Christmas will soon be with us and you may well be looking to buy a literary gift for your favourite niece, nephew, or any kid who might appreciate a book instead of a box of chocolates or novelty socks. As usual we feature books which cover the broad areas of ‘dark fiction’ rather than straight horror which always seems to be in short supply. All these books were published in 2019 and have been previously reviewed at some point in the year.
There are some very original and engaging titles and are all excellent reads. I guarantee there are some real winners for budding horror fans out there…. They are presented in alphabetical order by author.
If you wish to purchase any of these books, simply click on the book's title, or use the widget at the end of this article
ANN AGUIRRE: HEARTWOOD BOX
Ann Aguirre’s highly engaging Heartwood Box is not a traditional horror novel, but there is much to enjoy in a teen thriller which blends elements of science fiction, messages passing through time (in the Heartwood Box) and an outstanding female leading character in Araceli Flores Harper. This spunky teenager finds herself living in a tiny town with her ancient great aunty Ottillie as her parents are going to be working abroad whilst she completes her final year at high school. Upon arrival Araceli notices missing posters all over town and soon realises people have been disappearing in this town for twenty years, including the husband of her great aunt and kids from her new school. The clever plot has several different layers; first up, Araceli is half-Mexican in a town which is incredibly white and so it has interesting stuff to say about race. The teenager also likes to dance and tries to get on the school team. It convincingly tells a teenage story of a girl trying to fit it and her developing friendship with the nice boy who lives across the road, who also happens to be the sheriff’s son and has issues of his own. As the disappearances continue Araceli finds a freaky way of writing to an American soldier who has just shipped to France way back in 1917 and much of the plot focusses on this time-slip development. It could have been something out of the X-Files, but I found it worked very well and the relationship between Araceli and her great aunt was perfectly pitched. Make sure you hang around for the wonderful knock-out ending! AGE 13+ LAURA BATES: THE BURNING If you’re on the hunt for a YA novel which effortlessly blends the horrors of teenage social media with the tale of a 400-year-old witch trial, then look no further. This was a superb read which carries a powerful message about the dangers of posting the wrong stuff and peer pressure, delivering it in a naturalistic style, which never becomes heavy handed or preachy. In no time at all you will be rooting for the teenage protagonist Anna who is dragged through a horrific emotional wringer. The Burning is horror with a light touch, the pain and long-term repercussions of one naive decision becomes scarier than any supernatural bogeyman. The fallout was severe, and The Burning opens with Anna and her mother leaving their old life in Birmingham behind to live in a small coastal village near Saint Andrews on the east side of Scotland. Starting any new school is difficult and Laura Bates completely nails the awkwardness of this transition, but before long she becomes friends with local girls, but bullying is never far away and soon her past catches up with her. The Burning has a second main story which nudges it into the horror genre, beyond the horrors of everyday teenage life. As part of a school history project everyone researches a topic of local interest and after Anna discovers an obscure reference to someone who was suspected of being a witch centuries earlier. As she uncovers the story, the plight of Maggie, she realises the ‘witch’ has many startling similarities to her own story and starts to feel a strong connection to the long-dead young woman, part of which whose story is told in flashback. In my experience in YA fiction kids generally avoid books which obviously have a heavy-handed message, The Burning works because its warning are very subtle with a top-notch story, believable story and a convincing dose of history. AGE 13+ AMELINDA BERUBE: HERE THERE ARE MONSTERS I was really captivated by this slow-burning YA horror/fantasy novel which genuinely nailed the troubled psyche of a sixteen-year-old girl who is trying to deal with the sudden disappearance of her little sister, aged thirteen. The younger girl Deirdre has issues, which are revealed slowly as the plot moves backwards and forwards through narratives before and after the disappearance. Although Skye was not to blame, she feels guilty and it puts a