Hi hello,
I come before you as a spooky elder/horror nerd to offer up some recs for those of y’all who may be lookin’ for a seasonal spooky read. Small caveat: I’ve talked about some of these in this newsletter before, and a few of them are also books that the more horror-leaningreaders among you have definitely already read, haha, I’m sorry!! Still, I wanted to put all my recs into categories and in one spot, and hopefully there’s something here for everyone? Maybe? Ok here we go:
If you love slasher flicks:
My Heart is a Chainsaw / Don’t Fear the Reaper, by Stephen Graham Jones.
These are the first two books of what will be a trilogy, and I loved them both. They definitely have that slasher vibe and are very much written for fans of the genre. I will say that Chainsaw is a bit heavier handed with the “written for the fans” angle–the main character, Jade, is a horror movie aficionado and makes a lot of nerdy references to classic horror movies. It probably isn’t as fun for people who aren’t into that sort of cinematic experience as I am, but in my (admittedly biased) opinion, it is still worth the read. Reaper is definitely more readable for the casual slasher fan (haha?), in that it doesn’t have as many references to classic film/have a requisite list of movies you’d need to watch to understand it. Probably a lot of folks would prefer Reaper, but my heart (is a chainsaw) is with the first book for sure. I don’t think we have a release date for book #3 but I am on the edge of my seat, y’all.
For a more “fun,” somewhat lighter book, try Clown in a Cornfield, by Adam Cesare. I talked a lot about this when I read it last year, but it remains one that pops into mind whenever folks mention looking for a classic “campy” slasher read. It has all of the classic elements of the 80s/90s slasher: new kid to a small town, disgruntled citizens, lots of murder, and a killer in a spooky heckin’ costume. Reading it definitely brought me back to all the slasher movies I loved when I was younger (and still)—think Scream, Halloween, Elm Street, Friday the 13th— and you can’t really beat that kind of nostalgia, imo.
If you love a haunted house:
I can’t NOT mention The Haunting of Hillhouse by Shirley Jackson under this category, obviously–but more on that at the end of this post!
T. Kingfisher’s What Moves the Dead pops to mind here as well. This is a re-telling of Poes “Fall of the House of Usher,” with a bit of a twist. I personally really liked it (though I am definitely biased due to my love of both haunted houses and Poe ). Have already written a longer review of this here, so won’t waste space here reaving about it. I’d say it’s good for fans of sporror (fungal/plant/”Spore” horror), re-tellings of classics, and if you’re into unsettling, claustrophobic vibes. PS: Netflix is releasing a mini series based off the Poe story on October 12!
The Shining, by Stephen King—for those of you who want to absolutely fuck yourselves up. Honestly, I debated including this book on the list because, in general, I kinda hate recommending Stephen King, as much as I love him. Like, duh Amy, it pretty much goes without saying that his books are wonderfully nightmare inducing. He is literally the master of this genre. Ultimately I included it because it is one of my faves, and if you love a haunted house and you HAVEN'T read it, you gotta stop what you’re doing and go get this book. Also, it is vastly different from the movie (which, and I know this is a hot take, I really don’t like—but hey, famously, neither does Stephen! ) and is…terrifying. The hedgemaze scene in the book HAUNTS me.
The Sun Down Motel, by Simone St. James - Including this one because it’s different from the others in that it is definitely more overtly paranormal—and sometimes I like that! Sometimes it is fine for a ghost to simply be a ghost (ie vs ghosts as manifestations of trauma/grief/psychosis/etc. It’s told via the perspectives of two different characters, one in the past and one in present day, and is sort of coming-of-agey for both of them. This book also leans heavy into thriller/mystery components vs necessarily traditional horror, so if you’re into that kinda thing (I am), you’ll probably dig it.
If you’re lookin’ for a Creature Feature:
Such Sharp Teeth, by Rachel Harrison - a Werewolf book! I don’t feel like there is a ton of werewolf lit out there, and I thought that Harrison did an interesting thing here with this story. I especially enjoyed the comparison between losing control over ones body via werewolf transformation to losing control over one’s body when you’re pregnant—because sometimes the most horrifying things are actually just reality, ha ha ha. Definitely some gruesome body-horror moments, but in general this book struck me as kinda “cozy” horror. Recommended for fans who don’t want to give themselves nightmares, who like horror based on the female experience, and who are tired of the only creature books being about vampires.
That being said, the next one I’m gonna recommend is a vampire book, lmao. I can’t not mention Grady Hendrix somewhere here, and I’m gonna shout out The Southern Bookclub’s Guide to Slaying Vampires. I loved the main character, I loved how character-driven this book was, and I loved the spooky vampire moments. I feel like there was definitely a feminist commentary here about how women are so often not believed/not taken seriously in society, and I loved how strong the MC was throughout. As is classic with Hendrix, this manages to be both scary and hilarious–he strikes the perfect balance and somehow it just works.
Lone Women, by Victor Lavalle. I can’t say much about the creature feature-ness of this one without giving a lot of the plot away but trust me, this is wild. It fuses supernatural horror with historical fiction (readalikes: The Hunger, Mexican Gothic) with a sprinkle of Dark Fantasy. I’d definitely recommend this one if you love a strong female protagonist, horror focused around family secrets, and—weirdly—Westerns.
