Horror (and my October plans)

[RedEyedGhost]

Boooooo!  My last October thread got archived.  

The last three years I've been reading books specifically geared toward this time of year, and it's kind of settled into a pattern.  A ghost story, a monster story, a haunted house tale, and a creepy circus (and occasionally I can fit in a bonus read).  In years past I've always come to the board in hopes of getting help in selecting the books to read, but I think I've got that nailed down already for this year.  This is what I'm thinking:

1. Fellside by MR Carey or Ghost Story by Peter Straub... I'm still contemplating because they both seem outrageously overpriced, maybe something different.
2. The Suicide Motor Club by Christopher Buehlman
3. No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill
4. Mechanique by Genevieve Valentine
5. Bonus: The Last Days of Jack Sparks by Jason Arnopp

Anything new I should really look into instead?

Here's what I've read in the past:

2013

Quote

The Devil You Know by Mike Carey
Salem's Lot by Stephen King
The Sorcerer's House by Gene Wolfe
October Country by Ray Bradbury
The Ritual by Adam Nevill
Dark Harvest by Norman Partridge

2014

Quote

The Circus of Dr. Lao by Charles G. Finney
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
This Dark Earth by John Horner Jacobs
Pet Sematary by Stephen King
The Night Country by Stewart O'Nan

2015

Quote

Banquet for the Damned by Adam Nevill (ghost story)
Those Across the River by Christopher Buehlman (monster, even if it's not scary)
The Troupe by Robert Jackson Bennet (circus)
Slade House by David Mitchell (haunted house)

 

I highly recommend anybody who hasn't tried reading some horror this time of year to give it a try, it's great.  A wonderful starting point would Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes.

Feel free to use this thread as a general horror thread as it appears all of those have been archived too.

[Darth Richard II]

Well, anything by Vox Day is pretty damn horrifying.

[red snow]

I've been jogging listening to "insomnia" by Stephen King in the evenings and it's now getting dark when I do so. Thanks to the bizarre music that randomly plays at points in the audiobook it's becoming unsettling. I might be jogging faster around the park though.

The Tall Grass by king and his son is a nice chilling, short story.

I also find some of the Poe stories to work - especially the ones that haven't been imitated to death (although those are pretty rare)

[Spockydog]

5 hours ago, RedEyedGhost said:

Boooooo!  My last October thread got archived.  

The last three years I've been reading books specifically geared toward this time of year, and it's kind of settled into a pattern.  A ghost story, a monster story, a haunted house tale, and a creepy circus (and occasionally I can fit in a bonus read).  In years past I've always come to the board in hopes of getting help in selecting the books to read, but I think I've got that nailed down already for this year.  This is what I'm thinking:

1. Fellside by MR Carey or Ghost Story by Peter Straub... I'm still contemplating because they both seem outrageously overpriced, maybe something different.
2. The Suicide Motor Club by Christopher Buehlman
3. No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill
4. Mechanique by Genevieve Valentine
5. Bonus: The Last Days of Jack Sparks by Jason Arnopp

That's a nice list. Jack Sparks is my book of the year.

Not read The Suicide Motor Club yet, but Buehlman is a great writer. You might want to investigate Between Two Fires and Those Across the River. 

Also, here's one that you've probably never heard of. The Devil of Echo Lake by Douglas Wynne. I love this book, and I think you'll find it perfect for the time of year. Here's the blurb:

Quote

Billy Moon would have given his life for rock 'n' roll stardom, but the Devil doesn’t come that cheap.

Goth rock idol Billy Moon has it all: money, fame, and a different girl in every city. But he also has a secret, one that goes all the way back to the night he almost took his own life. The night Trevor Rail, a shadowy record producer with a flair for the dark and esoteric, agreed to make him a star. . . for a price.

Now Billy has come to Echo Lake Studios to create the record that will make him a legend. A dark masterpiece like only Trevor Rail can fashion. But the woods of Echo Lake have a dark past, a past that might explain the mysterious happenings in the haunted church that serves as Rail’s main studio. As the pressure mounts on Billy to fulfill Rail's vision, it becomes clear that not everyone will survive the project.

It's time the Devil of Echo Lake had his due, and someone will have to pay.

ETA: Just re-read your OP, and as you've already read Those Across the River, I'll have to think of another.

*thinking*

Please standby.

 

[AncalagonTheBlack]

You should definitely try Paul Tremblay: A Head Full of Ghosts  and Disappearance at Devil's Rock

 

 

 

[stonebender]

Usually I go with an annual King in October but I think I'll change things up this year.  I tried some Lovecraft but I found those stories pretty goofy and bland as far as the horror/supernatural aspect.  I think I'll look for a haunted house book.   

[Peadar]

As a scary clown story, The Pilo Family Circus by Will Elliott is pretty wild.

[red snow]

2 hours ago, Peadar said:

As a scary clown story,

Are there any other type of Clown story?

[Peadar]

3 hours ago, red snow said:

Are there any other type of Clown story?

You make a good point :-o 

[RedEyedGhost]

19 hours ago, red snow said:

I've been jogging listening to "insomnia" by Stephen King in the evenings and it's now getting dark when I do so. Thanks to the bizarre music that randomly plays at points in the audiobook it's becoming unsettling. I might be jogging faster around the park though.

That's awesome.

16 hours ago, Spockydog said:

Jack Sparks is my book of the year.

You're pimping of it in the monthly reading thread is what brought it to my attention.

