Dare to Be Scared: Horror Stories for Teens

This week, we're getting in the Halloween mood with some great horror novels for teens . . . .

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
For three years, seventeen-year-old Cas Lowood has carried on his father's work of dispatching the murderous dead, traveling with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat, but everything changes when he meets Anna, a girl unlike any ghost he has faced before.

Lord Loss by Darren Shan

Presumably the only witness to the horrific and bloody murder of his entire family, a teenage boy must outwit not only the mental health professionals determined to cure his delusion, but also the demonic forces only he can see.

Harrow Lake by Kat Ellis

Lola Nox is sent to live with her estranged maternal grandmother in the mining town where her horror movie director father's most iconic film was set, when paranormal incidents and whispers of a century-old monster make her question if she'll make it out alive.

The Sacrifice Box by Martin J. Stewart

Five former friends must discover which of them broke the rules when objects they sealed in an ancient stone box come to life in twisted forms and dead things reanimate.

More Horror Stories --

#MurderTrending by Gretchen McNeil

As I Descended by Robin Talley

Blood Countess by Lana Popovic

Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power

Burning by Danielle Rollins

Daemon Hall by Andrew Nance

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White

Dreaming Darkly by Caitlin Kittredge

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco

The Haunted by Danielle Vega

His Hideous Heart: Thirteen of Edgar Allan Poe's Most Unsettling Tales Reimangined

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd

The Mary Shelley Club by Goldy Moldavsky

Messenger of Fear by Michael Grant

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand

There's Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

What Big Teeth by Rose Szabo

The Wrong Train by Jeremy de Quidt

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through October 30, 2021.

The Witches by Roald Dahl

 The Witches by Roald Dahl - 244 pages

Grandmama has told him everything there is to know about witches.  They hide in plain sight although they must wear disguises to cover their bald heads, clawed fingers, and squared-off feet with no toes.  They are also deadly dangerous to children.  It is their sole purpose to get rid of children.

While on vacation, he accidentally runs into the witches of England having their annual meeting.  At the meeting, the Grand High Witch shares her evil plan to turn all the children of England into mice.  Will he be able to stop them?


This book is a little creepy and a lot of fun.  Like most Roald Dahl books it doesn't have a traditional happy ending but you are satisfied with how the story ends.  I also recommend the audio version of this book narrated by Miranda Richardson.  And after reading the book, make sure to watch one of the movie versions of this story.

Horror Stories for Teens

 Halloween is quickly approaching.  So to get us in the mood, this week I'm share some horror novels for teens . . . .

Alone by Cyn Balog
Seda, sixteen, feels her invisible childhood nemesis, Sawyer, growing stronger just as a group of stranded teens takes shelter from a blizzard in the dilapidated mansion Seda's mother inherited.

Dreaming Darkly by Caitlin Kittredge

After her mother's death, Ivy is sent to live on an island with a rich uncle where she experiences nightmares and learns about her family's murderous past.

Fiendish by Brenna Yovanoff

Clementine DeVore, seventeen, is determined to learn what happened ten years ago that led to her magical imprisonment and problems in her town, but a dangerous attraction to Fisher, the boy who freed her, town politics, and the terrifying Hollow get in the way.

His Hideous Heart: Thirteen of Edgar Allan Poe's Most Unsettling Tales Reimagined

Offers a collection of authors' reimaginings of Edgar Allan Poe's work, as well as the original Poe stories.

The Sacrifice Box by Martin J. Stewart

Five former friends must discover which of them broke the rules when objects they sealed in an ancient stone box come to life in twisted forms and dead things reanimate.

More Horror Stories --

As I Descended by Robin Talley

Asylum by Madeline Roux

Between the Devil and the Dark Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke

Bonechiller by Graham McNamee
Burning by Danielle Rollins

The End Games by T. Michael Martin

The Fall by Bethany Griffin

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco

The Glare by Margot Harrison

Haunted by Danielle Vega

The House by Christina Legrand

Lockdown: Escape from the Furnace by Alexander Gordon Smith

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

Teeth in the Mist by Dawn Kurtagich

There's Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

The Wrong Train by Jeremy de Quidt

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through October 31, 2020.

