Top Ten Tuesday: My picks for 'Horror Books I Would Love To Read [Part III]'.

I absolutely love October, despite the cold weather, because I get to read some creepy stories! Halloween just feels like the perfect time of year for it! I have a ton on my TBR too, and I've done this topic a couple of times before (read my last year's list here).

1) 'The Corset' by Laura Purcell.

I've already started on this book, and it's one of my main picks for this year's Autumn period, but I have to mention how excited I am about it because it focuses on a serial killer in the Victorian era! From what I've read so far, there might be a teensy bit of magic involved, but I'm so impressed by the quality of story so far I won't be mad if not!

2) 'The Monsters We Deserve' by Marcus Sedgewick.

Oart literary essay, part novel, this book caught my eye mostly due to it's cover! But if centres around Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, and classical horror of that era, and I'm intrigued to know more about it!

3) 'Sawkill Girls' by Claire Legrand.

I read 'Winterspell' by this very talented author, and seeing as that fairy tale retelling was a little dark I'd be intrigued to see what this is like. It's a contemporary murder, focusing on teenagers, so very different in style! Looks great though.

4) 'The Chalk Man' by C.J. Tudor.

This appeared on my radar a while ago and reminded me of a 'Sherlock Holmes' short story, so I'm certainly intrigued. I've heard great things about the author, and she even has a second book on the way now!

5) 'The Haunting Of Hill House' by Shirley Jackson.

I've seen so much about the Netflix adaptation of this book everywhere. Not only am I desperate to watch it, but I'd love to read the source material too! I know that plenty of other people are!

6) 'Whiteout' by Gabriel Dylan.

Ooh, a contemporary horror novel set on a mountain? Yes please! Last time I read a horror book with this backdrop, it was set a century or two ago on a mountaineering expedition. The synopsis to this looks awesome.

7) 'The Sacrifice Box' by Martin Stewart.

There's something about the synopsis of this book that puts me in mind of 'It' by Stephen King, or Netflix's 'Stranger Things', both of which I love a lot! I'm interested to once more read about a group of teenagers taking on a force of evil and confronting their own demons in the process.

8) 'The Dark Descent Of Elizabeth Frankenstein' by Kiersten White.

Ooh, another book relating to 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley! This time though, it focuses on the Doctor himself, or at least, his wife and her struggle to survive her husband's unpredictable moods and whims. This sounds so different and interesting, I'm hoping to read it soon!

9) 'A House Of Ghosts' by W.C. Ryan.

Nothing screams Halloween and spooks more than a big old haunted house. And with that title? I presume that's exactly what I'll get with this book! The cover is really pretty too, I'm really excited to read it!

10) 'The Cheerleaders' by Kara Thomas.

I have a soft spot for high school horror, and this looks like just the ticket! Cheerleaders dying/going missing? Secrecy and mysteries? That stereotype is often the first to go in these books/films so I'm excited to see how Kara Thomas plays around with the trope.

Top Ten Tuesday: My picks for 'Horror Books I Would Love To Read [Part II]'.

First of all, before I say anything else, Happy Halloween! It's that spooky time of the month where everyone else goes out trick or treating and/or partying and I sit at home reading spooky stories (my preferred method of celebrating). I have a couple of great choices for this evening, but for now I'll give you some others currently on my TBR that I'm hoping to sit down with one Halloween! 

I actually did this topic a couple of years ago. Some I've managed to read since then, and some I haven't, but it will be fun to revisit it and add ten fresh, exciting books to my list. I won't repeat myself!

1) 'The Madman's Daughter' by Megan Shepherd.

I'm really surprised that this book didn't go on my last list. I've been hankering to read it for quite a while now! I've never read H.G. Wells' 'The Island Of Dr Moreau' (I would like to at some point) but this is a retelling of that story and has definitely piqued my interest. A mad scientist who makes strange beasts, his daughter who is caught between her love for her Father and knowing that what he does is wrong, and of course a potential for a little romance along the way. The aforementioned creatures sound creepy, I hope this book is as horrifying as it sounds.

2) 'The Boy On The Bridge' by M.J. Carey.

I read and adored 'The Girl With All The Gifts' a while ago. It was the best zombie apocalypse novel I'd ever read and heavily reminded me of the video game The Last Of Us in terms of the creatures themselves. It was definitely very creepy. This is apparently a companion novel to the original and I am desperate to read another book set in this world so that sounds perfect! Also, I'm a sucker for matching covers and this bright red really catches the eye.

