I’m sure you all might be aware of the fact that Halloween is around the corner. Everyone is preparing for it one way or the other, and so am I! While most people are busy carving out lanterns out of pumpkins and preparing a spooky costume for Halloween, my fellow reader friends and I are busy selecting new books to read this Halloween.
Halloween is one of my favorite themes for reading as I love horror and gothic novels. I have a separate collection of books specifically meant to be read during the Halloween season. As much as I love to explore new books that release every year, I re-read certain books every year.
Halloween is celebrated every year on 30th October. This festivity is related to ghosts, supernaturals, and paranormal things. There are a lot of books written specifically to be read during this time of the year to make the reader feel the entire vibe of Halloween. Horror novels have a great hype overall in the world of reading.
Now, let me share with you some of my all-time favorite classic Halloween books you should read this Halloween.
13 Halloween Books One Should Read
Here are the 13 Halloween books which I re-read over and over again.
1. Carrie
Carrie is a horror novel written by Stephen King in 1974.
This book is about a teenage girl, Carrie, an outcast because she possesses an extraordinary power of telekinesis. She is mocked by her classmates and the people around her until she finally decides to snap back at them using her unique power.
2. The Great God Pan
The Great God Pan is fantasy literature written by Arthur Machen in 1894.
This book takes the concept of the God Pan from Greco-Roman mythology, according to which the deity Pan is said to embody chaos and is considered the bringer of madness and destruction. This novel shows the unleashing of Pan on a defenseless girl who becomes the bringer of hell on Earth.
3. Cujo
Written in 1981, Cujo is a horror novel written by Stephen King.
This book is about a family dog named Cujo who has been bitten by a rabid bat and is seriously ill, but his owners are too busy in their life drama to notice. This illness takes over Cujo to an extent where he changes from a lovable pet to a dangerous killer.
4. Something Wicked This Way Comes
Something Wicked This Way Comes is a 1962 published supernatural fantasy novel written by Ray Bradbury.
This book is about two 13-year-old best friends, Jim and William, in Green Town, Illinois. One year on October 24, a traveling carnival comes to their town where they learn to encounter fear while facing many creepy figures.
5. The Amityville Horror
The Amityville Horror is a Jay Anson-written horror novel published in 1977.
The story of this book is about a house at 112 Ocean Avenue; a guy named Ronald DeFeo had murdered his family. One year later, the Lutz family buys the house at a ‘bargain price,’ but due to the paranormal activities that kept happening there, they were forced to leave the house within 28 days.
6. Carrion Comfort
Written by Dan Simmons, Carrion Comfort is a 1989 horror novel.
This book revolves around Saul, who is destined to die at the Chelmno extermination camp set up by Nazis in Poland to eliminate Jews. He has a strong will not to give in and survive at all costs but faces a supernatural phenomenon that forces him to obey them.
7. House Of Leaves
House of Leaves, written by Mark Z. Danielewski, is an Ergodic literature novel published in 2000.
This story is about a family who moves into a new, small house in Ash Tree Lane, but there is something unusual about the place. It was may large and magnificent on the inside than it was on the outside.
8. Frankenstein
Frankenstein is a gothic novel written by Mary Shelley in 1818.
This book tells the story of a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, who creates a living creature out of his scientific experiment, but that creature is not what Victor expected it to be. It is a hideous monster, so Victor rejects it as a ‘scientific defect,’ but the monster becomes more and more dangerous with time and becomes a heinous killer.
9. Don’t Look For Me
Written in 2020, Don’t Look For Me is psychological fiction written by Wendy Walker.
This book shows the story of Molly Clarke, who runs away from her life, abandoning her family. Her daughter is desperate to find her and reaches the small town where her mother was last seen. Along with the help of the police and the town locals, she gets closer and closer to the truth.
10. We Have Always Lived In The Castle
We Have Always Lived In The Castle is a 1962 published horror fiction written by Shirley Jackson.
This novel is narrated by Mary Katherine Blackwood, commonly referred to as Marricat, who lives in a big house with her sister, Constance, and Uncle Julian, secluded from the entire village who resent them.
11. Ghost Story
A ghost story is a horror novel written by Peter Staub in 1979.
This book is about four aging men who live in the terror-stricken town of Milburn, New York. They committed a sinful act in their youth and came back haunting them, showing that sins need to be paid for and nothing goes unnoticed in this world.
12. When No One Is Watching
When No One Is Watching is a suspense novel written by Alyssa Cole in 2020.
This book revolves around Sydney Green, a girl who was born and raised in Brooklyn. Her neighborhood, which she seems to love very much, is changing within a blink and all her neighbors she has known for so long are disappearing one by one.
13. Psycho
Written by Robert Bloch, Psycho is a 1959 published thriller-horror novel.
This novel is about Norman Bates and Norma’s abusive mother, who run a motel at the rundown. Norman is tormented because of his mother and often fantasizes about killing her, but he controls his rage since she is the only one he has. Norman is stuck in a series of murders in that desolated motel they run.
Conclusion:
So, these were a few of the many classic Halloween books I’d personally recommend you to read this Halloween. I’ve read these hundreds of times without getting bored, and I’m pretty sure you’ll like them too.
