Announcing the 2026 Summer Scares Titles

In celebration of National Library Lover’s Day and Friday the 13th, the Horror Writers Association (HWA), in partnership with Booklist, Book Riot, iREAD, and NoveList®, a division of EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO), is delighted to announce the eighth 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.

This year, Summer Scares welcomes New York Times Bestselling author Jennifer McMahon as the 2026 spokesperson:

"We need horror now more than ever. Stories to unsettle us, to make us question what we think we know, to show us how to confront the darkness and come out the other side,” said McMahon. “Stories that we will put down and feel changed by. This collection of books chosen by the Summer Scares committee perfectly showcases the true diversity of horror today, and is more evidence that we are at the peak of a horror renaissance. These are books to get lost in, books to share with others in your life, books to talk about and ponder over. So come along, take my hand and prepare to step into the darkness with me this summer. Yes, there’s plenty of scary stuff in these books. But there’s also a whole lot of hope. Oh, and don’t close your eyes — you don’t want to miss a thing along the way."

Every year, three titles are selected in each of three categories: Adult, Young Adult, and Middle Grade. For 2026 those selected titles are:

Adult Selections:

A Botanical Daughter, by Noah Medlock (Titan, 2024) 

Never Whistle at Night, ed. Shane Hawk & Theodore C. Van Alst (Vintage, 2023)

Maeve Fly, by CJ Leede (Tor Nightfire, 2023)

Young Adult Selections:

What We Harvest, by Ann Fraistat (Delacorte Press, 2022) 

Gorgeous Gruesome Faces, by Linda Cheng (Roaring Brook Press, 2023) 

Our Shadows Have Claws, ed. Yamile Saied Méndez & Amparo Ortiz (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2022)  

Middle Grade Selections:

Garlic and the Vampire, by Bree Paulsen (Harper, 2021) 

It Came from the Trees, by Ally Russell (Delacorte Press, 2023)  

This Appearing House, by Ally Malinenko (Harper, 2022)

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—free for any library to access—is back with the tools libraries need to connect with their patrons. 

“The 2026 guide, developed and designed by the HWA Libraries team, is the library worker’s roadmap to providing exciting and meaningful experiences for their communities through Summer Scares, whether they’re putting up book displays, leading discussion groups, developing events, or orchestrating an entire Summer Scares program series,” states Konrad Stump, co-creator of the programming guide. “With select titles aligned with iREAD’s 2026 theme (Plant a Seed, Read), the guide makes it easy for libraries across the world to incorporate Summer Scares into their summer reading programs and engage patrons of all ages in the horror genre.”

The guide will be available beginning March 1, 2026 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 2026 in March with a series of three free webinars with this year’s featured authors in conversation with committee members:

• Thursday, March 12, 2026, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Middle-Grade authors and moderated by Julia Smith. Click here to register.
• Monday, March 23, 2026, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Young Adult authors and moderated by Kelly Jensen. Click here to register.
• Thursday, March 26, 2026, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Adult authors and moderated by Jennifer McMahon. Click here to register.

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 5, 2026 in Pittsburg, PA as part of StokerConⓇ. Please visit https://www.stokercon.com/ for more information.

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 2026 Summer Scares program committee consists of author Jennifer McMahon, HWA Library Committee Co-Chairs Becky Spratford and Konrad Stump, as well as academic library director and ILA President Carolyn Ciesla, Book Riot Senior Editor and YA specialist Kelly Jensen, Booklist Senior Editor and Middle Grade specialist Julia Smith, and Manager of Reader Content and 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.

Please click here for access to our free folder of graphics including title collages courtesy of Kelly Jensen.

Click on the image to access the
Summer Scares 2026 Graphics folder

31 Days of Horror: Day 27-- Spotlight on Middle Grade Horror with Librarian and Author Ally Malinenko and a Bonus Giveaway!

