Top Ten Tuesday; Spooky Hidden Gems
It's Tuesday, which means it's probably time for another Top Ten Tuesday post, courtesy of That Artsy Reader Girl. The theme of the week was throwback freebie, so I decided writing a top ten list of spooky hidden gems, inspired by this list. Fair enough, horror and paranormal may not be the most popular genres, but there's more to horror than Stephen King.
The rural area in South Carolina where nineteen-year-old Aiken Pine grew up is a place that nobody seems to leave, but he is one that got away—at least for a little while.
Before Aiken became a high school dropout, he had big plans for the future. But one mistake changed everything. Last year, a chain of events led to Aiken’s pet dog brutally attacking his younger sister, Lexie.
After Lexie stabs the head cheerleader in the school hallway, Aiken is forced to go home. Everybody says bullying led to the fight, but he is convinced there is more to the story.
As Aiken begins to unravel the mystery, he is faced with other things from the past—an intricate web of secrets and lies among high school friends. People say chained dogs can become vicious over time, and Aiken begins to wonder if the same thing happens to people.
Some girls are fearful, others are brave. One girl’s a princess, the next one, a slave. But all girls are equal, when they’re down in this cave, until just one is left standing—The Prettiest Girl in the Grave.
It’s only supposed to be a game.
When Bella, Celeste, and Rose meet with new friends at a graveyard in the woods, they soon realize they’re unprepared for what’s planned. At twenty-four, Aubrey is older than the high schoolers, and she knows of a secret game that’s been played by local girls for decades.
It starts with personal questions, but quickly moves on to a test of courage as Aubrey guides them into an underground crypt. But even Aubrey doesn’t know what they’re really getting into. Bella’s mother, Holly, may be the only one who does.
As a teen, Holly and her friends also played the game, and Holly barely survived. When she discovers her daughter has gone to the graveyard, she fears Bella will get lost in the mysterious catacombs just as she had . . . and face the same sinister forces.
As the girls search for a way out, Holly must return to the dreadful crypt she swore she’d never come back to, and finally face her own dark secrets.
Not as if they'd be allowed to attend otherwise, not with parents and preacher and schoolmarm all disapproving. But how often does a chance like this come along? There isn't much else by way of excitement in quiet, peaceful Silver River, a once-prosperous boom town slowly gone bust.
Worth risking a whipping, sure. Worth risking life and limb, and maybe more? Worth risking being ripped to pieces by ravenous, inhuman brutes? Worth crossing paths with those strange, silent cult-folk from the high valley? Worth all the fire and bloodshed and horror and death?
Because something far worse than any ordinary traveling show has come to town, and one thing is for certain: those who survive, if any, will never forget The Night Silver River Run Red.
With the help of his friends, Todd goes back to the crumbling Hayden Resort, a death-tinged ruin in the Catskills Mountains. What they find is a haunted history that’s been lying in wait for a fresh set of victims. The Wraith is back, and he’s nothing what they expected.
On tour with his latest book, true crime writer Martin Savage discovers one of his most-dangerous subjects has escaped. The so-called "Witch Hunter," a delusional murderer of women and their unborn children, holds a deadly grudge. He'll stop at nothing to get his revenge, and destroy everything Martin cares about.
With nowhere to run, Martin and forensic psychologist Sheila Tanner flee to the town he left when he was a boy, after his mother was locked away in a psychiatric facility. A town hidden deep in his past, where no one would think to look for them.
But things are not what they seem in Barrows Bay. The idyllic island holds terrible secrets. An ancient evil lived here long before the first Irish settlers crashed upon its shores in a coffin ship. An evil wearing the innocent faces of elderly midwives who've delivered every child in the Bay for two hundred and fifty years.
Martin and Sheila think they’re safe in his childhood home. But Martin’s mother has plans for them. Plans that require sacrifice.
And sacrifice requires blood.
