Scream (1996)

Rating: R

Genre: Horror, slasher

Release date: December 20, 1996

Director: Wes Craven

Cast: Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, Skeet Ulrich, David Arquette, Matthew Lillard

It's September which means it is officially the beginning of the best time of the year to watch scary movies. This year, I've decided to start my favourite time of the year by watching a fan favourite, Scream (1996).

I'm sure everybody that is going to see this blog post is well aware of the plot, but in case you've been living under a rock for 26 years, I'll introduce it briefly:

The sleepy town of Woodsboro is usually peaceful, so it's a shock when teens start being mercilessly attacked by a masked killer, everybody is on edge. Who's behind the mask? And who will be the next victim?

--

I think watched this movie for the first time when I was about 13, and it's been a long time since I rewatched it. In the decades since it's release, I really think it's held up as a great slasher. Maybe it has its cheesy, cheeky moments at times, but it's full of 90s camp vibes and I adore it just as much now as I did when I was 13.

The 90s camp and slight goofiness aside, I think all the actors did a fantastic job in each of their respective roles. Neve Campbell was a great leading lady, and I will always have the softest spot in my heart for Courtney Cox and Matthew Lillard.

I have always loved the reveal of Ghostface in the final act. I was surprised at 13 and I still go crazy for the ending a decade later.

Overall, Scream will always hold a place in my horror-loving heart and it a must watch, or more likely, a must rewatch, especially this Halloween season.

Waiting On Wednesday (21): Off the Air by Christina Estes

Waiting on Wednesday's is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. *It appears that Breaking the Spine hasn't been active since 2016, but I still want to credit them as the creators.

For this week's Waiting on Wednesday I'm spotlighting Off the Air by Christina Estes.

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Expected publication date: March 26, 2024

Goodreads synopsis

Equal parts thought-provoking and entertaining, Emmy Award winning reporter Christina Estes introduces Jolene Garcia in her Tony Hillerman Prize winning debut, Off the Air .

Jolene Garcia is a local TV reporter in Phoenix, Arizona, splitting her time between covering general assignments―anything from a monsoon storm to a newborn giraffe at the zoo―and special projects. Stories that take more time to research and produce. Stories that Jolene wants to tell.

When word gets out about a death at a radio station, Jolene and other journalists swarm the scene, intent on reporting the facts first. The body is soon identified as Larry Lemmon, a controversial talk show host, who died under suspicious circumstances. Jolene conducted his final interview, giving her and her station an advantage. But not for long.

As the story heats up, so does the competition. Jolene is determined to solve this murder. It’s an investigation that could make or break her career―if it doesn't break her first.

--

I am on a real murder/thriller kick recently, so I'm very excited for the release of this novel on March 26, 2024. You can add it to your goodreads TBR here!

Top Ten Tuesday (16): Books on my 2023 Fall TBR

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week the Top Ten Tuesday topic was "books on my fall 2023 to-read list." My TBR is a mile long, so it was hard to whittle it down to just ten, but I did it. :)

1. Murder in the Fourth Position: An On Pointe Mystery by Lori Robbins

This one is actually the book that I am currently reading, so I'm fairly certain I'll get this one done.

2. Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison

This one releases tomorrow, and I'm so excited about it that it's already sitting in my Indigo cart.

3. Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter

I originally read this book back in 2013, and I read a few books further into the series but I never finished the series completely. I own the entire series, so in the interest of reading every book I own before I buy new ones, I'm going to reread this book and hopefully the others in the series this fall as well.

4. What Moves The Dead by T. Kingfisher

This is another one that is patiently sitting in my Indigo cart. I am so excited about it. I loved The House Of Usher and I adore retellings so I think this book will be right up my alley.

5. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes & Other Lessons From The Crematory by Caitlin Doughty

This one has been on my TBR for so long. I'm really trying to get to it this fall.

6. Last Christmas by Maria Frankland

A Christmas time murder is never one that I'll pass up, so I'm very excited to get to this Netgalley ARC. 

7. Carrie by Stephen King

A modern classic that I somehow still haven't gotten around to reading, but will hopefully get to this fall.

8. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

Same deal here as with Carrie. I've owned this novel for years and I still have somehow not gotten around to cracking it open.

