31 Days of Halloween: Day #24 … 10 Haunted House (Paranormal) Reads
Hello, friends, and welcome to the 31 Days of Halloween!
Halloween Quote
“At night the fog was thick and full of light, and sometimes voices.” — Erin Bow, “Plain Kate”
It’s Day 24 of the series, and this week, I’m sharing everything in books: classic reads, new titles for the season, a few book reviews, and other goodies.
The book theme for today is Haunted House-Paranormal. I love a good haunted house story and enjoyed the books I’ve read from this list. I mentioned in a previous post that I have so many books on my TBR list that I just can’t get to them all. I recently finished The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie and moved on to Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay; plus, I’ve read two pages from Holly by Stephen King. So, I’m trying to finish my GR Challenge at a break-neck pace. Enough about these books; let’s move on to the list below.
10 Haunted House Paranormal Reads
This list includes newer titles and classics, as well as haunted houses, locations, and people.
1. How to Sell A Haunted House, Grady Hendrix When Louise finds out her parents have died, she dreads going home. She doesn’t want to leave her daughter with her ex and fly to Charleston. She doesn’t want to deal with her family home, stuffed to the rafters with the remnants of her father’s academic career and her mother’s lifelong obsession with puppets and dolls. She doesn’t want to learn how to live without the two people who knew and loved her best in the world. |
*****
2. Episode Thriteen, Craig DeLouie Fade to Black is the newest hit ghost-hunting reality TV show. Led by husband and wife team Matt and Claire Kirklin, it delivers weekly hauntings investigated by a dedicated team of ghost-hunting experts. Episode Thirteen takes them to every ghost hunter’s holy grail: the Paranormal Research Foundation. This brooding, derelict mansion holds secrets and clues about bizarre experiments that took place there in the 1970s. It’s also famously haunted, and the team hopes their scientific techniques and high-tech gear will prove it. |
*****
3. The September House, Carissa Orlando When Margaret and her husband Hal bought the large Victorian house on Hawthorn Street—for sale at a surprisingly reasonable price—they couldn’t believe they finally had a home of their own. Then they discovered the hauntings. Every September, the walls drip blood. The ghosts of former inhabitants appear, and all of them are terrified of something that lurks in the basement. Most people would flee. |
*****
4. The Amityville Horror, Jay Anson In December 1975, the Lutz family moved into their new home on suburban Long Island. George and Kathleen Lutz knew that, one year earlier, Ronald DeFeo had murdered his parents, brothers, and sisters in the house, but the property—complete with boathouse and swimming pool—and the price had been too good to pass up. Twenty-eight days later, the entire Lutz family fled in terror. |
*****
5. The Sundown Model, Simone St. James Upstate New York, 2017. Carly Kirk has never been able to let go of the story of her aunt Viv, who mysteriously disappeared from the Sun Down before she was born. She decides to move to Fell and visit the motel, where she quickly learns that nothing has changed since 1982. And she soon finds herself ensnared in the same mysteries that claimed her aunt. |
*****
Jack Torrance’s new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. As the off-season caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, he’ll have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote . . . and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around the Overlook is Danny Torrance, a uniquely gifted five-year-old. |
7. A House With Good Bones, T. Kingfisher “Mom seems off.” Her brother’s words echo in Sam Montgomery’s ear as she turns onto the quiet North Carolina street where their mother lives alone. She brushes the thought away as she climbs the front steps. Sam’s excited for this rare extended visit, and looking forward to nights with just the two of them, drinking boxed wine, watching murder mystery shows, and guessing who the killer is long before the characters figure it out. |
*****
8. The Good House, Tananarive Due The home that belonged to Angela Toussaint’s late grandmother is so beloved that the townspeople in Sacajawea, Washington call it the Good House. But that all changes one summer when an unexpected tragedy takes place behind its closed doors, and the Toussaint’s family history—and future—is dramatically transformed. |
*****
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9. You Should Have Left, Daniel Kehlmann A screenwriter, his wife, and their four-year-old daughter rent a house in the mountains of Germany, but something isn’t right. As he toils on a sequel to his most successful movie, the screenwriter notices that rooms aren’t where he remembers them—and finds in his notebook words that are not his own. |
*****
10. This House is Haunted, John Boyne This House Is Haunted is a striking homage to the classic nineteenth-century ghost story. Set in Norfolk in 1867, Eliza Caine responds to an ad for a governess position at Gaudlin Hall. When she arrives at the hall, shaken by an unsettling disturbance that occurred during her travels, she is greeted by the two children now in her care, Isabella and Eustace. There is no adult present to represent her mysterious employer, and the children offer no explanation. Later that night in her room, another terrifying experience further reinforces the sense that something is very wrong. |
From this list, I’ve read How to Sell a Haunted House (4.00 ⭐⭐⭐⭐), September House (3.95 ⭐⭐⭐⭐), Episode Thirteen (4.00 ⭐⭐⭐⭐), and The Sundown Motel (4.75 ⭐⭐⭐⭐). The week is almost up, and yes, I’m sharing some book reviews before I share one more list and wrap up this week of the series.
Thank you so much for visiting my blog today…stay tuned and stay spooky. — Happy Halloween! 🎃👻🍬🦇💀🧡
These look fun! Will be adding most of these to my good reads list!