The 2024 Bram Stoker Awards® Final Ballot

Yesterday, the 2024 Bram Stoker Awards® Final Ballot was released. These are for books and stories published in 2024.

It is a strong ballot. I have included every nominee in all 13 categories over on the main blog so that the authors and titles are searchable by the most number of people, but in particular, I want to note that Novel, Long Fiction (novella), and First Novel are stacked. I have reviewed I reviewed 12 of the 15 nominees.

Full disclosure, I am an active member of the HWA and will be voting but honestly, I am going to have to really think about my vote. I am not kidding when I say this-- those categories could come down to a single vote. 

As resource, the Bram Stoker Awards® are one of the best, and I don't just say this because I am on the Board for the HWA (The Awards are administered by a separate committee and I have no contact with the voting process). The awards have their own separate website that is there to use to keep track of every award winner, for every year. But you can also search by author and title. 

For example, if you want to see all the times Stephen Graham Jones has been nominated and won, you can put his name in the search box and then go to this page with all of the information in one place.

Also there is a timeline on the left side bar when you click on the menu for "Winners/Nominees." Simply click on a date to see who was nominated and won that year.

So many ways to search to find a treasure trove of critically acclaimed horror titles to showcase in your library or add to your collections. It is one of the top resources for you, the library worker, as you assist patrons looking for their next scary read.

Click here to head over to the main blog for all the info, or just click here to go to the the Bram Stoker Awards® website.

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway: A Lethe Press 4 book Prize Pack

Today I have a stack of books by one of my favorite small presses. 2 finished books and 2 ARCs-- all for 1 lucky winner. Details below but first, here are the rules on how to enter:

1. You need to be affiliated with an American Library. My rationale behind that is that I will be encouraging you to read these books and share them with patrons. While many of them are advanced reader copies that you cannot add to your collections, if you get the chance to read them, my hope is that you will consider ordering a copy for your library and give away the ARC away as a prize or pass it on to a fellow staff member.
2. If you are interested in being included in any giveaway at any time, you must email me at zombiegrl75 [at] gmail [dot] com with the subject line "#HorrorForLibraries." In the body of the email all you have to say is that you want to be entered and the name of your library.
3. Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. Meaning you enter once, and you are entered until you win. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm each week will be considered for that week. I use Random.org and have a member of my family witness the "draw"based off your number in the Google Sheet.
4. If you win, you are ineligible to win again for 4 weeks; you will have to re-enter after that time to be considered [I have a list of who has won, when, and what title]. However, if you do not win, you carry over into the next week. There is NO NEED to reenter.

Click here for the previous giveaway. Our winner was Kim from OH. Now on to this week's giveaway.

Lethe Press is a trusted small press. Their tag line is: "We're Weird and Queer....and Unashamed!" Their website is easy to navigate and has lots of information about their books and how to order them. They put out quality titles with bin terms of the writing/editing and how well they stand up to multiple checkouts.

They put out books by well known authors and ups and comers. They regularly publish Philip Frassi, for example. That book got a star review from me! And in the stack I am giving away there are two author you need to know: James Bennett and Tyler Jones names you need to know.

Speaking of my stack, here it is:

Below I will list the titles and link to the Lethe Press site for more information, but because there are 4 titles, I will not have the entire plot description-- that would make this post absurdly long. But I am including a blurb so you know a bit before clicking through for more information. 

The titles are:

The Death of Mountain by Jordan Kurella (ARC- book coming March 31).

"Fans of folkloric fiction with a strong moral bent will find much to savor." - Publishers Weekly

Preaching to the Perverted by James Bennett (finished copy):

"I really loved this collection. It has great range - Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling's fairy tale series, cosmic horror, noir, The Prestige, coming of age stories, the gothic of Mary Shelley - but there's nothing derivative about it. It's heartfelt and gutsy. Filled with beautiful horrors and heartbreaks. James Bennett is a superb writer." - Priya Sharma, World Fantasy Award-winning author of Pomegranates

Pushing Daisy by Christopher O'Halloran  (ARC- book coming May 2025)

Daisy did not get the life she deserved. Despite her compassion, nothing she did made a difference in the world. With her through it all was her selfish, bitter husband, working a job he hated while they lived off her income as a nurse. The peace Daisy has carried in life does not follow her to the grave. A dead, bloodshot eye glowers from a dark bathroom. Below it, her deranged smile. Daisy, a mad corpse, haunts their townhouse. She’s back and intent on punishing Roger Darling for his mistreatment. Her death shook him enough to brave his faults, but this improved man does her no good now. He can try to escape into the arms of others, but at the end of the day, we all return home. To keep his new friends and maintain his sanity, Roger must help Daisy move on before her violence touches everything he’s built. She won’t leave on her own. Not for a second time.

