It's time to put the boo in book.
October is the perfect time to make yourself a cup of tea, sit by the fire (or some Halloween-appropriate scented candles), and be chilled to the bone by your favourite ghost story. Of course, you might not have a favourite ghost story – or you might be looking to find a new one. Well, look no further than these fifty books and short stories that will get you into the Halloween mood.
Books for kids and teens:
1. Doll Bones – Holly Black (Tween/teen novel)
2. Sweetly – Jackson Pearce (Teen novel)
3. Bunnicula – Deborah and James Howe (Children's book)
4. Ten Timid Ghosts – Jennifer O'Connell (Children's picture book)
5. Vampires Don't Wear Polka Dots – Marcia T. Jones and Debbie Dadey (Children's book)
6. The Graveyard Book – Neil Gaiman (Tween/teen novel)
7. The Replacement – Brenna Yovanoff (Teen novel)
8. Dead Is The New Black – Marlene Perez (Tween/teen novel)
9. Goosebumps – R. L. Stine (Children's book series)
10. Franny K. Stein – Jim Benton (Children's book series)
Classics:
11. Frankenstein – Mary Shelley
12. Dracula – Bram Stoker
13. The Telltale Heart – Edgar Allen Poe
14. Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde – Robert Louis Stevenson
15. Carmilla – Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
16. The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow – Washington Irving
17. The Phantom Of The Opera – Gaston Leroux
18. The Werewolf Of Paris – Guy Endore
19. I Am Legend – Richard Matheson
20. Psycho – Robert Bloch
Stephen King:
21. Carrie
22. The Shining
23. It
24. Willa
25. Pet Semetary
26. Salem's Lot
27. Cujo
28. The Outsider
29. Doctor Sleep
30. Misery
Books by women:
31. Interview With The Vampire – Anne Rice
32. The Hunger – Alma Katsu
33. The Woman In Black – Susan Hill
34. Dead Until Dark – Charlaine Harris
35. The Silent Companions – Laura Purcell
36. The Last Seance – Agatha Christie
37. Gothic Tales – Elizabeth Gaskell
38. White Is For Witching – Helen Oyeyemi
39. The Haunting Of Hill House – Shirley Jackson
40. Fledgling – Octavia E. Butler
Non Fiction Books:
41. Men, Women, And Chainsaws – Carol J. Clover
42. The Monstrous-Feminine – Barbara Creed
43. The Monster Show – David J. Skal
44. Horror Noire – Robin R. Means Coleman
45. Monsters In The Closet – Harry M. Benshoff
46. My Favourite Horror Movie – Christian Ackerman (Various authors)
47. Studying Horror Cinema – Bryan Turnock
48. Monsters, Demons, And Psychopaths – Fernando Espi Forcen
49. Silent Screams – Steve Haberman
50. Hideous Progeny – Angela Smith
What are your favourite Halloween reads? What books are you looking forward to reading this October? Let me know in the comments below.