Posts tagged horror books
Our Share of Night Commentary

Mariana Enriquez’s highly acclaimed novel Our Share of Night is a rich, lengthy, family saga, horror story about a young man and his inheritance: an estate, a cult, and a magical strength all his own. Set in Argentina from the 1960s to the late 1990s, just before, during, and after military dictatorship, Enriquez’s sweeping novel is a dedication to disappeared people and the violence they face, wrapped around the story of a family and the terrifying God they worship.

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The Hacienda Commentary

Isabel Cañas’s debut novel The Hacienda is a gothic, supernatural, haunted house story set in 1823 rural Mexico following the Mexican War of Independence. Mexican Gothic meets Rebecca, others have said, which is a strikingly accurate comparison. The Hacienda is about indigeneity, mother-daughter relationships, colorism and caste, witchcraft and the Inquisition, budding (and forbidden) love, and the determination needed to survive being home.

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The Changeling Commentary

Victor Lavalle’s seventh book, The Changeling (2017), is a surprising and deeply horrifying fairy tale planted firmly in modern day New York City about a family torn apart and the drive to piece it back together again.

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The Writing Retreat Commentary

In Julia Bartz’s The Writing Retreat, we follow a small group of young women writers taking a month-long residency in an old, country manor, hosted by an (in)famous author, Roza, whose motivations begin mysterious but evolve to be sinister. It’s a book about writers and the act of writing. With notes of Shirley Jackson and Hill House, The Writing Retreat is a thrilling, psychological ride about broken friendships, the creative process, queer desire, and scary stories.

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Mexican Gothic Commentary

Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s sixth novel Mexican Gothic is The Haunting of Hill House meets The Last of Us— a spell-binding and surprising story with depth, terror, and charisma.

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The Reformatory Commentary

Tananarive Due’s most recent novel, The Reformatory, is a beyond-horrifying, semi-fictional story about a young man’s torturous imprisonment in the evil Gracetown School for Boys— nicknamed the Reformatory— and his family’s daring efforts in the face of Jim Crow era Florida to free him.

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Camp Damascus Commentary

Chuck Tingle’s Camp Damascus is a thrilling coming-of-age horror story set in rural Montana in a deeply religious community called Kingdom of Pine, which owns and operates the most successful gay conversion camp in the country, Camp Damascus.

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Tell Me I’m Worthless Commentary

Divisive and provocative, Tell Me I’m Worthless is Alison Rumfitt’s debut novel about a fascist haunted house terrorizing Alice, a trans sex worker, Ila, an infamous TERF, and Hannah, the third wheel to Alice and Ila’s fucked up dynamic.

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A Haunting on the Hill Commentary

A Haunting on the Hill is a 2023 sequel to Shirley Jackson’s 1959 classic The Haunting of Hill House, but it is not written by Jackson. Both a disturbing and humorous voice, author Elizabeth Hand introduces us to a totally new cast of characters: a group of friends taking a residency at Hill House to rehearse a play called “Witching Night.” (Unlike the original, Hand’s book includes witches. A very fun addition.)

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