Dare To Be Scared

This week, I'm sharing scary chapter books for kids in grade school.  Here are a few of my favorites . . .

The Seer of Shadows by Avi
In New York City in 1872, fourteen-year-old Horace, a photographer's apprentice, becomes entangled in a plot to create fraudulent spirit photographs, but when Horace accidentally frees the real ghost of a dead girl bent on revenge, his life takes a frightening turn.

Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare by Darren Shan
Two boys who are best friends visit an illegal freak show, where an encounter with a vampire and a deadly spider forces them to make life-changing choices.

The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier
Irish orphans Molly, fourteen, and Kip, ten, travel to England to work as servants in a crumbling manor house where nothing is quite what it seems to be, and soon the siblings are confronted by a mysterious stranger and secrets of the cursed house.


More Scary Stories --
The Book of Bad Things by Dan Poblocki
The Boy Who Cried Werewolf by J.H. Reynolds
Case File 13: Zombie Kid by J. Scott Savage
Charlie and the Grandmothers by Katy Towell
Coraline by Neil Gaiman
Darkness Creeping: Twenty Twisted Tales by Neal Shusterman
Doll Bones by Holly Black
The Doll Graveyard by Laura Ruby
Guys Read: Terrifying Tales by Jon Scieszka
Literally Disturbed: Tales to Keep You Up at Night by Ben H. Winters
Mothman's Curse by Christine Hayes
Nightbooks by J.A. White
Strange Star by Emma Carroll
Whisper in the Dark by Joseph Bruchac

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through November 8, 2019.

Read If You Dare: Teen Horror Stories

Last week, I shared chapter book ghost stories.  This week, I think I'll share some of my favorite teen horror books . . . .

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
For three years, seventeen-year-old Cas Lowood has carried on his father's work of dispatching the murderous dead, traveling with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat, but everything changes when he meets Anna, a girl unlike any ghost he has faced before.

Lord Loss by Darren Shan
Presumably the only witness to the horrific and bloody murder of his entire family, a teenage boy must outwit not only the mental health professionals determined to cure his delusion, but also the demonic forces only he can see.

Prom Dates from Hell by Rosemary Clement-Moore
High school senior and yearbook photographer Maggie thought she would rather die than go to prom, but when a classmate summons a revenge-seeking demon, she has no choice but to buy herself a dress and prepare to face jocks, cheerleaders, and Evil Incarnate.


More Teen Horror Books --
Alone by Cyn Balog
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke
The Cemetery Boys by Heather Brewer
City of the Dead by Sharon Stewart
Dr. Frankenstein's Daughters by Suzanne Weyn
Eat, Brains, Love by Jeff Hirsch
The End Games by T. Michael Martin
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco
The House by Christina Lauren
Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough
The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd
A Midsummer Night's Scream by R.L. Stine
The Sacrifice Box by Martin Stewart
Slasher Girls & Monster Boys by April Genevieve Tucholke
This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers
The Waking: Dreams of the Dead by Thomas Randall
The Wrong Train by Jeremy de Quidt

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through December 7, 2018.

When Humans Are Scarier Than Monsters

We are frequently asked for recommendations of horror books for teens -- books with monsters.  However, I often find books with human monsters much  more terrifying.  Here are some recommendations for teens of books with terrifying human monsters . . . .

(Warning - These Books May be Disturbing to Read)

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
The story follows a girl called "Alice" who has been kidnapped by a pedophile named Ray. This book takes place five years after "Alice's" abduction.

The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
A high school freshman discovers the devastating consequences of refusing to join in the school's annual fund raising drive and arousing the wrath of the school bullies.

This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp
Minutes after the principal of Opportunity High School in Alabama finishes her speech welcoming the student body to a new semester, they discover that the auditorium doors will not open and someone starts shooting as four teens, each with a personal reason to fear the shooter, tell the tale from separate perspectives.

The Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin
Seventeen-year-old Matthew recounts his attempts, starting at a young age, to free himself and his sisters from the grip of their emotionally and physically abusive mother.


