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Cool Reads for Summer Heat: Chilling Tales of Horror

I’m just back from our family vacation, which was a trip to Disney World. As I’m sure you know, Disney World is located in Florida, which is much warmer than the Midwest even in winter, and now that it’s June, the heat and humidity are practically unbearable. Did I mention there’s not much shade at Disney World?

Even with my mistrust of Disney in general, I will say we had a good time. Of course, it’s a lot easier to look back on it and say that now, when I’m no longer dragging two sweaty kids through 98 degree heat only to find that the Haunted Mansion is ‘temporarily unavailable’. It is a relief to be back in cooler temperatures (relatively speaking– it was in the high 80s here yesterday). When it’s this hot, all you can do is flop down with a good book. Looking for chills? Here’s a list of books that take place at least in part in cold or frozen climates. I can’t guarantee quality or availability, but you should find a title here that will give you the shivers.

Cool Reads for Summer Heat: Chilling Tales of Horror

 

Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft

The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket by Edgar Allan Poe

The Wendigo by Algernon Blackwood

Lovecraft Unbound edited by Ellen Datlow

Dead of Winter by Brian Moreland

Wood by Robert Dunbar

The White Faced Bear by R. Scott McCoy

The Perils and Dangers Of This Night by Stephen Gregory

A Winter Haunting by Dan Simmons

December by Phil Rickman

The Well by Jack Cady

Ghost Story by Peter Straub

Dead White by Alan Ryan

The Island by T.M. Wright

30 Days of Night: Rumors of the Undead

30 Days of Night: Immortal Remains

30 Days of Night: Eternal Damnation

Thing from Another World: Climate of Fear by Chuck Pfarrer

The Shining by Stephen King

Misery by Stephen King

Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist

Harbor by John Ajvide Lindqvist

The Final Winter by Iain Rob Wright

Blizzard by Michael C. Norton

Sun Bleached Winter by D. Robert Grixti

White and Other Tales of Ruin by Tim Lebbon

Midsummer by Matthew Costello

Icebound by Dean Koontz

The Terror by Dan Simmons

Blood and Ice by Robert Masello

Who Goes There? by John Campbell

The Ice Limit by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

Terminal Freeze by Lincoln Child

Dark Matter by Michelle Paver

Carnivore by Leigh Wright

Winter Wake by Rick Hautala

White by Tim Lebbon

Midnight Sun by Ramsey Campbell

Ice by Anna Kavan

Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon

Icefire by Robert C. Wilson

The Ice King by Michael Scott Rohan

Frankenstein: The Legacy by Christopher Schildt

Underworld by Mike Farren

Deep Current by Benjamin Miller

Cold Skin by Albert Sanchez Pinol

Hive by Tim Curran

Deadfreeze by Anthony Giangregorio

Blood Farm by Sam Siciliano

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer Reading Is Killing Me! Part 2: Tween and Middle School Reads

It turns out I actually don’t have to do much work to provide you with a good list of scary books for summer reading. Andrea Lipinski has done most of the work for me in the New York Public Library’s blog with a post titled Dark, Creepy, Spooky, Scary Crossover Books.

We’ve actually reviewed a bunch of these here, although I’m not sure we completely agree with her age recommendations. You might check out our reviews to see what we thought. There are some great books on the list, though!

Reviewed here:

Eighth Grade Bites: The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod (first in a series)

Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brogsol (this was a Stoker nominee last year in the YA category)

A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

Tales from Lovecraft Middle School: Professor Gargoyle by Charles Gilman (first in a series)

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (a Newbery Award winner)

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry (a Stoker Award winner in the YA category last year, and first in a series– followed by Dust & Decay)

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (a Stoker nominee last year)

Three Quarters Dead by Richard Peck

Zom-B by Darren Shan (first in a series that will eventually comprise thirteen books)

Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow (first in a series)

 

Here are some additional suggestions from our own Middle School List. With a very few exceptions, we’ve reviewed nearly all of these:

 

Zombies

Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

Generation Dead: Kiss of Life by Daniel Waters

Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

The Dead by Charlie Higson

The Enemy by Charlie Higson

Zombie Queen of Newbery High by Amanda Ashby

You Are So Undead to Me by Stacey Jay

Zombie Blondes by Brian James

 

Supernatural Horror

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin

The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keately Snyder

The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab

Cryer’s Cross by Lisa McMann

The Seer of Shadows by Avi

The Other Side of Dark by Sarah Smith

Blackbriar, Fingers and others by William Sleator

Stranger With My Face, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and others by Lois Duncan

Ghosts I Have Been, Thirteen Past Dead, and others by Richard Peck

Monster’s Proof by Richard Lewis

Skeleton Man and others by Joseph Bruchac

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

Bad Girls Don’t Die by Katie Alender

From Bad to Cursed by Katie Alender

Mercy by Rebecca Lim

 

Vampires

Sucks to be Me: The all-true confessions of Mina Hamilton, Vampire (maybe) by Kimberly Pauley

Still Sucks to be Me: The all-true confessions of Mina Smith, Teen Vampire by Kimberly Pauley

Parliament of Blood by Justin Richards

Blood Ninja by Nick Lake

Look for Me by Moonlight by Mary Downing Hahn

The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause

Vampire Loves by Joann Sfar (graphic novel)

 

Werewolves

Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause

Wereworld by Curtis Jobling

Under My Skin by Judith Graves

 

Anthologies

Bloody Horowitz by Anthony Horowitz (collection)

Fear by R.L.  Stine

 

 

Wonderbrary: Where The Scary Series Books Are

I just want to point you to Wonderbrary, a very nice site that lists many of the self-identified horror fiction series for children, for those who have powered through the 90+ Goosebumps books. I’m sometimes asked for this information, and this site has done several posts with the express purposed of identifying these series. Unfortunately it does not appear to have been updated recently, but if you’re looking for information on scary series books published prior to 2011, this provides a nice list, including cover art.