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House of Rayne
by Harley Laroux
SALEM: I wasn't supposed to be here. I was supposed to be marrying my fiancé, looking forward to a tropical honeymoon. Instead, I found myself on a ferry headed for historic Balfour Manor on Blackridge Island, in the Pacific Northwest. Now I'm stranded, with a woman I'm irresistibly drawn to. Rayne holds secrets as dark and mysterious as her old house. Crimson shadows stalk the halls and strange voices call out in the night -- but it's she who haunts me most. Following a gruesome murder, the island's true nature is revealed, and every night becomes a fight for survival. Something is stalking the forest, killing indiscriminately... And this time, we're its prey. RAYNE: Death has followed me since childhood. My mother's murder and father's violent death changed me, teaching me just how cruel the world could be. I never got what I wanted, until Salem showed up at my door. She's adventurous, beautiful, and doomed if she stays here. Now, I suddenly have something to lose: the woman who broke down my walls and saw through my mask, who showed me I'm worth loving. My family has long been buried, but even the vilest of secrets must be dug up again to survive the evil that hunts us. I finally have something to fight for, and I'll do whatever it takes to save her. Try this next: The Shape of Night by Tess Gerritsen.
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| Girl Dinner by Olivie BlakeIn parallel timelines, sociology professor Sloane and college sophomore Nina find themselves drawn to The House, the most exclusive sorority on campus, whose picture-perfect facade harbors a sinister side to sisterhood. For another satirical horror novel about the pressures of modern womanhood, check out Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang. |
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| One of Us by Dan ChaonIn 1915 Ohio, 13-year-old orphaned twins Bolt and Eleanor, who share a psychic connection, run away from a murderous man claiming to be their uncle. They join the traveling circus Mr. Jengling’s Emporium of Wonders, which includes a death-foretelling woman and a dog-faced boy. While Bolt settles in, Eleanor doesn’t, and they still have their “uncle” on their trail in this “mesmerizing and macabre historical adventure” (Booklist). For fans of: Amiee Gibbs’ The Carnivale of Curiosities.
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| If the Dead Belong Here by Carson FaustWhen her little sister goes missing in 1996 Wisconsin, Indigenous teenager Nadine discovers she'll have to commune with the ghosts of her ancestors to help find her. For another haunting horror novel that draws on Indigenous folklore, check out Salt Bones by Jennifer Givhan. |
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| King Sorrow by Joe HillBlackmailed into stealing rare books, college student Arthur Oakes and his friends summon King Sorrow, a powerful dragon from a supernatural realm. The creature saves them -- but their bargain binds them to provide an annual human sacrifice, unleashing dark, magical consequences that shadow their lives for decades. Try this next: The Dissonance by Shaun Hamill. |
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The Great Work
by Sheldon Costa
Alone in a frontier town in the nineteenth-century Pacific Northwest, Gentle Montgomery is grieving his best friend. Liam was an alchemist, killed when he tried to capture a creature that shouldn't exist: a giant salamander that drives men mad. When Gentle's nephew, Kitt, arrives at his doorstep, the two set out together to track the monster down so they can use its blood in an alchemical formula that will bring Liam back to life.It's a hard and haunted journey. The salamander produces surreal nightmares and waking dreams of a blighted, burning future. Gentle and Kitt soon find themselves pursued by a bloodthirsty hunter, a sadistic judge, and a doomsday cult, all of whom have their own plans for the river monster. Armed with nothing but Liam's alchemical notebooks, they must not only find the salamander but learn to understand it--and the terrifying visions it causes--before it's too late. As Gentle struggles to comprehend this harrowing experience, it becomes clear that the Great Work of the alchemists may pale in comparison to the small work of human connection.Sheldon Costa's dark, vivid, and strangely hopeful debut novel is a supernatural adventure through the wilderness of friendship and the rotten heart of the early American empire. Try this next: The Bookshop Below by Georgia Summers.
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| Polybius by Collin ArmstrongIn 1982 small-town Tasker Bay, California, the technologically advanced arcade game Polybius becomes an overnight sensation, turning its players angry and violent. High schooler and arcade employee Andi teams up with Ro, the son of the local sheriff, to figure out what's really going on before Polybius completely destroys Tasker Bay. Based on an urban legend, this nostalgic debut will appeal to fans of Stephen King and Stranger Things. |
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| How to Survive a Horror Story by Mallory ArnoldEqual parts creepy and witty, this clever homage to Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None stars seven writers called to the estate of recently deceased horror author Mortimer Queen for the reading of his will. Locked inside the house with no chance of escape, the writers are forced to solve a series of riddles -- or die. For fans of: The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz. |
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| The Lamb by Lucy RoseIn their secluded forest cottage, Margot and her "Mama" welcome lost strangers, only for Mama to fully consume them. But when an alluring new stray named Eden enters their lives, Margot must confront her own desires and decide what she wants for herself. This gothic horror fairy tale will give fans of Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder and Woman, Eating by Claire Kohda something fresh to sink their teeth into. |
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| The Faceless Thing We Adore by Hester SteelListless bartender Aoife drops everything to travel to Farmstead, an idyllic island community she spots on a postcard. Despite the island's beauty and the inhabitants' friendliness, something doesn't seem quite right...and then Aoife learns that the community believes they are the chosen saviors of a deity trapped beneath the island. For fans of: cosmic horror set in isolated locales, like Alessandro Manzetti and Stefano Cardoselli's graphic novel The Inhabitant of the Lake. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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NORTH KANSAS CITY LIBRARY
2251 Howell St
North Kansas City, Missouri 64116
816-221-3360www.nkcpl.org/ |
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