One of the top Middle Grade Horror novels of the year is Ally Malinenko's Broken Dolls. I shared my thoughts on this immersive and terrifying story here. But you don't have to believe me; Stephen King loves this book too.

Malinenko is not just a horror author, she is also a librarian, and the two sides of her collided this month when she chose to celebrate with a 31 Days event of her own by tweeting out 1 middle grade horror book you should read a day for 31 straight days. You can see that entire thread here (don't forget, we still have a few more days for her to add to the thread).

As I watched her add to this thread daily, I realized, I needed Malinenko to come here and share more than just titles. I asked her to write an essay in the vein of why I love middle grade horror. Below is her essay on why middle grade horror is important to kids and why they need access to it always.

Thanks Ally!

(And stay tuned after her essay for a bonus giveaway)

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When I tell people I write middle grade horror I get a variety of reactions. Everything from “what’s that?” to “kids shouldn’t read horror” to “when are you going to write a real horror.” So today I wanted to talk a little bit about middle grade horror – about why I write it, why it’s important, why kids need it and some recommendations that I have been posting this spooky month on middle grade horror YOU should be reading.

So let’s start with what is middle grade horror? Middle grade is a term that is used to refer to the readers between easy readers and young adult readers. Middle Grade horror is usually marketed towards 8-12 year olds. 

Now, for the “kid’s shouldn’t read horror” – my favorite response, here’s why that’s wrong. Middle grade horror is one of the best places to talk about hard things. In my second novel This Appearing House I had my main character have to come to terms with a very serious illness she had when she was younger but never processed. In my most recent book Broken Dolls, my main character has to learn how to process her grief, but also how to talk about it – she has selective mutism. Horror is safe scary. What do I mean by that?  Horror offers Solace. It’s not happening to me, but I’m following along with something scary which is thrilling. Kids live in a very scary world. They live through life-changing pandemics and school shootings. They know the world is scary. But adults tend to want kids to look the other way. Instead, I think we have a responsibility to kids to arm them with the weapons they need. When a kid reads a scary book the learn how to fight monsters so when they’re older they’ll know how to fight the real monsters that eventually show up in all of our lives. 

Scary books give kid’s agency, something that we adults take for granted. We’re used to deciding what time we get up and what we’re going to do all day and what to eat but kids don’t get that. By their nature and status they are powerless. Another thing adults sometimes forget is that kids have the full range of emotions, they just don’t have the language to express it. When you read a book you are rooting for the hero and that is especially true for scary books. You got into the dark but you make it back out again. You survived! 

Horror Tells the Truth. Let’s be honest we lie to kids a lot. We tell them the dog went to go live on a farm. We tell them everything is fine when mom and dad aren’t speaking at the dinner table. We sweep the truth into the corner and hope the kids won’t find it. But horror doesn’t do that. Horror tells the truth. Horror puts you in front of a monster and then gives you a sword to fight it. 

Horror Teaches Important Lessons about Fear – Fear offers no middle ground. You either succumb to it or you overcome it. There is no in between. Storytelling is how we build empathy. It’s how we connect with people. It’s a way of making connection that teaches kids that they can overcome their fears

And finally kids should read horror because horror is FUN. You ever go to a scary movie with a friend and you both get startled so badly by the same thing that you start laughing? No one would ever think about taking a funny book out of a kids hand but they scoff at kids who want to read horror. Horror for kids is a necessary and important genre and not one we need to be afraid of. Honestly it’s a privilege to write horror for kids, to watch them go, shoulders back, head held high, right into the dark and know they’re gonna be okay. 

Wes Craven had this response to the question “Why would people pay money to get scared” and he said, “You don’t enter the theater and pay your money to be afraid. You enter the theater and pay your money to have the fears that are already in you when you go into a theater dealt with and put into a narrative.” 

To my last point – “when are you going to write a real horror book” – let me tell you, adults will give you up to 50 pages or more to get to them. A kid? You have to hook them from the first line and you have to keep them hooked. That takes skill. That takes careful planning. People who dismiss kidlit horror are doing themselves a disservice. And writers, especially should be paying attention. I will one day write an adult horror, I’m sure. But for now, it is an absolute honor to be writing horror for kids.

