Now that we’ve had our first mini snowfall, I’ve started fantasizing about being snowed in, without power, with just five great books to tide me over. Of course, in this fantasy, there’s a fireplace, plenty of wood, lots of good food, and naturally, not even the slightest hint of hardship. In this dream world of […]

If you’re like me, you don’t like to think about the microbe-encrusted surfaces you encounter every day. Maybe you don’t want to look like a fussy little germ-phobic person with your arsenal of cleaning wipes, gloves, and distrust of public spaces. Maybe you think germs won’t get you, because you’re tough and cool. Perhaps, like […]

 A dilapidated girls boarding school in small-town Vermont called Idlewild is the setting for a truly scary gothic mystery.  The Broken Girls, by Simone St. James, moves between 1950, when we meet four troubled school girls at Idlewild, and the present when Fiona Sheridan is investigating a plan to re-open the school, where Fiona’s sister was […]

Some people like to watch scary movies all year-round. Those people must be very brave. I myself think it best to save the frights for the Halloween season, and as a  meek and scare-averse human, I generally need the presence of a sturdy shoulder to cringe against when the going gets too spooky. My best […]