Bookseller Jules and the Case of the Tales of Terror

Every horror reader I know (and somehow I know a lot of them) is always on the lookout for a great new author. Here’s where I can introduce Monstrilio by Gerardo Sámano Córdova — a debut novel like no other. Gerardo Sámano Córdova delivers a story about a boy born a monster and the family who loves, nurtures, and fears him. This beautiful (yes, I said “beautiful”) novel will be the most talked about Horror book of the season. Oh, and by the way! Let me point you in the direction of Johnny Compton’s The Spite House or Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy. I wouldn’t be wrong (about crazy good debut horror reads) and your bookshelf will look awesome during your next zoom meeting. 

This one is ALSO a debut. In a most original voice we face an age-old dilemma: Can anyone truly “go home again”? Dealing with the death of her sister, Sabrina, Mackenzie gets threatening text messages — from someone claiming to be Sabrina. Her dream world and waking world are in conflict, and she has no choice but to return to the city she ran away from. Written as vividly as a Stephen Graham Jones novel, Jessica Johns also tackles social issues combined with gut-twisting suspense.

Genre bending and boundary pushing T. Kingfisher caught my eye with What Moves the Dead. 

With many books covering several categories, I was a little late to the game — but don’t you be! Start with A House with Good Bones and get drawn into Kingfisher’s signature blend of terror, humor, and heart. Here Sam Montgomery’s return home to spend time with her mom is nothing like she expects. Things have gone from a cozy to chaotic disorder. As Sam’s brother says, “Mom seems off.”  Welcome home. 

Just saying the name “Stephen Graham Jones” around the office produces wide eyes, gasps and exclamations. And that’s NOT only because Jones is the master horror writer of our day. It’s ALSO because he writes books that I call “most anticipated by people who read a lot of books each week”.  Yes — that good. And great news for you: this is the second in the Indian Lake Trilogy. The first, My Heart is a Chainsaw, will stick with you forever. As will this story where the heroine, Jade, returns to her hometown the same day a convicted Indigenous serial killer escapes. Notice I didn’t mention where Jade returns from. That’ll be your story to explore. Stay tuned for book 3! 

Grady Hendrix’s name has people grabbing me around the collar asking, “WHEN IS HIS NEW BOOK COMING?” Who doesn’t love a good horror novel shakedown? Hendrix scares readers and he puts them on an emotional rollercoaster. His stories are both relatable and quite out of this world. Here I’ll ask you to note A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher as the most appropriate comparable title. Another “you can’t go home” again (or can you? CAN YOU?) theme that has protagonist Louise dealing with her brother in their childhood home. That’s haunted. I’ll leave you alone to read as the chills move up and down your spine. 

Filmmaker and writer, Leopoldo Gout conjures a most visual horror read in Piñata. I keep wishing someone would turn his debut, Ghost Radio into a streaming series. Gout’s world-building skills help the reader quickly suspend all disbelief. Children’s parties and pinatas — perfect together, wouldn’t you say? And what happens when an artifact is brought home from an architect’s worksite? Nothing good comes of it in Horror, of course. This possession story illustrates how atrocities of the past haunt the present. Are you ready to re-think your disbelief? 

Honestly. If there hasn’t yet been a Golden Age of Horror Writing — then there is one NOW. With every turn, a debut author springs from the shadows. OR, in the case of Eric LaRocca, referred to as “a millennial Clive Barker”, an author who is getting reintroduced to horror fans. As with Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke And Other Misfortunes, The Trees Grew Because I Bled There is being reissued with added stories. So, just when you think you know an author’s work — they jump out at you with a typewriter in hand! Eight stories in total for this edition, each covering the darkest of horror themes. Be forewarned, this is NOT for the faint of heart. Speaking of darkness: should you choose to read more, LaRocca will have a new book in June 2023, Everything the Darkness Eats. 

The Shoemaker’s Magician is the second book in Cynthia Pelayo’s “Chicago Saga” series, following Children of Chicago. But good news for you dear horror reader, it’s NOT a sequel, just an expanded world building on Pelayo’s part. Which is to say, read both, freely, in your own order. On a personal note, as a fan of movies and movie theaters, this book has a special place in my film buff’s heart. As bodies accumulate, protagonist Paloma enlists the help of her Horror TV program host hero, Grand (he of The Grand Vespertilio Show, natch). Like a reading recommendation — beware who you follow down the rabbit hole of fiction and all things magical, surreal and dreamlike.