With Halloween less than a week away, we are reminded spooky stuff is not just for kids.
Scary movies have never been more popular, and dark tales are a seasonal staple in bookstores, as well.
Want to read something scary good before Friday night? Volunteers with the Tucson Festival of Books have some suggestions:
“Chasing Down the Zombie Hunter” by Troy Hillman is a chiller made all the more terrifying by the fact it is true. Released earlier this month, the book centers around Bryan Miller, an eccentric comic con regular who presented himself as The Zombie Hunter in the early 1990s. Years later, a cold-case team of Phoenix investigators identified Miller as the man who committed at least two brutal murders in 1992-93. — Holly Rosen
“My Lips, Her Voice” by Tucson author L.L. Madrid takes readers to Copper City, where a woman tormented by visions had tried to warn her neighbors of bloody events to come. When a granddaughter is found dead in an abandoned mine, those premonitions appear to be coming true. — Jody Hardy
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“Rise of the Zombie Bugs” by science writer Mindy Weisberger proves zombies are all around us. Insect zombies, that is. Here she explores the eerie yet fascinating phenomenon of real-life zombification of insects and other invertebrates. — Jennifer Casteix
“The House in the Pines” by Ana Reyes follows Maya, who was a high school senior when her best friend dropped dead while with a new boyfriend named Frank. Years later, those memories come rushing back when Maya sees a YouTube clip about another woman who has died … while with the same man. Reyes’ debut novel, “The House in the Pines,” was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club selection in 2023. — Samantha Neville
“The Bewitching” is the newest gothic thriller from Silvia Moreno-Garcia. It is an eerie, multi-generational story featuring Minerva, whose grandmother insisted there once had been witches. Years later, when a college roommate disappears without a trace, Minerva suspects those sinister spirits might still be here. — Thea Chalow
“Song” is a 1995 collection of poetry from Brigit Pegeen Kelly. The title poem is a modern masterpiece, and for full effect should be read aloud in complete darkness. Its opening line: “Listen: there was a goat’s head hanging by ropes in a tree.” — Cameron Quan
“The Haunting of Alejandra” by V. Castro introduces us to Alejandra, a wife and mother who has a secret. In times of despair, a ghostly apparition appears, a crying woman in a ragged white gown. Alejandra would learn the vision had appeared to previous generations of family members, as well. She is La Llorena, the vengeful and murderous mother of Mexican legend. — Mary Pastrana
“This Moment is Special: A Día de Muertos Story” by John Parra is a picture book available both in English and Spanish. We share a single day with a boy preparing for a Día de Muertos celebration. The boy learns, as we should learn, that each moment can remind us of family members no longer here. — Kathy Short
“The Invisible Hotel” by Korean Yeji Y. Ham is a uniquely terrifying novel that delves into some truly scary stuff: endless war, getting old, and being stuck in your tiny hometown as an adult. As the story evolves, Yewon comes to realize she is living the nightmare she is dreaming. — Brooke Blizzard
“The Black Girl Survives in This One” is a young adult anthology with horror stories featuring young Black women and girls. Fifteen chilling tales feature Black girls as heroes who slay monsters, face down death, and survive. — Kathy Short
The top stories from Sunday's Home+Life section in the Arizona Daily Star.
“Even Though I Knew the End” by C.L. Polk follows a magical detective who has three days to track down the White City Vampire, Chicago’s most notorious killer. If successful, she will spend the rest of her life with the woman she loves. If not? Hell and heartbreak await. — Jessica Pryde
“Hostage” by Eli Sharabi is a memoir by one of the Israelis captured by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. As the war raged on above him, Sharabi was held for 491 days in the underground tunnels below Gaza. Published in June, Sharabi’s terrifying story became the fastest-selling book in Israeli history. — Lori Riegel
