October is my favorite month of the year! I have been reading these since this time last year to bring to you now, and I'm super excited to do so.
The Song from Somewhere Else has a decidedly creepy feel, although it's a feel-good book in the end. Watch Hollow: The Alchemist's Shadow is Gregory Funaro's second book in the series, and it's basically another stab at taking over the house-clock's magic. Small Spaces is the first in Katherine Arden's series, which I entered last year on book 2. I was really hoping the sequel, Dark Waters, would come in time for me to read and review it, but my library's kinda slow. I reviewed Dead Voices this time last year.
Bridge of Souls, another Cassidy Blake tale, is set in New Orleans, the city of the dead. Hide and Seeker was a great horror take on that familiar childhood game. Amelia Fang is just fun and for lower middle grade readers (and there's probably a few more out by now), but I had loads of fun sewing those squashies for her books!
Non-fiction offerings this month include the series, Creepy but True, Mummies Exposed! and Ghosts Unveiled! There's a third in the series I'm still waiting on, so look for that next year. The Mutant Mushroom Takeover is a creepy fungus amongus mystery, and there's a sequel about Killer Komodos that again didn't come to my library in time to be included here (again, look for the review next year!). Same goes for Paola Santiago and the River of Tears, which also has a sequel by this point.
S.O. Thomas is a middle grade author and CP of creepy stories who indie-published her Write Mentor manuscript, The Slug Queen Chronicles, a decidedly dark fae tale with a Black, neurodiverse main character, and wrote a Fright Vision series installment, #GraveyardChallenge, which is super short but has a twist ending I never saw coming and absolutely loved! She also graciously agreed to do a short, 10 question author interview this month, and has some reallly interesting insights into her writing and publishing journey.
And finally, to end the month, the series finale of the Darkdeep Torch Bearers series, by Ally Condie and Brendan Reichs is an excellent wrap-up to that delightfully imaginative and slightly horrific romp.
Enjoy!
