The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones and The Terror by Dan Simmons.
Spooky season has begun, and I don’t seem to have much to show for it recommendation wise. You see, something funny happens to you when you are pregnant and in those beginning days of postpartum: your brain decides to pack up and take whatever attention span you have for reading with it. At least that was my experience. However, one thing that will always be true is my love for something spooky and during those moments I could sit down and read I managed to settle upon two books I found to be entertaining enough that I did in fact finish them! During those long nights where I was up either being uncomfortable or with an infant who was up throughout the night, I read two tales about man’s hubris and a nasty monster afoot who could haunt my dreams if I were to have any.
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones – I enjoyed reading a historical horror novel that takes place in the old west. Told through the diary entries of a Lutheran pastor who is visited by a Blackfeet Indian, a story unfolds of a massacre and a monster out for blood and justice. I won’t say much more but it gets weird, and it was fun being along for the ride.
The Terror by Dan Simmons – Why I decided I wanted to read an epic (almost 1,000) page novel during my maternity leave about an exceptionally gory polar expedition most certainly involving cannibalism I could not tell you, but I landed there somehow. I probably thought it would help keep me up during night feedings (spoiler alert: it did). Contained within these pages is a tale of shipwrecks, starvation, scurvy and strife. And something very, very frightening out on the ice that wants nothing more than to terrorize those fridged sailors day and night. I will note that we only have the e-version of this book so it’s a great time to explore our online library with Libby!
So there you go: two books to keep you up at night (whether or not you want to be). Happy spooky season!
The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix
Review: This book really gives a unique perspective to a long standing question. You just survived a literal horror story, and the curtain falls. What happens in the aftermath of surviving a literal horror? Hendrix really captures the trauma of surviving a killer, and just how out of place everything would feel going back to a mundane life. The literal anxiety from the characters can be felt through the pages while they scrutinize every shadow and sound expecting danger around every corner. Wondering if safety was always just naivety to the horrors of life.
Recommendation: I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys horror fiction. It gives such a new look into the genre for people who are wanting more from it.
