r/horrorlit Book Club discussion

With a lot of people requesting it, I want to get the conversation already going on the October book.

This will be the club time to prepare and get the book moving forward. So we will continue this trend each month (ie. November book picked at beginning of October)

My thoughts for this club is we alternate between newer book and older classic that you’d recommend to all!

I’d love to put it to a vote, although it doesn’t look like we can create a poll here.

That being said, does anyone have any recommendations for the October book? Which would be our first classic book to read.

The Picture of Dorian Gray could be a good one. I haven’t read it, but heard its a good classic.

Pet Sematary would be a fun one for Halloween.
Or maybe Dracula (Bram Stoker) or The Modern Prometheus (Mary Shelley).

Having read Pet Semetary one October years ago, I can tell you it absolutely sets the vibe for the month. I’m open to anything though really.

How about starting with what is considered the first horror book ever: The Castle of Otrantol by Horace Walpole. First published in 1764? It is a Gothic horror story about a haunted house and is attributed to be the first Gothic/horror novel. I have not read it myself, but if we do classics I think it would be interesting to start with the very first classic

The Exorcist would be a fun October read! I also like the thought of reading a King book — my pick would be ‘Salem’s Lot :)

I like the suggestion of reading Castle of Otranto.

I also noticed recently that my library’s Hoopla account has Harvest Home by Thomas Tyron. That would be a good pick for October and since it sounds like a lot of libraries use Hoopla will hopefully be accessible to most.

Re making a survey, in a day or two once a few more ppl have had the chance to make suggestions the mod T can create a survey on survey monkey or a similar site and make a new topic with a link. I also found instructions saying that you can only create a goodreads poll on the desktop version of the website, not from the mobile app.

I love Cindy’s idea for The Castle of Otranto!

Oh! The Exorcist would also be a great choice!

Castle of Otranto would be a great pick, and since it's on Project Gutenberg would be pretty accessible to most people, using ereaders at least.
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury would be fun too since it's set in October and Bradbury's always a good time, though I could see it being a bit too heavy on the fantasy elements for someone wanting a capital H horror read.

Castle of Otranto sounds like a good pick for sure.

I'm also up for the exorcist, I haven't read it yet and it's on my shelf so it's easy access for me

I saw nothing specifically in the group rules about an author posting about their own book, but Deadline Detroit printed an excerpt of my new gothic horror, The Dance of Rotten Sticks.

If you're interested:

https://www.deadlinedetroit.com/artic...

I apologize if this is out of line.

T wrote: "With a lot of people requesting it, I want to get the conversation already going on the October book.

This will be the club time to prepare and get the book moving forward. So we will continue thi..."

There is an option for a poll. On the bookclub main page, there is a small section to the right with the heading, "Group Home" in small print. Within that section is a link to create a poll.

The Exorcist has been on my list for some time so I also vote for that one.

Burnt Offerings by Robert Marasco and The Beetle by Richard Marsh have been on my list for awhile

Burnt Offerings is a 1973 American horror novel by Robert Marasco. Its plot follows a family who move into a summer home where each member is plagued by unusual experiences and personality changes.

The Beetle (or The Beetle: A Mystery) is an 1897 fin de siècle horror novel by British writer Richard Marsh, in which a shape-shifting ancient Egyptian entity seeks revenge on a British member of Parliament.

The Castle of Ortantato or the Exorcist sound perfect to me. Great suggestions!

Great ideas here everyone!

A few more to add to the poll:
- The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson
- Fledgling, by Octavia E. Butler
- House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

The Castl of Ortranto sounds great! I read the Exorcist many years ago and it's BRILLIANT so I'd also be fine with a reread of that too!

Good morning! Would anyone be opposed to creating the poll for October? I can create it, but wanted to check in and see if anyone else had any other ideas :)

I like the idea of a poll.

A poll would be great!

Also, I wanted to mention I saw a new movie for Salem's Lot will be released 10/1 on HBO, if that sways anybody's vote for our Oct read <.<

I’m so looking forward to the new ‘Salem’s Lot on HBO! It looks like a treat. Super excited for a nice October read, whatever we pick :)

Alright, the poll has been made :)

Hi, thanks for this, where can we find the poll?

There’s a “poll” section in the Group pages section.