Screaming Good Reads for Halloween

Looking for something to read this Halloween? Here’s a list of horror stories, thrillers, and otherwise spooky reads you’ll find in Pelham Library’s teen section! Please note: not all titles will be appropriate for all teens. Last updated 2/8/18.

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Do you like movies where scary ghost girls with long hair terrorize the populace? Do you also like paranormal romance? Then look no further! This grisly love story centers on Cas Lowood, a ghost hunter who travels the country slaying murderous spirits. His next target is the ghost of Anna Korlov, a Finnish teen immigrant who was brutally murdered in 1958. But when he comes face to face with Anna, he is startled to face two spirits instead of one: one is the ferocious killer he came to kill, but the other is the sweet, shy girl Anna was in life. Can he free Anna from a curse that condemns her to an endless cycle of death and violence? Recommended for Gr 9-Up for violence and swearing.

Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol

Anya Borzakovskaya, a self-conscious Russian immigrant, finds it difficult to fit in at school in the US. Even though she’s lived in America since she was five and can speak perfect English, she still feels like an outsider—but that all changes when she falls down a well and meets a frail whisp of a ghost named Emily, who is obsessively determined to be her best friend—no matter what the cost. This ghostly tale about outsiders is unusually pretty with its simple but effective color palette of white, black, and purple, a choice which helps set the tone for this gently spooky story. Recommended for Gr 7 Up.

The May Queen Murders by Sarah Jude

Channeling vibes from both The Village and The Wicker Man, this mystery-horror tale manages to be both surprisingly lyrical and extremely creepy. Homely teen Ivy lives in the backwoods town of Rowan’s Glen, Missouri, where folklore and superstition reign supreme and everyone has more secrets than they’d like to admit. Ivy has always been content to play the wallflower while her much prettier cousin gets all the attention, but then, Heather goes missing. Ivy suspects she just eloped with her secret boyfriend, but everyone else fears she’s fallen victim to local bogeyman, Birch Markle. To find out the truth, Ivy is forced to turn from side-kick to sleuth to solve the mystery. Animal mutilations, a chilling atmosphere, and some mature romance make this novel good for an evening of gross-out terror for older teens. Recommended for Gr 10 Up.

Dreamfall by Amy Plum

Seven teens, all desperate for sleep after years of severe insomnia, sign up for the beta trial of a radical new sleep treatment. The treatment is supposed to last only six hours—but when an unexpected accident occurs, it disrupts the session and sends the teens into a coma. Inside their minds, these seven young people are surprised to find themselves in a kind of collective dream state. As they fall prey to literal nightmares that surface from each of them—being in a genocide, being terrorized by circus clowns, or being buried alive—the sleep lab researchers desperately search for a way to revive them. But the teens are quickly learning that when you die in the dream world, you die for real! Recommended for Gr 8 Up for violence and scary situations.

The Third Twin by C.J. Omololu

For those of you who prefer thrillers to gross-outs, try this one: During childhood, twins Alexi and Ava Rios invented a third identical sister named Alicia. As young women, they use “Alicia” as an alias to safely date boys their father wouldn’t approve of. When these unsuitable suitors start turning up dead, the police claim that their chief suspect is a girl who looks just like the Rios sisters—a girl named Alicia. Is one of the sisters a killer, or is “Alicia” actually real? Recommended for Gr 9-Up for swearing, violence, and some romantic content.

Through the Woods: Stories by Emily Carroll

In this lavish collection of chilling tales, an orphaned girl watches as her sisters are called to the side of a shadowy stranger; a new bride is plagued by the song of her ghostly predecessor; a murdered brother won’t stay dead; a pair of fake psychics is haunted by a vision only one of them can see; and a girl learns that her seemingly perfect sister-in-law has a creepy, crawly secret. Told with picture-book simplicity and illustrated in loving detail, this graphic novel is unique, surreal, and frightening. While Carroll uses some brilliant visual technique to imply any violence that happens off-screen, readers who aren’t normally horror buffs should use caution when browsing this collection—it is definitely not for the faint of heart. Recommended Gr 8 Up.