More Books --
After the Woods by Kim Savage
Afterward by Jennifer Mathieu
All the Rage by Courtney Summers
Amy Chelsea Stacie Dee by Mary G. Thompson
Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas
Bitter End by  Jennifer Brown
Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick
Desert Angel by Charlie Price
The Devil You Know by Trish Doller
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick
If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch
The Killer's Cousin by Nancy Werlin
The Missing Girl by Norma Fox Mazer
My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalstier
The Pain Eater by Beth Goobie
Pretty Girl-13 by Liz Coley
The Special Ones by Em Bailey
Tenderness: A Novel by Robert Cormier

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through December 1, 2017.

Zombies, Werewolves, and Vampires -- Oh My!

Children love scary stories -- just look at the popularity of the Goosebumps series.  Here are some of my favorite monster books for kids . . . .

Dinkin Dings and the Frightening Things by Guy Bass
Young Dinkin Dings, who is afraid of literally everything, is certain that his new next-door neighbors are flesh-eating alien space zombies.

ParaNorman by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel

Misunderstood eleven-year-old Norman Babcock must take on witches, zombies, and the school bully to save his town from a witch that cursed his town.

Vampire Island by Adele Griffin

Siblings Maddy, Lexie, and Hudson Livingstone, who are vampire-fruit bat hybrids, struggle to adjust to living as humans in New York City while maintaining their individual vampire strengths.

Mosnterland by James Crowley

Chased into the woods by neighborhood bullies who are after his Halloween candy, fifth grader Charlie Cooper quickly gets lost and finds his way into Vampyreishtat--or Monsterland, an uncharted land where werewolves, mummies, and vampires live freely--and with the help of the Monster of all Monsters, Charlie hopes he will find his cousin Billy who disappeared a year ago.

Zombie Baseball Beatdown by Paulo Bacigalupi

While practicing for their next baseball game, thirteen-year-old friends Rabi, Miguel, and Joe discover that the nefarious activities of the Delbe, Iowa, meatpacking plant have caused cows to turn into zombies.

More Monster Books --

100% Wolf by Jayne Lyons

The City of Ink Drinkers by Eric Sanvoisin

Case File 13: Zombie Kid by J. Scott Savage

Dr. Critchlore's School for Minions by Sheila Grau

Literally Disturbed: Tales to Keep You Up at Night by Ben H. Winters

My Zombie Hamster by Havelock McCreely

Notes from a Hairy-Not-Scary Werewolf by Tim Collins

Notes from a Totally Lame Vampire by Tim Collins

The One Safe Place by Tania Unsworth

A Taste for Red by Lewis Harris
Vampire State Building by Elizabeth Levy
The Wavering Werewolf by David Lubar

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through November 24, 2017.

Dare to Be Scared!

With Halloween fast approaching, this week I thought I would share some horror books for teens.  Here are a few of my favorites . . . .

The Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle
Every October Cara and her family become mysteriously and dangerously accident-prone, but this year, the year Cara, her ex-stepbrother, and her best friend are 17, is when Cara will begin to unravel the accident season's dark origins.

Lord Loss by Darren Shan
Presumably the only witness to the horrific and bloody murder of his entire family, a teenage boy must outwit not only the mental health professionals determined to cure his delusion, but also the demonic forces only he can see.

Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake
For three years, seventeen-year-old Cas Lowood has carried on his father's work of dispatching the murderous dead, traveling with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat, but everything changes when he meets Anna, a girl unlike any ghost he has faced before.

On the Day I Died: Stories from the Grave by Candace Fleming
In a lonely Illinois cemetery one cold October night, teen ghosts recount the stories of their deaths in different time periods, from 1870 to the present, to sixteen-year-old Mike, who unknowingly picked up a phantom hitchhiker.


More Teen Horror Novels --
Bonchiller by Graham McNamee
The Death Collector by Justin Richards
The Devil's Engine: Hellraisers by Alexander Gordon Smith
Dr. Frankenstein's Daughters by Suzanne Weyn
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
The Hand of the Devil by Dean Vincent Carter
The House of Dead Maids by Clare Dunkle
In the After by Demitria Lunetta
Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough
Pretty Monsters: Stories by Kelly Link
Runied by Paula Morris
The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
Samurai Awakening by Benjamin Martin
Slasher Girls & Monsters Boys by April Tucholke
This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers
The Waking: Dreams of the Dead by Thomas Randall

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through November 10, 2017.