Burn the Plans by Tyler Jones (Finished copy of an Esquire "Best horror of the year.")

“Trust me: Get this collection. Tyler is an amazing storyteller and he will crush you with the weight of these stories.” – Sadie Hartmann “Mother Horror,” author of 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered

There it is! Four books going to one winner. What a great giveaway! Enter once and you are entered going forward. And I have a lot of the major titles for Spring and Summer in my possession ready to give away as soon as their reviews post. So you will want to get yourself entered now!

In the meantime, I have been enjoying focusing on smaller presses to get the word out about some great books you might not see covered other places.

Scheduling note: I am visiting family next week so there will be no giveaway. It will return on March 6th. But entries are always accepted.

Good luck. 

Announcing the 2025 Summer Scares Titles

Click on the image to access
a folder with the logo graphics 

In celebration of National Library Lover’s Day, the Horror Writers Association (HWA), in partnership in partnership with Booklist, Book Riot, iREAD, and NoveList®, a division of EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO), is delighted to announce the seventh annual Summer Scares reading list, which includes titles selected by a panel of authors and library workers and is designed to promote Horror as a great reading option for all ages, during any time of the year.

"Is anyone else already missing Halloween? Is anyone else already dying for summer? Well great news! SUMMER SCARES combines both of our loves with a carefully curated list of horrifying books, giving you the perfect excuse to read chilling tales in hot weather! (If indeed you needed an excuse),” said #1 New York Times Bestseller author Kendare Blake, this year’s Summer Scares spokesperson. “I am so excited about every one of these books; they're creepy and delightful, brutal and terrifying, inventive and just plain good reads. The committee has done a bang-up job--there's truly something here for everyone, but why not try them all? Young or old(er), the time has come to fill your scary reading lists."

Every year, three titles are selected in each of three categories: Adult, Young Adult, and Middle Grade. For 2025 those selected titles are:

Click on the image to access all of 
the 2025 Summer Scares collages

Adult Selections:

Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke and Other Misfortunes by Eric LaRocca (Titan Books, 2022)

Reprieve by James Han Mattson (William Morrow, 2021)

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling (Harper Voyager, 2019)

Click on the image to access all of 
the 2025 Summer Scares collages

Young Adult Selections:

Devils Unto Dust by Emma Berquist (Greenwillow, 2018)

The Getaway by Lamar Giles (Scholastic Press, 2022)

Find Him Where You Left Him Dead by Kristen Simmons (Tor Teen, 2023)

Click on the image to access all of 
the 2025 Summer Scares collages

Middle Grade Selections:

Eerie Tales from the School of Screams by Graham Annable (First Second, 2022)

Ravenous Things by Derrick Chow (Disney Hyperion, 2022)

Hide and Seeker by Daka Hermon (Scholastic Press, 2020)

Summer Scares aims to introduce Horror titles to school and public library workers so they can start conversations with readers that extend beyond the books on each list and promote reading for years to come. In addition to the annual list of recommended titles, the Summer Scares Programming Guide, produced each year by the Springfield-Greene County (MO) Library– free for any library to access– is back with the tools libraries need to connect with their patrons. 

“The 2025 guide, developed by the HWA’s Library Advisory Council, is the library worker’s roadmap to providing exciting and meaningful experiences for their patrons through Summer Scares, whether they're putting up book displays, hosting author events, or planning an entire Summer Scares program series,” states Konrad Stump, co-creator of the programming guide. “We are also excited to enhance our partnership with iREAD by selecting one title in each age group that fits iREAD’s 2025 theme, “Level Up at Your Library,” as well as creating sample partner programs with their input.” The guide will be available beginning March 1, 2025 on the Summer Scares Resource page at http://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/p/summer-scares.html

Along with the guide, the Summer Scares committee will work with both the recommended list authors and Horror authors from all over the country to provide free programming to libraries. Any library looking to host horror-themed events anytime of year is encouraged to email libraries@horror.org to get started.

