October 2022 Wait, did you hear that? Scary stories for every reader.
"I love to be scared," says Clay McLeod Chapman below, "and I love telling spooky stories…I feel like there’s just this great value to spinning yarns." The special edition of The Southern Bookseller Review celebrates our love of scary stories. The ghostly and the Gothic, the monster-ridden and the horror-driven. There are as many kinds of scary stories as there are things to be afraid of. Read these books at night, and leave the light on just in case.
Read This Now | Read This Next | The Bookseller Directory |
As the days grow shorter, the nights cooler, and the moon more crisp and bright in the autumn night sky, we sense the dying of the year, and the long dark winter ahead. Perhaps this is why we especially enjoy scary stories at this time of year.| Read This Now! Recommended by Southern indies… |
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It Came from the Closet by Joe Vallese Adult Nonfiction, Film, Genres, Horror, Performing Arts, Spooky It’s human nature to look for validation of oneself in the art we consume, and It Came From the Closet is a collection of essays by queer and trans authors on their interpretations and interactions with horror films. Edited by Joe Vallese, these essays are tender and funny, vulnerable and courageous. It Came From the Closet will make you see movies you’ve watched numerous times in a different light and that is a spectacular point of view. Reviewed by Rachel Watkins, Avid Bookshop in Athens, Georgia |
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Bookseller Buzz |
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Spotlight on: Ghost Eaters by Clay McLeod Chapman
“ I love to be scared. And I love telling spooky stories. It’s a book that kind of explores all of these somber topics like addiction, like grief, exploring the kind of outer parameters of death and loss. I love ghost stories, the oral tradition that you find down South. I feel like there’s just this great value to spinning yarns and kind of immersing your, your listener, your reader, your audience in this notion that they are kind of being pulled into a story around the campfire.” ―Clay Chapman, Interview, Virginia Living What booksellers are saying about Ghost Eaters 
About Clay McLeod Chapman Clay McLeod Chapman writes novels, comic books, and children’s books, as well as for film and TV. He is the author of the horror novels The Remaking and Whisper Down the Lane. Visit him at claymcleodchapman.com. |
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Leech by Hiron Ennes Adult Fiction, Apocalyptic Post-Apocalyptic, Fiction, Gothic, Horror, Science Fiction, Spooky The narrator of this scalpel-sharp and intoxicatingly gross debut is a parasite who is about to meet its match in the battle for control over the human heart, mind, and body. Fans of Gothic lit, haunted mansions in ill repair, and biological or medical horror, eat your optic nerve—I mean, your heart—out! I generally don’t consider myself a fan of the above actually, but the incredibly unique narrator, the excellent and atmospheric world-building, and the both chillingly creepy and chillingly cold setting really hooked me. Highly recommended for fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic and T. Kingfisher’s What Moves the Dead! Reviewed by Megan Bell, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia |
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The Mexican Witch Lifestyle by Valeria Ruelas Adult Nonfiction, Body Mind & Spirit, Crystals, Hispanic & Latino, Magick Studies, Spooky, Witchcraft An absolutely stellar guide to modern brujeria. It’s the perfect addition to any young witch/bruja/brujx’s collection. Valeria Ruelas is such a powerful and authoritative voice in the brujeria world and their guide is all encompassing and inclusive, with careful descriptions of spells, crystals, and terminology as well as cautions against racism and appropriation. In my humble opinion, this is THE guide every one beginning their journey into magic and healing should have on their shelf! Reviewed by Laney Sheehan, Epilogue Books Chocolate Brews in Chapel Hill, NC |
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Lucky Girl by M. Rickert Adult Fiction, Dark Fantasy, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Spooky Rickert packs a lot of horror in just over 100 pages! Four friends meet up in a diner on Thanksgiving and start a tradition of getting together for Christmas dinner and telling scary stories. Ro, an aspiring writer, learns that sometimes the scariest stories are so terrifying because they stem from fact – and no one is safe! Reviewed by Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia |
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Spirit Week by Ira Marcks Children, Comics & Graphic Novels, Horror, Spooky A charmingly illustrated and just-spooky-enough graphic novel, Spirit Week is sure to delight readers looking for an inventive mystery to unravel. A clever homage to the works of Stephen King and The Shining, Marcks’ middle grade graphic novel follows a group of intrepid kids as they attempt to uncover the secrets of The Underlook Hotel and its reclusive author Jack Axworth. A whole lot of fun! Reviewed by Caleb Masters, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
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The Hollow Kind by Andy Davidson Adult Fiction, Gothic, Horror You want to read this one. Scary, creepy, a page-turner. Very well written. A family curse. Something in the woods. And something in the house. Read it for Halloween. Read it at the beach. Read this anytime, it is so good. And keep the lights on. Two thumbs up. Reviewed by Mary Patterson, The Little Bookshop in Midlothian, Virginia |
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The Night Ship by Jess Kidd Adult Fiction, Fiction, Literary, Spooky An enthralling tale of imaginary monsters, human devils, and two children navigating life’s horrors 360 years apart. In turn harrowing, tender, and hopeful, the adventure follows a fearless Dutch girl in 1628 aboard the Batavia, which ultimately wrecks near an island off Australia. In 1989, a sensitive boy goes to live on that same island with his gruff grandfather after his mother’s death. There, he learns how to be himself and discovers a magical connection with the girl from the past. Reviewed by Suzanne Carnes, Copperfish Books in Punta Gorda, Florida |
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Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth Adult Fiction, Ghost, Gothic, Horror, Spooky Someone once told me that laughter is the human response to what makes them uncomfortable. This story is like Shirley Jackson and Christopher Moore had a book baby and Motherthing was the result. Ralph and Abby Lamb move in with his mentally ill mother as caretakers. Abby thinks this is her chance to win over her mother-in-law. She’s wrong. Dead wrong. The story telling in this book is brilliantly funny at times and deeply disturbing at others. Mark Abrams cover art drew me in but Ainslie Hogarth’s ability to make me cringe and laugh at the same time kept me reading. Reviewed by Suzanne Carnes, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia |
Parting Thought “Though they don’t always have to be set in fog, weather is incredibly important in ghost stories. As is suspense: you’ve got to turn the screw very, very slowly.” |
Publisher:
The Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance /
siba@sibaweb.com |
SIBA | 51 Pleasant Ridge Drive | Asheville, NC 28805
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