When the rebellious teenager Kevin gets sent to a summer camp by his parents, he initially has no idea what's in store for him. Every two weeks, the camp organizes an event called The Trial. The campers all dread it. They don't want to spend the night in the woods with the Firwood Wraith roaming around. And the more they misbehave, the higher the chances they'll be chosen.
By the time Kevin realizes what Camp Firwood really is, he is trapped - and every week, more and more campers go missing.
They’re forced to hide at one of Anthony’s properties: a deserted campground with a sinister past.
No one is safe from the men that hunt them or the terrors that await them inside The Devil’s Nest.
When two teenagers go missing from the small, rural town of Sallow Bend, the residents come together to search for them. Little do they suspect that finding the wayward girls will be the start of their problems. An ancient evil is rising, and only one man seems to realize that everyone is in danger and this is not the first time it’s happened. With the carnival in town, people want to have a good time, but for many, this will be the worst time of their lives.
Here's my ten spine-chilling picks for this list of hidden gems.
Tethered by Bryce Gibson
Description from Goodreads
The bite is worse than the bark!The rural area in South Carolina where nineteen-year-old Aiken Pine grew up is a place that nobody seems to leave, but he is one that got away—at least for a little while.
Before Aiken became a high school dropout, he had big plans for the future. But one mistake changed everything. Last year, a chain of events led to Aiken’s pet dog brutally attacking his younger sister, Lexie.
After Lexie stabs the head cheerleader in the school hallway, Aiken is forced to go home. Everybody says bullying led to the fight, but he is convinced there is more to the story.
As Aiken begins to unravel the mystery, he is faced with other things from the past—an intricate web of secrets and lies among high school friends. People say chained dogs can become vicious over time, and Aiken begins to wonder if the same thing happens to people.
Greyfriars Reformatory by Frazer Lee
Description from Goodreads
Nineteen year-old Emily's acute dissociative disorder causes her to be institutionalised - again - at Greyfriars Reformatory For Girls. Caught in the crossfire between brutal Principal Quick and cruel bully Saffron Chassay, Emily befriends fellow outcast Victoria. When the terrifying apparition of the mysterious 'Grey Girl' begins scaring the inmates to death, Emily's disorder may be the one thing that can save her.His Final Girl by Brooklyn Ann
Description from Goodreads
DON’T GO IN THE WOODS Computer nerd, Wes Carpenter, dreads having to spend ten days at summer camp with the rest of his in-coming high school senior class. But when he meets strong-willed and confident farm girl, Linnea Langenkamp, everything about being away at camp improves immediately. When a malicious prank awakens an ancient evil, turning their summer romance into a bloodbath, Wes and Linnea pray they make it home alive while fighting for the survival of their classmates. With Wes’s ingenuity and Linnea’s knowledge of the forest, together they may be able to stop the killer, save the camp, and maybe even find their happily ever after on the way.The Prettiest Girl in the Grave by Kristopher Triana
Description from Goodreads
From the author of international horror sensation Gone to See the River Man comes a new tale of terror that will drag you to the darkest corners of the soul.Some girls are fearful, others are brave. One girl’s a princess, the next one, a slave. But all girls are equal, when they’re down in this cave, until just one is left standing—The Prettiest Girl in the Grave.
It’s only supposed to be a game.
When Bella, Celeste, and Rose meet with new friends at a graveyard in the woods, they soon realize they’re unprepared for what’s planned. At twenty-four, Aubrey is older than the high schoolers, and she knows of a secret game that’s been played by local girls for decades.
It starts with personal questions, but quickly moves on to a test of courage as Aubrey guides them into an underground crypt. But even Aubrey doesn’t know what they’re really getting into. Bella’s mother, Holly, may be the only one who does.
As a teen, Holly and her friends also played the game, and Holly barely survived. When she discovers her daughter has gone to the graveyard, she fears Bella will get lost in the mysterious catacombs just as she had . . . and face the same sinister forces.
As the girls search for a way out, Holly must return to the dreadful crypt she swore she’d never come back to, and finally face her own dark secrets.
