 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 as an alternative to a box of chocolates or a pair of 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. Not all the books are necessarily brand new, a few are titles which recently crossed my path. This year we are providing you with two lists, of which this is the first. Check back at Ginger Nuts in a few days for the second. My favourite books are included on the next list. That is not to say the novels included on this list are not without their merits, but personally I prefer the others and those are my top recommendations. There are also a few included here I did not get on with. However, prepare yourself for a Christmas mash-up of haunted houses, zombies, campfire stories Frankenstein revisited and the occasional serial killer. There’s a lot of great fiction on offer. They are presented alphabetically, by author. If you wish to purchase any of these books please click on the cover images Undead Girl Gang by Lily Anderson Lily Anderson’s “Undead Girl Gang” has had very positive reviews in America, and although I found it entertaining, I did not think it was nearly as funny as it thought it was. Also, there was so much swearing in it, the cover which looks quite juvenile does not exactly gel with the repeated use of the f-word. The story is a simple one to explain, Mila’s best friend has been found dead and Mila suspects she has been murdered, or was involved in a suicide pact, as the circumstances were suspicious. Mila is a type of witch, who practices Wicca, so rather than speculate on whether it was murder or suicide she brings her friend Riley back from the dead so she can ask her directly. The problem is Riley has lost her memory and at the same time, by mistake, she also brings back two other dead teenagers. And, of course, having dead best friends hanging around cause all sorts of problems, like when they want to go to their own wake, and this is where the teen and comedy aspects of the novel come into play. Considering the novel dealt with some heavy subjects it did not take itself too seriously and ultimately I was not too sure exactly what it was, or who it was aimed at. Girls aged 13+ would be the targeted audience. Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand With some hype as a ‘feminist’ horror novel, and with some excellent reviews to back it up, I found “Sawkill Girls” to be slightly disappointing. Weighing it at 460 pages it was way too long and not enough happened, having said that teenage readers will most certainly engage with the three leading teenage ladies more than I did. Set on an American island, Sawkill Rock, teenage girls routinely disappear, killed by an ancient creature which gets stronger as the novel progresses and after each meal. Three teenage girls, who are not exactly friends, have to fight to survive and along the way develop strange powers which they can use against the creature. The teenage issues part of the novel worked successfully enough, tackling issues such as friendship, self-harming and sexuality, however, the creature itself was pretty dull. It’s obviously aimed at teenage girls, but I wonder whether they will have the patience to last the course? and if they do whether the pay-off at the end is worth it? I did not think so. Buffy Summers was doing this kind of stuff twenty years ago. Aimed at teenagers aged 14+. Hollow Girl by HilLary Monahan “Hollow Girl” was name-checked by a very successful adult horror writer and I’ll most certainly be avoiding his recommendations in future. I’m unsure how much YA dark fiction he reads, but “Hollow Girl” which was a major disappointment and is not a title I would recommend. The story was too simplistic to catch the eye of any teenage readers and was overwhelmingly dull. It tells the story of Bethan, who is the apprentice to a healer in a family of Welsh Romani gypsies, who is attacked by a group of local boys and seeks revenge. During the attack one of her friends is seriously injured and to help his recover Bethan uses magic which requires certain ingredients; an ear, some hair, an eye, a nose, and fingers. And, of course, she goes knocking on the doors of her attacking to collect the pieces required for her potion. This book has picked up good reviews elsewhere, however, I found it uninvolving and not one I would recommend. A Room Away from the Wolves by Nova Suma Ren “A Room Away from the Wolves” is another inclusion which has picked up very positive reviews in the USA, however, I found it tedious and highly unlikely to engage teenage readers. I’ve a feeling the author felt she was being intelligent, but with a teenage audience, a certain amount of questions have to be answered and by the end of this haunted house novel I was scratching my head by the lack of closure. Due to a whole host of family and personal problems Bina finds herself abandoned by her family and a resident at Catherine House, a home for teenagers with problems, which has its own dark history. Written in a dreamy uninvolving style, by an unreliable narrator, strange things begin to happen in the house, and many of the other residents want to leave. The plot moves at a snail’s pace and any potential teenage readers will have given up the ghost (quite literally) long before the end. Perhaps teenage girls with identify with the issues of the main character, but as a supernatural story it failed to engage. Campfire by Shaun Sarles The horror world really does not need the likes of mass-produced tosh by the likes of James Patterson flooding the YA book market. His latest venture seems to be to rebrand himself “Jimmy” Patterson and then write a 110 (I counted) introduction to a series of horror novels under his banner. So that’s probably the extent of “Jimmy’s” involvement in “Campfire” an easy to read horror thriller which is right up the same street as the “Point Horror” novels which once upon dominated the bookshelves. Maddie, her family, and her best friend are on a camping trip when stuff starts to go wrong. At a certain point this is connected to short-story interludes which are told around the camp-fire and soon after a death there is suspicion around the camp and flashbacks to Maddie’s past and family secrets. This was a very easy to read book and I’m sure a bored 12-14-year-old may well find it entertaining. Just expect the killer to be the last person you might possibly expect it to be, and at a certain point you might even expect Scoobie and Shaggy to make a guest appearance. Dumb but also quite fun for kids aged 12-14. The Monster We Deserve by Marcus Sedgwick I’ve been a fan of Marcus Sedgwick for many years, however, this was not one of his better efforts and was another novel to piggyback on the 200th anniversary of Frankenstein. Sedgwick writes clever and challenging YA which is