Tricks, treats at local haunted houses

By Jay Bodas
October 31, 2007
THE SENTINEL
EDISON - Some Halloweens, it can be just plain torture scaring up something fun to do.

But not this year. Over the weekend Edison and Woodbridge townships each played host to a sprawling haunted house, where thousands were given a good fright. But those unfortunate souls who missed out will still have another chance to experience true terror at Metuchen's Raconteur Bookstore on Main Street, beginning tonight at 7:30 p.m.

"We are doing what we call 'The Haunted Bookshop' for the first time ever, with the monsters inspired by classic horror stories," said storeowner Alex Dawson. "Participants will be given a tour through the store by a freshly murdered Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Lestrade, who was a character from the Sherlock Holmes series."

The windows of the storefront will be blacked out, and the shop's interior will be illuminated by colored lights, Dawson said. "Each aisle will be curtained off, and we will have characters from the 'Phantom of the Opera' and the 'Island of Dr. Moreau,' among others, as well as Edgar Allan Poe reciting his famous poem 'The Raven.' "