Books
‘Another’ Author Paul Tremblay Shares His Favorite Horror Books for Young Readers [Exclusive]
New York Times bestselling horror author Paul Tremblay (A Head Full of Ghosts, The Cabin at the End of the World) makes his middle-grade debut with Another.
To commemorate its publication today, Bloody Disgusting asked the Bram Stoker Award winner for his favorite horror books for young readers. Here’s what Paul sent us — complete with copious footnotes.
Hey, there. To help celebrate(1) the release of my first middle-grade horror novel, Another, here’s a group of my favorite middle-grade/young adult horror novels books(2). Start the list!
The Nest by Kenneth Oppel
A sick baby brother, parents at their breaking point, a growing wasp’s nest, and a queen that visits Steve’s dreams. The Nest never once talks down to its readers, is beautifully written, and is truly scary. One of my favorite horror novels of the past decade. Friend and writer Mallory O’Meara put this book in my hands and said “READ THIS NOW!”(3)
The Thief of Always by Clive Barker
Pay a visit to Mr. Hood’s holiday house and you’ll want to stay and run screaming. Full of wit and whimsy and danger, and stunning illustrations, this is Clive Barker at the height of his powers. It’s a long-time favorite of mine and I’m due for a re-read.
The Hollow Girl by Hillary Monahan
A timelessly relevant (unfortunately) tale of a Roma girl who survives a brutal attack by a group of boys and uses magic to save a friend and enact revenge. Smart and morally complex, it’s a book that has been criminally overlooked.
Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare
Are you afraid of clowns? How about slasher clowns? Adam Cesare’s rollicking first installment(4) in a series knows why you love slashers and how scary it is being a teen in a small, cloistered town in contemporary America. My slasher-loving nephew Max gives this book 100 stars. He dressed as Art the Clown for Halloween. He’s a little messed up, frankly. Also, I will not name Art’s movies, as they are decidedly not YA(5).
Infested by Angel Luis Colon
Creepy bugs (so many bugs!) and a creepier old dude in a tale where infestation is a metaphor for the gentrification of a Bronx neighborhood. Smart, fun, and creepy crawly. Did I mention bugs? Doesn’t your ankle tickle a little now?
Through the Woods by Emily Carroll
Lyrical, sensuous, haunting, this graphic novel short story collection should be the starting point for any YA horror fan, and the starting point in Emily Carroll’s stunning body of work. If you’re anything like me(6), when you finish the book, you’ll start over again.
Singing My Sister Down and Other Stories by Margo Lanagan
The title story is one of the most horrifying and disturbing and oddly beautiful stories I’ve ever read. Ever! And that’s all I’m going to say because I don’t want to spoil any of the, um, fun.
Another by Paul Tremblay
You really should read this book. Please. The author is tall. And the book has a creepy clay kid and spooky scary things happen at night in Casey’s bedroom, and he blocks his closet door to prevent it from opening by itself just like you should barricade your closet door too, just in case. What else do you want from a book or from me? You’re so difficult sometimes. I thought about putting this book at the top of the list, but that would’ve been too much.(7)
- Who are you kidding, Paul? You’re not celebrating, you’re promoting your middle-grade book Another. Be honest with kind, discerning readers of BD. ↩︎
- They aren’t all novels. If there are rules about this kind of list, we’re breaking them. And that includes the footnotes. ↩︎
- She didn’t yell at me. The all caps is a dramatization. However, you should read Mallory’s wonderful book The Lady from the Black Lagoon. ↩︎
- Now a movie! ↩︎
- Of course, if a cranky old adult (that’s me) tells you not to watch something you’re probably going to watch it. But don’t blame me if you do. By reading this footnote I am legally absolved of all responsibility. ↩︎
- Poor you. ↩︎
- If you have read this far, thank you. I hope you enjoy the all the creepy books. ↩︎
Books
Urban Legends, Serial Killers, and Space Epics: 10 Horror Books We Can’t Wait to Read This June
We have entered summer reading season.
Schools are emptying, beaches are filling, and it’s a great time to pack a tote full of brand-new books and get some reading done in the shade. But even if the sun is bright, your fiction can still be dark, because June is absolutely packed with great new horror releases from rising stars and genre icons.
From a Psycho retelling to a dark twist on Peter Pan lore to a new book from a Pulitzer Prize winner, these are the horror titles we can’t wait to crack open this June.
The Children by Melissa Albert – June 2
A blend of dark fantasy, Gothic family saga, and horror novel that’s received rave reviews from Stephen King and more, The Children follows the adult children of a legendary fantasy author who died when a fire consumed their home. Now, living their own creative lives, Guinevere and Ennis must revisit the secrets from the night of the fire, the darkness surrounding Ennis’s new art installation, and the truth of their family legacy in both fact and fiction. It sounds like a wonderful twisted nest of secrets and magic, and I’m eager to dive in.
