| The Upstairs House by Julia FineWhat it's about: Unable to finish her dissertation on Goodnight Moon author Margaret Wise Brown, delirious new mom Megan discovers that her upstairs neighbor appears to be the ghost of Brown herself, who's intent on settling unfinished business.
Read it for: an eerie supernatural allegory exploring the trials of new motherhood and postpartum depression.
Try this next: For more suspenseful books that tackle similar themes, read Little Darlings by Melanie Golding or The Need by Helen Phillips. |
|
| After the Rain by Nnedi Okorafor; adapted by John Jennings; illustrated by David Brame What it is: a gruesome graphic novel adaptation of Nnedi Okorafor's short story "On the Road."
Starring: Nigerian American Chioma, a Chicago cop who must embrace her heritage to best the menacing supernatural entity plaguing her family's Nigerian village.
Art alert: Bold colors, crowded panels, and an emphasis on facial expressions heighten the foreboding atmosphere of this evocative tale. |
|
| The Memory Theater by Karin TidbeckWelcome to... the Gardens, a mystical universe where time stands still for the pleasure-seeking Masters, who subject their young servants to violent -- and deadly -- rituals.
A daring escape: Fleeing on the eve of his dismemberment, servant Thistle and his best friend Dora embark on a quest through time and space in a desperate bid for freedom.
Book buzz: This genre-blending latest from Swedish author Karin Tidbeck expands on the stories featured in Jagannath. |
|
|
The burning girls : a novel
by C. J. Tudor
What happens: Assigned to a remote English countryside parish after a suspicious suicide, an unconventional vicar and single father investigates the village's tragic history and the recent disappearances of two teens.
About the author: C. J. Tudor is the author of The Hiding Place and The Chalk Man, which won the International Thriller Writers Award for Best First Novel and the Strand Magazine Award for Best Debut Novel. She lives in England with her partner and daughter.
|
|
|
Horrorstör: A Novel
by Grady Hendrix
What it's about: In Horrorstör, Orsk, the "all-American furniture superstore in Scandinavian drag," serves its customers' needs from cradle to grave. At Location #00108 in Cleveland, Ohio, a group of employees -- sorry, "partners" -- volunteer to spend an overnight shift investigating strange, possibly paranormal events inside the store.
Reviewers say: "It sounds like an absurd setting for a haunted-house novel, but Hendrix makes it work to the story's advantage, turning the psychological manipulations and scripted experiences that are inherent to the retail experience into a sinister fight for survival." - (Kirkus Reviews, October 24, 2014)
|
|
|
Gil's All Fright Diner
by A. Lee Martinez
What happens: Hired by the owner of an all-night diner to eliminate the zombie problem that is costing her customers, werewolf Duke and vampire Earl tackle an even stickier adversary who is out to take over the diner, in an adventure involving an amorous ghost, a jailbait sorceress, and a pig-latin occult..
Reviewers say: " Delightfully droll, this comic romp will be a crowd-pleaser." (Booklist, May 15, 2005
|
|
|
Hold me closer, necromancer
by Lish McBride
What it's about: Sam LaCroix, a Seattle fast-food worker and college dropout, discovers that he is a necromancer and inadvertently brings himself to the attention of Douglas, a rather creepy guy with an intensely violent streak who also happens to be a necromancer--and one who now wants to team up, or else.
Reviewers say: "With fine writing, tight plotting, a unique and uniquely odd cast of teens, adults, and children, and a pace that smashes through any curtain of disbelief, this sardonic and outrageous story's only problem is that it must, like all good things, come to an end." (Booklist, November 15, 2010).
|
|
|
John Dies at the End
by David Wong
What happens: In this inventive, action-packed novel, a mysterious, deadly monster intrudes into the lives of David Wong (the fictional narrator) and his friend John, via a mysterious substance they call "Soy Sauce." Absurd, hilarious situations lead to horrific consequences in this cross between a road trip novel and a mystery thriller.
Reviewers say: ".When it's funny, it's laugh-out-loud funny, yet when the situation calls for chills, it provides them in spades. Lowbrow, absurdist horror/comedy that worksa difficult trick to pull off. " - (Kirkus Reviews)
|
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|