So to that, I would like to share with you some of my favorite horror stories for the kid in your life, or the one that still lives in your heart. 

1. The Ghosts of Bitterfly Bay by Mary Averling. 

This is not only one of my favorite middle grade horror books it’s one of my favorite books. Period. Maude isn’t your typical 12 year old – mostly because she’s a ghost. Along with her best friend Kit and her little brother Scratch she haunts a cottage in the woods and scares off vacationers. When Scratch and Kit go missing, Maudie knows it’s the work of Longfingers – a monster from her own nightmares. Averling has crafted a spooky tale full of love, heartbreak, and the importance of facing the truth. A story that reminds us that the only way to truly know ourselves is to face the scariest parts of our story. This is an instant classic.

2. The Nest by Kenneth Oppel. 

When I started writing middle grade this is one of the books I picked up. It taught me how hard you really can go when writing middle grade horror. This book is scary. Steve is a worrier and right now he’s worried the most about his sick newborn brother. So when he starts to dream about a mysterious wasp queen who offers to “fix” the baby, he thinks everything is going to be okay. All he has to do is say Yes. But what does saying yes really mean? Yes is a powerful word that cannot be taken back. Honestly if you read ONE book on this list, read this one.

3. Nightbooks by J.A. White

This modern day spin on the Scheherazade story is a spooky fun ride. Unlike the Nest, that is legitimately frightening, Nightbooks is FUN and for budding writers, contains lots of fun tidbits about writing with suspense, creating plot twists and how interior logic works. It is the story of a boy, imprisoned by a witch who must tell a new scary story every night in order to stay alive. Also they made a great little movie out of it too! 

4. The Clackity by Lora Senf

This Stoker award nominated book is one of my favorites. Book one in the Blight Harbor series, follows Evie von Rathe attempts to rescue her beloved Aunt Desdemona. From the depts of the abandoned slaughterhouse, Evie meets The Clackity who makes a deal with her that he can help her find her aunt in exchange for the ghost of John Jeffery Pope, a serial killer who stalked Blight Harbor one hundred years ago. Yes, a serial killer. In a middle grade book. It’s brilliant.

5. Scary Stories for Young Foxes by Christian McKay Heidicker. Antler Wood is haunted, and no kit foxes are safe. When Mia and Uly are separated from their litter they discover a world full of monsters. The stories in this collection are both heartwarming and bone chilling at the same time. It’s a fantastic read. 

Horror is good about talking about what makes us human. And about what makes us monstrous. Kids deserve to hear both. I read an excellent piece by Ally Russell (whose books you should also read) called The Lonliness of the Horror Fan in which she said this:

“If you know a young horror fan, protect them at all costs. Let them explore the boundaries of their fear. When the terror becomes too much, kids know how to close the book or press pause. Let them use horror to tackle the traumas that this world will wreak on their young souls. They may use the genre to confront their fears or to heal. They may use the genre for entertainment. They might become lifelong fans… or not. That’s all right. The important thing is that they have support and space to confront their fears in a safe setting, because the monsters out there ::points to the world around us:: are much worse than the monsters in our media.”

Middle grade horror makes a pact with it’s reader. It says take my hand, we’re going to go into the forest. It’s going to be dark. It’s going to be scary, but in the end, we’re going to come back out into the light. And isn’t that why we go into the dark? To return to the light?

With middle grade horror there is always hope. Hope is the root power of storytelling. And that is the power of horror.

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Thanks to Malinenko for sharing her perspective. Now to that promised giveaway. I have one finished copy of Scaring and Daring: Terrifying Takes on 15 Classic Tales, a Middle Grade Horror Anthology from the Horror Writers Association edited by Eric J Guignard. From Goodreads: 

Abandon all hope, ye who enter here!

