Greenteeth, told from Jenny’s perspective, is full of adventure and humor and reminds us of the importance of family - including found family.

The Library at Hellebore is like what would happen if you populated Brakebills (“The Magicians”) with gods and monsters then held a battle royale.

J. H. Markert’s Spider to the Fly stressed me out in the best way, though I had to remind myself to breathe for about the last quarter of it.

Like his earlier novel, Come Knocking draws the reader in by appealing to that nature within us that makes us marvel at tragedy while challenging us to empathize with instigators and victims alike.

Secret Lives of the Dead is an effectively creepy folk horror from Tim Lebbon that centers around a family cursed by a witch and a woman whose life was forever changed as a teenager by the man who has spent his life trying to break that curse.

The Unraveling of Julia by Lisa Scottoline had everything I look for in an engaging gothic thriller - a relatable heroine, a mystery, romance, a surprise inheritance, and, as a bonus, a touch of the supernatural.

The Unseen is a story of loss - loss of unborn children, loss of family, loss of control - in the trappings of a creepy-kid horror story told from the perspectives of the family of seven whose lives are disrupted by the appearance of an apparently abandoned child at their home.

The No-End House is a haunted house escape room whose challenges are created using deepest fears from the players’ sub-consciences.

Fun summertime read for anyone who likes creepypasta or slightly off reality like Welcome to Night Vale.

Miranda Smith is obviously a horror fan writing for other horror fans, who will delight in identifying references to their favorite films like Evil Dead and Scream.

Tim Waggoner’s description of the meat room is visceral and, as Lewis (and we) recognize it and the Unhigh for what they are - gut wrenching.  

Put Mira Grant’s science in T. Kingfisher’s fantasy folk horror, and you’ll get something that approximates Wendy Wagner’s Girl in the Creek, which follows Erin who finagles a work trip to a forest in the Pacific Northwest so she can look for her missing brother.

Glass Girls is an effectively scary ghost story, as Alice (and later her niece) are haunted by earth-bound spirits by virtue of their innate powers as mediums.

Ten Sleep has everything I want in a weird west novel and some things I didn’t even know I wanted - part folklore, part body horror, part personal and interpersonal demons, and part Watership Down.

Part Hollywood tell-all, part rags to riches story, Cassandra appeared not to pull any punches in naming names or sharing painful memories from her life. 

It Was Her House First was a thrilling haunted house story that was hard to put down. Cherie Priest’s style is casual and makes for an easy read, but full of all the dread and emotion I look for in a ghost tale.

Reading Orbital was like reading a long poem about the vastness and smallness of Earth - in part through the eyes of four astronauts and two cosmonauts as they experience a sunrise every 90 minutes in their space station orbiting the planet.

Johanna van Veen has become a must-read author for me. Blood on Her Tongue has all the hallmarks of a gothic novel (twin sisters, mysterious illnesses, atmospheric castles) with 100% more body horror and a dash of spice.

Horror authors are invited to the creepy estate of recently deceased Mortimer Queen - Arnold’s fictional stand-in for a Stephen King-like icon in How to Survive a Horror Story - for the reading of his will - and a game whose prize for the last author standing is the manor - and their life.

This book may have suffered from over-hype as I felt like I saw it being recommended everywhere, and, even at its modest length, it dragged at times.