16 hours ago, Spockydog said:

The Devil of Echo Lake by Douglas Wynne. I love this book, and I think you'll find it perfect for the time of year. Here's the blurb:

That does sound pretty good, and the reviews are very good too.  

13 hours ago, AncalagonTheBlack said:

You should definitely try Paul Tremblay: A Head Full of Ghosts  and Disappearance at Devil's Rock

I actually found that first one last night after I posted, and it sounds awesome (the second sounds really good too).  I'm thinking I do either that or The Devil of Echo Lake for the #1 spot.  (It's also nice that they're both about half the price of Fellside and Ghost Story.)

I found it when I decided instead of looking at random lists on Goodreads and clicking on random books on the "Customers who bought this also bought" on Amazon, and decided I should look at some recent Horror award winners and nominees.  I think A Head Full of Ghosts was on a Bram Stoker list.

13 hours ago, Peadar said:

As a scary clown story, The Pilo Family Circus by Will Elliott is pretty wild.

Great.  I think I'll bump Mechanique for that.  I had that on my amazon wishlist but that things so long I don't even like looking through it anymore   

 

13 hours ago, stonebender said:

Usually I go with an annual King in October but I think I'll change things up this year.  I tried some Lovecraft but I found those stories pretty goofy and bland as far as the horror/supernatural aspect.  I think I'll look for a haunted house book.   

I really enjoyed Slade House last year.  Probably my favorite of the haunted house stories I've read the past three years.  I'm really psyched about No One Gets Out Alive this year though.  Adam Nevill has not let me down yet.

13 hours ago, Let's Get Kraken said:

REG, if you haven't read IT, I recommend it for your monster book. That novel probably closed more clown colleges than John Wayne Gacey and the Great Recession put together. It's really King's most iconic novel after The Shining, and many consider it to be his best.

Man, I really would love to read It, but I just don't think I have the time!  I think it would probably take 3+ weeks at my current reading rate. 

 

Thanks for all the help, that I didn't think I even needed, guys!    Hopefully some other posters/lurkers will get something out of this thread too.

[red snow]

17 hours ago, Let's Get Kraken said:

Oh yeah, October is the best time of year to read Stephen King. Though I've been on a binge lately and may move on to something new.

REG, if you haven't read IT, I recommend it for your monster book. That novel probably closed more clown colleges than John Wayne Gacey and the Great Recession put together. It's really King's most iconic novel after The Shining, and many consider it to be his best.

I know how you feel - I innocently started "the drawing of the three" early summer and now I'm finding every other book is a King one. I got drawn into the "these are the tie-in books that are worth reading before book 5" thing too.

IT doesn't seem to be one of the "core" books (although I've read it's still mildy connected). It was only £3 on audible yesterday so I might save it for next winter and break some personal bests jogging. I still recall the terror of catching some of "IT" as a kid.

I'll keep an eye out for some of the other suggestions. They all sound intriguing.

[AncalagonTheBlack]

5 hours ago, RedEyedGhost said:

  I think A Head Full of Ghosts was on a Bram Stoker list.

It won actually - http://horror.org/awards/stokerwinnom.htm#2015

 

The latest winner/nominees of the Shirley Jackson Awards - http://www.shirleyjacksonawards.org/award-winners/2015-shirley-jackson-awards-winners/

My novel rec's from that would be:

Experimental Film by Gemma Files

When We Were Animals by Joshua Gaylord (aka Alden Bell)

[Darth Richard II]

11 hours ago, Let's Get Kraken said:

There's a character introduced in IT that is important to TDT, but you don't really need to read it to appreciate their role in Roland's story. There are also some theories that there may be a connection between Pennywise and the Crimson King, but I won't get too spoilery.

There is? Reboot my memory.

[Darth Richard II]

OH right. Dyuh.

[Manhole Eunuchsbane]

 I'll throw out The Ruins by Scott Smith for the Monster tale. Freaky-ass monster.

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ruins_(novel)

[RedEyedGhost]

2 hours ago, Manhole Eunuchsbane said:

 I'll throw out The Ruins by Scott Smith for the Monster tale. Freaky-ass monster.

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ruins_(novel)

That sounds good.  The reviews are very mixed though.  I'm pretty locked in on The Suicide Motor Club, but I'll pencil it in for next year (I saved it to the amazon wishlist, but honestly this thread will be a better reminder).

Another possibility for next year is The Troop by Nick Cutter.  Anybody read that?

 

20 hours ago, AncalagonTheBlack said:

When We Were Animals by Joshua Gaylord

This one is definitely on the short list for next year, too.

I knew I should have restarted this thread a month ago  

[Macklunkey]

It's a slow day here in rainy Scotland so I downloaded When We Were Animals this morning and have just finished it.

Thoroughly enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it.

[AncalagonTheBlack]

2016 British Fantasy Awards Winners were announced on Sunday.

Best Horror Novel (the August Derleth Award)

• Rawblood, Catriona Ward (Weidenfeld & Nicholson) - best horror novel winner
• Welcome to Night Vale, Joseph Fink & Jeffrey Cranor (Orbit UK)
• The Silence, Tim Lebbon (Titan)
• A Cold Silence, Alison Littlewood (Jo Fletcher)
• Lost Girl, Adam Nevill (Pan)
• The Death House, Sarah Pinborough (Gollancz)

[RedEyedGhost]

The Troop by Nick Cutter is $2.99 for Kindle and Nook today, if anybody is looking for a cheap horror novel before October winds down.  It was on my shortlist for this year, and now that I own it, it probably make the list next year.