strain on her relationship with her struggling parents who try not to accuse her. But when they’re so stressed tensions run very high. The supernatural aspect is slowly filtered into the book and the haunting aspect of the story is cleverly connected to Skye, her new friends and what lives within the local forest. Or is it something which has followed the sisters throughout their childhood? The compelling friendship dynamics Skye has with her new school friends works very well as she struggles to cope even more as the length of the disappearance stretches. The mystery quickly deepens, and I found this to be an excellent and atmospheric read for teenagers looking for a subtle supernatural slow burner. AGE 13+ JIMMY CAJOLEAS: THE GOOD DEMON The Good Demon was a very refreshing, rather different, and quite funny spin on the possession story which begins after a demon is forcibly removed from teenage Clare by two charismatic Christians. This was not exactly an exorcism, as exorcisms are Catholic ceremonies, this was a ‘deliverance’ and what makes this slightly odd is that Clare is sad to be without her demon, which had lived within her for several years. She always looked upon the demon as a friend and a comforting experience which she referred to as ‘Her Only’. She is struggling to get on with her life when she meets the teenage boy who helped with the deliverance and they become friends, with him feeling a certain about of guilt for his part in the ‘deliverance’. Bizarrely, although the demon is gone Clare believes she is receiving messages from ‘Her Only’ she begins to search for her demon, with the teenager whom she begins to fall for. You’ll have great fun following the clues, meeting irrelevant characters and will be rooting for Clare in no time, who was a lovely character with an authentic voice. There was a lot going on and the book has much to say about fundamentalism, family, first love in a very entertaining and non-judgemental manner. AGE 13+ 
ANN DAVILA CARDINAL: FIVE MIDNIGHTS
I thoroughly enjoyed this fast-paced supernatural thriller set over a few hot and sweaty days in Puerto Rico. An American teenager (who has a Puerto Rican father) who speaks rubbish Spanish visits the island for the summer she gets sucked into a supernatural mystery surrounding the disappearance of her cousin and several of his friends. Luckily her uncle is the chief of police and so she has some insider knowledge on what is going on and inserts herself into a convoluted and brooding mystery. The horror aspect revolves around a Puerto Rican version of the boogieman who is killing teenagers with birthdays whose are very close together and known to Lupe. Has someone activated a curse, or how is this create targeting its victims? This is all part of the drama Lupe is sucked into. Seen from multiple points of view, throw in a splash of romance, a musical heartthrob, Lupe is an energetic lead character who is not scared to clash with the tough local women who see her as a ‘gringo’ interloper who needs to be put in her place. A highly entertaining supernatural thriller with a convincing and enlightening culturally different setting. AGE 13+ GABRIEL DYLAN: WHITEOUT A huge snowstorm is brewing whilst a group of British sixth form school pupils retire to their hotel after a hard day of skiing, in the remote mountains of Austria. The hotel is weirdly short of staff and all the locals have abandoned their shops. In the middle of the night one of the girls screams after blood is found and the pupils soon discover some of their teachers have also disappeared. They quickly realise something horrible is outside and once a ski instructor is ripped out of the door and they are under attack. This all happens incredibly quickly and soon the group are attempting to hide and wait it out but with the storm raging they realise there is no help coming anytime soon. Whiteout is an outstanding addition to the Red Eye series. It was a very gripping book that wasted no time introducing the horror elements and was unrelenting once it got going. I say this because the deaths start mounting up as early as page sixty. This very violent opening section gives the reader terror, action and humour revolving around the time the enemy makes its first bloody appearance. I would recommend this novel to anyone who reads the Red Eye series or who enjoys action and horror novels. Overall, it was a great page turner and an easy, quick and undemanding read that will leave you satisfied. AGE 12+ CAROLINE FLARITY: THE GHOST HUNTER’S DAUGHTER Sixteen-year-old Anna is having a tough time at school, often known as ‘Zombie Girl’, because she has a prominent scar on her face and a father with a very odd job. He is a type of ghost