This year I will be participating in R.I.P. XVI, the R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril event. This event was originally hosted by Carl V. Anderson at the Stainless Steel Droppings blog. Since then it has been taken over by other bloggers and lately has been primarily on Instagram and Twitter. You can use #RIPXVI or tag @PERILREADERS to connect with other participants.
This is Carl's description from one of the R.I.P. announcement posts:
The purpose of R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril ... is to enjoy books and movies/television that could be classified (by you) as:
- Mystery.
- Suspense.
- Thriller.
- Dark Fantasy.
- Gothic.
- Horror.
- Supernatural.
Or anything sufficiently moody that shares a kinship with the above.
I have already read several books and a short story this month that fit those categories.
This is one book I will be reading...
And I will read some short stories from this book as Halloween nears...
Sounds like fun. Something Wicked in one of the only RB books I have read.
ReplyDeleteOh, this does look like fun, Tracy! And there's a nice mix of reading material in there, too. Hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteYou can never go wrong with Ray Bradbury. That's a great choice, and it makes me want to re-read it. It's been a long time.
ReplyDeleteGlad you are joining in for RIP, Tracy. Your choices look just about perfect! Enjoy!
ReplyDeletePatti, I have read a few books by Bradbury but most were so long ago I remember nothing about them. The only one I remember much about is the mystery novel I read, Death is a Lonely Business. Three years ago I read one of his children's books for Halloween, The Halloween Tree.
ReplyDeleteMargot, I won't have to go out of my way to read mysteries, so it should be fun and no stress.
ReplyDeleteSam, I was glad to have this event to give me a push to read more by Bradbury. My classics list includes The Martian Chronicles and Fahrenheit 451 (probably a reread).
ReplyDeleteKay, I am glad your sign up post encouraged me to read for R.I.P this year too.
ReplyDeleteA few years since I did this one, was tempted but had decided that I wanted a month just reading where my mood takes me. Have fun!
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean, Cath. That is what I intended too. I read so much mystery fiction, I figured in two months I can make time for both R.I.P. reading and other things that appeal.
ReplyDeleteI don’t do/have Instagram or Twitter, so not for me, I guess. Oh well, I read mysteries anyway.
ReplyDeleteThis will be easy for you to do, Tracy, without any special effort! As I have to write a sort of thesis over the next eight months, I don't expect to do much detouring in my reading, although I will eventually finish all my 20 Books of Summer if I can finish the one I am currently reading (I plan to leave it on the ship I am on - you know I have already checked out the ship's library!).
ReplyDeleteI can't remember reading any Halloween mysteries except maybe one with Poirot? My friend Merline Lovelace wrote a contemporary called Halloween Honeymoon which was part of a cute series.
I love Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes! R.I.P. is always fun to participate in. :)
ReplyDeleteRick, I don't do Instagram or Twitter either, but I will just blog about some of the books I read. I mostly read mysteries too, so it isn't much of a challenge, except that I will read the Ray Bradbury book which was not in my plans.
ReplyDeleteConstance, You are correct, reading mysteries won't be hard for me to do. I did have some espionage books planned which I probably won't count for R.I.P. even though I usually lump them in with mysteries.
ReplyDeleteThere is a Poirot mystery with Halloween in the title (Hallowe'en Party), and it starts with a Halloween party, although otherwise not much related to Halloween. I read it in April of this year and never had time to review it, so I might review it in October. Still, it would not be specifically for the R.I.P. challenge because not read in this month.
Jane Haddam wrote at least two mysteries set at Halloween. The Mystery Fanfare blog has a list of Halloween mysteries every year, but I have not read many of them.
Lark, R.I.P. is fun to participate in and it has been about 5 years since I last did the challenge, which is not really a challenge for me since I read so many mysteries anyway.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I ever read Something Wicked This Way Comes but if I did, it will still feel new now. And such a lovely edition. (It is my husband's copy.)
I really should read some more of Ray Bradbury's work. I don't think I've read him in at least 20 years.
ReplyDeleteI should read more by him also, Col. It has not been that long for me, but there are still a lot of his books I want to read or reread.
