Danse macabre à l'orgue

C'est une tradition sur ce blogue: je partage une vidéo de la Danse Macabre de Camille Saint-Saëns quand l'Halloween approche. Assez récente et jouée à l'orgue. L'orgue étant peut-être l'instrument de musique officieux de l'Halloween, plus que le violon.

Monstrum on slasher movies

Quick countdown to Halloween post as I really wanted to blog about it: Monstrum made a video recently about slashers. It is very good and I had to share it. To be honest, I only ever truly love one slasher movie. While I love horror, I prefer old Gothic stories with ghosts and vampires, but I digress. All the same, as always, it's fascinating.

Les loups-garous de Thiercelieux en film

Petite nouvelle ciné française et d'horreur: j'ai appris il y a quelques semaines que le jeu de société Les loups-garous de Thiercelieux a été adapté en film et qu'il est disponible sur Netflix. Je compte le regarder d'ici à l'Halloween. Mais il faudrait vraiment que je m'achète le jeu et que j'y joue un peu. Il est disponible ici, alors je n'ai aucune excuse.

The old man fighting the Forces of Darkness

For today's countdown to Halloween post, I wanted to talk not about the monsters and devils of horror stories, but about the heroes fighting them. I took this picture from Where the Shadows Stalk of the Forbidden Gateway  gamebook series. This is Professor Charles Petrie-Smith, one of these heroes. In the gamebooks, he is the one asking your character for help when the story starts and he is a provider of vital information regarding the mysteries and dangers you must face. He is, in essence, the Van Helsing character of the series. He has many equivalent in other stories: Baron Vordenburg, Dr Samuel Loomis, the Persian, etc. Sadly, you don't see them much anymore in modern horror stories, in films or in literature. And I think it's a loss. Our fictitious world needs more Petrie-Smiths, especially when there is someone or something hiding in the shadows.

L'Halloween à Chicoutimi

Autre photo prise par mon père lors d'une de ses promenades. Les cours deviennent vite des cimetières quand vient l'Halloween.

Reese's Pumpkins

 It's a staple of the season: Reese's chocolates. Especially the ones shaped like pumpkins. I see them from time to time in the local sweet shop, but come October, they are everywhere. They are among the earliest sign of the season. I don't see Reese's given for trick or treat anymore, probably because of peanut allergies. As a child, I don't think I ever ate them except during Halloween, after trick or treat. Now, as an adult, I always buy some when I see them. I share them with Wolfie of course. Hey, it's not so bad: the peanut butteris full of proteins.

La citrouille de (grand-)papa

Mon père a creusé sa citrouille. Il m'a envoyé des photos. J'en partage une ce soir. À un peu moins d'une semaine de l'Halloween, j'espère que ce n'est pas torp tôt. Mais mon talent pour les citrouilles, je le dois à mon père.

October Pumpkin Patch

 As you probably remember, I am currently reading October Screams. So far it's a great read. And something struck me recently: the back cover of the book is just as good, maybe even better, than the front cover. You can see a field of pumpkins, or rather of fully lit Jack O'Lanterns, and a spooky looking scarecrow in the background. Scarecrows truly are a staple of Halloween, especially if they have a Jack O'Lantern as a head. Which I am sure is the case there. And I had to share it here.

Les fantômes et les araignées

 Autre photo prise par mon père lors de ses promenades. Avec l'éclairage orange, c'est sans doute plus effrayant encore.

The Weird Sisters

I am sharing another picture taken by my father during one of his walks. This time, it is three witches, who of course reminded me of the Weird Sisters in the Scottish Play. By the way, it's a great play to watch come Halloween.

L'Halloween à Chicoutimi

 Photo prise par mon père lors d'une de ses promenades. C'est tout pour le moment.

Beware the Witch

My father went on a walk recently and he took a few pictures of some lawns decorated for Halloween. This photo is maybe my favourite. I just love that witch! She is so deliciously scary.

L'automne au Saguenay

 Des fois mon père m'envoie des photos de l'automne à Chicoutimi...

Werewolf Mask

For today's countdown to Halloween post, another post about werewolves. I did some rambling about them in 2018, so I might repeat myself here, sorry if that is the case. Anyway, I saw this werewolf maks (for half the face) in the local toy shop and it kind of inspired me. As an amateur of traditional, classic horror stories and trope, I am surprised that I read fairly little werewolf fiction. Most of the time, I stumbled upon werewolf stories. I will try to find more, partially because I love wolves in general, but also because I might try my hands on a horror story or two featuring lycanthropes. I would like to use elements that we don't see anymore, like people becoming a werewolf through something else than infection after being attacked by one. Although I don't know how to proceed from there. But hey, I think we need more werewolves in spooky stories. Don't you? Let me know in the comments.

