Gruesome novels to read in time for Halloween

HALLOWEEN is right around the corner, and horror fans can’t wait to celebrate it.

This holiday is the best time to pull out all the scary stops, whether that be with the decor you put up, the movies you watch, or even the books that you read.

If you’re looking for something that’s sure to make your stomach turn this coming Halloween, here are some books you can read while curled up on the couch with a pumpkin spice latte… and probably with all the lights turned on.

Pretty Girls – Karin Slaughter

Content warnings: Violence, gore, sex trafficking, sexual themes, sexual harassment / abuse, self-harm, eating disorders, rape, torture, murder, kidnapping, suicide, drug abuse, alcoholism, pedophilia, body horror

Karin Slaughter’s novel looks at the disappearance of a young girl named Julia, who has been gone for over 20 years. Her sisters, Claire and Lydia, have since moved on with their lives, but the wound is ripped open once again after Claire’s husband is killed.

Slowly, the mysteries behind these two cases start to unravel, and it soon becomes evident that there are more connections between the two than one would expect.

As per user Deanna on Goodreads, this book looks at how different types of people are affected when a crime is committed – how people cope, how it shapes their actions and futures moving forward, or how it reveals just how much of a monster one can be.

This book is not just about the disappearance of a young girl, or the murder of Claire’s husband, though. Be ready for large amounts of graphic depictions of violence and murder, as well as roller coaster ride of twists and turns that you’d never expect.

Playground – Aron Beauregard

Content warnings: Violence, gore, sexual themes, sexual harassment / abuse, rape, torture, incest, pedophilia, body horror

This splatterpunk novel is often described as “SAW” but with children, and understandably so.

To help their low-income families, a group of parents allow their children to visit the estate of an old woman named Geraldine Borden, where they are tasked to test the playground equipment Geraldine has been working on.

What they don’t know – and what their children are soon to find out – is just how horrific this playground truly is.

For these children, it’s no longer about the money. When they find out what their parents have gotten them into, all they become focused on is making it out alive.

Take note that, because this falls underneath the splatterpunk genre, it is as gory as gore can get. It is not at all recommended for the faint of heart, and it is definitely not everyone’s cup of tea given that the language it uses can get rather crude; some have even described Beauregard’s choice of wording to be rather odd.

But if you’re well-versed in splatterpunk or extreme horror and are looking for something that will truly leave you scarred, you can never go wrong with some Beauregard, who many have deemed one of the masters in splatterpunk.

As per one review from user contemptment on The Story Graph, if you can get past all the body horror and violence, “You will find a book that is about the effects of prolonged trauma and the constant itching fantasy of breaking free from the metaphorical leash that abusers tie to the necks of their victims.”

Uzumaki – Junji Ito

Content warnings: Violence, gore, cannibalism, self-harm, suicide, torture, body horror

If you’re looking for something shorter and on the lighter side – or at least, lighter compared to the previous two – try Junji Ito’s graphic novel “Uzumaki”.

Junji Ito always does a wonderful job of making even the most mundane of things horrifying, and in this case, his avenue in scaring readers for this piece is spirals.

This graphic novel in particular follows a small seaside town called Kurouzu-cho, where a curse is slowly taking over the lives of all of its citizens. This curse affects people in different ways; for some it manifests physically, and others, mentally.

Some grow to become obsessed with spirals – with becoming them or with getting away from them entirely – while others turn into them in some way, shape, or form.

Despite only being twenty chapters long, this book is filled with morbidly graphic imagery that is not for the faint of heart, as what starts out as weird occurrences here and there quickly turns into an absolute hellscape.

Gaby Agbulos

Gaby Agbulos wants nothing more than to become a writer -- to be able to tell stories unheard of by the masses. She is currently majoring in Communication at the University of Santo Tomas, and after college, hopes to make an impact with the stories she writes, be it big or small.