hunter (or exorcist) and specialises more in ‘cleaning’ haunted objects, rather than ghosts. They struggle to pay the bills and Anna still reflects on the death of her mother eight years earlier and the fact that her soul may be stuck in spiritual limbo and could still be possessed by a demon. I thought this novel cleverly balanced its supernatural story with the normal trials and tribulations of a teenage girl who comes from a weird family and does her best to deal with it. Anna has two good friends she can count on (Freddy and Dor) but has a major crush on a boy from school which plays an important part in the story. As well as covering stuff like social media shaming, bullying and peer pressure the supernatural angle builds nicely as the plot develops into a much wider conspiracy. As Anna is her dad’s assistant in his supernatural dealings she is bullied at school, but at the same time strange stuff really does seem to be happening, which many people believe is because of a rare solar storm which will light up the night sky. Anna is an engaging character, she is not perfect, makes a lot of wrong decisions, but nobody gets it right all the time and shines when the chips are down. A great combination of school life, teenage angst and a few demons. AGE 13+ FRANCES HARDINGE: DEEPLIGHT Hardinge’s last three novels have mixed the supernatural and historical fiction, Deeplight is set on a sprawling archipelago called the Myriad. There are hundreds of tiny islands which trade with each other for survival and the action begins on the Island of Lady’s Crave where two fourteen-year-old street urchins Hark and his best friend Jelt scrape a living. You could be forgiven for thinking an adventure story with two orphans sounds slightly familiar, however, it is the setting and the world-building which marks this book apart from the competition. Myriad is a superb creation and if you’re after a location to fire the minds and imaginations of young teenagers then look no further than Deeplight, as the backdrop is something special and positively brimming with clever ideas. For centuries the islanders lived in awe and dread of the grotesque and terrible gods that lurked in the deep seas, which were effectively giant sea-monsters who could attack boats and ships at a moment’s notice. However, thirty years before the novel begins there was a cataclysmic event where all the god-monsters unexpectedly killed each other. In the three decades since the monster gods died, fisherman and travellers have discovered fragments of the dead creatures whilst out fishing or swimming. These finds supposedly have exciting and useful properties, so a diving and submersible salvage and scavenger culture has emerged all over the Myriad. Ultimately finding valuable ‘godware’ can make your fortune, but much of it is fake and the two teenagers get sucked into this world when they find a very strange piece of godware, which is most definitely not fake. Children novels which allow youngsters to forget technology and escape to faraway places are vitally important as we all need to dream of these places. Lands which are drawn so vividly they become real enough to touch are truly special and Frances Hardinge has created such a place in Deeplight. AGE 12+ 
JUSTINA IRELAND: DREAD NATION
During the American Civil War battle of Gettysburg, the dead begin to walk and suddenly both sides of the bloody conflict realise there is a new enemy and temporarily put their differences aside. This stunning novel picks up the story fifteen years later. The word zombie is never used (‘shambler’ is the preferred term) and there is not the slightest hint of anything supernatural, it is merely portrayed as some sort of infection which science cannot yet explain. As Dread Nation is set fifteen years after the outbreak and America has begun to recover. Many cities in the east have been lost and there is now a Thirteenth Amendment that ensures there is still no equality between white and black people who are still severely downtrodden, a key recurring theme. On one level Dread Nation is a convincing horror novel, but it is much more than that, having much to say about race, equality and gender. It also has both a beautiful and memorable voice, being narrated in the first person by fifteen-year-old Jane McKeene who is black (or mixed-race) and is used as a virtual slave as a type of bodyguard (called Attendants) to a white woman. A new law, the ‘Negro and Native Re-education Act’ forces young black women to be taught a mixture of fighting skills and house etiquette and are the first line of defence against any shamblers which might attack the walled settlements. Jane is a funny, sassy, proud and terrific character whom you’ll be rooting