9. How to Sell A Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

A third one patiently waiting in my Indigo cart. I'm sure by now nobody is shocked. I have a collection in there.

10. Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

If I'm going to read one Grady Hendrix this fall, I might as well read two. Imaginary bonus points for anybody that can guess where this one is waiting for me. (If you said in my Indigo cart, you're right and I have bestowed upon you the imaginary points.)

I can't wait to see everybody's top ten this week. I think it'll give me even more books to add to my never-ending TBR.

Murderabilia: A History of Crime in 100 Objects by Harold Schechter

Title: Murderabilia: A History of Crimes in 100 Objects

Author: Harold Schechter

Publisher: Workman Publishing Company

Publication date: September 26, 2023

Told through items surrounding brutal crimes, Murderabilia delivers their stories, and those of the deranged criminals behind them, in bite sized passages. Each crime and criminal is summarized in just a few pages each.

I think that this is the perfect book for those who are just getting started in the genre of true crime, because readers get a taste of 100 different crimes, each of which are covered in about 1-3 pages. With the gist of each crime covered briefly, readers can then choose the crimes that fascinate them the most and tumble down the rabbit hole that is true crime media to delve deeper.

Although the crimes and their criminals are covered in just a few pages, the content is well researched and no important detail is forgotten.

Overall, I enjoyed this novel. It covers the well known killers like Ted Bundy, Jeffery Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy, and the lesser known ones, spanning back 100 years. with this wide range, I think there's cases featured here that both new and veteran true crime fans will enjoy. 

All These Sunken Souls: A Black Horror Anthology

Title: All These Sunken Souls: A Black Horror Anthology

Authors: Kalynn Bayron; Ashia Monet; Liselle Sambury; Sami Ellis; Joel Rochester; Joelle Wellington; Brent C. Lambert; Donyae Coles; Ryan Douglass

Publisher: Amberjack

Expected publication date: October 17, 2023

Goodreads synopsis 

Welcome to the Dark.

We are all familiar with tropes of the horror genre: slasher and victims, demon and the possessed. Bloody screams, haunted visions, and the peddler of wares we aren’t sure we can trust. In this young adult horror anthology, fans of Jordan Peele, Lovecraft Country, and Horror Noire will get a little bit of everything they love—and a lot of what they fear—through a twisted blend of horror lenses, from the thoughtful to the terrifying.

From haunted, hungry Victorian mansions, temporal monster–infested asylums, and ravaging zombie apocalypses, to southern gothic hoodoo practitioners and cursed patriarchs in search of Black Excellence, All These Sunken Souls features the chilling creations of acclaimed bestsellers and hot new talents, with stories from Kalynn Bayron, Donyae Coles, Ryan Douglass, Sami Ellis, Brent Lambert, Ashia Monet, Circe Moskowitz, Joel Rochester, Liselle Sambury, and Joelle Wellington.

My thoughts

This was a great anthology. The wide range of themes covered means that there is something for everyone. Are you into haunted mansions? Bloody Mary-esque legends? Zombies? Insidious lovers? You'll find it in here. The wide range of themes here makes it perfect for new and old horror fans alike, and as someone who has consumed her fair share of horror media, I really enjoyed all of the stories, they were unsettling in exactly the way that I hope horror stories will be. 

If you were a fan of the horror anthology Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror Delight, and would like to keep delving into the world of horror anthologies especially while we approach the Halloween season, I think this book would be a perfect one for you.

Waiting On Wednesday (20): I Kill Killers by S.T. Ashman

Waiting on Wednesday's is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. *It appears that Breaking the Spine hasn't been active since 2016, but I still want to credit them as the creators.

For this week's Waiting on Wednesday I'm spotlighting I Kill Killers by S.T. Ashman. 

Publisher: Ashman Books

Expected publication date: October 10, 2023

Goodreads synopsis

When a genius pianist turned hunter of serial killers finds herself linked to her latest victim by a startling coincidence, her life enters a chilling vortex. Caught up in a high-risk chase with a determined FBI agent, she also finds herself in a life-threatening face-off with a shadowy enemy whose lethal cunning could rival her own.

"I Kill Killers" takes you on a thrilling ride, constantly reshaping the boundaries between hero and villain. This captivating tale promises to twist your perception and stay embedded in your thoughts long after the journey concludes.

