buddy book reviews: creepiest reads
A few weeks ago, I asked several of my favorite bookworm friends to share their favorite creepiest reads. So, in honor of the spookiest of holidays, I present the first installment of Buddy Book Reviews.
In case you are wondering, my friends' reviews are particularly helpful when I've hit a brick wall and want to get their take on new books I haven't read yet.
ashley
Ashley is definitely my most level-headed friend. She doesn't get weirded out by much...and she's seriously one of the most logical people I know. We always have so much fun when we hang out (sometimes a little too much), even though we don't see each other quite often enough.
She recommended two books. One, Stephen King's Dr. Sleep, isn't surprising. The follow up to The Shining catches up to Danny, the little boy who survived that horrific winter at The Overlook Hotel. However, her second choice, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, surprised me.
"At the end, when they're all dirty and Rose of Sharon breastfed the old man. I read that book 20 years ago, and am still unsettled by that mental image. In general, that book was a beating for me."
sara
Initially, Sara and I bonded over shoes. And music. And food. And wine. And travel. She's a badass professional woman, mom, musician, and friend. When I asked her about the creepiest book she's read, she offered Anne Rice's Cry To Heaven.
"It's more sensually creepy to me than spooky. I was drawn in by the dark, but luminous, storyline of males who had been castrated to preserve their soprano voices. The abuse they go through, the love and passions of their lives, and the inhumanity of the 18th century royal courts and opera houses. It's gothic, historical, and erotica all wrapped up into one little damp and dark gift."
Would you expect anything less from Anne Rice?!
stephanie
You've actually already met Steph. She was my travel partner in Memphis and is the party responsible for introducing me to Audible. Steph is also my friend who reads (or listens to audiobooks) the most prolifically. I follow her on Goodreads and almost feel like she should be writing the book section of this blog.
"Please keep in mind I don't read scary fiction...I've just recently gotten into it. I once tried Dean Koontz's Intensity and couldn't get through the first few chapters because it scared me so much. I was a teenager at the time, and I believe I was trying to read it at night before bed. The idea of having a murderer kill everyone in my house and barely miss me still haunts me to this day.
Otherwise, I would say (Stephen King's) The Shining, because there was some creepy shit in the book. Wasp nests coming alive...ghosts...eeek. Bushes coming to life and chasing you. WTF Stephen King?!
I do suggest Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach as a good Halloween read. It's a humorous non-fiction about tons of cadaver-related stuff. Also, I love Edgar Allan Poe stories...always creepy."
dave
Dave and Steph are actually married. He's ridiculously smart (an attorney), genuinely kind-hearted (he's married to Steph and father to their gorgeous twins), and is witty AF (he's one of the biggest smart asses I know). That being said, he appreciates the subtleties and reads between the lines, in life and in books.
"Pet Sematary by Stephen King (editor's note: I'm noticing a major trend here). The idea that something so beautiful [as Gage, the little boy who was hit by the truck] could come back after death as something so evil has terrified me for decades."
rebecca
Rebecca is one of my newest friends. We met because of our darling men friends, who happen to be best friends. Soooo, that makes her the Man Friend's best friend's girlfriend. Say that ten times fast. We got to spend some time together in New Orleans in May. It was really refreshing to know that not only do we both love the guys in our lives, we both really, really like to read.
"So, Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi was my first choice, the first thing that came to mind when you asked. But I thought no, that's too obvious. I mentally flipped through dozens of other books that have creeped me out over the years, but I kept coming back to this. I read it at a fairly young age, so it was my first experience with that kind of fear - the fear of something real - and it never left me. The reaction to Manson and his sociopathic crew was a universal one: unselfconscious fear of pure evil.
I had just read Valley of the Dolls and was hopelessly obsessed with Sharon Tate. That this sort of thing could happen in Hollywood, to some so famous (not to mention pregnant!) and in such a violent way felt ironically invasive. No one was safe. Of course, as an adult, I know this to be true - that no one is really safe - but something about the first time you come to that realization is...well, pretty fucking creepy."
Did you think I'm going to skip out on my picks? Be sure to come back tomorrow for my suggestions on the creepiest reads I've ever encountered.
