The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson
My Thoughts:
Larson weaves the story of how the Chicago Fair came to be alongside the grisly murders of H.H. Holmes. The pacing of the book was a bit jarring because each chapter switched us back and forth between the two tales. There were interesting bits about the fair that I enjoyed but it was Holmes' murders and how those came to be that were the most interesting. I didn't like the constant switching. But when Larson writes about Holmes those were some scary chapters. He did take a few liberties with what was thought or said but he makes that explicit in the introduction. The storytelling of Holmes scared the crap out of me! I was thoroughly captivated by the Holmes side of the fair and not the actual fair so much.
Beanstalker and Other Hilarious Scary Tales by Kiersten White
My Thoughts:
I bought this for G. at the school book fair so we could read it together during October. I enjoyed the fairy tale retellings in each chapter. White gives us all the classics from Jack in the Beanstalk to Rapunzel. And like the famous broadway play Into the Woods, all the stories are connected and come together in the end. We had a good time.
My Thoughts:
I can't even begin to describe how wonderful this book is. It's funny and scary and light-hearted all at the same time...but the scary parts can be super scary! My DH even got a bit spooked when he overheard my reading to G. FYI it's scary!
Even without the scares I loved this book. Oh tells a wonderful story about Harper Raine who's Korean-American and what she has to deal with looking different and being different. Her grandmother is the only one who understands her. She moves to a new place and at first has no friends. So it's also about finding friends and the importance of family.
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
My Thoughts:
I listened to this one right after I finished up the Netflix tv series. I have also seen the original movie and the updated movie with Liam Neeson. While the TV series probably doesn't quite get at the intent of the book it's still a stellar series all on its own. Check out the original movie! Highly recommended. The Neeson version is best left on the shelves...
The actual audiobook was great to listen to. The narrator did a great job portraying the various characters so I definitely recommend the audio version.
Jackson has a way with creating places as actual people. You could feel the house and its sense of purpose and malevolence. Nell is the character we seem to follow throughout the story. She is such a lonely, sad, and isolated woman. I felt sympathy and anger for her all at the same time. It's a great read and one I'll return to each year.
My Thoughts:
This book was disturbing on so many levels. I loved it. But it is not for everyone. Auerbach has a way with letting us see the way children see things and how awful adults can be to kids. I did not see it coming and I could not get this book out of my head for a few days. If you're looking for an excellent horror for Halloween or anytime, read this but be warned!
The Supernatural Enhancements by Edgar Cantero
My Thoughts:
I'm always up for a good haunted house story, but this one fell short for me. It was a little too unbelievable and a little too confusing in the end. The characters weren't quite fleshed out for me and it wasn't creepy enough. Probably my least favorite of the horror I read throughout October.
Just added PenPal to my TBR! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's chilling. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
DeleteI still need to read The Haunting of Hill House. I feel like I saw the Neeson version when it came out but don't remember much. I'll have to binge the series at some point :)
ReplyDeleteThe Neeson version is awful. Watch the original version and go in knowing the series is nothing like the book but both are great in their own right.
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