Use the code TAKE5 for $5 off your first package!

10 Chilling Books to Read This Winter by Ashley @spookishmommy

10 Chilling Books to Read This Winter

By: Ashley @spookishmommy

Happy Winter Solstice! I’ve got a list of 10 books to read that will chill your bones this winter.


American Predator by Maureen Callahan - One of the most terrifying true crime books I’ve ever read. A large portion of this story takes place in Alaska. Read this one with the lights on.

Synopsis: Ted Bundy. John Wayne Gacy. Jeffrey Dahmer. The names of notorious serial killers are usually well-known; they echo in the news and in public consciousness. But most people have never heard of Israel Keyes, one of the most ambitious and terrifying serial killers in modern history. The FBI considered his behavior unprecedented. Described by a prosecutor as "a force of pure evil," Keyes was a predator who struck all over the United States. He buried "kill kits"--cash, weapons, and body-disposal tools--in remote locations across the country. Over the course of fourteen years, Keyes would fly to a city, rent a car, and drive thousands of miles in order to use his kits. He would break into a stranger's house, abduct his victims in broad daylight, and kill and dispose of them in mere hours. And then he would return home to Alaska, resuming life as a quiet, reliable construction worker devoted to his only daughter.

Jimmy the Freak by Mark Steensland and Charles Colyott - A little novella that you can read in one sitting. Jimmy is a character you won’t soon forget. 

Synopsis:Thanks to being dropped on his head when he was a baby, Jimmy is now both mentally disabled and psychic. This has made him the perfect target for abuse by those who would exploit his wild talent for their own power and glory. Disgusted by his part in the game, Jimmy’s bodyguard Mike takes him on the run. But Mike’s boss isn’t the sort to let a meal ticket go easily, so he dispatches a brutal hitman named Ash to hunt them down and bring Jimmy back to work. Winding through a snow-covered landscape of back alleys, cheap motels, and strip clubs, Mike must fight his own personal demons while desperately trying to keep Jimmy free.”


The Shuddering by Ania Ahlborn - Nothing and NOBODY is safe in an Ania Ahlborn novel.

Synopsis: Ryan Adler and his twin sister, Jane, spent their happiest childhood days at their parents’ mountain Colorado cabin—until divorce tore their family apart. Now, with the house about to be sold, the Adler twins gather with their closest friends for one last snowboarding-filled holiday. While commitment-phobic Ryan gazes longingly at Lauren, wondering if his playboy days are over, Jane’s hopes of reconciling with her old boyfriend evaporate when he brings along his new fiancée. As drama builds among the friends, something lurks in the forest, watching the cabin, growing ever bolder as the snow falls…and hunger rises.

After a blizzard leaves the group stranded, the true test of their love and loyalty begins as the hideous creatures outside close in, one bloody attack at a time. Now Ryan, Jane, and their friends must fight—tooth and nail, bullet and blade—for their lives. Or else surrender to unspeakable deaths in the darkened woods.

Where the Dead Go To Die by Aaron Dries and Mark Allan Gunnells - What’s right? What’s wrong? I can’t really tell you but read this one and decide for yourself. A new take on zombies!


Synopsis: There are monsters in this world. And they used to be us. Now it's time to euthanize to survive in a hospice where Emily, a woman haunted by her past, only wants to do her job and be the best mother possible.

 

Beneath Ash and Bone by D. Alexander Ward - First of all, this cover. *heart eyes* Second, this book is vastly underrated. I flew this thing, it was compelling and unique.


Synopsis: Selburn, Virginia: A quiet backwater town nestled among the Blue Ridge Mountains. In the days before the Civil War, Sam Lock keeps the peace as the town sheriff, like his father before him. That peace is shattered during a raging winter storm when a boy goes missing at Evermore, the sprawling estate of Horace Crownhill and his family. Racing against time and the elements, Sam must mount a desperate search for the child—but what he finds in the snow, and the dark halls of Evermore, are madness ... and murder. As Sam searches for truth in a house poisoned by mysteries and haunted by ghosts, he hopes to weather the storm, but the harrowing secrets he uncovers may prove too terrible to bear. Will he escape with his sanity intact or will the dark presence rumored to hold sway over Evermore claim him as another sacrifice?


Snow by Ronald Malfi - Of course I’m going to showcase the exclusive Thunderstorm/Night Worms edition of Snow. It is the most beautiful.


Synopsis: When a snowstorm shuts down all of the flights in and out of Chicago, Todd and several other stranded passengers rent a jeep to drive to their respective destinations, but when they pick up a disoriented man wandering through the snow, they find themselves trapped in an inhuman nightmare


The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson - It says right in the synopsis that this book takes place in DECEMBER, therefore it is a winter book. Honestly, this book scared the shit outta me. I don’t know why the Lutz family stayed in that house for 28 days!

Synopsis: In December 1975, the Lutz family moved into their new home on suburban Long Island. George and Kathleen Lutz knew that, one year earlier, Ronald DeFeo had murdered his parents, brothers, and sisters in the house, but the property—complete with boathouse and swimming pool—and the price had been too good to pass up.

Twenty-eight days later, the entire Lutz family fled in terror.

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon - The FIRST book recommendation I ever got from Sadie aka Mother Horror. I love this book and I always recommend it to people who want a creepy introduction to the spooky side.

Synopsis: West Hall, Vermont, has always been a town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter. Now, in present day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara’s farmhouse with her mother, Alice, and her younger sister. Alice has always insisted that they live off the grid, a decision that has weighty consequences when Ruthie wakes up one morning to find that Alice has vanished. In her search for clues, she is startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked into the historical mystery, she discovers that she’s not the only person looking for someone that they’ve lost.

But she may be the only one who can stop history from repeating itself.

The Life We Bury by Allen Eskins - I never see this book anywhere but it is GOOD and deserves some love.

Synopsis: College student Joe Talbert has an assignment to interview a stranger and write a brief biography. With deadlines looming, he heads to a nearby nursing home. Carl Iverson is a dying Vietnam veteran -- and a convicted murderer. Writing about him, Joe can't reconcile the heroism of the soldier with the despicable acts of the convict, and tries to uncover the truth.

The Shining by Stephen King - Yes, I’m including this horror classic because if you haven’t read this one yet, winter is the best time. Cozy up and get ready to enter The Overlook!

Synopsis: Jack Torrance’s new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. As the off-season caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, he’ll have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote . . . and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around the Overlook is Danny Torrance, a uniquely gifted five-year-old.



You can find Ashley online @spookishmommy 








 






Share this post


Leave a comment

Note, comments must be approved before they are published