Read at Your Own Risk! Teen Horror Novels

Last week, I highlighted scary chapter books for kids in grade school.  This week, I'm focusing on horror books for teens . . . .

Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough
When Cora and her younger sister, Mimi, are sent to stay with their great Auntie Ida in an isolated village in 1958, they discover that they are in danger from a centuries-old evil and, along with village boys Roger and Peter, strive to uncover the horrifying truth before it is too late.

The Cemetery Boys by Heather Brewer
When Stephen moves to the small, midwestern town where his father grew up, he quickly falls in with punk girl Cara and her charismatic twin brother, Devon. But the town has a dark secret, and the twins are caught in the middle of it.

The Fury by Alexander Gordon Smith
To defend themselves, a ragtag group of teens bands together at an abandoned amusement park after one day when, without warning, the entire human race turns against them.

The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco
Okiku has wandered the world for centuries, freeing the innocent ghosts of the murdered-dead and taking the lives of killers with the vengeance they are due, but when she meets Tark she knows the moody teen with the series of intricate tattoos is not a monster and needs to be freed from the demonic malevolence that clings to him.


More Teen Horror Novels
Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
A Bad Day for Voodoo by Jeff Strand
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke
Defriended by Ruth Baron
The Devil's Engine: Hellraisers by Alexander Gordon Smith
Dr. Frankenstein's Daughters by Suzanne Weyn
Dracula's Guest by Michael Sims
The Fall by Bethany Griffin
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
The Grounding of Group 6 by Julian Thompson
The Haunting of Alazabel Cray by Chris Wooding
Malice by Chris Wooding
A Midsummer Night's Scream by R.L. Stine
Nightmare City by Andrew Klavan
Prom Dates from Hell by Rosemary Clement-Moore
Slasher Girls and Monster Boys by April Genevieve Tucholke
The Waking: Dreams of the Dead by Thomas Randall
White Space by Ilsa Bick

Check these books out on display at the Arnold Branch through November 10, 2016.

Scary Stories for Spooky Nights

Halloween is quickly approaching.  We're making jack-o-lanterns and picking out our costumes to wear.  But don't forget to get a few creepy books to read.  Here are some of my favorite scary chapter books for kids . . .

Coraline by Neil Gaiman
Looking for excitement, Coraline ventures through a mysterious door into a world that is similar, yet disturbingly different from her own, where she must challenge a gruesome entity in order to save herself, her parents, and the souls of three others.

A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz
Follows Hansel and Gretel as they walk out of their own story and into eight more tales, encountering such wicked creatures as witches, along with kindly strangers and other helpful folk. Based in part on the Grimms' fairy tales Faithful Johannes, Hanseland Gretel, The seven ravens, Brother and sister, The robber bridegroom, and The devil and his three golden hairs.

The Doll Graveyard by Lois Ruby
Unhappy about her new home at Thornewood Manor before discovering its mysterious backyard doll cemetery, Shelby learns interesting but unsettling facts about the dolls, their strange powers, and the girl who used to own them.

Took: A Ghost Story by Mary Downing Hahn
A witch called Old Auntie is lurking near Dan's family's new home. He doesn't believe in her at first, but is forced to accept that she is real and take action when his little sister, Erica, is 'took' to become Auntie's slave for the next fifty years.


More Scary Stories --
Charlie and the Grandmothers by Katy Towell
Haunted House by Robert San Souci
The House on Stone Throw's Island by Dan Poblocki
I Text Dead People by Rose Cooper
Mothman's Curse by Christine Hayes
Professor Gargoyle by Charles Gilman
Revenge of the Witch by Joseph Delaney
Scary School by Derek Kent
The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud
Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman
The Spider Ring by Andrew Harwell
Terrifying Tales by Jon Scieszka
Whisper in the Dark by Joseph Bruchac

Check these books out on display through November 2, 2016.

Read These Books with the Lights On!

Horror books are always fun to read!  Even though Halloween is a couple of weeks in the past, we still like to get chills as we read a scary book.  Here are some of my favorite horror books for teens ...

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Sam LaCroix, a Seattle fast-food worker and college dropout, discovers that he is a necromancer, part of a world of harbingers, werewolves, satyrs, and one particular necromancer who sees Sam as a threat to his lucrative business of raising the dead.