Get ready for a terrifying spin on some of literature’s most beloved tales—no story is safe! From Captain Hook’s run-in with dark magic to Sherlock Holmes narrowly escaping graveyard spirits to a happily never after for Cinderella, this horror anthology is anything but a bedtime story. In this terrifying new collection for young readers, the best-loved stories from the literary canon are revisited and reimagined with a deadly twist by some of the top authors working in middle grade today.

Featuring tales from New York Times bestselling authors Jonathan Maberry and Kelley Armstrong, Carlos Hernandez, Lisa Morton, Maurice Broaddus, and many others, this collection will haunt you long after you turn the last page. Read on—if you dare! 

Rules are the same as every week. Click here for last week's giveaway to see the rules on how to enter. 

There will be one more giveaway this week but all winners will be drawn on Friday 11/1.

Good luck to all. 

The Summer Scares FREE Resource Guide is Now Live

 Click here or see below.

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

Summer Scares 2025 Resources for Library Workers

Below is a list of resources for any library to use in order to participate in Summer Scares. If you are interested in hosting a Summer Scares author at your library (free virtual appearances for any, in person on a case by case basis), please email libraries at horror dot org.

• The Summer Scares 2025 Title Announcement
• Titles also listed below
• Graphics folder access, with the logo and collages for all of the books and books by category (courtesy of committee member Kelly Jensen)
• Click here to download the FREE 2025 Summer Scares Programming Guide
• New this year-- content provided by members of the HWA's Library Advisory Council
• Booklist hosts a series of webinars with each set of 3 authors and the recordings will all be FREE to view. Links below to access them all.
• 2025 MG authors in conversation with Julia Smith, Senior Editor, Books for Youth
• Live on 3/10/25 at 2pm eastern
• click here to signup
• 2025 YA authors in conversation with Kendare Blake, Author and 2025 Summer Scares Spokesperson
• Live on 3/20/25 at 2pm eastern
• click here to signup (link coming soon)
• 2025 Adult authors in conversation with Becky Spratford, Co-Chair HWA Library Committee
• Live on 3/24/25 at 2pm eastern
• click here to signup (link coming soon)
• Listen to Committee members and some librarians who use Summer Scares in their libraries talk about the program in general and this year's selected titles on Booklist's Shelf Care
• Link coming soon

More links coming as the year progresses..... See 2025 titles below.

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)

31 Days of Horror: Day 31-- Announcing the 2025 Summer Scares Spokesperson and Program Timeline

Happy Halloween everyone. Today is the end of our 31 Days together, but as usual we end with a look forward. Today is the announcement marking the beginning of Summer Scares 2025!

This will be the last you hear from me on the Horror blog until 11/14 when I will return with a new #HorrorForLibraies Giveaway.

HWA ANNOUNCES SUMMER SCARES READING PROGRAM 2025 SPOKESPERSON AND TIMELINE

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), in partnership with Booklist, Book Riot, iREAD, and NoveList®, a division of EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO), is proud to announce the sixth annual Summer Scares, a reading program that provides libraries and schools with an annual list of recommended horror titles for adult, young adult (teen), and middle grade readers. It introduces readers and librarians to new authors and helps start conversations extending beyond the books from each list, promoting reading for years to come.

Summer Scares is proud to announce the 2025 spokesperson, #1 New York Times Bestselling author Kendare Blake:

"As a proud member of the club of people who read Stephen King too young, I am both honored and absolutely psyched to be this years' Summer Scares Spokesperson. Long ago, in elementary school, I had a beloved librarian with hair as black as night and teeth like Nosferatu. On dreary, wintry afternoons she would gather the children near and read to us from Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, her eyes brightening with our every small whimper. She was, in short, THE BEST. I hope to meet many more librarians this year with her same, spooky spirit. So come along, folks of all ages, and let's read the scary stuff all summer long! It's not just for October anymore." 

