October Screams (what to read this month)

For today's countdown to Halloween post, a reading suggestion, October Screams. A Halloween Anthology. Another one, I know, but a solid one all the same, with many big names and Bram Stoker award winners. It's one of the darkest anthologies I have read, giving me a few nightmares (no, seriously). There's ghosts, haunted/possessed creepy dolls, creepy neighbours, sympathetic monsters, less sympathetic ones, wannabe vampires, bogeymen, they really throw the kitchen sink with this one. There's also, maybe not so surprisingly, a lot of nostalgia, even amidst the terror. The writers here truly love Halloween and all its seasonal rituals and it shows.

October Pumpkin Patch

 As you probably remember, I am currently reading October Screams. So far it's a great read. And something struck me recently: the back cover of the book is just as good, maybe even better, than the front cover. You can see a field of pumpkins, or rather of fully lit Jack O'Lanterns, and a spooky looking scarecrow in the background. Scarecrows truly are a staple of Halloween, especially if they have a Jack O'Lantern as a head. Which I am sure is the case there. And I had to share it here.

October Screams

 Okay, first a disclaimer for today's countdown to Halloween post: this is not really a reading suggestions. Because October Screams is the Halloween book I am reading at the moment. More and more, for my seasonal spooky reads, I forego "traditional" or classic horror stories for the month of October to focus on Halloween themed books, either novels or anthologies. The classics, old and new, I read them in September, August, July even. Sometimes as early as April, to be honest. But yeah, I have now a pretty nice collection of Halloween books, enough so I have started recognising names contributing to these anthologies. So many books to read, so little time left. I hope I can finish it before the 31st, so I can revisit my other Halloween books. The more you read, the more you find yet to discover. So yeah, I am binge reading horror stories.