R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril IX

(Art used for banners is the property of the wonderful Abigail Larson)

Wow...September just crept right up on me. Creeping is pretty appropriate...considering September begins Carl's ninth annual R.I.P. (Readers Imbibing Peril) reading event (he doesn't like to call it a challenge) over at Stainless Steel Droppings. It's the time of year to pull out those creepy, mysterious, suspenseful books and movies and enjoy giving ourselves a scare on our way to Halloween. 

As Carl says: 

Nine years ago [NINE?!?! Inconceivable!!!] I became aware of reading challenges and wanted to start one of my own, hoping to find others who shared my Autumnal predilection for the works of Edgar Allen Poe, H.P. Lovecraft, Bram Stoker and other authors contemporary and classic who captured the spirit of gothic literature. All these years later we are still going strong, welcoming September with a time of coming together to share our favorite mysteries, detective stories, horror stories, dark fantasies, and everything in between.

I welcome you to join us.

September 1st is right around the corner. [It's here! It's here!] It is time to begin.

Mystery.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Dark Fantasy.
Gothic.
Horror.
Supernatural.

Or anything sufficiently moody that shares a kinship with the above.
That is what embodies the stories, written and visual, that we celebrate with the R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril event.

As time has wound on I’ve honed this event down to two simple rules:
1. Have fun reading (and watching).
2. Share that fun with others.

As I do each and every year, there are multiple levels of participation (Perils) that allow you to be a part of R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril without adding the burden of another commitment to your already busy lives. There is even a one book only option for those who feel that this sort of reading is not their cup of tea (or who have too many other commitments) but want to participate all the same.
R.I.P. IX officially runs from September 1st through October 31st. 


Multiple perils await you. You can participate in just one, or participate in them all.

Visit the R.I.P. Sign Up site and check out all the options.

Review Site for books read and films watched.



I plan to participate at two levels.


Peril the First:
Read four books, any length, that you feel fit (the very broad definitions) of R.I.P. literature. It could be King or Conan Doyle, Penny or Poe, Chandler or Collins, Lovecraft or Leroux…or anyone in between.

1. Vertigo 42 by Martha Grimes (9/5/14)
2. Death in a White Tie by Ngaio Marsh (9/6/14)
3. The Unfinished Crime by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding (9/8/14)
4. Wednesday the Rabbi Got Wet by Harry Kemmelman (9/8/14)
5. Red Cent by Robert Campbell (9/10/14)
6. Ten Little Indians by Agatha Christie (9/11/14)
7. The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie (9/12/14)
8. The Herb of Death & Other Stories by Agatha Christe (9/14/14)
9. Death Takes a Sabbatical by Robert Bernard (9/16/14)
10. The Edison Effect by Bernadette Pajer (9/20/14) 
11. The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy [the threat of the guillotine is enough to scare anyone...] (9/21/14)
12. The Footprints on the Ceiling by Clayton Rawson (9/25/14)
13. Two for Sorrow by Nicola Upson (9/27/14)
14. A Death for a Dancer by E. X. Giroux (9/28/14)
15. Bleeding Maize & Blue by Susan Holtzer (9/30/14)
16. Blood on the Stars by Brett Halliday (10/4/14)
17. The Witch's Grave by Philip DePoy (10/5/14)
18. Death by Hitchcock by Elissa D. Grodin (10/6/14)
19. Lament for a Maker by Michael Innes (10/8/14)
20. The Labors of Hercules by Agatha Christie (10/11/14)
21. Death on Allhallowe'en by Leo Bruce (10/11/14)
22. Only a Matter of Time by V. C. Clinton-Baddeley (10/13/14)
23. Murder on Mike by H. Paul Jeffers (10/15/14)
24. Appleby's Answer by Michael Innes (10/17/14)
25. The Haunted Lady by Mary Roberts Rinehart (10/18/14)
26. Too Many Doctors by Holly Roth (10/22/14)
27. Madman's Bend by Arthur W. Upfield (10/24/14)
28. Roast Eggs by Douglas Clark (10/25/14)
29. Nor Live So Long by Sara Woods (10/26/14)
30. Head of a Traveller by Nicholas Blake (10/29/14)
31. The Mind-Murders by Janwillem van de Wetering (10/30/14)
32.



Peril on the Screen:
This is for those of us that like to watch suitably scary, eerie, mysterious Gothic fare during this time of year. It may be something on the small screen or large. It might be a television show, like Dark Shadows or Midsomer Murders, or your favorite film.

I recently got hooked on the full-length youtube versions of some of those delightful murderous movies from the 30s and 40s. I'll post reviews of a marathon of such treats.

1. The Thirteenth Guest (1932) [9/3/14]
2. Death in a White Tie (BBC TV episode, 1993) [9/6/14]
3. Hardy Boys Mysteries "The Mystery of the Haunted House" (1977) [9/22/14]
4.