Blake, along with a committee of six library workers, will select three recommended fiction titles in each reading level, totaling nine Summer Scares selections. The program aims to encourage a conversation at libraries worldwide about the horror genre across all age levels and ultimately attract more adults, teens, and children interested in reading. Official Summer Scares designated authors will also make themselves available to public and school libraries.

The committee’s final selections will be announced on February 14, 2025, Library Lover’s Day. Blake, along with some of the selected authors, will kick off Summer Scares at the 9th Annual HWA Librarians’ Day, Friday, June 13th, during StokerCon® 2025 at the Hilton Stamford Hotel in Stamford, CT. Tickets for this in-person event are available now: https://www.stokercon2025.com/librarian-s-day.

Additional content, including podcast appearances, free webinars with Booklist, and lists of suggested titles for further reading, will be made available by the committee and its partners beginning in March of 2025 and continuing through the Spring and Summer.

Of special note is the annual Summer Scares Programming Guide, courtesy of HWA Library Committee Co-Chair Konrad Stump and the Springfield-Greene County Library, which provides creative ideas to engage horror readers. Centered around the official Summer Scares titles, the guide offers tips and examples for readers’ advisory, book discussion guides, and sample programs, enabling librarians, even those who don’t read or especially enjoy the horror genre themselves, to connect their communities with Summer Scares.

To see past year’s Summer Scares titles, spokespeople, and programming guides, please visit the program archive: http://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/p/summer-scares-archive.html.

This year, Summer Scares is excited to announce a brand new sponsor– iREAD, an all ages Summer Reading Program developed by librarians for libraries. iREAD is used by libraries across the United States and around the world through their partnership with the US Department of Defense, bringing Summer Scares to our military families stationed across the globe.

iREAD Content and Development Manager Becca Boland shared her excitement:

“As a new sponsor of Summer Scares, iREAD is thrilled (and chilled) to support the Summer Scares program guide that will help libraries ‘unearth’ a love for reading. As part of this partnership, every summer you'll find one spine-tingling book for each age range and category that aligns with the iREAD theme. iREAD will also help to provide programming assistance for the guide ensuring everyone has a ‘fang-tastic’ time! Let’s conjure up some excitement and make this summer a real ‘scream’ with Summer Scares and iREAD."

Keep your eyes peeled for more updates coming soon from Booklist, Book Riot, iREAD and NoveList®, as well as at the HWA’s website: www.horror.org and RA for All Horror: http://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/p/summer-scares.html.

Questions? Reach out to HWA Library Committee Co-Chairs Becky Spratford and Konrad Stump via email: libraries@horror.org. 

Summer Scares 2025 Committee Members: 

Kendare Blake is the author of several novels and short stories, most of which you can find information about via the links above. Her work is sort of dark, always violent, and features passages describing food from when she writes while hungry. She was born in July (for those of you doing book reports) in Seoul, South Korea, but doesn’t speak a lick of Korean, as she was packed off at a very early age to her adoptive parents in the United States. That might be just an excuse, though, as she is pretty bad at learning foreign languages. She enjoys the work of Milan Kundera, Caitlin R Kiernan, Bret Easton Ellis, and Richard Linklater. She lives and writes in Gig Harbor, Washington, with her husband, their cat son Tyrion Cattister, red Doberman dog son Obi-Dog Kenobi, rottie mix dog daughter Agent Scully, and naked Sphynx cat son Armpit McGee.

Becky Spratford is a library consultant and the author of The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Horror, third edition which was released in September of 2021. She reviews horror for Booklist Magazine, is the horror columnist for Library Journal and runs the Readers’ Advisory blog, RA for All: Horror.

Konrad Stump is a Local History Associate for the Springfield-Greene County (MO) Library, where he co-coordinates Springfield-Greene's popular “Oh, the Horror!” series, which attracts hundreds of patrons during October. He created the Donuts & Death horror book discussion group, featured in “Book Club Reboot: 71 Creative Twists” (ALA), and co-created the Summer Scares Programming Guide. Library workers who are interested in cultivating horror programming can contact him at konrads@thelibrary.org for free assistance.

