Most of you know by now that I love Halloween, I love dressing up, I love decorating, and I (triple) love all things spooky. With Halloween coming up next month, I have switched over to "monster mode" meaning I only watch scary movies (and Halloween specials on TV) and I bring out all my horror stories to enjoy late at night. From now until Halloween I will only be reviewing spooky books and movies. So let's kick things off!
"The dead woman rose for a moment of agony, while she was lapped in the flame, and her bitter scream of pain was drowned in the thundercrash."
This excerpt is from "Dracula's Guest" by Bram Stoker. It was published in 1914 as a short story because it was cut from the original Dracula manuscript by the publisher. This is one of many stories in The 13 Best Horror Stories of All Time. My sister received this book from a friend as a gift for her birthday which is, coincidentally, on October 31. I immediately picked up and started reading it later that night, alone, with one light on in my corner. I was setting myself up to get spooked and boy did I ever! The book begins with The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe (one of the best writers of the genre in my opinion) a well-known story. It creeped me out, I know I heard my own heartbeat pounding. What I liked most about this book is that it isn't just about ghosts and the undead, it's also about psychological horror and unstable minds. These stories can be a lot scarier than physical monsters. Although I've read this book a few times now, the spook factor is still there, I recommend reading this book at night if you dare.
The complete list of stories:
The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe
Green Tea by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
The Bottle Imp by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen
Dracula's Guest by Bram Stoker
The Monkey's Paw by W.W. Jacobs
Oh, Whistle And I'll Come To You, My Lad by M.R. James
The Country Of The Blind by H.G. Wells
The Willows by Algernon Blackwood
The Beckoning Fair One by Oliver Onions
The Call Of Cthulhu by H.P. Lovecraft
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
Green Tea by J. Sheridan Le Fanu
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
The Bottle Imp by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen
Dracula's Guest by Bram Stoker
The Monkey's Paw by W.W. Jacobs
Oh, Whistle And I'll Come To You, My Lad by M.R. James
The Country Of The Blind by H.G. Wells
The Willows by Algernon Blackwood
The Beckoning Fair One by Oliver Onions
The Call Of Cthulhu by H.P. Lovecraft
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
Have a great spooky Monday!
I love all things scary too! Too bad we don't stay closer. We could have up all night weekends watching horror movies!
ReplyDeleteI love all things Halloween!! My birthday is only a few days before, so I grew up with Halloween Costume Party themes most years :) One of these years, I would like to do a murder mysetery type thing! Would be fun!
ReplyDeleteOoh, this book makes me excited for Halloween! I already picked up a costume for my nephew at Target - he is going to be Spider-Man!! :P
ReplyDeleteGreat list of books! I definitely need to check some of these out!
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