Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Halloween Book Recommendations

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by The Broke and the Bookish) is Halloween-themed! Sadly, we don’t celebrate Halloween in Australia but I thought I’d give a couple of creepy recommendations today anyway.

I’m actually a really big wuss and I can’t deal with anything scary, so these recommendations are only slightly spooky or have an eerie quality to them. They probably won’t be scary to anybody else. I’m just spineless 😀

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1. The Picture of Dorian Gray – Oscar Wilde

This is actually my favourite classic of all time (To Kill A Mockingbird is a close second). It’s very dark and gothic, with some really interesting themes. It’s also quite an easy classic to read and I really recommend this one.

2. The Darkest Part of the Forest – Holly Black

This book is a little bit eerie and mysterious. It’s set in a small town where the people are aware of the presence of faeries and magic. A lot of it is actually set during the night, in the woods, which gives it a bit of a spooky vibe.

3. Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children – Ransom Riggs

Miss Peregrine’s is a trilogy that I only got around to reading earlier this month and I loved it! The first book in the series is set on a small island in Wales and there are a lot of strange and mysterious things going on. There are monsters that can’t be seen and it’s just a really eerie and thrilling book!

4. The Raven Boys – Maggie Stiefvater

This is actually one that I haven’t read yet, but I’ve heard that it’s perfect for Halloween. From what I understand, the book is set in a graveyard? That already sounds kinda scary to me. I do plan to marathon the three books that are out so far, in December!

5. The Murders in the Rue Morgue – Edgar Allen Poe

I first read this when I was 14 and it was kind of terrifying! It’s very gothic and disturbing, like most of Poe’s works. There are obviously murders involved, and the victims are found in all kinds of mangled positions. It’s probably not spooky scary, but more disturbing scary.

6. The Witches – Roald Dahl

This book was read to me in school when I was 7 and I had nightmares for weeks! It’s probably not scary to me anymore but it was terrifying when I was a kid! I mean, who wouldn’t be scared of witches who kill children?! I was on the look out for bald women wearing wigs and gloves for literally a whole month. Thinking about it now still sends shivers down my spine.

7. The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy and Other Stories – Tim Burton

This is a collection of very short stories with some really beautiful illustrations. I bought this when I was in high school and read it in one sitting. The stories aren’t very scary, from memory, but they had that whimsical and mysterious quality that you associate with Tim Burton.

8. The Lake House – Kate Morton

This is a book that I’m currently reading, and I’m not far enough into it to really comment about it. Again, it’s not a scary book, but it contains a mystery about a child who disappeared and was never found. It’s also set in Cornwall, which is already a little bit creepy.

9. The Complete Fairy Tales – Grimm Brothers

Another book that I’ve started but haven’t finished, but it’s justified because this is a massive book! This is a collection of really creepy and disturbing fairy tales by the Grimm Brothers! There’s so much death and violence!

10. A Monster Calls – Patrick Ness

A book with some really creepy, black and white illustrations, A Monster Calls was definitely spooky. It’s got a very dark and melancholy feel about it. It’s a book that isn’t too scary and it has a lovely message! I highly recommend this one.

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Please leave me some books that you think are perfect for Halloween! Not too scary please – my heart won’t be able to handle anything too terrifying (I’m especially weak when it comes to ghosts and things I can’t see T____T).