13 Spooky Reads for the Halloween Season

Every October I pack in as many spooky reads as I possibly can. It's no secret that I love a good seasonally appropriate read, and the Halloween season just may be my favorite reading season of all. Here are 13 (because 13 is the spookiest number) 2019 releases that I've got on my October TBR. (P.S. More Halloween posts here.)

The Raven's Tale by Cat Winters:
What's more appropriate for Halloween than an Edgar Allen Poe-inspired tale? I've been meaning to read this book for months, but now I'm not sad at all that I pushed it off until October.

The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl by Theodora Goss:
This is the third book in Goss's Athena Club series, a twisted retelling of several famous Gothic novels. I really enjoyed the first two books. (The first book is featured in my Frankenstein Retellings post.) 

The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring: 
This book sounds so atmospheric and creepy. The setting is an isolated finishing school on the tip of Patagonia, and the book features a young teacher, a missing pupils, and rumors of Others.

Five Dark Fates by Kendare Blake:
This is the fourth and final book in Kendare Blake's dark fantasy series. I'm always game for a dark fantasy, and I've loved this whole series. (Series featured here, here, and here.)

His Hideous Heart edited by Dahlia Adler:
More Edgar Allen Poe! This collection of short stories features 13 (what did I say about 13 being the creepiest number) retellings of Poe classics along with the originals.

Thirteen Doorways, Wolves Behind Them All by Laura Ruby:
I'm in the middle of this book now, and I'm not sure how creepy this book is going to get (my guess is not very), but it is narrated by a ghost. This could be a good pick if you like magical realism or historical fiction (it's set during WWII).

House of Salt and Sorrow by Erin A. Craig:
This retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses fairy tale is so creepy. It opens with the funeral of main character's sister who died under mysterious circumstances and features gory visions, possible ghosts, and maybe a nervous breakdown or two. 

Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin:
A fantasy involving witches, witch-hunters, and romance. I'm always up for a witchy book in October, and this one has been getting all the hype.

The Grace Year by Kim Liggett:
Considered dangerous and too tempting in their sixteenth year, the girls in Garner County are released into the wilderness. This dystopian horror story sounds perfect for October.

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood:
And, speaking of dystopian horror, there's not much that is more horrifying that Margaret Atwood's Handmaid's Tale. I'm interested to see where she goes with this sequel.

In the Hall with the Knife by Diana Peterfreund:
This book is inspired by the board game Clue, which is just as fun as it sounds. When a storm hits Blackbrook Academy, an elite boarding school on the Maine coast, a small group of students are stranded in one of the school's dorms. The next morning their headmaster is found dead in the conservatory.

Bid My Soul Farewell by Beth Revis:
Here we have another dark fantasy. I loved the first book in this duology that features necromancy and zombies and government conspiracy. I'm excited to read the sequel. 

Now Entering Addamsville by Francesca Zappia:
In a town plagued with ghost stories, Zora is falsely accused of a crime. This mystery involving a ghost-hunting television show and quirky self-proclaimed Addamsville historian sounds like a really fun October read.