Booklist is helping to kick off Summer Scares 2025 in March with a series of three, free webinars with this year’s featured authors in conversation with committee members:

• Monday, March 10, 2025, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Middle Grade authors and moderated by Julia Smith
• Thursday, March 20, 2025, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Young Adult authors and moderated by Kendare Blake
• Monday March 24, 2025, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Adult authors and moderated by Becky Spratford 

Each webinar lasts one hour. Anyone may register to participate for free at https://www.booklistonline.com/webinars. Recordings will be available for on-demand viewing after the live events at https://www.booklistonline.com/webinars-archive.

All are welcome to join the Summer Scares committee and featured authors at the HWA’s Librarians’ Day, taking place in person on Friday, June 13, 2025 in Stamford, CT as part of StokerConⓇ. Details at: https://www.stokercon2025.com/

The HWA is a non-profit organization of writers and publishing professionals and the oldest organization dedicated to the Horror/Dark Fiction genre. One of the HWA’s missions is to foster an appreciation of reading through extensive programming and partnerships with libraries, schools, and literacy-based organizations.

The 2025 Summer Scares program committee consists of author Kendare Blake, HWA Library Committee Co-Chairs Becky Spratford and Konrad Stump, as well as academic library director Carolyn Ciesla, Book Riot Editor and YA specialist Kelly Jensen, Booklist Editor and Middle Grade specialist Julia Smith, and Manager of Reader Services at NoveList Yaika Sabat.

For more information about the Summer Scares reading program, including committee member bios and how to obtain promotional materials and schedule events with the authors/committee members, please visit The Summer Scares Resource Page (http://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/p/summer-scares.html) or email HWA Library Committee Co-Chairs Becky Spratford and Konrad Stump at libraries at horror dot org.

Click on the image to access all of 
the 2025 Summer Scares collages

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway: Blood Cypress by Elizabeth Broadbent

Today I have an early finished copy of a book that is not out until April 3, from a series of novellas by different authors that I am already on the record as loving. Details below but first, here are the rules on how to enter:

1. You need to be affiliated with an American Library. My rationale behind that is that I will be encouraging you to read these books and share them with patrons. While many of them are advanced reader copies that you cannot add to your collections, if you get the chance to read them, my hope is that you will consider ordering a copy for your library and give away the ARC away as a prize or pass it on to a fellow staff member.
2. If you are interested in being included in any giveaway at any time, you must email me at zombiegrl75 [at] gmail [dot] com with the subject line "#HorrorForLibraries." In the body of the email all you have to say is that you want to be entered and the name of your library.
3. Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. Meaning you enter once, and you are entered until you win. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm each week will be considered for that week. I use Random.org and have a member of my family witness the "draw"based off your number in the Google Sheet.
4. If you win, you are ineligible to win again for 4 weeks; you will have to re-enter after that time to be considered [I have a list of who has won, when, and what title]. However, if you do not win, you carry over into the next week. There is NO NEED to reenter.

Click here for the previous giveaway. Our winner was Christina from MA. Now on to this week's giveaway.

Raw Dog Screaming Press is one of my favorite and most trusted small presses in Horror. They have won major awards, appeared on numerous main stream best lists, and most importantly for us in libraries, you can buy their books through your normal ordering procedures. 

Back in 2023 they began a great series of standalone novellas in a series called, Selected Papers From the Consortium for the Study go Anomalous Phenomena. From Goodreads:

The Selected Papers from the Consortium for the Study of Anomalous Phenomena (CSAP) is a line of novellas curated by editor/academic R.J. Joseph. She serves both as editor for the line and also imaginary “Crypt-Keeper,” introducing each tale as a found document and part of the fictional journal produced by the CSAP society.