Carolyn Ciesla is an academic library director in the Chicago suburbs. She has worked as a teen librarian and reference librarian, and has reviewed horror titles for Booklist Magazine. She’s currently teaching horror to first-year college students. You can find her all over the internet as @papersquared.

Kelly Jensen is an editor at Book Riot, the largest independent book website in North America. She covers all things young adult literature and has written about censorship for nearly ten years. She is the author of three critically-acclaimed and award-winning anthologies for young adults on the topics of feminism, mental health, and the body. She was named a person of the year in 2022 by Publishers Weekly and a Chicagoan of the year in 2022 by the Chicago Tribune for her anti-censorship work. She has also earned commendation from the American Association of School Librarians for her censorship coverage. Prior to her work at Book Riot, she was a public librarian for children, teens, and adults in several libraries in Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin. She is currently enrolled in a clinical mental health counseling master's program to bolster her work with mental health.

Julia Smith joined the Books for Youth team at Booklist in 2015, where she is now a senior editor. Her love of middle-grade literature and all things unsettling and strange draws her to creepy children's stories. You can follow her at @JuliaKate32 on Twitter.

Yaika Sabat (MLS) comes from a background in public libraries of various sizes. She now works at NoveList as the Manager of Reader Services, where she trains library staff nationwide on readers’ advisory, creates genre-focused content, and works on reader-focused products and services. As a Horror Writers Association’s Library Advisory Council member, she works to help librarians understand and embrace the horror genre. Her other passions include writing, graphic novels, film (the scarier, the better), and folklore.

31 Days of Horror: Day 2-- Why I love Horror by Ally Russell w/ a Giveaway of IT CAME FROM THE TREES

As I mentioned yesterday, while I am going to have a slew of Why I Love Horror reruns this year, I did solicit a few people to bring their perspectives to the long running conversation. Ally Russell is one of those authors. Her bio:

Ally Russell is the author of It Came from the Trees. She grew up on a steady diet of Halloween parties, horror films, Unsolved Mysteries, and Goosebumps books. She has always loved scary stories, and got her MFA from Simmons University and, eventually, a job working in children’s publishing. She hails from Pittsburgh—ground zero for the zombie apocalypse. Ally lives with her husband and her two black cats, Nox and Fury. She’s afraid of the woods, the dark, and heights.

I first met Russell a handful of years ago through Sadie Hartmann and Emily Hughes. She wrote about Horror for both of them at that time. 

This past July her Middle Grade Horror novel, It Came From the Trees came out. Here is the publisher description:

The legend of Bigfoot gets a bone-chilling update in this scary story about a young girl and her scout troop who are willing to brave the woods to find her missing friend when no one else will. Perfect for fans of Daka Hermon and Claribel A. Ortega! 

The wilderness is in Jenna’s blood. Her Pap was the first Black park ranger at Sturbridge Reservation, and she practically knows the Owlet Survival Handbook by heart. But she’s never encountered a creature like the one that took her best friend Reese. Her parents don’t believe her; the police are worthless, following the wrong leads; and the media isn’t connecting the dots between Reese’s disappearance and a string of other attacks. Determined to save her friend, Jenna joins a new local scout troop, and ventures back into the woods.

When the troop stumbles across suspicious huge human-like footprints near the camp, scratch marks on trees, and ominous sounds from the woods, Jenna worries that whatever took Reese is back to take her too. Can she trust her new scout leader? And will her new friend Norrie—who makes her laugh and reminds her so much of Reese—believe her?

After the unthinkable happens, the scouts, armed with their wits and toiletries, band together to fight the monster and survive the night.

I love Middle Grade Horror. I think it is where some of the best stories are being explored in the genre right now, and this book is a stellar example of that.

I am offering a giveaway of a hard cover, finished copy, courtesy of Russell, that you can add to your collections immediately.