often very hard to categorise, he has an amazing way with words and is the master of crafting intelligent and unique stories. Unfortunately, with “The Monster We Deserve” I felt I had been here before and I have feeling many children will struggle to engage with this latest effort. An unnamed author/narrator, it is not even clear whether they are male or female, broods about Shelley’s Frankenstein, as (s)he is attempting to write a novel also. This person may well be Sedgwick himself, and is told via a stream of consciousness and there is much thinking, brooding, and philosophising, much of which is related to Frankenstein. This will be a hard sell to kids and you’ll need some patience to read it, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it made prize short-lists, as Sedgwick’s fiction is always critically well received. It was nicely illustrated, but there was way too much white paper for me and I found the one letter presented at the beginning of every chapter to be really tiresome, knowing full well it would be revealed at the end. As with all of Sedgwick’s books it’s brilliantly written, but the plot lacks pace and many kids will struggle to engage with it. However, it’s a nice challenge for strong readers and whether they’re able to read the subtexts between the lines. Aimed at 12+. Savage by Thomas E. Sniegoski Sidney lives on an island off the coast of the USA with her dog, Snowy, and is preparing to head to university on the mainland in this fast-faced b-movie style horror thriller. At the same time savage storms batter the neighbouring islands and some unseen force turns all animals against the human inhabitants. Due to the terrible weather this starts off as isolated incidents, with a few mysterious deaths, before beginning to pick up momentum and the first for survival soon begins. There were some pretty good scenes when once trusted dogs turn upon their masters and island descends into chaos. The story only spanned over one day or so and moved incredibly quickly with an impressive pace but you could argue not enough questions were answered as the book ended with a cliff-hanger and the inevitable sequel “Monstrous” when the storm hits the mainland. Engaging trashy fun for kids 12+. Blood Will Out by Jo Treggiari  "Blood Will Out" was an entertaining supernatural thriller, with elements of horror, which the publisher does absolutely no favours for by comparing to "The Silence of the Lambs". Please, how many of the target audience would be impressed by a Hannibal Lector comparison anyway? Hannibal would eat the bad guy in this novel for breakfast! So, ultimately, there is no comparison, let's get that out of the way straight away, but that doesn’t mean this is not a decent pot-boiler. The plot revolves around a kidnapped teenage girl, which is also seen from the point of view of her kidnapper. The plot quickly flicks between both the current and back stories of both characters and I thought the teenage girl's story was the more interesting. Strangely enough, you would normally have thought it would be the other way around, but I found the kidnapper slightly dull. “Blood Will Out” was a decent and engaging teen story focusing on her and her best friend, but at the same time the reader will wonder why the kidnapper is stalking the girl? His backstory was in many ways more pedestrian and cliched and the plot deserved a stronger character. The novel does move into a different direction in the second half evolving into a decent page-turner for kids aged 14 or thereabouts. The Price Guide to the Occult by Leslie Walton “The Price Guide to the Occult” was an engaging blend of fantasy and family drama, set on an island off the coast of Washington state. The main character Nor is the eighth generation of an island family whom have magical gifts. However, because she tries to hide these powers, as a consequence has problems as a teenager and self-harms. This is an important part of the story and is sensitively handled by the author. “The Price Guide to the Occult” is a real book within the novel which was written by Fern, Nor’s mother, who has capitalised on the magic in her family and in some ways has sold the family out. By making money out of their supernatural gifts has abandoned the old family ways. As a consequence of Fern using her gift for selfish reasons, this begins to have a negative effect on the ecosystem of the island which begins to die. There is a lot going on in this rather quiet, pensive and thoughtful novel and girls aged twelve+ are most likely to be the target audience in this earthy blend of the supernatural and fantasy. Aimed at kids 12+. The Bargaining by Carly Anne West “The Bargaining” has been around a while, but this ghost story set in a remote forest was new to me. Penny is forced to spend the summer with her stepmother in the remote woods of Washington, renovating an old house, someone she does not get on with. Carver House has abandoned antique furniture, rich architectural details, and its own chilling past as is revealed in the prologue and the revelation of children disappearing. The only hope Penny can find is Miller, the young man who runs the local general store who has his own secret connections to the house. Although it was probably too long and slow I was attracted to Penny and the baggage she brought to the house and the flashbacks to the friend she left behind under a cloud. It takes a long time for the supernatural angle to kick off and I’m not sure whether kids will think it worth the bother in the end. I could predict where it was heading but still found it an entertaining enough read. Solid YA for ages 14+. THE DARK DESCENT OF ELIZABETH FRANKENSTEIN BY KIERSTEN WHITE I’m getting a bit tired of hearing and reading that “Frankenstein” is 200 years old, as it has turned into an excuse for authors to trot out tired reworkings of the original story. “The Dark Descent” tells the story of Elizabeth Frankenstein, who was adopted by the family Frankenstein when she was five to be a play friend for the young Victor who already had issues. In order to fill in the backstory, the author inserts reminisces, written in italics, and I found these to be exceptionally irritating. Most of the characters are fairly unpleasant, and I did not care too much for any of them. Elizabeth herself dominates the novel, her relationships with others such as Henry and Justine, not just Victor and is full of conflicts. Although there was nothing wrong with the writing, I felt I had been here before and the book bordered close on fan fiction at a few points. Perhaps a teenager less familiar with the story might enjoy it more than I did. Indeed, if you have never read the original “Frankenstein” at all you might enjoy it even more. Aimed at kids 13+. 
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