Let's face facts, chill seekers, movies and books just can't satisfy us as much as we want anymore. Okay, I'm kidding. Books and movies still totally work for us (especially me), but everybody needs some variety in getting their goosebumps fix. Because of this, I'm writing out a list of podcasts that will make your knees shake and keep you awake at night. I'm using a rating scale that I'm calling The Black Cat's opinion scale that can be used for all of you who still have a bit of scaredy cat left in you. So, my ghosts and ghouls, shall I give my fellow Halloween lovers a treat with this list or will it be a trick?

1. Lore

Aaron Mahnke is one of my personal favorites on this list. Aaron Mahnke knows how to tell a story, and he knows how to do his research (he was one of my sources in my research essay on vampires). Mahnke should know how to tell a story, since he writes them. He has three thriller books entitled Indian Summer, Consumed and Grave Suspicion published and for sale out in the world (all of which can be purchased at the lore podcast shop in the provided link below). The episode titles alone can give some a sense of foreboding, but when you realize that each episode utilizes real events in history, it can certainly make your spine shiver uncontrollably.

The Black Cat's Opinion: Aaron Mahnke's voice, while adding to the foreboding of the historical macabre, also keeps the listener calm, so on my Scaredy Cat scale I give it a 1.5 out of 5.

2. Fireside Mystery Theater

An actual cast of actors and actresses recording old school radio dramas that, for those of us listening at home, make us excited for when Ali Silva suggests "turning off the lights." With all the stories being originals either written by Silbin Sandovar, a houseboat living writer (which is kind of an odd thing to see, amongst other things, in his biography page on the "About" section at the Fireside Mystery Theater website) or producer and wife of another producer (considering the producers' meetings all take place in her living room, I think she deserves it), Rebecca Graves. With each new podcast, they do something new or turn something they've already done on its head. My personal favorites of all the podcast episodes are "Shadows of New Orleans", "London Fog", "The Apartment Complex" and "After the Storm".

The Black Cat's Opinion: While the stories are certainly creepy -- even without turning off the lights -- as soon as you do, that's when you can guarantee that when you get surprised by something, you might just scream. Scaredy Cat scale is a 3 out of 5 with the lights out, and 2.5 out of 5 with the lights on.

3. The Moonlit Road

Question: Where is the best place to tell a scary story? The answer: a moonlit road somewhere in the Southern United States. All of these stories will leave you wishing for a campfire in the woods and a group of buddies to give nightmares to with your stories. While there are currently only 50 episodes on iTunes, with the longest being 20 minutes, all of the episodes still leave goosebumps on the skin and a tingle in your spine. With each southern-accented voice spinning tales of a husband coming back from the grave and refusing to leave or a drowned little boy haunting those responsible for his death and taking them away until the last one confesses, and other tales of the macabre and supernatural, it's definitely worth checking out.

The Black Cat's Opinion: With this podcast, it can be a bit of a gamble. While episodes like "I Don't Feel Dead Yet" are more strange than scary, episodes like "Skull Lake" can leave one concerned about closing their eyes and drifting off to dreamland, or at the very least, doing their utmost to not have to turn out the lights. It all depends on which title you click. So, on the Scaredy Cat Scale, the podcast itself is a 4 out of 5 because half the fear comes from not knowing just how scary the story will be.

If you want to listen to any of these podcasts, please do a search on iTunes or go to the links provided below. I hope you enjoy each story you hear.

Links to podcasts and shops:

"Lore" Episodes

"Lore" Shop

"Fireside Mystery Theater" home page

"Fireside Mystery Theater" about page

"The Moonlit Road" podcasts