"A massive shout-out to Goodreads for letting Ted and me play guide on this frightful literary journey this October. Dive headfirst into the unsettling family saga in Ania Ahlborn’s Seed. Next, Christopher Buehlman’s Those Across the River—it’s a historical fright-fest that’ll make you jump at every bump in the night. Do you want to be broken? Tananarive Due’s Ghost Summer has you covered as it elevates the genre. Rachel Harrison’s Such Sharp Teeth blends horror and humor, making you laugh one minute and scream the next. Dare to step into Scott Hawkins’ The Library at Mount Char—it’s a chilling maze of mysteries waiting to be unraveled. Then buckle up for C.B. Jones’ The Rules of the Road, a petrifying road trip you won't soon forget. Stephen Graham Jones’ The Least of My Scars will make you question how dark humanity can get, and Carmen Maria Machado’s Her Body and Other Parties plunges into the scary-beautiful world of womanhood. My eight spine-tingling picks are guaranteed to keep you up at night, frantically checking under the bed and wishing your light switch were closer. Turn the pages if you dare, but remember: The shadows are watching," says Hawk.

"October! The year’s greatest month. Of course, every month is wonderful for reading horror, but it lands a little different here. When asked to come up with titles I thought our readers would like, the books and stories rushed up and in from all around. We get eight apiece, so I had to work a little, and be sad a little by having to leave a few out (I will attempt to sneakily drop a few favorite classics here like The Lottery by Shirley Jackson, The Monkey’s Paw by W.W. Jacobs, and The Devil and Daniel Webster by Stephen Vincent Benét). Shane and I both had Stephen Graham Jones’ The Least of My Scars, but I guess it can only appear once. My list includes ones that both scared the crap out of me and inspired like hell. I really hope you dig them. Oh, and another sneaky moment to hopefully add the Jaunt, the Road Virus Heads North, and The Sun Dog from Stephen King. Here's the list, in alphabetical order; fright-level listings your own. Happy reading, and Happy Halloween!" says Van Alst.