Review: Five hair-raising reads for a spooky Halloween

October has finally swept in with a biting chill. The leaves are starting to change from their vibrant greens to yellows, reds and browns. The houses have begun their Halloween transformations, stretching spider webs over their trimmed bushes and placing pumpkins on the brick steps before the door. 

While many plan to attend the parties, the haunted houses, corn mazes and more, I come bearing gifts that will amplify the season's creepy aura — books. 

Here are, in no particular order, six hair-raising, mysterious and even supernatural horror titles to give yourself goosebumps in preparation for the spookiest time of the year. 

“I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream” by Harlan Ellison

Starting off strong — the first time I read “I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream,” I held an innate fear of my computer for weeks after. 

Written by Harlan Ellison and published in 1967, it is set in the future against the stage of post-World War III, in a world where a sentient, mastermind AI called AM has taken over the world. Having destroyed all of humanity except for five unlucky folks, AM has kept them alive for 109 years, torturing them with convoluted survival tests and horrific scenes that bring them as close to death as possible, without the possibility of escape. 

Told from the perspective of Ted, one of the five humans, the five have finally had enough, and begin to try to find a means of freedom no matter what the cost. This story gave me nightmares — proceed with caution!

“Wuthering Heights” by Emily Brontë

Moving now to a classic, we have “Wuthering Heights." Gothic in style and eerie in atmosphere, this book will haunt you the way its ghosts do its characters.

All taking place in the eldritch-feeling backdrop of The Moors, the novel revolves around the tragic story of Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, whose forbidden love was prevented by Catherine’s family. Heathcliff, distraught by the circumstances of his life, seeks revenge. 

I think "Wuthering Heights" is a display of the darkest crevices of human nature, of horrific tragedy and the epic proportions in which cursed love — or the lack thereof — may take us. In terms of horror, I’d call it more of a psychological thriller. It’s sinister, spectral and even strange at times. 

“The Stand” by Stephen King

This wouldn’t be a list of Halloween books without a Stephen King novel somewhere in the mix. “The Stand” is a post-apocalyptic thriller, with themes of survival and morality and is inspired by American-style epics.

It takes place in a time where an extremely lethal strand of influenza has been weaponized and used to kill 99.4 percent of the world's population. The few surviving humans gather in Las Vegas, Nevada and separate into two factions based upon personifications of good or evil, and are fated to clash with each other. 

Very well-written and criminally underrated, it is a spooky read I don’t see enough people talking about. While it was nearly impossible to choose just one Stephen King novel for this list, “The Stand” is in a ball-park of its own, separating itself from King's usual slasher-style stories by questioning not just death, but also humanity’s fragility as a whole. 

“Tender is the Flesh” by Agustina Bazterrica

Horrific, disgusting and formidable, this novel left me so shocked it nearly converted me to vegetarianism.

“Tender is the Flesh” takes you to a world where a deadly virus has contaminated all animal meat, making it inedible to humans. Because of this, cannibalism becomes legal and widespread, and Marcos, a human meat distributor, struggles with the conflict of this new eat-or-be-eaten society.

When he falls in love with a girl meant for slaughter and begins a secret affair with her, everything in his life becomes all the more complicated. 

With extremely graphic descriptions and heavy themes, please read at your own discretion. I’d easily say this is the most grisly book on this list.

“Cursed Bunny” by Bora Chung

Written by Bora Chung and translated from Korean by Anton Hur, “Cursed Bunny” is a collection of short stories that layer fear and danger with surreal dreamscapes.

Many of the stories are inspired by Slavic folktales, with the book’s namesake being about a cursed, bunny-shaped lamp that slowly destroys a family and their business. Chung’s prose cuts sharp, presenting readers with themes of misery, dread and even nauseating horror.

"Cursed Bunny", in my opinion, is another heavily underrated book. While not as intense as "Tender is the Flesh", it carries the same uncanny distinction that left me anxiously looking in the rearview window of my car.

@dthlifestyle | lifestyle@dailytarheel.com