--

I haven't read a book with a serial killer plot in a hot minute, so I can't wait to get my hands on this one this fall. You can add I Kill Killers to your Goodreads TBR here and look out for its release on October 10, 2023!

Waiting On Wednesday (19): The Murder After The Night Before by Katy Brent

Waiting on Wednesday's is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. *It appears that Breaking the Spine hasn't been active since 2016, but I still want to credit them as the creators.

For this week's Waiting on Wednesday I'm spotlighting The Murder After the Night Before by Katy Brent. 

Publisher: HQ Digital

Expected publication: June 11, 2024

Goodreads synopsis

From the author of How to Kill Men and Get Away With It , don’t miss this utterly thrilling and laugh-out-loud novel, perfect for fans of Bella Mackie, Dawn O’Porter and Killing Eve. Available to pre-order now!

 Something bad happened last night.
I’ve woken up with the hangover from hell, a stranger in my bed, and I’ve gone viral for the worst reasons. But I can’t remember a thing…
My best friend Posey is dead. The police think it was a tragic accident. I know she was murdered. There’s only thing stopping me from dying of shame. I need to find a killer.

--

From the reviews, this book sounds like a comedic but also engrossing thriller. With so many positive reviews already out this far from it's release, I can't wait to get my hands on it to experience the story for myself. You can add it to your Goodreads TBR here, and look out for its release on June 11, 2024.

Top Ten Tuesday (15): Top Ten Books I Thought I Would Love But Didn't

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week the Top Ten Tuesday topic was "top ten books that defied your expectations" in a good way or a bad way. I've decided to take it in the direction of books that I really thought I would love, but just didn't live up to the hype for me. So without further ado, here is my list:

1. Dorthy Must Die by Danielle Paige

2. The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black

3. Everything the Darkness Eats by Eric LaRocca

4. The Maze Runner by James Dashner

5. Matched by Ally Condie

6. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

7.  Allegiant by Veronica Roth

8. Paper Towns by John Green

9. Velveteen by Daniel Marks

10. Rosebush by Michele Jaffe

I wouldn't say that any of these books are bad at all. I think what happened was that the majority of these books got so much hype that my expectations were sky high and they just didn't live up to those expectations. I wanted to love all of these books so bad, but they all just fell short for me.

Hello September + A Blog Makeover

Lots of things are happening over here in my little blogging universe, the first and most obvious is that I have changed the name and URL of my blog! say goodbye to tired, plain, boring old YA Book Reviews and say hello to The Painted Moon!

This little revamp has been a long time coming. I started YA Book Reviews when I was almost strictly reading YA, and only doing reviews, almost ten years ago. Now that I am older, I have interest in books that are outside the realm of YA, so the title of my blog has been feeling a little misleading for the passed few years. I really wanted to fix that so my blog can reflect more of my interests now, and I can feel less boxed in to who I was a decade ago.

Feeling boxed in has been a major problem for me as I've grown. I love to talk about books. I will always use this blog to talk regularly about books. I just want to talk about books that belong to any genre, whenever I feel like reading them. I want readers to be able to find thoughts on all types of books that they might be interested in reading themselves, without attracting a solely YA audience. (although YA content is still on the way!) 

I also want to review things that aren't books. I love books and I always will, but I also love all other media, and I want to be able to talk about that as well. With this revamped blog, it feels like I can create a space to do that. So going forward, I'll also be posting reviews of movies and podcasts. So if you love books, movies, and podcasts, The Painted Moon is for you.

All that being said, I do have few things planned for this month so far. I've got a Top Ten Tuesday planned for tomorrow. (It might even be a full list, which is practically unheard of for me.) I have a couple Waiting on Wednesdays scheduled to be posted, and a review of All These Sunken Souls: A Black Horror Anthology also waiting in the drafts. I am also in the middle of working through my thoughts on Murderabelia: A History of Crime in 100 Objects by Harold Schechter, so that should be posted most likely sometime this week.

I'm also currently typing out my first movie review! Scream (1996) is the movie review that'll be making its grand entrance on here on The Painted Moon, and I couldn't be more excited about it.

Overall, I have grown and changed, so it's high time that my blog does some growing and changing too. As always, I'm looking forward to talking bookish things with everybody, and hopefully talking movies too!

I hope this month treats everybody well :)