Marion by Leah Rowan – June 2
Just when you thought we’d run out of interesting ways to riff on Robert Bloch and Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, Leah Rowan comes along with Marion. As the title suggests, it’s the story of the Bates Motel’s most famous victim, but this time, she doesn’t die in the shower. She takes control of the knife and the narrative in this daring retelling of a proto-slasher classic. The story we know is just the beginning, and I can’t wait to find out the end.
Headlights by CJ Leede – June 9
Through her first two novels, Maeve Fly and American Rapture, CJ Leede emerged as one of the most exciting new horror voices of the 2020s, and she’s just getting warmed up. Leede’s third novel follows an FBI agent on the brink of retirement, running from his past and from the unsolved case that haunts him most, as he’s slowly pulled back into a gruesome serial killer narrative. Victims start turning up again, wearing someone else’s skin like a cape, with no memory of how they got that way, or how they got a lone strand of unidentified hair tied around their tongue. Both a riff on The Shining and a journey into the dark Colorado night, Headlights is one of the year’s most exciting horror lit events.
It Came From Neverland by Cynthia Pelayo – June 9
Cynthia Pelayo‘s novels have always felt like dark fairy tales, and with her latest, she’s taking things into the realm of one of the most famous children’s stories ever. It Came From Neverland follows a version of Wendy Darling who, while working as a schoolteacher and as an aid to rehabilitate World War I soldiers, finds old fears returning when a student goes missing. It seems that an entity Wendy knows only as “Peter Pan” is back on the prowl, and unlocking her memories might be the only way to stop it. That’s right, it’s a dark Peter Pan retelling as only Pelayo can do it, and you know you want a piece of that.
The Other by Annie Neugebauer – June 9
Annie Neugebauer’s The Extra ranks as one of the most clever and frightening horror novellas in recent memory, but that was only the beginning. This June, Neugebauer returns with the next book in what’s been dubbed “The Outsiders Sequence.” This time, Neugebauer’s strange world of doppelgangers and mimics turns to a couple on a hike who run into their exact duplicates, setting off a chain of events that will test their understanding of each other in terrifying ways. Neugebauer’s one of horror’s finest rising stars right now, so if you haven’t jumped on board The Outsiders Sequence yet, pick up The Extra and get ready for The Other.
Marla by Jonathan Janz – August 18 (Editor’s update: Release has now shifted from initial June 23 publication date)
Speaking of rising stars in the horror world, we’ve got Jonathan Janz, whose work has hit another level in recent years thanks to work like Children of the Dark and Veil. Now he’s back with Marla, the story of a local woman surrounded by urban legend, and her possible connection to a string of crimes in the community of King’s Branch. Is Marla a witch, a killer, a victim, a helpless child? We’ll have to read and find out in what feels like a perfect jumping-on point for new Janz readers.
The Sixth Nik by Daniel Kraus – June 23
Daniel Kraus has long been a favorite among genre readers, but thanks to his recent Pulitzer Prize win for his brilliant novel Angel Down, he’s more visible than ever, and all that visibility comes as he’s about to unleash a space epic with all the hallmarks of epic sci-fi and horror alike. The Sixth Nik promises everything from a sentient spaceship to a rogue planet full of plague to a nine-year-old “cultist” with an enhanced brain. This is Kraus playing in a brand-new sandbox, and genre readers everywhere won’t want to miss that.
Slasher Summer by E.L. Chen – June 23
E.L. Chen‘s latest novel is described as a love letter to ’80s slasher films, and anyone who’s taken a dive into the meta-horror of Scream or My Heart is a Chainsaw will want to sit up and take notice. The book follows a group of friends who grew up in a town famous as the location of a slasher movie, where they frequently played the characters during midnight shows. As adults, they return to their hometown, and to the location of the slasher movie, only to find that someone’s out to get them, someone wearing a very familiar mask. This sounds like a blast, and the latest in an ever-growing strand of slasher novels reinventing the genre on the page.
Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep by Paul Tremblay – June 30
Modern horror master Paul Tremblay‘s latest novel sounds like his most ambitious yet, and that’s really saying something. Dead But Dreaming of Electric Sheep follows Julia, a former pro gamer who gets an offer she can’t refuse: For a hefty payday, she must pilot a man named “Bernie” across the country for her mother’s tech company. The catch? Bernie’s in a vegetative state, and his mobility comes from the AI chip in his head. As Julia moves Bernie’s body, Bernie’s mind moves through an unfathomable nightmare world, but where are they heading, and what’s Bernie really meant to find? Every new Paul Tremblay book is an event, and this one feels particularly special.
Red X by David Demchuk – June 30
This one’s technically a reprint, but David Demchuk’s Red X is so revered among the horror community, and particularly other horror authors, that it feels worth highlighting, especially during Pride Month. Complex and metatextual, Red X is about a series of disappearances and a demonic entity plaguing the gay community of Toronto, but it’s also an autobiographical sketch of an author navigating death, survival, queer culture, horror as a means of expression, and more. In short, it’s an essential, and this new edition, complete with fresh writing by Gretchen Felker-Martin and Anthony Oliveira, is a must-have.
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