This Halloween, curl up with a scary story. Whether you're afraid of zombies, werewolves, band camp or bioengineered diseases, there's something in these books to thrill and terrify you
The Troop by Nick Cutter: Author Cutter brings terror to the woods in this novel, in which group of Scouts head into the forests of Prince Edward Island looking for some adventure, and maybe to earn a few badges, but what they find is much less wholesome. The first night, they are sitting around the fire when a terrifyingly thin man with an enormous appetite stumbles into their camp. The leader, Tim Riggs, is a doctor and quickly attempts to help. But the illness that has ravaged the man isn't something that this doctor or anyone else has seen before, let alone treated. As the man's bioengineered disease spreads to the troop, the boys start to do unimaginable things. Terrifying and creepy, this is a good book to read safely indoors, many months away from camping season.
Bellweather Rhapsody by Kate Racculia: This is a great book with which to dip lightly into the horror genre without getting too many nightmares. A run-down hotel, the Bellweather, is not a popular place to stay. The dilapidated roof-top pool, the tired restaurant and the poor location dissuade tourists from staying but the cheap rates continue to attract the yearly school music festival. This year, teenaged twins, a bassoonist named Rabbit and a chorus singer named Alice, have been invited to take part in the conference. Attention-seeking Alice can't wait to grab the attention of fellow students and teachers in this year's performance while Rabbit is hoping for a quiet moment with his sister to tell an important secret. Minnie is also at the hotel, to which she has returned hoping to gain some peace from the horrific murder-suicide she witnessed there as a young girl. When Alice's roommate goes missing from Room 712, the same room where Minnie witnessed her tragedy, no one's weekend goes as planned. Part The Shining, part Glee, this mystery will keep surprising you until the very end.
Breed by Chase Novak: Fertility treatment meets werewolf in a chilling novel. When successful couple Alex and Leslie are unable to conceive, they turn to a new reproductive intervention available in Slovenia. The treatment is successful, not only in helping the couple conceive twins, but in reinvigorating their lives. Alex and Leslie are more energetic, more powerful - and more hairy - than ever before. Adam and Alice, grow up in a relatively stable home but as their parents deal with changing tastes (human flesh anyone?) and failing self-control (especially at night), the 10-year old twins decide they must find out who and what their parents really are. Engrossing and gross, this fast-paced tale will appeal to fans of gruesome horror.
Devil's Wake: A Novel by Steven Barnes and Tananarive Due: The zombies from Devil's Wake are terrifying. Able to move quickly, talk somewhat coherently and infect those around them in a matter of hours, these monsters are not the moaning, brain-hungry but brain-dead zombies of most popular fiction. Before the outbreak,16-year-old Kendra worried about ordinary things, like getting a flu shot and boys at school. Her life changes completely when her parents are bitten and she must lock herself in the basement until her tough, gun-toting grandpa can get to her. But unfortunately for Kendra, his rough exterior cannot protect him from also contracting the virus, and she decides to risk the dangerous journey to the safe settlement near Portland before she joins the terrible fate of her family members. Terry, meanwhile, is spending the summer at a camp for juvenile delinquents. Before the outbreak, the boring camp seemed like a prison; now, it has become a paradise. With supplies and a generator, Terry and the remaining teens are able to survive for months but soon their food runs out and they, too, must make the treacherous and zombie-filled journey to the rumoured safe settlement. This is a gory adventure, perfect for anyone who likes watching the TV series The Walking Dead.
Come to the library for these and other spine-tingling tales.
A Good Read is a column by Tri-City librarians that is published on Wednesdays. Dana Ionson works at Terry Fox Library in Port Coquitlam.