Click here for rules on how to enter. The winner of this book will be the second winner picked this coming week.

And while you wait to see if you won, why not help me welcome Ally Russell to share Why I Love Horror. 

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Why I Love Horror 

by Ally Russell

Why do I love horror?

Because...

Why limit yourself to just one spooky season when you can live in dread all year?

Who doesn't like the sound of their heartbeat in their own ears? As Ash might say, that's the music of life, baby, live and in stereo!

Why sleep peacefully when you can read just one more page and have heinous imagery delivered to your brain right before you turn out the lights? It’s called nightmare fuel and it’s delicious…if you like the taste of cough syrup.

Why settle for the next "great” American novel when you can read splatter punk or body horror or gothic fiction?

Who doesn’t enjoy watching movies through the gaps in their fingers?

Why watch an Oscar “worthy” film when you can watch The Omen? And actually, The Omen is an Oscar-winning film thanks to its original score.

Who doesn't like walking through their home after midnight to lock every door and window after watching a home invasion flick?

Why wouldn’t someone want to be a part of something so scary that it triggers their gag reflex? (Dear, Allison, that gag at the prospect of splitting up the group was warranted.)

Why wouldn't you want to be paranoid to the point of habitually checking the back seat and under the bed and the closet because of every urban legend and slasher and babysitter story you’ve ever heard?

Who doesn't want to be pranked and discover if they're a freezer, a faller, or a final girl? I’m a freezer. Any fallers out there? Despite what you shout at the TV screen, none of you are final girls. Sorry.

Why relax when you can gasp?

Who needs a good skincare routine when you can simply rake your fingers down your face for that flushed, youthful look?

Why wouldn't you want sweaty palms? Moisture is good for your skin.

Why wouldn't you want your stomach to be full of caterpillars that never turn into butterflies? They’re just in there…wriggling.

Why be happy when you can worry about the uncanny?

Why calmly contemplate life when you can panic from existential dread, especially after the US government was like, “there are UFOs and we don’t know what they are.”

Why fawn over cute, cuddly wildlife when you can fear the many reported sightings of cryptids from all around the globe?

How else would you spend your time if not cowering beneath your blankets as you consider the few inches of glass that separate you from things that aren't supposed to exist? Because what if vampires don't actually need an invitation? What if they just need a reason?

Who doesn't enjoy working up a cold sweat as they lie in bed in the dark trying to figure out if that thing across the room is a balled-up sweatshirt or a head? (Did it just move?)

Why sleep alone when you can share a pillow with your worries? Don't have any worries? Not to worry! Horror will give you something to worry about.

Why tremble with delight when you can do so with terror?

Why would you want peace of mind when you can have pure adrenaline and panic?

Why take deep, calming breaths when you can pant like a terrified cat?

Why smile when you can scream? Better yet, why scream when you can cry?

If these things don't sound terrible to you...you might love horror too.

I'm sure there are a lot of good reasons to love horror, and you'll get to read about them throughout this blog post series. But I like horror because I'm always afraid—like, all the time—and at least horror makes some of that fear justifiable.

I would love to live life much further from the edge of terror, but that’s just not who I am. Never has been. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love horror, and if I could sum it up in a few succinct paragraphs, this blog post would have been much easier to write.

Anyway, it’s nearly 2:00 AM and the cats just perked their heads up to look toward the stairs. I don't see anything but that doesn't mean they don't. Some things exist outside the spectrum of human vision.

See?

You live for the horror too. 

HWA Fundraiser With Free Access to Great Panels-- 2 Moderated by ME!

I have something awesome for all of you to start your week. All this month, the HWA has been hosting a series of panels that are 100% FREE to view as part of a fundraiser we call Halloween in July (yes I know it is August, work with me here). 