for all the way. AGE 13+ LIZ KERIN: THE PHANTOM FOREST If you’re looking for a read which mixes horror, fantasy and a dash of ancient mythology then Liz Kerin’s The Phantom Forest is well worth investigating. Part of the novel is set in a Hell type location called the Underworld where a cursed demon called Haben lives. He’s a sympathetic character, whom at certain times turns into a creature called ‘The Savage’, when this transformation occurs, he is unable to resist the taste of human flesh. Above ground, in the town of Khronasa where most of the story is set, several times a year, there is a human sacrifice to this creature. When the novel opens a teenage girl Seycia gets into a fight and catches the eye of General Simeon who is the feared dignitary in charge of the local area. Due to bad blood with Seycia’s dead father soon the girl and her little brother are next in line to be lunch for ‘The Savage’. Thrown into the pit, which fills with water, everyone awaits the appearance of the fearful creature. Seycia is one tough girl and is not going to be an easy kill for anyone, not even an immortal demon. There were many plot strands in this fresh and entertaining novel which had me guessing where and when it might be set? There were guns and cars, but there was also talk of long ended wars, but it remained elusively difficult to pinpoint it as post-apocalyptic. Interestingly, the overruling empire had banned human sacrifices, but General Simeon allowed the practice to go on anyway. He was a great character with a horribly deformed face and a long memory; throw in a spunky little brother, the seeds of rebellion and the quest to discover the Forest of Laida where human souls were kept it was all great stuff which licked along at a nice pace. At a point human and demon get confused and the developing friendship of the demon Haden and Seycia was a major highlight. AGE 13+ CAITLIN KITTREDGE: DREAMING DARKLY I was quickly sucked into Caitlin Kittredge’s moody and twisty gothic mystery, Dreaming Darkly, which was loaded with a tasty dose of moody teen romance. Set on Darkhaven, an American island off the New England coast, whose sole occupants are two feuding families, this atmospheric, fast-paced page-turner featuring a teenager who moves to the island after the death of her mother. Sixteen-year-old Ivy Bloodgood ends up staying with her uncle, a man she never knew existed until he claimed her after her mother’s death. At first it looks like things might be working out for Ivy, who is a great leading character, until odd things begin to happen around her and she begins to see weird things, has crazy dreams, wakes up in odd places and begins to question her own sanity. Along the way Ivy meets the teenage son of the neighbouring feuding family and hears of an old family curse; the majority of which either end up committing suicide or murdering someone. Friendship soon develops and the boy helps her solve the mystery of who she is and who her absent (or dead) father is. Nothing is quite what it seems and Dreaming Darkly is a fine mix of moody family drama, teenage angst, mystery novel with heavy supernatural overtones. AGE 13+ DAWN KURTAGICH: TEETH IN THE MIST I am a huge fan of Dawn Kurtagich and we have featured both her previous novels The Dead House and Creeper Man on Ginger Nuts. Her latest novel Teeth in the Mist is perhaps even more ambitious and is a complex story, set in a huge mansion in rural Wales, split over three narratives in the present day, 1851 and 1583 with a strong supernatural theme permeating through the story. It was a very chunky book, with different fonts and voices and took a bit of time to get into the flow but it is worthy sticking with. This was the case with both her previous two novels, let us hope teenage readers give it a chance as it is not an easy read and may overwhelm many. Sixteen-year-old photography buff Zoey ends up at Medwyn Mill House and is fascinated with the ruin and after spending the night there with her friend Poulton and is sure they are not alone. Jumping back to 1851 seventeen-year-old Roan arrives at Mill House as a ward and soon realises she is connected to an ancient secret and must try and escape the house, but that is not as easy as it might sound. However, there is something connecting the three young women, which also includes Hermoine who relocates with her husband to the same area in 1583. This was a very strong blend of mystery, horror and dark fantasy, resulting in another highly original read. AGE 13+ 
KIM LIGGETT: THE GRACE YEAR
