With Halloween right around the corner, many of you may be wondering how to get into the spirit of the holiday. It can be hard to enjoy this season with the limitations of this pandemic, but staying safe and healthy is a top priority right now. Though carving pumpkins and watching scary movies are always fun, I find that reading a good book is one of the best ways to immerse yourself in the holiday spirit. Without spoilers, here are five books to read during this spooky season:
- The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells
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If you’re looking for a suspenseful thriller, this iconic staple of the horror genre should do the trick. The story follows scientist Griffin who also happens to be the invisible man. Griffin mysteriously visits the village of Iping and stays at the Coach and Horses Inn, causing much suspicion among the villagers and innkeeper, Mrs. Hall. After stirring up trouble in the village, Griffin attempts to flee. The story later reveals that while studying optics, Griffin attempted a procedure that turned him invisible. With a mysterious beginning and tragic ending, this story has a lot to offer this holiday season.
- The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
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This horror novel follows the main character Clarice Starling as she explores the psychological trappings of a serial killer (Hannibal Lecter). Starling, while on an assignment from the FBI as an agent in training, must use her conversations with Lecter to discover who is behind the recent abductions and murders of women. If you’re looking for a good murder mystery this is definitely the book for you.
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelly
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This classic tale of revival is a spooky season must-read. Wanting to discover the secret of life, Victor Frankenstein creates a creature from old body parts and brings it to life, then regrets his creation as the creature later turns out to be a murderer. This tale of remorse, tragedy, and wrongdoing can make for a great escape from your day to day routines and stresses.
- It by Stephen King
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With the return of the scary killer clown trend from 2016 on Tik Tok, this one might be too real of a read this season. Even so, King never ceases to bring the scare with his writing. This first part of ‘It’ follows a young group of kids as they reluctantly try and take down a killer clown (Pennywise) that has been abducting people. The second part follows the same characters into adulthood as they have to return to their hometown and band together again to kill this clown.
- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis
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Last on our list, we have this twisted and mysterious tale about the inner battle between good and evil. In this story, a gruesome-looking man named Mr. Hyde commits some devious crimes, first assaulting a woman, then murdering a man. Dr. Jekyll and his mysterious behavior are linked to Hyde and it becomes increasingly evident that the two share a connection far greater than anyone expected. This iconic story is just the thing to read if you are in need of a twisted mystery this spooky season.