Champ de citrouilles

 Nous sommes allés dans une ferme pour enfants locale en fin de semaine. Comme à chaque année, ils ont un "pumpkin patch", ou un (faux) champ de citrouilles où on peut se servir. C'est une activité que l'on fait quand vient le temps de l'Halloween. Elles ne sont pas toutes belles, certaines citrouilles sont ou bien abîmées ou bien un tantinet mangées par les limaces, mais on peut en trouver quelques potables. Et puis c'est pour le plaisir de participer, un peu, aux récoltes. Petit loup adore. On en donne une gratuite par enfants et si on a des abonnements on a un rabais en plus. Alors ça demeure pas trop cher comme activité.

Scarecow Jack

I saw this Jack O'Lantern on the window of a local business. It was fairly small and well hidden, but I have an eye for it. I love it, it is all shadowy and it is also a scarecrow. The mix of Jack O'Lantern and scarecrow always work, IMO. A perfect image of the season and the Season. It is autumnal, it is Halloweeny and it also represents harvest. Oh and by the way, the Scarecrow Festival will start soon, so you will see more of these critters.

Soupe à la citrouille

J'ai acheté de la soupe à la citrouille à Laurent il y a quelques jours. Parce que c'est l'Halloween et donc le temps de la citrouille, parce que c'est l'automne et donc le temps de la soupe. Je ne l'ai pas encore mangée, si elle est bonne j'en achèterai d'autres. Je ne mange pas de soupe assez souvent, ce qui est étrange parce que j'en suis assez friand, surtout quand arrive l'automne, surtout pour la soupe à la citrouille. Je n'en fais pas, au lieu de ça j'en achète quand j'en trouve dans les commerces qui ont l'air d'avoir de l'allure. J'avais une coloc, dans mon année à Liverpool, qui avait fait une grosse batch de soupe à la citrouille juste après l'Halloween, ça m'avait sustenté pendant des semaines.

Gibbet Hill (a "new" ghost story by Bram Stoker)

For today's countdown to Halloween, some great news for the amateurs of gothic horror, like myself. Especially those, again, like myself, who are fans of of Dracula. My wife pointed me to this article: they found a long lost ghost story by Bram Stoker, after 134 years. It is titled Gibbet Hill and I hope to find a full copy online soon. Until then, I don't want to read too much about it. Stoker had written just when he had started working on his most famous novel, so that ought to be interesting not only as a bona fide horror story, but on a genetic perspective: there might be some tropes or themes common to both short story and novel. Or not. Either way, what a timely discovery, just before Halloween.

Tourtière

 Mes parents ont fait une tourtière la semaine dernière, pour mon frère, sa femme et ses deux garçons. Il faut bien leur fairedécouvrir leurs racines saguenéennes. Je n'avais pas la photo, mais mon père me l'a envoyée pour que je la partage. Parce que chaque repas de tourtière, bien entendu, est une excuse pour partager la photo, puisque je ne peux pas la savourer. En plus, c'est pas mal le temps idéal pour manger de la tourtière.

Dracula's Daughter

For today's countdown to Halloween I come back again to J.H. Brennan's gamebook Dracula's Castle. The book that was the basis for the Dracula Game of my childhood. I was obsessed about Count Dracula before I got my hands on the gamebook, but it certainly helped me develop my fascination for classic horror and it allowed me to explore it while I was still not allowed to read the original text. I am sharing two images from it. The first one is of a beautiful maiden whom you meet in the castle when you play Jonathan Harker. She is afraid of you and you think she might be an innocent victim lost in that dreadful place...

...until she turns out to be a vampire. Well of course. And not just any vampire, as you have guessed reading this post's title. When you explain to her that you came here to slay Dracula, she answers: "You want to kill Daddy?" I could have guessed right away, but apparently Harker could not. It makes for a nice bit of dramatic ironu. Anyway, I half expexted to see this unnamed daughter of Dracula when I read the novel about a year later. But she was nowhere to be found. Nevertheless, I was not disappointed. The source material is better in every way and the female vampires invented by Stoker are far more terrifying. be that as it may, this was my very first lady nosferatu, depicted both as lovable and fiendish, which is pretty much how they are traditionally depicted. And since I love the pictures, I thought I would share them here.