3) 'Midwinterblood' by Marcus Sedgewick.

So many of Marcus Sedgewick's books are on my TBR because they look so intriguing, yet I've only read one: 'Saint Death'. I actually bought this one a long time ago and you only have to look at that creepy cover to know it's going to be a horror. I like the idea of the seven parts of this novel being influenced by the moon - the dark forces combined with nature are always intriguing in stories to me. It has been described as dark literary YA which probably sounds like my ideal combination of genres, but my favourite thing about this book is I have next to no idea what it is actually about. 

4) 'The Coffin Path' by Katherine Clements.

I really love Susan Hill's work. In fact I'm reading (and loving) a book of her ghost stories right now! But I really wanted to read other works that gave that same vibe, and here I think I've found it. I was recently approved this read on Netgalley and the synopsis is definitely intriguing if you're a fan of ghostly mysteries: an old house, the Yorkshire moors, shadowy figures etc. I've heard of some of Clements' other books though never read them, so this looks like a good place to start! Fans of 'The Loney' may well enjoy this story too, it looks like it contains the same sense of isolation and haunting atmosphere.

5) 'Verdegris Deep' by Frances Hardinge.

Frances Hardinge is probably my favourite YA horror author. She mixes a really great sense of creepiness, with a good story, and I really loved reading 'The Lie Tree'. It comes as no real surprise that another one of her works should appear on this list as I'm pretty determined to read all of her works at some point or another. Wells are really creepy and this book's premise is very interesting when you think about it. Children stealing coins from a well is bound to have terrible consequences in a horror story after all!

6) 'The Shining' by Stephen King.

I've read a couple of Stephen King's books now: 'It' which I liked but found very long, and 'The Bazaar Of Bad Dreams' which contained short stories I found myself feeling very mixed about as some were great while others lacked something to keep me on tenterhooks. One thing can be said about King though - he is meticulous in his approach to detail when it comes to this genre. I've watched 'The Shining' starring Jack Nicholson and found it terrifying, so I'm really hoping that the book will be just as compelling. 

7) 'Between The Spark & The Burn' by April Genevieve Tucholke.

This first book in this series, 'Between The Devil & The Deep Blue Sea' was a strange one for me to like. The characters had bizarre names, the romance was a little sickly sweet, and yet everything felt so nauseatingly colourful that it actually added to the creepiness of the book. The era in which it was set felt very 60s too though it definitely had timeless qualities to it that meant it could just as easily be earlier or much later. I do really want to find out what happens to Violet and her friends. Hopefully book two is as creepy as the first.

8) 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley.

Everyone knows that most classic, gothic horrors are spookier than modern day horror. There's something about the aged writing style that adds to the intrigue of supernatural occurrences. I've never actually even seen a 'Frankenstein' film adaptation though the story is pretty well-known to me thanks to how ingrained it is into popular culture. My fiancé has read the book though and really enjoyed it. He's not easily impressed when it comes to novels generally so I really think this is going to be worth my time! 

9) 'My Best Friend's Exorcism' by Grady Hendrix.

Thanks to 'Stranger Things' and the recent adaptation of Stephen King's 'It', my love for horror in the American eighties has grown immensely. There's something about watching teenagers battling the forces of evil but also making time to visit the arcade, and the slightly ridiculous nature of the paranormal entities that they face that's really appealing to me too. The cover for this looks really cool and I think it will be a fun read if nothing else!

10) 'A Sudden Light' by Garth Stein.

So this book is set in the 90s? The same decade that I was born! I don't actually see many books from that era, but it will be weird to see how much I recognise from it. Ghost stories are probably my favourite genre of paranormal fiction, so I'm glad to see there's a spirit present in this one. But also, this book is about uncovering multi-generational family secrets, and I find those kinds of stories really cool too. 

Top Ten Tuesday (Freebie): My picks for 'Horror Books I Would Love To Read'.

I would say I'm a pretty diverse reader when it comes to genres, but there' something about Horror that really makes me smile. Especially when it's Halloween time! I'm pretty hard to please with this genre because I like to feel scared when reading horror. I'm pretty convinced I'll find a pretty good list of ten that I'm excited about!

1) 'Slasher Girls & Monster Boys'; April Genevieve Tucholke et al.

