31 Days of Horror!

Well, it's October again, and that means Halloween, and with that comes horror! Check out the books and movies below to get in that Halloween spirit.

Books

• The Ritual by Adam Nevill: A group of friends going on a hike quickly takes a sinister turn in this singular scary story. 
• The Ruins by Scott Smith: Also adapted into a movie, The Ruins follows a group of friends vacationing in Mexico, but their peaceful getaway becomes anything but when they find some abandoned ruins. 
• The Caretaker of Lorne Field by Dave Zeltserman: Jack Durkin's job is to weed Lorne Field. If he doesn't, he claims that vicious creatures will grow from the soil and destroy all life as we know it. Is Jack crazy? Or are the creatures there, lurking just beneath the surface? 

There's plenty of horror in our YA collection as well. 

• Scowler by Daniel Kraus: Often compared to Stephen King's The Shining, Scowler is the tale of Ry as he summons three imaginary friends from his childhood back to protect his family from his terrifying father. 
• The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey: From acclaimed author of The 5th Wave series comes this gothic horror series. All four books are terrifically gruesome - if you enjoy this one, try book two, The Curse of the Wendigo. 

After something more visual? Graphic novels aren't all superheroes - try one of these scary stories! 

• Black Hole by Charles Burns: A strange plague has come to 1970's Seattle and it seems to only affect teenagers. This is a strange but beautifully rendered graphic novel - there's nothing quite like it! 
• The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman: You may have seen the TV show, but that doesn't mean you know the story! This zombie epic has been a graphic novel hit from the beginning. 
• From Hell by Alan Moore: From the author of Watchmen and V for Vendetta, this is a meticulously researched fictional take on Jack the Ripper. Also adapted for the big screen starring Johnny Depp and Ian Holm. 

Movies

If you're a true fan of horror, you might think you've seen just about every scary movie under the sun. Here are a few you might have missed from our collection.

• Candyman (1992): This scary flick focuses on a twisted urban legend and takes place in Chicago. 
• Eyes Without a Face (1959): After his daughter's face is disfigured in a car accident, a medical genius attempts to give her face new life - only, he needs some tissue donors. This French film is a classic not to be missed. 
• Session 9 (2002): A cleaning crew tasked with refurbishing an abandoned mental hospital start to unravel in the chaotic confines of their workplace. 
• Sinister (2013): A true crime writer moves his family into a house where an entire family was murdered, and finds a mysterious box of video reels in the attic. A shocking, scary, and well told story. 
• The Witch (2015): In puritan New England, a family's youngest child goes missing mysteriously. The family slowly descends into paranoia and insanity. This recent film is an instant horror classic. 

Also join us on Twitter with the hashtag #31DaysOfHorror to get a different horror movie suggestion every day of the month of October. And, as always, for more suggestions just ask a librarian.

If You're Waiting to Read The Witches by Stacy Schiff...

A new nonfiction book has come out recently covering the fascinating period of history in the early United States history the Salem witch trials.  If you're waiting to read it or more interested in a fictional take on this time period, here are a few historical fiction titles set during and inspired by the events.


The Heretics Daughter: A Novel
Kathleen Kent
A fictional tale of Martha Carrier, the first woman accused of witchcraft to be tried and hanged in Salem.  Her story is told by her daughter, a survivor of the period.
The author is a descendant of Carrier.







The Shape of Mercy
Susan Meissner

A present day college student traces the story of one of her ancestors Mercy Hayworth who was an accused witch and victim during the Salem witch trails. She takes a part time job from a librarian transcribing Mercy's journal.

Daughters of the Witching Hill
Mary Sharratt

A story of another witch-hunt, this one set in England rather than Salem, covering the 1612 Pendle witch-hunt.  Bess, a poor widow, is a known healer, and has passed her skill set on to her granddaughter.  When a peddler has words with her granddaughter and suffers a stroke soon after the family becomes the target of magistrate eager to be know for finding witches.

