Ending

56:00-01:22:00- Double Feature Ideas / Readalikes / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References/Books Mentioned:

* The Orphanage- DVD Special Features

* My Darling Dreadful Thing by Johanna van Veen (Brittany mentioned)

* Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman (Chloe mentioned)

* Let Them In by William Friend (Brittany mentioned)

* Out There Screaming (anthology mentioned by Chloe mentioned)

* On the Calculation of Volume I by Solvej Balle (Chloe mentioned, time loop)

* Such Lovely Skin by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne (Brittany mentioned)

* This Cursed House by Del Sandeen (Brittany mentioned)

* The Salvage by Anbara Salam (Chloe mentioned for main character similarities only)

* Lupita Nyong’o and her cat (Hollywood Reporter, June 4, 2024)

Find Us:

* Follow Jade on Instagram and read along with The Diverse Baseline on Storygraph.

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The sound and clips used in this episode is from The Orphanage (2007) trailer and film, used for educational purposes.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

No guest this week because I’m on spring break! So let’s watch some horror movie trailers! In this episode, I watch 2026 horror movie trailers and comment on them, so you can queue up and watch along with me (I also describe them so you can also just listen, if you prefer).

Lee Cronin’s The Mummy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJ0uv-phsDk

Hokum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAmcbX_B6kU

Scary Movie 6: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4Hv7fxjqr4

Backrooms: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKGhxMi50y8

Obsession: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMC8kkwbIQQ

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdrOjjByVMA

Mother Mary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATGaqU6Srcc

Exit 8: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fIaG1RjWMU

Disclosure Day: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCPhAydaRBc

The release dates are US-based and could change.

What new horror movies are you most excited about? See you in a few weeks with a fabulous guest who you may recognize!

Find Me:

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

We have another horror author on the pod today! Please welcome Kathleen Palm, author of The Nowhere Series (amongst other short stories and fiction), as we chat about an essential gateway horror for us both, Tobe Hooper’s Poltergeist (1982). Kathy takes us on a journey to the drive-in and we discuss all things ghost hunting, clowns, trees, screaming skulls and special effects. But at the center of this story is family, so we also discuss our awesome horror-loving dads and sharing horror with our family and friends!

If you watch before you listen, please note that Poltergeist (1982) contains heavy strobe lights.

00:00-19:00- Intro / How Kathy Got Into Horror / How We First Saw Poltergeist / Our Own Paranormal Investigations

19:00-36:00- Brief Synopsis / Domestic Horror Elements

36:00-50:00- Paranormal Investigation Elements / Special Effects

50:00-01:07:00- Ending(s) / Sequels & Remakes / Score / Reception

01:07:00-01:19:30- Showing Your Kids Poltergeist / Double Feature Ideas / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References:

* Granger House Museum (where Chloe went ghost hunting)

* Horror Writers Association- Chicagoland Chapter (where we met!)

* The Little Girl Lost S3E26 (1962)- Twilight Zone episode

* Poltergeist- S1E2 (2020)- Cursed Films episode

* Scariest Places on Earth (paranormal reality show from the early 2000’s in which Zelda Rubinstein does the voiceover)

* Snopes on Poltergeist using real skeletons

Find Us:

* Follow Kathy on her website and buy The Nowhere Series.

* Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

* Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The sound and music used in this episode is from Poltergeist (1982) trailer, film and soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith, used for educational purposes.

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe

Today I welcome freelance journalist, coworker, friend, and fellow librarian, Anna, to talk about their favorite horror movie from growing up, An American Werewolf in London (1981). In discussing this werewolf/zombie/ghost sad horror romantic comedy, Anna & I discuss the infamous dream sequences, our love of practical effects, the “rules” of being a werewolf, 70s fashion, and having empathy for the monster. You won’t catch us “hill-walking” in the Yorkshire moors at night, especially not during a full moon, but maybe catch us doing the Thriller dance in a cemetery.

And listeners from across the pond: please forgive our terrible British accents. We love you!

00:00-17:16- Intro / How Anna Got Into Horror / How They First Saw An American Werewolf in London / Our Opinions on Werewolf Movies

17:16-53:00- Brief Synopsis / Dreams / Werewolf Rules / The Brits v. Americans / Genre Hybridity

53:00-01:14:00- Effects & Thriller Music Video / Double Feature Ideas / Outro

Please note, timestamps are estimates.

References:

* Horror Queers Podcast- An American Werewolf in London episode (mentioned by Anna)

* How “American Werewolf in London” Transformed Horror Comedy- Joshua Rothkopf, August 19th 2016, Rolling Stone

* In Black & White by Jan Mark (kids book mentioned by Chloe)

* Jenny Agutter Interview with David Childs (1981)

* John Landis reveals his original plan for An American Werewolf in London sequel- Gary Collison, December 3rd 2017, Flickering Myth

* Michael Jackson’s The Making of Thriller

* Rick Baker’s Makeup Behind-the-Scenes clip

* “Thriller” Music Video- Michael Jackson

Find Us:

Follow Anna’s Letterboxd and Bluesky.

Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.

Find other great film pods on the Now Playing Network.

The sound and music used in this episode is from An American Werewolf in London (1981) trailer and film, used for educational purposes. I could’ve added SO many clips— each line is classic and hilarious— but it’s better to watch the movie and experience for yourself!

Listen to “Not Scared: A Horror Movie Podcast” on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you’d like to get new reviews and special features, please subscribe to my Substack. Thank you for listening!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chloesnotscared.substack.com/subscribe