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
For three years, seventeen-year-old Cas Lowood has carried on his father's work of dispatching the murderous dead, traveling with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat, but everything changes when he meets Anna, a girl unlike any ghost he has faced before.

Prom Dates from  Hell by Rosemary Clement-Moore
High school senior and yearbook photographer Maggie thought she would rather die than go to prom, but when a classmate summons a revenge-seeking demon, she has no choice but to buy herself a dress and prepare to face jocks, cheerleaders, and Evil Incarnate.

Sunshine by Robin McKinley
Sunshine is abducted by a vampire, and as she waits through the night, fearing the worst, she forms an unlikely bond with her captor.

Jinx by  Meg Cabot
Sixteen-year-old Jean "Jinx" Honeychurch, the descendant of a witch, must leave Iowa to live with relatives in Manhattan after the first spell she casts goes awry, but she will have to improve her skills to stop her cousin from practicing black magic that endangers them and the boy they both like.


More Teen Horror --
Ashes by Ilsa Bick
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Tucholke
Bonechiller by Graham McNamee
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
The Crossroads by Chris Grabenstein
Dr. Frankenstein's Daughters by Suzanne Weyn
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
In the After by Demetria Lunetta
A Midsummer Night's Scream by R.L. Stine
My Swordhand Is Singing by Marcus Sedgwick
Nightmare City by Andrew Klavan
Pretty Monsters: Stories by Kelly Link
The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry


Check out these books on display at the Arnold Branch through November 25, 2015.

Dare to Be Scared (Part 5)

On the night before Halloween, I'm going to share my all-time favorite horror books for teens . . .

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
For three years, seventeen-year-old Cas Lowood has carried on his father's work of dispatching the murderous dead, traveling with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat, but everything changes when he meets Anna, a girl unlike any ghost he has faced before.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Sam LaCroix, a Seattle fast-food worker and college dropout, discovers that he is a necromancer, part of a world of harbingers, werewolves, satyrs, and one particular necromancer who sees Sam as a threat to his lucrative business of raising the dead.

Lord Loss by Darren Shan
Presumably the only witness to the horrific and bloody murder of his entire family, a teenage boy must outwit not only the mental health professionals determined to cure his delusion, but also the demonic forces only he can see.

Unspoken by Sarah Brennan
Loving a boy she has never met but with whom she has communicated telepathically all of her life, Kami Glass investigates screams heard in the nearby woods and sees lights in a long-empty manor house only to discover that her hometown has been hiding a murderer.

The House of Dead Maids by Clare B. Dunkle
Eleven-year-old Tabby Aykroyd, who would later serve as housekeeper for thirty years to the Brönte sisters, is taken from an orphanage to a ghost-filled house, where she and a wild young boy are needed for a pagan ritual.

Happy Hauntings!

With Halloween less than a week away -- here are my favorite horror books for kids . . .

Seer of Shadows by Avi

In New York City in 1872, fourteen-year-old Horace, a photographer's apprentice, becomes entangled in a plot to create fraudulent spirit photographs, but when Horace accidentally frees the real ghost of a dead girl bent on revenge, his life takes a frightening turn.

Zombie Chasers by John Kloepfer

When zombies take over Phoenix, Arizona, Zack Clarke, his best friend Rice, and his older sister's mean friend Madison Miller team up to try to defeat the undead, or at least survive one another.

Curse of the Winter Moon by Mary Casanova

In sixteenth-century France, ruled by a Church that overtaxes peasants and burns heretics, Marius must postpone his apprenticeship to care for his six-year-old brother, whose birth took their mother's life, and who the villagers, backed by the Church, believe will become a "loup garou" -- a werewolf.

A Taste for Red by Lewis Harris

When some of her classmates disappear, sixth-grader Svetlana, along with her new friends go in search of the missing students using her newfound ability as an Olfactive, one who has heightened smell, hearing, and the ability to detect vampires.

Scare Scape by Sam Fisher

Morton, James, Melissa, and their father have just moved into an old house in a new town, and when Morton finds a creepy gargoyle buried in the yard, he and his siblings each make a wish--and find out that they have unleashed chaos.

