Top Ten Tuesday: Books to Read During Halloween

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

 

Top Ten Books to Read During Halloween

10. The first half of Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

The ending was disappointingly action-free, but the first half was pure horror: Bella's pregnant with a child who sucks her blood from the inside, breaks her spine and has to be delivered by Edward tearing her out of Bella's stomach with his teeth...gruesome stuff.

9. Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill

And this is where I admit that I've never read anything by the horror maestro, Stephen King *hangs head in shame*. I have, however, read his son, and Joe Hill has written some scary tales himself. This one involves a washed-up rock star buying a ghost over the internet, only to discover he's been set up to bring untold trouble and death into his life.

8. The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman

Between the artwork and the story, these graphic novels completely envelope you into a world that's imaginative and unnerving and scary as hell. I truly shudder at the fates of the humans who chose to mess with supernatural forces they did not understand.

7. Soulless by Gail Carriger

This series is really funny and will put you in a good mood for Halloween, but dealing as it does with vampires, werewolves and a protagonist without a soul, there are plenty of scary bits, too.

6. The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

There are few things scarier than Jack the Ripper and this book has plenty of edge-of-your-seat moments, as London wonders where a new Ripper will strike next.

5. Red Spikes by Margo Lanagan

This is a collection of short stories of which some are so creepy, they will make you wary of turning out the lights, lest one of the nasties featured snatches you from your bed.

4. Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce

I found Jackson Pearce's portrayal of girl-eating wolves to be genuinely frightening and the scenes which depict the wolf attacks are horror movie-worthy, as girls are ripped apart from limb to limb.

3. Prom Nights from Hell by Various Authors

I actually read this collection last Halloween and the five stories vary from scary to fun. A special mention goes to 'The Corsage' by Lauren Myracle, which is a retelling of 'The Monkey's Paw' and creeped me the hell out.

2. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

I think the first Sookie Stackhouse book was the scariest, with vampires and a serial killer on the loose. Poor Adele Stackhouse *sniff*

1. The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

One of my favourite YA books and probably my favourite zombie book, the premise of a town surrounded by a forest of zombies is terrifying and Carrie Ryan adds many moments that make you jump out of your skin.