If fiction isn’t your thing, but macabre nonfiction is:
Dark Archives: A Librarian's Investigation into the Science and History of Books Bound in Human Skin, by Megan Rosenbloom - This book is literally about the history of HUMAN SKIN BOOKS! As in…books bound in human skin leather rather than, idk, normal leather?? Need I say more? It’s a little academic in style, but still fascinating. Scrathces the itch for an exploration into the macabre, and has the added bonus of being a nerdy book for book nerds who want to read books about books, lmao
The Smoke Gets in your Eyes , by (my queen) Caitlin Doughty. (Hot tip: check out her YouTube if you enjoy mini-docs about death-adjacent topics). Doughty is a mortician, death positivity advocate, founder of The Order of the Good Death, and author of several v cool books. SGIYE is my favorite, and I love recommending it to people. It is partially a memoir, detailing Doughty’s time as a crematory worker, but also partially a really interesting exploration of the death industry and how different cultures handle their dead. Her writing style is so quippy and funny, but she also treats the topic really respectfully. I can’t say enough good things about this book (and Caitlin), it is for sure one of my fave macabre nonfiction books to date.
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, by Mary Roach. Mary Roach is a prolific science writer and all of her books are wild, whacky, and fascinating. This one is specifically topical because it focuses on…dead bodies, haha. It’s all about post-mortem body stuff, and all the various things that can be done with our bodies once we are done with them. Cool! Fun! Weird!
If you want to know the books that genuinely got under MY skin and into my nightmares:
A Head Full of Ghosts, by Paul Tremblay, is a book that I have talked about SO MUCH, but it genuinely creeped me out so much? It’s probably one of my favorite horror books I’ve read in a long time. It has all kinds of nods to classic horror that I love (Yellow Wallpaper, We Have Always Lived in the Castle, to name a few) and it combines a well-known horror tropes (demonic possession, religious horror) with a more contemporary horror (reality television, lmao) which I loved! I’m obsessed with this book! I cannot recommend it enough!
What Kind of Mother, by Clay McLeod Chapman - Big trigger warning for child death gotta be mentioned up top.—if that is going to upset you, do not touch this one, phew. This book was bananas from top to bottom. It starts off great and just spirals into total insanity. The main character is a single mom as well as a PALM READER at a local farmers market, who gets herself into a bit of trouble by telling the fortune of an old flame (whose infant son, incidentally, went missing five years prior). I can’t even really describe anything about it because it kind of requires going into it with no expectations or background knowledge, but holy moly, I haven’t stopped thinking about it. For fans of: body horror, psychological horror, anyone who wants to be put off shellfish (hahaha) (this is a joke that I cannot explain but you’ll get it and laugh at it if you read the book! thank me later!)
Sundial, by Catriona Ward - Couldn’t end this newsletter without mentioning Catriona. I love everything she has written, as I have stated time and time again. Sundial is definitely the book by her that has stuck with me the most, though. It is so twisty and psychological, so gruesome and upsetting, and ofc touches on the ol’ mother-daughter relationship (me, traumatized by my own relationship with my mother, loves this shit). Kind of rough for those of us who have a hard time with animal cruelty in books, but in my opinion this book is worth powering through those rough spots. For fans of: Psychological horror, family dysfunction, science-based horror.
Shirley Jackson!! HELLO!!
Okay, despite this being incredibly long already, I need to rave about the fact that A Public Space is doing a read along (APS Together) for Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House, which is frankly my favorite haunted house book of all time (of course).
Basically APS sets out a reading schedule for the month, breaking the book down into small sections that participants are supposed to complete each day. Every day, they send out a newsletter email with commentary from an ~expert~ (in this case Ruth Franklin, who wrote Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life) discussing that day’s excerpt and asking thoughtful questions/offering different ways to interpret the material. It’s very cool!! I haven’t done a re-read of Hill House in a while and am so, so stoked for this excuse to get into it once again.
Anyway, the book is relatively short and breaking it down into tiny bits per day makes it very digestible even for those of you who have very bustling schedules (couldn’t be me lmao). I encourage you to join, especially if you have never read Hill House (but also if you have!) and tell me if you do bc I would love to discuss! BTW, if you watched the Netflix series but haven’t read the book, please know that the book is….extremely different (as in not the same story at all) and obviously the book is, in my humble (but also correct) opinion, heaps better.
ALSO, Elizabeth Hand’s new book “A Haunting on the Hill” came out just last week and this is, and I quote, “the first-ever authorized novel to return to the world of Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House”--um excuse me? I think it mostly just takes place in the same universe as Hill House, but it was approved by Shirley Jackson’s estate (ie her son!) and I think that is extremely cool. I’ve been wanting to read this since I heard about it, so this is a GREAT opportunity to read it right after my lil Hill House re-read :)
Am still working my way through my aforementioned spooky season TBR—slowly—but looking forward to posting reviews of those by (hopefully) Halloween ! Stay tuned.
Also let me know if you read any of these recs and what you think (even if you hate them) (honestly, especially if you hate them).
xo,
Amy