The Night Silver River Run Red by Christine Morgan
Description from Goodreads
Some things, according to Cody McCall, are worth risking a whipping. Such as, sneaking out with your friends after dark for a peek at the traveling show setting up just outside of town. Oddities, the signs promise. Marvels. Grotesqueries. Exotic attractions and mysterious magics.Not as if they'd be allowed to attend otherwise, not with parents and preacher and schoolmarm all disapproving. But how often does a chance like this come along? There isn't much else by way of excitement in quiet, peaceful Silver River, a once-prosperous boom town slowly gone bust.
Worth risking a whipping, sure. Worth risking life and limb, and maybe more? Worth risking being ripped to pieces by ravenous, inhuman brutes? Worth crossing paths with those strange, silent cult-folk from the high valley? Worth all the fire and bloodshed and horror and death?
Because something far worse than any ordinary traveling show has come to town, and one thing is for certain: those who survive, if any, will never forget The Night Silver River Run Red.
Slash by Hunter Shea
Description from Goodreads
Five years after Ashley King survived the infamous Resort Massacre, she’s found hanging in her basement by her fiancé, Todd Matthews. She left behind clues as to what really happened that night, clues that may reveal the identity of the killer the press has called The Wraith.With the help of his friends, Todd goes back to the crumbling Hayden Resort, a death-tinged ruin in the Catskills Mountains. What they find is a haunted history that’s been lying in wait for a fresh set of victims. The Wraith is back, and he’s nothing what they expected.
The Midwives by Duncan Ralston
Description from Goodreads
A killer on the loose. A writer on the run. A town plagued by an ancient evil.On tour with his latest book, true crime writer Martin Savage discovers one of his most-dangerous subjects has escaped. The so-called "Witch Hunter," a delusional murderer of women and their unborn children, holds a deadly grudge. He'll stop at nothing to get his revenge, and destroy everything Martin cares about.
With nowhere to run, Martin and forensic psychologist Sheila Tanner flee to the town he left when he was a boy, after his mother was locked away in a psychiatric facility. A town hidden deep in his past, where no one would think to look for them.
But things are not what they seem in Barrows Bay. The idyllic island holds terrible secrets. An ancient evil lived here long before the first Irish settlers crashed upon its shores in a coffin ship. An evil wearing the innocent faces of elderly midwives who've delivered every child in the Bay for two hundred and fifty years.
Martin and Sheila think they’re safe in his childhood home. But Martin’s mother has plans for them. Plans that require sacrifice.
And sacrifice requires blood.
Camp Firwood by Boris Bacic
Description from Goodreads
If the counselors of Camp Firwood send you into the woods, you're as good as dead.When the rebellious teenager Kevin gets sent to a summer camp by his parents, he initially has no idea what's in store for him. Every two weeks, the camp organizes an event called The Trial. The campers all dread it. They don't want to spend the night in the woods with the Firwood Wraith roaming around. And the more they misbehave, the higher the chances they'll be chosen.
By the time Kevin realizes what Camp Firwood really is, he is trapped - and every week, more and more campers go missing.
Inside the Devil's Nest by John Durgin
Description from Goodreads
Real estate agent Anthony Graham has his family on the run after witnessing a murder at the hands of the powerful Costello crime family.They’re forced to hide at one of Anthony’s properties: a deserted campground with a sinister past.
No one is safe from the men that hunt them or the terrors that await them inside The Devil’s Nest.
Sallow Bend by Alan Baxter
Description from Goodreads
Something old and deadly has awoken.When two teenagers go missing from the small, rural town of Sallow Bend, the residents come together to search for them. Little do they suspect that finding the wayward girls will be the start of their problems. An ancient evil is rising, and only one man seems to realize that everyone is in danger and this is not the first time it’s happened. With the carnival in town, people want to have a good time, but for many, this will be the worst time of their lives.
I love this list! I am always looking for scary summer camp books for summer!
ReplyDeleteI want to read more horror, so thanks for the recommendations!
ReplyDelete