October Book of the Month - Corinne's Selection of Haunting Tales

The House Where Death Lives is now available online and in the Museum Shop for 20% off this October only!

If Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House and Goosebumps had a baby, it would be The House Where Death Lives, an anthology edited by Alex Brown. This spooky read proved to be the perfect Halloween book for me, and for those of you who enjoy “lightly scary,” you’ll find this to be perfect as well. 

This book takes you through 16 stories of one very haunted house, starting in the attic and moving top to bottom to take you through the first and second floors and finally, the grounds. There are multiple stories for each space in the house, and the stories span across decades, the house being the only commonality between them. 

Something that makes this collection more unique than the ghost stories most of us are familiar with is that the stories draw from folklore and mythology across a variety of cultures, so there is a mix of different kinds of supernatural creatures and horror elements. That said, each of the stories explores larger themes that you do often see in traditional horror stories, such as grief, regret, love, and aging. So while there are definitely creepy moments, there's also quite a bit of emotional depth underneath the horror.

A lot of the stories also center around young women, which makes this a particularly good recommendation for the teen girl / young woman reader in your life who loves spooky books. And, as with any anthology, some stories are going to resonate more than others depending on your personal taste, but I found that to be an especially compelling benefit of this book given that it’s on the spooky side. Each story is short enough to easily read one or two at a time without committing yourself to hours of increasingly terrifying reading, which, depending on your tolerance for horror, is either a positive or a disappointment. Additionally, I find anthologies to be the perfect way to discover new authors; I now have a few new books on my TBR after finding their work in this book to be especially compelling. 

My personal favorites in this collection are:

Good Morning, Georgia by Courtney Gould (Attic)

The Phantom’s Waltz by Rosiee Thor (Second Floor)

The Grey Library by Nova Ren Suma (Second Floor)

Overall, The House Where Death Lives is a fun, atmospheric collection that's perfect for October. It's sufficiently creepy and unsettling, sometimes surprisingly sad, and full of different kinds of monsters and folklore. And because it's an anthology, you can dip in and out of it whenever you're in the mood for a little spooky reading.

I definitely recommend this book if you like haunted houses, folklore, horror, short stories, or just want something spooky to read this Halloween!

If this has you in the mood for a little spooky-season atmosphere, Old Baldy has plenty of it to offer! Old Baldy After Dark returns October 30 and 31 with nighttime lighthouse climbs, historical mysteries, scavenger hunts, and eerie tales from Bald Head Island’s past. For those looking for something a little more spirited, Night of Spirits takes place October 29 with an adults-only evening of haunted history, nighttime lighthouse fun, and drinks provided by Cape Fear Distillery. Tickets are limited for both events, so book now and make Old Baldy part of your Halloween plans!