Deliverance from Evil
Frances Hill

A realistic, gripping fictional account of the Salem witch trials.
Focuses on the hysteria of the trials and the period.

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane
Katherine Howe

The discovery of a 17th century Bible in her grandmother's home near Salem draws a Harvard graduate student into the past as she becomes haunted with visions of the era and the witch trials.

The Witching Hour Is Upon Us

It’s only three weeks until the clock strikes midnight on Halloween Eve, and the spirits are swirling in the witch’s caldron. We are ready with all your witching needs so pick up a witches’ brew book and start reading!

Fiction 
Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult (2002, c2001) - Love can redeem a man...but secrets and lies can condemn him. A handsome stranger comes to the sleepy New England town of Salem Falls in hopes of burying his past: Once a teacher at a girls' prep school, Jack St. Bride was destroyed when a student's crush sparked a powder keg of accusation. Now, washing dishes for Addie Peabody at the Do-Or-Diner, he slips quietly into his new routine, and Addie finds this unassuming man fitting easily inside her heart. But amid the rustic calm of Salem Falls, a quartet of teenage girls harbor dark secrets -- and they maliciously target Jack with a shattering allegation. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

The Witches of Eastwick by John Updike (1984) - It's the marvelous story of three ambitious witches living in a small New England town in the late 1960s, who find themselves quite under the spell of the new man in town, Darryl Van Horne, whose hot tub is the scene of some rather bewitching delights. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice (1997, c1990) - Demonstrating once again her gift for spellbinding stoyrtelling, Anne Rice makes real a family of witches--a family given to poetry and incest, to murder and philsophy, a family that is itself haunted by a powerful, dangerous and seductive being. "Unfolds like a poisonous lotus blossom redolent with luxurious evil." THE LOS ANGELES TIMES (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

A Discover of Witches by Deborah Harkness (2011) - Witch and Yale historian Diana Bishop discovers an enchanted manuscript, attracting the attention of 1,500-year-old vampire Matthew Clairmont. The orphaned daughter of two powerful witches, Bishop prefers intellect, but relies on magic when her discovery of a palimpsest documenting the origin of supernatural species releases an assortment of undead who threaten, stalk, and harass her. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

Non-Fiction
Encyclopedia of Wicca & Witchcraft by Raven Grimassi (2000) - Craft Elder and author Raven Grimassi has revised and expanded his indispensable reference work, the award-winning Encyclopedia of Wicca & Witchcraft. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

Witch: A Magickal Journey: A Hip Guide to Modern Witchcraft by Fiona Horn (2000) - It's enchanting, making magick. In Witch: A Magickal Journey, the beautiful Fiona Horne reveals the intimate secrets and know-how of her spiritual calling, including the daily business of being a modern Witch at home, work, and play. With practical tips for effective Witchcraft, detailed outlines of annual festivals, interviews, internet sites, and a whole reference library of contacts and events, Witch also delves deep into the mysteries of spellcasting, moon worship, reincarnation and magical music. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

Audio/Downloadable
Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire (2005) (CD) - In the land of Oz, after Dorothy has destroyed the witch, an adolescent boy named Liir, who may be the witch's son, is willed back to life at the Cloister of Saint Gilda. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

The Winter Witch by Paula Brackston (2013) (Downloadable) - Mute fledgling witch Morgana is married for her safety to a kind farmer in the mountains of Wales before she is targeted by townspeople who are being manipulated by a dark force that compels Morgana to harness her powers. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

Video/DVD
Practical Magic (DVD) (2009) - The wry, comic romantic tale follows the Owens sisters as they struggle to use their hereditary gift for practical magic to overcome the obstacles in discovering true love. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

Witches of Eastwick (DVD) (1997) - The "witches" are three modern-day women yearning for Mr. Right in a quaint New England town. Wealthy Daryl Van Horne arrives in town and sets out to prove he's a devil with the ladies. (excerpt from Bibliocommons)

-KF