Kim Liggett’s The Grace Year is a very clever mix of teenage angst and gender suppression in an unnamed, superstitious and backward society. Tierney James lives in an isolated village where at the age of sixteen girls are chosen to be brides and there is shame upon the families of those not chosen. The rejected individuals are then given menial jobs and will never marry. Tierney is a tomboy and does not expect to be chosen…. However, before the marriages take place the girls (both chosen and not chosen) are banished for a calendar year to an isolated camp to survive for themselves, they are not allowed to leave and there are many dangers. Why does this happen? It is believed that for this year girls develop magical powers and if they’re kept isolated then they cannot cause any harm to the rest of the village, particularly men who may fall under their thrall. Kim Liggett creates a very believable setting and society in which suppression dominates the everyday lives of girls who do not know any better. This is a world in which a woman can be hung with little evidence and certainly no trial. As the girl’s time in the isolated camp lengths the author plays an excellent game of smoke and mirrors as the full extent of the conspiracy is revealed. The Grace Year was an outstanding thriller with a young woman fighting against oppression in a society where she had no voice. AGE 13+ JACQUELINE WEST: LAST THINGS Young Adult novels with a musical theme are notoriously tricky to get right and when you throw in heavy metal it becomes even more difficult to avoid the dreaded devil-horn clichés. Amazingly, Jacqueline West superb Last Things avoids these pitfalls in a gripping tale of a tortured teenage musician who believes his success might be because of a strange conversation he can’t get out of his head. The music scenes with Anders truly sizzle, equally his obsession with improving his guitar style and the comedown when the gig is over is completely convincing when he is alone brooding in his bedroom. The story is told via two uniquely different first-person narratives in alternating chapters; ‘Thea’ and ‘Anders’, with all the action taking place in the small Minnesota town of Greenwood. The band are beautifully portrayed as three young men, with dreams of escaping their small town, until the cracks begin to show after Anders makes a few rash big decisions on his own. They are big news and it is easy for the reader to get carried along by their success. Where’s the supernatural angle you might ask? Anders believes, even if he practices for hours every day, he plays better than he should. He suspects something has happened to make him this good and feels that deep down he is a cheat and does not deserve this success. The blend of atmosphere, the music vibe, the subtle supernatural approach and a host of engaging characters made this one of the best YA supernatural thrillers I have read in a while. Make sure you’re listening to Rage against the Machine if you’re checking out this book! AGE 12+ ALEXANDER YATES: HOW WE BECAME WICKED How We Became Wicked was an odd, but entertaining, mix of apocalyptic and dystopian thriller. At some point in the past a type of ultraviolet mosquito like insect, which become known as ‘Singers’, carry an infection which leads a huge proportion of the human population being murdered by the other half (or third…) The plague, which is called ‘Wicked’, spreads through the world creating three types of people which effectively ends the world as we know it. The story picks up the action some years later when humanity is on its last legs. Modern teen dystopian fiction is forever splitting people into groups, but the idea in How We Became Wicked is quite a neat one. Group one is ‘The Wicked’ who have been bitten by the ‘Singers’ and live solely to kill those who have not been infected. They are not mindless thugs and maintain an intellect and can hide their infection before casually adding something like “I would really like to explore the inside of your brain” into the conversation. The Second group is ‘The True’ who live in contained and isolated communities and the novel is set in one of these communities on a remote Canadian island, which has been cut off from the rest of the world for years. The third group is ‘The Vexed’ which is a much smaller group who are immune to the mosquitoes, some of which live with ‘The True’. The story is mostly seen from the point of view of two teenagers, who were once a couple, one is ‘True’ and the other ‘Vexed’ and a complex and clever plot as they begin to dig into the history of the plague, weird goings on at the lighthouse on a neighbouring island and how it is to be the two youngest inhabitants at the island by some years. This book was outstandingly quirky, had lots going for it, many clever observations and an outstanding ending. AGE 12+ 
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