"Creatures of the night, they get along just fine in the darkness."

Happy new year, spooky friends! Join Aurelien for a dark modern horror tale of unconventional friendship, the beauty of the night, and some light murder: "The Night Cyclist" by Stephen Graham Jones (2016).

• Read the story on Tor.com: https://www.tor.com/2016/09/21/the-night-cyclist/
• Find more from Stephen Graham Jones: https://www.demontheory.net/

--

• Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod
• Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com
• Support the show at glow.fm/spookystrange and/or commission an episode at https://ko-fi.com/spookyaurelien

"I asked how many days it took before she was aware of the ghost."

It's time for another flash fiction roundup! Join Aurelien for a quick tour of the latest sweet, spooky, supernatural, super weird, and, of course, super short fiction she's loved lately. No spoilers!

• "Not the Pizza Girl" by Michelle Ann King: https://everydayfiction.com/not-the-pizza-girl-by-michelle-ann-king/
• "Ghost Collecting" by Sheila Massie: http://flashfictiononline.com/main/article/ghost-collecting/
• "Larry" by Elsa Richardson-Bach: http://flashfictiononline.com/main/article/larry/
• "How to Confront the Sphinx Haunting Your Garden" by Alexei Collier: http://flashfictiononline.com/main/article/sphinx

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod

* Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

This week for book club, let's go on a spooky tour of Aurelien's horror shelf, from teen witches and the perils of friendship, to creepy haunted houses, dark family secrets, and suspenseful short stories. No spoilers!

• "A Head Full of Ghosts" by Paul Tremblay
• "And the Trees Crept In" by Dawn Kurtagich
• "The Twisted Ones" by T. Kingfisher
• "The Scapegracers" by Hannah Abigail Clarke
• "The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires" by Grady Hendrix
• "Slasher Girls & Monster Boys" edited by April Genevieve Tucholke
• "The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares" by Joyce Carol Oates

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod * Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

"Haunting is an art."

Find us in the secret room for a hauntingly good time with "Open House on Haunted Hill" (2020) by John Wiswell. Autumn isn't only spooks and screams; it's also about loneliness, change, and the warmth of home. Warning: this story might melt your horror-loving heart.

Read the story: http://www.diabolicalplots.com/dp-fiction-64a-open-house-on-haunted-hill-by-john-wiswell/

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod * Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

"What fearful shapes and shadows beset his path amidst the dim and ghastly glare of a snowy night!"

Let's meet at the spooky old church for book club to talk about a classic American ghost story: "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (1820) by Washington Irving. Featuring superb descriptions of fall foliage, an excellent spooky atmosphere, and ghostly, mysterious ending, this story will immerse you in autumn.

And if you can't get enough Sleepy Hollow, check out the latest episode of of Film on the Rocks: https://pca.st/zobwnl5i

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod * Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

"Terror can fill any space."

It's time for book club, and for the exciting conclusion of Michael Crichton's "Sphere" (1987)! Packed with thrills, chills, and more giant squid than you can shake a stick at, Aurelien covers the second half of this mysterious scifi adventure. This episode is full of spoilers!

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod

* Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

"What they find defies their imaginations and mocks their attempts at logical explanation..."

Something has been found on the ocean floor, something intriguing and impossible. A group of scientists are sent 1000 feet down to investigate - and there, they find something even stranger. Aurelien covers the first half of "Sphere" (1987) by Michael Crichton, a paranoid, weird sciencey horror thriller.

Episode references

• "Packing for Mars" by Mary Roach: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9542311-packing-for-mars
• Learn about the Drake Equation: https://seti.org/drake-equation-index

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod

* Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

"Black winter had descended in a single night."

Watch the tides and slip out in the cover of night for Daphne Du Maurier's "The Birds" (1952). It's a chilling, suspenseful story that's not really like the movie adaptation at all, and will fill your heart with dread. If you're a Shirley Jackson fan, add this one to your tbr! Spoilers ahead!

-- * Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod * Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

And now she sat so very quietly, so very still, like a living-dead doll staring out the window.

Buenas noches, spooky friends! This week, let Aurelien tell you all about how Georgina's perfectly planned life got flipped-turned upside down - by Death. Set during the Mexican Revolution, "This Strange Way of Dying" (2011) by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a spooky dark historical love story about choosing your future and also, becoming a goth queen. Spoilers ahead!

Read "This Strange Way of Dying" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia http://giganotosaurus.org/2011/08/01/this-strange-way-of-dying/

Buy the story collection "This Strange Way of Dying: Stories of Magic, Desire and the Fantastic" https://www.silviamoreno-garcia.com/blog/this-strange-way-of-dying/

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod * Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com

"She is only a ghost, and nobody believes in ghosts any longer."

Let's go back in time for book club this week, with Ellen Glasgow's 1920 ghost story "The Past". If you like classic gothic stories and spooky hauntings, but also want a protagonist who asks "wtf?", this one is for you. And, please, ignore the spiritual representation of trauma watching us from the corner.

Episode references

Learn more about Ellen Glasglow: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellen_Glasgow

Check out "The Big Book of Ghost Stories": https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13330932-the-big-book-of-ghost-stories

--

* Theme: Magical Transition by Kevin McLeod

* Additional music and sound effects from zapsplat.com