More Horror Chapter Books --

Curse of the Night Wolf by Paul Stewart

A Field Guide to Monsters by Johan Olander

Half-Minute Horrors by Susan Rich

The Improbable Cat by Allan Ahlberg

The Monstrous Memoirs of Mighty McFearless by Ahmet Zappa

The Paradise Trap by Catherine Jinks

The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud

The Stone Child by Dan Poblocki

Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn

Dare to Be Scared (Part 4)

This week, I am focusing on horror books for teens that feature witches . . .

Stolen by Vivian Vande Velde
A girl finds herself running through the forest at the edge of a village with no memory of anything, even her own name, and later learns that she might be twelve-year-old Isabelle, believed to be stolen by a witch six years before.

Half Bad by Sally Green
In modern-day England, where witches live alongside humans, Nathan, son of a White witch and the most powerful Black witch, must escape captivity before his seventeenth birthday and receive the gifts that will determine his future.

Jinx by Meg Cabot
Sixteen-year-old Jean "Jinx" Honeychurch, the descendant of a witch, must leave Iowa to live with relatives in Manhattan after the first spell she casts goes awry, but she will have to improve her skills to stop her cousin from practicing black magic that endangers them and the boy they both like.

Witch Child by Celia Rees
In 1659, fourteen-year-old Mary Newbury keeps a journal of her voyage from England to the New World and her experiences living as a witch in a community of Puritans near Salem, Massachusetts.

Dare to be Scared (Part 3)

There is just something about vampires that intrigues us . . . the eternal youth, the hypnotic powers, and the evil that lurks below the beautiful exterior.  Here are some of my favorite vampire books for teens . . .

The Darkangel by Meredith Ann Pierce

The servant girl Aeriel must choose between destroying her vampire master for his evil deeds or saving him for the sake of his beauty and the spark of goodness she has seen in him.

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

Seventeen-year-old Jessica, adopted and raised in Pennsylvania, learns that she is descended from a royal line of Romanian vampires and that she is betrothed to a vampire prince, who poses as a foreign exchange student while courting her.

Vampire High by Douglas Rees

When his family moves from California to New Sodom, Massachusetts and Cody enters Vlad Dracul Magnet School, many things seem strange, from the dark-haired, pale-skinned, supernaturally strong students to Charon, the wolf who guides him around campus on the first day.

Companions of the Night by Vivian Vande Velde

When sixteen-year-old Kerry Nowicki helps a young man escape from a group of men who claim he is a vampire, she finds herself faced with some bizarre and dangerous choices.

Bloodline: A Novel by Kate Cary

Nineteen-year-old John Shaw returns from World War One and is haunted by nightmares of not only the battles but the horrifying discovery that his regimental commander is descended from Count Dracula.

More Vampire Books --

Blue Bloods by  Melissa de la Cruz

Eighth Grade Bites by Heather Brewer

Evernight by Claudia Gray

Gemini Bites by Patrick Ryan

Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey

In the Forests of Night by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

My Swordhand Is Singing by Marcus Sedgwick

Suck It Up by Brian Meehl

Sunshine by Robin McKinley

Sweet-Blood by Pete Hautman

Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Thicker Than Water: A Novel by Carla Jablonski

Vampire Kisses by Ellen Schreiber

Dare to Be Scared (Part 2)

While horror books of all kinds are extremely popular at this time of year, zombies are the creatures that seem to be the most fascinating.  Here are some great zombie books for teens . . .

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

In a post-apocalyptic world where fences and border patrols guard the few people left from the zombies that have overtaken civilization, fifteen-year-old Benny Imura is finally convinced that he must follow in his older brother's footsteps and become a bounty hunter.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Through twists and turns of fate, orphaned Mary seeks knowledge of life, love, and especially what lies beyond her walled village and the surrounding forest, where dwell the unconsecrated, aggressive flesh-eating people who were once dead.

The End Games by T. Michael Martin

In the rural mountains of West Virginia, seventeen-year-old Michael Faris tries to protect his fragile younger brother from the horrors of the zombie apocalypse.

The Infects by Sean Beaudoin

Nero is stranded in the wilderness with fellow juvenile delinquents when their counselors transform into flesh-eating maniacs.