There are now 7 books in the series (click here for a full list). In the January 2024 issue of Library Journal, I reviewed Book #2 and LOVED it. Now, Book #7 is set to come out on April 3, 2025, Blood Cypress by Elizabeth Broadbent. From the publisher's description:

No one cares when Lila Carson’s ten-year-old brother Beau disappears. He can’t speak. He throws tantrums. He’s a useless Carson, one of those kids in a broken-shuttered house that lost its glory when his father died. When the sheriff and his good ol’ boy deputies show up to investigate, they eye up Lila and call her twin brother, Quentin, names. A closeted bisexual girl in the South, she’s terrified. 

Lower Congaree recites it like an eleventh commandment: Don’t go in that swamp. But as the long night drags on, it’s clear Beau disappeared behind those ancient trees. The sheriff’s deputies won’t risk going back there.

Lila might not have a choice.

I trust this series and this author and I would encourage all of you to order all 7 books in this novella series. Here is the info from the Raw Dog Screaming Press site about how to order their books for your library. But this week, one lucky winner is going to get a finished copy of this book, 6 weeks before it releases courtesy of Broadbent herself.

Enter today and you are entered going forward.

Good luck!

#HorrorForLibraries Giveaway: A Primer to Gemma Files-- Finished Hard Cover Copy

Today I have a finished copy of a book of short fiction by Horror master Gemma Files, from a great series of books. Details below but first, here are the rules on how to enter:

1. You need to be affiliated with an American Library. My rationale behind that is that I will be encouraging you to read these books and share them with patrons. While many of them are advanced reader copies that you cannot add to your collections, if you get the chance to read them, my hope is that you will consider ordering a copy for your library and give away the ARC away as a prize or pass it on to a fellow staff member.
2. If you are interested in being included in any giveaway at any time, you must email me at zombiegrl75 [at] gmail [dot] com with the subject line "#HorrorForLibraries." In the body of the email all you have to say is that you want to be entered and the name of your library.
3. Each entry will be considered for EVERY giveaway. Meaning you enter once, and you are entered until you win. I will randomly draw a winner on Fridays sometime after 5pm central. But only entries received by 5pm each week will be considered for that week. I use Random.org and have a member of my family witness the "draw"based off your number in the Google Sheet.
4. If you win, you are ineligible to win again for 4 weeks; you will have to re-enter after that time to be considered [I have a list of who has won, when, and what title]. However, if you do not win, you carry over into the next week. There is NO NEED to reenter.

Click here for the previous giveaway. Our winner was Lucy from MO. Now on to this week's giveaway.

Eric Guignard is an award winning writer and editor. In 2017 he launched an ambitious series of "primer" books exploring short dark fiction through his small press. All of the books are created in conjunction with the authors as well. I have been a supporter of this series since it launched. Click here to read a guest post by Guignard when I asked him to introduce the new series to my readers.

The series has keep chugging along with Guignard showcasing the work of the genre's most important short fiction writers in gorgeous hardcover books. Click here to see all seven titles. 

In honor of the release of the latest book in the series, I am offering a giveaway of a finished hardcover copy (courtesy of Guignard) of Exploring Dark Short Fiction #7: A Primer to Gemma Files. From the publisher's description:

Named "One of the genre's most original and innovative voices" (L.A. Review of Books) and "An expert at terrifying prose" (LitReactor), Canadian author Gemma Files has been penning gritty and macabre fiction since 1993, earning industry awards and critical acclaim from sources such as National Public Radio, Publishers Weekly, and The National Post. Files imbues her cross-genre work with layers like dark heartbreak upon horror, built over the vignettes of life we may find ourselves in, but for one slight turn of reality.

Dark Moon Books and editor Eric J. Guignard bring you this introduction to her work, the seventh in a series of primers exploring modern masters of literary dark short fiction. Herein is a chance to discover-or learn more of-the evocative voice of Gemma Files, as beautifully illustrated by artist Michelle Prebich.  

Included within these pages are: 

• Six short stories, one written exclusively for this book 

• Author interview 

• Biography and bibliography 

• Academic commentary by Michael Arnzen, PhD (former humanities chair and professor of the year, Seton Hill University) 

• … and more! 

 Enter this doorway to the vast and fantastic: Get to know Gemma Files.

Consider adding this and all of the books in the series to your horror collections. They make for a great introduction to all of the authors' work as well as offering a brand new story to fans. There are also a great option for high school students who need to do an author project.

Enter now and you are entered going forward. 

Good luck!