ReplyDeleteThe anthology is an odd case...I can't find a rundown on the contents of that edition, which looks as if it was published by an instant remainder house, who decided to retitle it with the same title as several other anthologies...which is OK, since the original title, OCTOBER DREAMS, has been used for several other anthologies as well (including a sequel, OCTOBER DREAMS II, also edited by Chizmar and Morrish). If it's a full reprint of the original, an interesting mix of memoirs and fiction, as per ISFDB:
ReplyDeleteContents
ReplyDelete11 • The Black Pumpkin • (1986) • short story by Dean R. Koontz [as by Dean Koontz]
35 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: A Moonlit Night with Rats • essay by Elizabeth Engstrom
41 • Lantern Marsh • (2000) • short fiction by Poppy Z. Brite
55 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Nicknames - A Hallowe'en Reminiscence • essay by Rick Hautala
63 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: A Condemned Man • essay by Steve Rasnic Tem
71 • Conversations in a Dead Language • (1989) • short story by Thomas Ligotti
87 • My Favorite Halloween Memory • essay by Gary A. Braunbeck
89 • My Favorite Halloween Memory • essay by Jack Ketchum
91 • Yesterday's Child • (1987) • short story by Thomas F. Monteleone
105 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Zombies • essay by Hugh B. Cave
109 • The Whitby Experience • (2000) • short story by Simon Clark
129 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Halloween Memories • essay by Christopher Golden
133 • In-between: A Halloween poem • poem by Ray Bradbury
135 • Gone • (2000) • short story by Jack Ketchum
143 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: That Smell in the Air • essay by Alan M. Clark
149 • Yesterday's Witch • (1973) • short story by Gahan Wilson
159 • A Short History of Halloween • essay by Paula Guran
173 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: The Last Halloween • essay by Poppy Z. Brite
177 • Mask Game • (2000) • short fiction by John Shirley
213 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Criswell Conquers the Alien Elvis-'Nappers • essay by Tom Piccirilli
221 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: 1942 • essay by Jack Cady
227 • Out of the Dark • short story by David B. Silva
243 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Pumpkins and Circumstance • essay by Robert Morrish
249 • Heavy Set • (1968) • short story by Ray Bradbury (variant of Heavy-Set 1964)
261 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Year of the Witch • essay by William F. Nolan
267 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Where Julie Went: A Halloween Memory • essay by Michael Cadnum
271 • Boo • short story by Richard Laymon
293 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: A Halloween Memory, Age Four, Hawaii, 1961 • essay by Douglas Clegg
297 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Fellini and Halloween • essay by Ray Bradbury
299 • Masks • (1985) • short story by Douglas E. Winter
315 • My Favorite Halloween Memory • essay by Stanley Wiater
319 • A Redress for Andromeda • [Dandridge Cycle] • short story by Caitlín R. Kiernan
333 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: The Santa of Halloween • essay by Richard Laymon
341 • The Circle • (1982) • short story by Lewis Shiner
351 • "First of All, It Was October...": An Overview of Halloween Films • essay by Gary A. Braunbeck
381 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Halloween Dreams • essay by Yvonne Navarro
385 • Pay the Ghost • (2000) • novelette by Tim Lebbon
413 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Halloween 25 • essay by Kim Newman
423 • Buckets • (1989) • novelette by F. Paul Wilson
447 • My Favorite Halloween Memory • essay by Owl Goingback
451 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Needles and Razor Blades • essay by Dennis Etchison
453 • Orchestra • (2000) • novelette by Stephen Mark Rainey
479 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Halloween Companion Piece • essay by David B. Silva
483 • Eyes • (1986) • short story by Charles L. Grant
495 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Ugh! Good Grief! R.I.P. Pepe Lopez, Charlie Brown! • essay by Kelly Laymon
503 • My Favorite Halloween Memory • essay by Simon Clark
505 • Deathmask • short story by Dominick Cancilla
517 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Halloween Frights • essay by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
523 • Some Witch's Bed • short story by Michael Marshall Smith
527 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: Cyanide and Pixie Stix • essay by Wayne Allen Sallee
531 • The Trick • (1980) • novelette by Ramsey Campbell
551 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: October! • essay by Ed Gorman
555 • Pork Pie Hat • (1994) • novella by Peter Straub
631 • Trick-or-Read: A Reader's Guide to Halloween Fiction • essay by Stefan Dziemianowicz
651 • My Favorite Halloween Memory: A Halloween Memory • essay by Peter Crowther
All that was very interesting, Todd. I did not do much (any?) research into the book when I first got it two or three years ago at the book sale or since. I did not realize it was a reprint but it did not have the normal price on the dust jacket so I assume book club edition or something. I did check against the TOC you included for the original book, which has a lovely cover of course. All the stories and essays and such appear to be there so that is fine. I originally bought this book for the lovely cat face cover and to use some day for Halloween stories, so finally I am doing that.
ReplyDeleteAnd the TOC you included above is much easier to read -- and with more information -- than than the one in my book so I am going to print it out for reference.
Glad to be of service! ISFDB (the Internet Speculative Fiction DataBase--speculative fiction as a term can cover science fiction, fantasy and horror and other related matter in some uses, and can be more restricted in others) and, when up and running, William Contento's online indices--Phil Stephensen-Payne, his partner in this, controls the the FictionMags Index and other Homeville indices, but has to depend on LOCUS MAGAZINE staff, who have been busy elsewhere of late, to keep the LOCUS-branded indices running properly--can be very helpful in tracing the appearances of stories and novels from original publication to various inclusions in anthologies and collection and variant titles.
ReplyDeleteSorry to read the that "instant remainder" version of the TOC is a sloppy job! The instant remainder publishers...these days, Barnes & Noble itself is one of the largest, but going back not too many years ago, many flourished, would also not usually put a price on the flaps since the point of their products was to allow the bookstores and other shops to price them as they would. Most, though of course not all, book club editions usually would tag their covers "book club edition", but if it's a hardcover (or not too uncommonly a paperback in the last twenty years or so) with no price information on it anywhere and no BCE notation, it's probably an instant remainder, meant largely to be sold alongside actual publishers' discounted remainders with price tags attached. Really cheap paper can also be a tip-off.
http://www.isfdb.org/ ISFDB
ReplyDeletehttp://www.philsp.com/homeville/fmi/0start.htm The FIctionMags Index and access to its cousins
http://www.locusmag.com/index/ the currently spotty LOCUS Indices
Todd, once I became aware of your use of ISFDB at your blog, I began using it myself when I trying to find more about short stories or anthologies. It is very useful. I have also used the FictionMags index in the past but it doesn't seem to have as much info. It has been a while since I tried that one.
ReplyDeleteI am quite happy with the newer printing of the October Dreams anthology (even with new title),especially because it has all the illustrations in the book too. But I would also love to have the original version. It I ever see it anywhere. Or October Dreams II, if I ever run into that one. If the price were right.