Eat, Brains, Love by Jeff Hart

New Jersey teens Jake Stephenson and Amanda Blake are turning into zombies and, having devoured half of their senior class, they are on the run, pursued by teen psychic Cass, a member of a government unit charged with killing zombies and keeping their existence secret.

Dare to Be Scared! (Part 1)

In celebration of Halloween coming, I thought I would focus on horror books this month for teens.  This week, I'll be sharing collections of horror short stories . . .

On the Day I Died: Stories from the Grave by Candace Fleming
In a lonely Illinois cemetery one cold October night, teen ghosts recount the stories of their deaths in different time periods, from 1870 to the present, to sixteen-year-old Mike, who unknowingly picked up a phantom hitchhiker.

Fear: 13 Stories of Suspense and Horror edited by R.L. Stine
A collection of original horror stories from authors including R.L. Stine, Meg Cabot, and Jennifer Allison.

Pretty Monsters: Stories by Kelly Link
A collection of short stories includes "The Wrong Grave," in which a boy digs up his girlfriend's corpse in order to retrieve the poems that he buried with her, and "Monster," in which a monster uses a cell phone to lure its prey.

Dracula's Guest: A Connoisseur's Collection of Victorian Vampire Stories edited by Michael Sims
A treasury of Victorian-era vampire stories includes Edgar Allan Poe's "The Oval Portrait" and Guy de Maupassant's "The Horla," in an anthology complemented by Transylvanian superstitions.

Gothic! Ten Original Dark Tales edited by Deborah Noyes
Drawing on dark fantasy and the fairy tale as well as horror and wild humor, ten acclaimed authors pay homage to the gothic tale in wide-ranging stories of the supernatural and surreal.

It Came from the Library . . . Monstrous Books

Do you like books that give you a few good chills?  Books that you need to read with the lights on?  Then try one of these . . .

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Sam LaCroix, a Seattle fast-food worker and college dropout, discovers that he is a necromancer, part of a world of harbingers, werewolves, satyrs, and one particular necromancer who sees Sam as a threat to his lucrative business of raising the dead.

Lord Loss by Darren Shan
Presumably the only witness to the horrific and bloody murder of his entire family, a teenage boy must outwit not only the mental health professionals determined to cure his delusion, but also the demonic forces only he can see.

The House of Dead Maids by Clare B. Dunkle
Eleven-year-old Tabby Aykroyd, who would later serve as housekeeper for thirty years to the Brönte sisters, is taken from an orphanage to a ghost-filled house, where she and a wild young boy are needed for a pagan ritual.

Bloodline by Kate Cary
Nineteen-year-old John Shaw returns from World War One and is haunted by nightmares of not only the battles but the horrifying discovery that his regimental commander is descended from Count Dracula.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Through twists and turns of fate, orphaned Mary seeks knowledge of life, love, and especially what lies beyond her walled village and the surrounding forest, where dwell the unconsecrated, aggressive flesh-eating people who were once dead.

More Monstrous Books
The Book of Dead Days by Marcus Sedgwick
The Death Collector by Justin Richards
Gothic! Ten Original Dark Tales by Deborah Noyes
Raven's Gate by Anthony Horowitz
Bonechiller by Graham McNamee
Hunger by Jackie Morse Kessler

Books to Give You Goosebumps

Looking for a great horror book for Halloween night?  Here's some of the best for teens . . .

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
After a family tragedy, Jacob feels compelled to explore an abandoned orphanage on an island off the coast of Wales, discovering disturbing facts about the children who were kept there.

Dracula's Guest: A Connoisseur's Collection of Victorian Vampire Stories edited by Michael Sims
A treasury of Victorian-era vampire stories includes Edgar Allan Poe's "The Oval Portrait" and Guy de Maupassant's "The Horla," in an anthology complemented by Transylvanian superstitions.

Asylum by Madeleine Roux
Three teens at a summer program for gifted students uncover shocking secets in the sanatorium-turned-dorm where they're staying--secrets that link them all to the asylum's dark past.

Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough
When Cora and her younger sister, Mimi, are sent to stay with their great Auntie Ida in an isolated village in 1958, they discover that they are in danger from a centuries-old evil and, along with village boys Roger and Peter, strive to uncover the horrifying truth before it is too late.