halloween spirit without halloween scares.
Sometimes, all a girl wants to do is indulge in the Halloween spirit without fully being bombarded by Dracula, ghosties, or gory horror. A lowkey spooky book is a must-need in times of crisis like this. I love thinking I’m reading a regular novel about a psychopathic woman getting vengeance on her enemies, and then BOOM! She’s a vampire. We simply love to see it. Because of this, I’ve put together a list of books that perfectly capture this vibe and overall spooky-yet-realistic aesthetic.
Bunny – Mona Awad
This book and all its culty glory is one for the ages. It’s confusing, spooky nature is perfect for the Halloween spirit. The characters in this book are witches, but they aren’t. They’re a cult, but they aren’t. They’re psycho…but they aren’t. You will read this book and have to google it after in order to try and figure out what happened. This is a BIG recommendation from me.
Death In Her Hands – Ottessa Moshfegh
If you know me, you know I love Ottessa Moshfegh. She is the queen of writing characters who are confusing emotionally, mentally, and in any other way you can imagine. Death In Her Hands follows an unnamed protagonist living in the Maine woods who slowly drives herself to insanity. She thinks there are dead people walking, and she tries to solve a mystery that nobody knows whether or not it’s based in reality.
Woman, Eating – Claire Kohda
Famously an exit from the Twilight-esque trope of the vampire, Woman, Eating follows Lydia, a twenty-something vampire who has to navigate life without sucking blood from humans. This book delves deep into the moral implications of the action in a humorous and engaging way. It also talks about mother-daughter relationships through the lens of a young vampire. Though the book is not necessarily spooky, the vampiric protagonist brings a layer of Halloween spirit that is destined to impress.
Nightbitch – Rachel Yoder
This book is insane. I’ve mentioned it before in a previous HC article, and I definitely think it’s worth mentioning again. It’s about a woman’s transformation into a werewolf while trying to balance motherhood at the same time. Her husband basically tries to gaslight her into submitting into her role of the passive woman, but she refuses. The imagery in this novel is a wonder, and you resonate with the protagonist more and more every page.
Twilight – Stephenie Meyer
Here it is. The hail mary of all literature. The greatest novel of all time–truly historical. Even though I just said that Woman, Eating left the Twilight type of trope of the vampire, I never said I didn’t love that trope. Twilight is, as you probably know, a pop culture staple. Stephenie Meyer’s prose may not be the most advanced or insightful of all time, but I do think that this story is so good to completely dive into for about three days, then move on.