Who doesn’t love reading horror books? Even a non-reader would be up for reading a horror novel if offered. I know, I sure do love reading horror books and it’s one of my favorite genres to read. But, the real fun of reading a horrifying book is when the vibe outside matches the text in your hand, and what better time to read such books than Halloween!
I like reading horror books when Halloween is around. Everything gives those spooky vibes, which make for a perfect environment to enjoy a deadly horrifying book. Each year, whenever the Halloween season is around, I drop everything else and get myself a new stack of horror books for the whole month.
Halloween is a Christian festivity celebrated every year on 31st October and is marked by a holiday. On this day, young children dress as supernatural beings and go around their neighborhood asking for candies and treats in return for not playing mischievous tricks on those who give them what they ask.
Now, it’s time for me to share with you some of my all-time favorite horror novels that I repeat every year without making any exception, and I would recommend you to try.
13 Halloween Books To Read For Adult
Here, I’ve listed 13 such Halloween books which should be a must on your list for reading this Halloween.
1. The Haunting Of Hill House
The Haunting Of Hill House is a psychological horror novel written by Shirley Jackson in 1959. This book is 246 pages long.
This book follows the story of four people, all of whom are strangers, who come to the rumored haunted mansion, Hill House, under the guidance of Dr. Montague, who wishes to prove the existence of supernatural beings scientifically. As the story proceeds, the house is proved to be deadly haunted. This book is a must-read for people who are fans of extreme horror stories.
2. Dark Harvest
Written by Norman Partridge in 2007, Dark Harvest is a fictional novel and is 176 pages long.
The story of this book is set in a small midwestern town, where a supernatural figure of a boy, known as ‘the October boy,’ appears in the cornfield every Halloween. Groups of teenage boys gather every year to hunt this October boy as a price for one who does. As the story moves further, our protagonist vows to hunt down the figure when he encounters an astonishing truth.
3. Beloved
Beloved is a 1987 published American literature novel written by Toni Morrison. This book is 324 pages long.
This book revolves around the life of a former slave named Sethe, who lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his daughter as her two sons ran away due to the ghost that supposedly haunts their house. Still, the daughter stayed as she liked the spirit, which is her dead sister’s.
4. The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow
The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow is a Gothic novel written by Washington Irving in 1820.
Though this book is mere 24 pages long, it tells a perfectly woven tale of a greedy schoolmaster who accepts the offer to work in the Hudson Valley, the town of Sleepy Hollow, which a headless horseman haunts.
5. The Turn Of The Screw
The Turn Of The Screw is an 1898 horror novel written by Henry James. This book is 176 pages long.
This story is a straightforward frightening one. It revolves around a young governess put in charge of two orphaned kids at a grand country house, which his uncle has abandoned. The governess sees some mysterious figures in the place, but whose are those figures on?
6. Rosemary’s Baby
Rosemary’s Baby is a horror novel written in 1967 by Ira Levin. This book is 256 pages long.
This novel revolves around an average couple, Rosemary and Guy, moving into Bamford apartment, which is haunted and cursed. Despite being warned not to move there, the couple decides to reside there. As the novel continues, warnings turn out to be accurate and a demon impregnates Rosemary.
7. Pet Sematary
Being 373 pages long, Pet Sematary is a horror novel written by Stephen King in 1983.
This novel unfolds the story of the Creed family who moves into a beautiful house in Ludlow, Maine. There is a pet cemetery across the place where the Creeds moved in. The cemetery, labeled as the Pet Sematary, is a cursed cemetery where dead people walk back alive, awful and eviler than ever.
8. Dracula
Dracula is a Gothic Novel Written by Bram Stoker in 1897 and is 418 pages long.
This book is not a regular narrative and hence, does not have a single protagonist. Instead, this book comprises diary entries, journals, letters of various characters in the novel. This book opens with a young lawyer traveling to Transylvania and discovering that the noble, Count Dracula, is a vampire who survives by sucking human blood.
9. Interview With A Vampire
Interview With A Vampire is a Gothic horror novel written by Anne Rice in 1976. This novel is 342 pages long.
As the name suggests, this novel records a fictional interview of a Vampire named Louis de Pointe du Lac, who tells his 200-year long life story to a reporter referred to as ‘the boy’ in the book.
10. Aura
Aura is a short 62-page long horror fiction written by Carlos Fuentes in 1962.
This book is about a young historian employed at an old widow’s house to edit her late husband’s memoirs. There, he falls in love with the older woman’s young and beautiful niece, Aura, who eventually turns out to be someone he didn’t expect her to be and he transforms into an unexpected being.
11. Haunted
Haunted is a 2005 published horror novel written by Chuck Palahniuk and is 416 pages long.
This novel is formed of 23 horrifying stories. This book is a satire of reality television. Each story is told by a person who has answered one of the ads for a writer’s retreat. This novel used dark humor, so it’s equally as funny as scary.
12. Her Body And Other Parties
Her Body And Other Parties is a book of short stories written by Carmen Maria Machado in 2017 and is 264 pages long.
This book contains eight stories. Each story is an exciting mixture of horror, terror, and eroticism, making this book engaging—each level links somewhere or the other with the main plot.
13. The Picture Of Dorian Gray
The Picture Of Dorian Gray is a philosophical fiction written by Oscar Wilde in 1890 and this book is 256 pages long.
This book is about a guy named Dorian Gray who gets a portrait painted of himself. While the painter thinks he is very charming, he is not so from the inside. Dorian does many evil deeds and the picture gets aged with each awful act he did.
Conclusion:
These were some of my favorite novels to read during the spooky Halloween season. Each year, I re-read many of these books without getting bored or tired.
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