All of the panels are great and free to view here but these 2 in particular are moderated by me and are very relevant to both HWA members AND library workers. We are releasing videos every week but both of mine are now live:

As you can see on the page, I chipped in with my own donation. I have been donating the amount to cover one, Diversity Scholarship every single year since we began them. While I know not everyone can give at that high an amount, I hope that my donation encourages you to consider chipping in to help someone else.

There is one scholarship-- Young Adults Write Now-- that is given to multiple libraries each year. Click here for details on that one. Maybe you will apply next year.

And as you can see here or below, we are also raising money to help the University of Pittsburgh Library's Horror Studies Collection.

Visit our Pledge page here or see below to learn more, watch all the videos, and donate if you would like.

Help the Halloween People fund scholarships and educational programs year-round!

Join us for a series of special presentations, contests, and more--all to raise money for scholarships offered by the Horror Writers Association.

The Horror Writers Association offers many different scholarships including the Diversity Grants, The Scholarship from Hell and more. Halloween in July is the second annual fundraiser to support the continued educational foundations for the horror community. The HWA has been supporting writers through scholarship and education for years.

Our scholarships have amplified underrepresented voices, brought new voices to the genre, and continued the meaningful dialogue about horror as a genre.

Our Scholarships and Programs:

• The Horror Writers Association Scholarship
• The Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Scholarship
• Diversity Grants
• The Dark Poetry Scholarship
• The Rocky Wood Memorial Scholarship for Non-fiction
• The Dennis Etchison Young Writers Scholarship
• The Scholarship From Hell (for StokerCon)
• Young Adults Write Now Program

2nd Annual Halloween in July Partners with the University of Pittsburgh Horror Studies Archive:  

In 2024 the Horror Writers Association deepened their relationship the University of Pittsburgh Library System and its Horror Studies Collection for a special opportunity.

In late 2023, they acquired the Stanley Wiater Archive of Modern Horror. Wiater is a prolific interviewer, author, and commentator whose archive not only includes drafts, manuscripts, and notes for his written works but also over 650 cassettes of interviews. The HWA in conjunction with the University of Pittsburgh is looking to raise $2,500.00 in addition to funds for HWA general scholarships, to support the cost of a student to work part-time to assist in processing this collection which will include sorting, labeling, and cataloging the paper materials as well as aiding in the transcription process for the interviews once they have been digitized.

We believe these efforts will not only strengthen the relationship between the University and the HWA but also allow future generations to study and gain access to the interviews conducted by Mr. Wiater which contain an invaluable history of the genre and organization and documents the words of HWA members past and present including Clive Barker, Jack Ketchum, Nancy Kilpatrick, Stephen King, Joe R. Lansdale, Graham Masterton, Anne Rice, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, and many, many more.

Halloween in July and August Programs: (click here to watch)

We're excited to bring unique panels and workshops to raise awareness about horror and horror scholarship! Here are some of the panels you can look forward to during Halloween in July 2024!

• July 5, 6 pm ET: Open Mic with Linda D. Addison
• August 1, 7 pm ET: The Writing and Research of Bram Stoker's Dracula with Dacre Stoker #throwbackthursday
• August 3, 7 pm ET:The State of Horror 2024
• August 8, 7 pm ET: Back in the Day with Brian Keene (pt. 1) #throwbackthursday
• August 10, 7 pm ET: We Are Coming for the Children: The Scary Truth About MG Horror
• August 15, 7 pm ET: Back in the Day with Brian Keene (pt. 2) #throwbackthursday
• August 17, 7 pm ET: The Halloween Librarians and You: How the HWA Library Committee Can Help Authors at Any Stage of Their Career
• August 22, 7 pm ET: How to With Agents #throwbackthursday
• August 24, 7 pm ET: Mentorship: Free Helps for Halloween People
• August 29, 7 pm ET: Weird and Wonderful │HWA Mental Health Initiative #throwbackthursday
• August 31, 7 pm ET: All About the Bram Stoker Awards

We're excited to bring unique panels and workshops to raise awareness about horror and horror scholarship!

To watch Halloween in July 2024 events, see the complete playlist here.