Minions of Misery

 
   Looks like I have a mission to complete in my otherwise hum drum day. Turns out a fellow blogger, Emma from Little Gothic Horrors, has chosen me to be a Minion of Misery.

   She in turn was chosen to carry on this grisly task by another fellow blog author, Slowdeath77 of the Horror Smorgasbord blog. This will require me to post about a dark book, a dark movie, and a dark secret about yours truly. When I have completed these tasks, I must then choose 3 others to bestow this dark mantel of responsibility upon. I think I am up to this task so without further delay, into the darkness...

DARK BOOK

   My dark book of choice is Haunted. In a nutshell, Haunted revolves around a writers retreat encompassing 17 writers who hope this three month retreat will help them to write the next great novel.
   Each chapter  has three parts which tell the story of the individual author at the retreat, a poem about the specific author written by an unknown source, and the story which the that writer produces.
   The characters are pretty unique, from the socialite who pretends to be a  homeless person to avoid her boring rich friends to the religious zealot who carries a bowling ball around and makes obscure comments about it maybe being a murder weapon.
   The setting seems to be the ideal place for struggling writers. Good food, isolation, and comfortable accommodations are the making for a great brainstorming session, but things soon turns sinister. Paranoia and bravado create a chaotic maelstrom of survival in unbearable conditions!
   If your looking for a dark book with even darker humor, grab it!

DARK MOVIE
   

   My pick for dark movie is Ghost Story. This is a good old fashioned ghost story set in a New England backdrop. The Chowder Society, consisting of four highly successful elderly gentleman, have been keeping a 50 year old secret. A series of deaths begin to form a pattern of a vengeful spirit which forces the secret to be revealed.
   Sex, vengeance, thrills and chills make this a good movie for this time of year. One scene towards the end of the movie had a profound effect on my young mind when I first saw it some 20ish years ago. I hope it has the same effect on yours.....

DARK SECRET

   When I was 14 years old, I had a friend who lived a few block up the street from me. He had an uncle who just got out of prison for an unknown violent crime. That uncle decided to move in with my friend's family unannounced.
   Shortly after, I started noticing bruises and marks on my friend. He would not tell me where they were from, but I once witnessed his uncle almost run him over with a truck and chase him down the road with a belt.
   His uncle was nothing but a drunken bully. My friends mother (the drunk's sister) just made excuses for her brother and never would take us seriously. The police were no help either stating he could drink on private property as long as it was not in public or making a scene. It looked as if my friend would just be beaten to death by this pathetic excuse for a human.
   One night while coming back from fishing the local river with another close friend, we saw this piece of garbage, passed out at the back gate of his sister's property. Knowing what he had done and what he was capable of, we hatched a plan to be rid of this creature. Taking his wallet, we walked over to the neighbors back yard, dropped it by their back step, and proceeded to throw a rock through a large window. The window that overlooked the passed out drunk. next door to be specific.
   To make a long story short, the police were called. They found not only the unconscious bastard near the gate, but his wallet at the scene of the crime. He was arrested and I never saw him again.
   Dark? Yes it is.
   Regrets? Not a single one.
   Would I do it again? absolutely.
   Do I fear retribution for this dark secret? No I do not. This good for nothing met his end attempting to hold up a liqueur store in southern Alabama years ago. As long as his ghost does not follow my blog, I am safe.


   Now to choose three new Minions of Misery to pass on this dark task:

Voodoo Ghoul
http://voodoo-ghoul.blogspot.com/

Devil's Eve
http://devilseve.blogspot.com/

Justine's Halloween
http://justineshalloween.blogspot.com


You have been chosen!