By Allison Riggs
It’s officially my favorite time of year. Halloween is just around the corner, the weather is chillier, pumpkin spice everything is readily available, and football is back. However, the very best part of fall is that it’s also that time of year when mood readers like myself tend to be drawn to certain genres, ones I love giving reading suggestions for.
Readers’ advisory questions are my jam. I love a good challenge of trying to find someone’s next favorite read. As a Teen Librarian, it also helps that I enjoy reading young adult novels. Therefore, I wanted to help other librarians that may not be as familiar with young adult titles by making additional readers’ advisory tools they can use when needed. To jump-start my first of several readers’ advisory posts, I have organized some young adult titles by different popular horror themed categories/readalike suggestions, and I’ve also included some appeal terms to give you a basic idea of what each book entails.
Whether you have patrons looking for zombies, thrills, or gore this fall season, I have a suggestion for them! I hope this list will help you during your next patron interaction, inspire a display, or make you add books to your own TBR pile. Happy reading and recommending!
For fans of the movie Happy Death Day
There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins (slasher horror, small town murder, page turner, some romance)
#Murdertrending by Gretchen McNeil (dystopian, gruesome, suspenseful, fast-paced)
Books with Zombies
Dread Nation by Justina Ireland (own voices, historical fiction, emotionally intense)
Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry (action-packed, world-building, apocalypse)
For fans of the Netflix show Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw (magic, revenge, small town, mystery, romance)
These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling (black magic, mystery, LGBTQIA)
Books that Will Keep You Up at Night
Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand (character-driven, creepy, multiple POVs, LGBTQIA)
The Merciless by Danielle Vega (exorcism, gruesome, graphic horror)
Those Looking for Some Short Stories
Through the Woods by Emily Carroll (graphic novel, very creepy)
Monster Girls and Slasher Boys by various authors (gruesome, classic horror)
Thrills and Chills
And the Trees Crept In by Dawn Kurtagich (creepy, thought-provoking, unreliable narrator)
Contagion by Erin Bowman (action-packed, pandemic, multiple POVs, science fiction)
Illinois Library Association 