If you are anything like me, Halloween is one of the most exciting times of the year. All the haunts and horrors pull you in from all directions and it is the perfect time to binge your favorite horror movies...or read your favorite scary books! If you need some help getting into the spooky season this year, here are 10 of my favorite scary books that will leave you in suspense for days after.
"The Caged Graves" by Diane K. Salerni
This is one of my favorite spooky stories. Taking place in 1867, in Catawissa, PA, "The Caged Graves" follows 17-year-old Verity Boone as she tries to discover why her mother's grave is on unholy ground and why there is a cage placed over it. She is warned time after time that sometimes, "the dead don't stay where you put them." But whoever heard of corpses moving?
Full of suspense, mystery and a major plot twist you will never see coming, this is a perfect, quick read to get anyone in the spooky spirit.
"Meddling Kids" by Edgar Cantero
Scooby-Doo meets the 21st century in Cantero's novel about four kids and their dog who go their seperate ways after solving a traumatic mystery. Thirteen years later, they are pulled back together to return to the scene of the crime, as one of them believes all their problems started as a result of their last mystery.
Definitely a Scooby-Doo story for adults, it will show even the biggest mystery fan that sometimes, the only monster in a mask is yourself.
"And the Trees Crept In" by Dawn Kurtagich
When Silla takes her younger sister Nori and escapes to their aunt's house that is surrounded by trees, she thinks the bad stuff is far behind them both. But the trees are moving closer and closer and the madness in the house is feeding off all of them, leaving nothing but skin and bones, and ghosts from the pasts to haunt Silla even more.
A perfect ghost and haunted house story wrapped into one with a bit of love thrown in, this is a perfectly eerie tale about what madness can truly do.
"The Fifth Petal" by Brunonia Barry
Every town has that one secret they want to keep buried and in Salem, those secrets come with a high cost. In a world surrounded by witches of lore and present, Callie returns after the discovery of a murdered teenager that resembles those from the past where her own mother's throat was slit by a mysterious figure.
Filled with cults, witches, murder, magic and lore, "The Fifth Petal" is a must-read for the Halloween season.
"Slade House" by David Mitchell
You know that one house at the end of the street you are always told not to go to? That is the century old Slade House, located on an unknown street in London. Going through decades of kidnappings, murders and mystery, Slade House has seen it all, until it sees it's most recent victim, who may just prove everyone wrong.
This book messed me up so badly and made me slightly paranoid of what is true and what is fake in a world we truly know nothing about. Always beware of that house at the end of the street...always.
"Hallowe'en Party" by Agatha Christie
A classic Halloween story from the queen of mystery herself. After a young girl comes forward at a Halloween party to say she witnessed a murder, she herself is found dead. Poirot is called in to investigate, only to find a bigger spook at stake.
I love any Christie books and this one is a great, calm read to get anyone in the celebratory spirit with little scares.
"The Amityville Horror" by Jay Anson
What better way to spend Halloween than in the most well-known haunted house in America? The story follows the Lutz family as they move to a house in Amityville, NY that has seen it's fair share of horror and murder. From satanic sacrifices to a massacre to a family's homicide, the spirits that reside in Amityville have claimed the house as their own, and anyone who resides in it will be attacked viciously.
Based on true events, "The Amityville Horror" is a quick read that will leave you spooked and paranoid.
"'Salem's Lot" by Stephen King
A classic twist on a vampire tale, the King of horror provides readers a journey like no other to Jerusalem's Lot, a place that is hiding a very dark secret that could ruin the town if it is found out. And once Ben Mears arrives in town, secrets will no longer rest with ease.
For fans of Stephen King, as well as "Dracula" by Bram Stoker, "'Salem's Lot" is one of the best reads for Halloween. Vampires, mayhem and secrets will have you wondering just who your neighbors truly are...and who that new person in town really is.
"Pet Sematary" by Stephen King
What else screams Halloween than zombies? In Maine, an ancient burial ground makes sure the dead don't always stay dead. When the Creeds discover the cemetery, accurately named the Pet Sematary by the local children, they decide to stay away until the beloved family pet, Church, dies. Dr. Creed allows Church to be buried in the Sematary and all hell breaks loose.
The perfect eerie book that will leave you wary of cemeteries until the end of your days. This is one of my favorites and is perfect for Halloween.
"IT" by Stephen King
No Halloween list would be complete without King's iconic and classic psychological story about a group of children who, one summer, defeat the evil residing in their hometown, only to come back 20 years later to kill IT for good. "IT" is the perfect creepy clown story about fear, growing up, life and facing challenges head-on.
"IT" is one of my all-time favorite Halloween stories that leaves me haunted the whole month and even after. It is a bit of a read, but well worth it in the end.
Halloween is right around the corner and if you are a little hesitant to get in the spooky season mood, hopefully these reads bring about ghosts, ghouls and clown creeps quicker than raising the dead or getting your neck bit will.
And if you'll excuse me...I'm going to go snuggle up with Percy Jackson before starting my newest creepy reads this year.
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