During the fall season, there鈥檚 nothing quite like finding a good book, curling up on a cozy couch, diving into the pages, and then鈥� hurling said book across the room in terror! Halloween might be the climax of the spooky season, but scaring each other with ghost stories is something we can enjoy all throughout the year. But first, you鈥檒l need to find something bone-chilling to read.聽
Here at 亚洲网紅露点, we love terrifying tales and fearsome fables. So, we thought we鈥檇 share some of our favorites. We asked our team for those favorite books and stories that kept us up at night as kids and still give us the creeps today. If you鈥檙e a brave soul looking for some spooky stories, then read on!聽
If you need us, we鈥檒l be hiding under the blankets鈥�
馃巸 鈥淏loodchild鈥� by Octavia Butler
鈥擩ean C., Editor, Lexicography聽
Jean describes this story as 鈥減retty darn creepy.鈥� How creepy are we talking? Jean says: 鈥淭he scene where a boy to be impregnated with the eggs of the alien species witnesses the horrifying birth he will undergo hasn’t left me (and it’s been years since I read this story).鈥澛�
Yeah, we鈥檒l file that one under creepy and also earmark it for consideration for nope.
馃巸 The Collector by John Fowles
鈥擜llison T., Vice President, Product
Allison lists it as 鈥渙ne of the scariest books I’ve ever read.鈥� Allison says: 鈥淚 was terrified even reading it in broad daylight!鈥�
馃巸 鈥淓nd of the Party鈥� by Graham Greene
鈥擩ohn K., Vice President, Editorial
John says: 鈥淗ere, what is most masterful is the way Greene develops a subtle but eerie language of light to illuminate the enveloping and ineffable terror of his story鈥檚 dark. The effect is a chilling chiaroscuro in words.鈥�
For more scares, John also recommends King Lear by William Shakespeare, “Report on an Unidentified Space Station” by J.G. Ballard, and 2666 by Roberto Bola帽o.
馃巸 鈥淭he Witch鈥� by Shirley Jackson
鈥擥eorge F., Vice President, Experience Design
George says: 鈥淭he plot was simple yet it allows, demands even, the reader to fill in answers to questions. Is there really a witch or is this all the power of story? Why does the old man show up precisely after the boy mentions witches? Why is the boy’s mother seemingly unalarmed about this weird man telling violent stories to her son? And why were these the questions that entered my mind? Good stuff.鈥澛�
If you are in the mood for more good (and spooky) stuff, George also recommends 鈥淭he Tell-Tale Heart鈥� by Edgar Allen Poe, Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu, Slash Them All by Antoine Maillard, Black Hole by Charles Burns, and Idle Days by Thomas Desaulniers-Brousseau and Simon Leclerc.
馃巸 鈥淭he Monkey鈥檚 Paw鈥� by W.W. Jacobs
鈥擩ohn D., Staff Writer
John says: 鈥淚t鈥檚 one of those stories where your imagination enhances the terror, and it is my favorite 鈥榖e careful what you wish for鈥� story. It also inspired an episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark? so you know it is good and spooky.鈥�
馃巸 Michigan Chillers series by Johnathan Rand
鈥擩amie B., Senior Machine Learning Engineer
Jamie says: 鈥淎s a kid, the Michigan Chillers series was so special because the spooky stories were local to me. I remember staying up late during a sleepover reading the Great Lakes Ghost Ship. Couldn鈥檛 fall asleep after that!鈥�
馃巸 鈥淭he Green Ribbon鈥� from In a Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary Stories by Alvin Schwartz
鈥擡rick T., Team Leader, Engineering
Erick says: 鈥淔or me, it was the first time where I was lured into a false sense of security.” The story also introduced Erick to a shocking twist before M. Night Shyamalan made it popular. 鈥淚t made me rewrite the hope that was presented in the story from the first paragraph.鈥�
馃巸 Singularity by William Sleator
鈥擜roline H., Content Editor
Aroline says: 鈥淚 remember how unique to me the idea of entering a new time dimension was. As a kid, I usually read more lighthearted fiction, but this one was intriguing, and although scary, it drew me in. I recall thinking about it after finishing it, too, as if the awe stayed with me.鈥�
馃巸 The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright
鈥擬ariel J., Senior Research Editor
Mariel says: 鈥淥ne of the scariest books I read as a kid was The Dollhouse Murders, where the dolls pose themselves to re-enact a terrifying crime (no spoilers!) and deliver clues that help solve it. Still seems pretty creepy to me!鈥澛�
As an added bonus, Mariel says: 鈥淓very year, I read the poem 鈥榟ist whist鈥� [by e.e. cummings] (usually with my daughter) to get in the right spooky feeling for the season.鈥�
Mission accomplished. We are covered in goosebumps and at maximum spookiness levels. Try reading some of these stories and books yourself. You just might discover a new favorite scary story!聽