I don't really read a whole lot of books with short stories, but Horror is my favourite genre for this type of fiction. This book is a short stories collection that I've been desperately eyeing up for a little while for that very reason! Not only that, but it has a very impressive Author list, including authors I've adored such as April Genevieve Tucholke and Leigh Bardugo, and authors I want to sample such as Kendare Blake, Jay Kristoff and Marie Lu. This is sure to be a great read!

2) 'The Lie Tree'; Frances Hardinge.

I've read 'Cuckoo Song' by this lovely lady and not only really enjoyed it, but also found myself pretty creeped out by the concept. As soon as I saw this book popping up in Goodreads, it went straight on the TBR because I want to read more of Hardinge's work! I have to say I'm pretty intrigued by the story. A lot of people have labelled it as chilling rather than really scary but that's okay! Sometimes those are just as good!


3) 'The Small Hand: A Ghost Story'; Susan Hill.

Susan Hill! The mistress of terrifying atmospheres! I read 'The Woman In Black' such a long time ago (as well as watching the play and movie) and it's a story that has stuck with me since. I'm so desperate to get into another book by the same lady that gave me nightmares for weeks on end when I was halfway through Grammar School. 'The Small Hand' is a small book, but I still have high hopes because so was 'The Woman In Black'.


4) 'Horowitz Horror'; Anthony Horowitz.

My desire to read this book comes from the fact that I actually read it's sequel, 'More Horowitz Horror' first. Of course, being a collection of short stories that actually doesn't really matter...but I'm still keen to read the first lot. 'More Horowitz Horror' was one of my favourite teen reads and I remember being up late at night scaring myself silly with some of the stories. It would be fun to do that again, Horowitz is a great writer!

5) 'Bird Box'; Josh Malerman.

I added this to my TBR a long time ago when it came up as a Goodreads Giveaway prize. The cover looks intensely creepy, and the synopsis really intrigued me too. After a bit of research, I've seen some of the fantastic reviews this book has received and now I desperately want to read it! When it comes to horror, I'm a fan of supernatural elements rather than chainsaw-wielding murderers, and so 'The Problem' has certainly piqued my curiousity.

6) 'Anna Dressed In Blood'; Kendare Blake.

Yeah, yeah. I know. I still haven't read this book. Not long after I started this book, I began to see it popping up everywhere and I desperately wanted to get it! The cover is beautiful and of course, a good old-fashioned ghost story is my favourite kind of horror read! It's part of a duology too, and this has grabbed my attention even more. I've read the blurb which has sent my mind racing and all that's left to do is read the book itself! Soon please?

7) 'A Monster Calls'; Patrick Ness.

So many things about this book excite me. First off: Patrick Ness! I finally got round to reading and adoring his work just last month, and now I'm desperate to read something else of his. This book looks so chilling and I want to know what Ness will do with such an intriguing plot idea. Secondly: YA Horror! I have a soft spot for YA it's true, and just like my last pick on this list, the idea of YA Horror really excites me. Finally: Siobhan Dowd! After a bit of digging I found that Dowd actually came up with the idea and Ness has written it in her honour. I really enjoyed 'A Swift Pure Cry', a really gorgeous book by the same lady. Dowd sold it to me.

8) 'The Girl From The Well'; Rin Chupeco.

Like 'Bird Box', I put this book on my TBR a very long time ago and haven't got to it since. I plan to at some point of course because of the huge number of parallels drawn between this film and Asian Horror films such as 'The Ring' (Ringu) or 'The Grudge' (Ju-on). I've always been a big fan of Japanese culture and I particularly love their folklore and supernatural tales so I think this would be an excellent book for me to read!

9) 'A Madness So Discreet'; Mindy McGinnis.

I have seen this book everywhere and was immediately transfixed by the gorgeous, slightly disturbing cover! The title was really intriguing too. Some people may describe this more as a Murder Mystery but I think it looks like there's enough darkness and creep factor for it to be shuffled into the Horror genre too. McGinnis also wrote 'Not A Drop To Drink', another book that I quite want to read. This one looks more up my street though!


10) 'The Passage'; Justin Cronin.

This gives off some great post-apocalyptic zombie-ish vibes and I love the idea of it. The size of it (700+ pages) looks absolutely terrifying but I want to start reading longer books because I don't manage to get through many of them and I bet they're really good and worth the long reading time. Reading the synopsis for this also made me think of 'Station Eleven' for some strange reason, which was a book I really loved! I hopefully will get to read this beast of a book at some point soon!