Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion
2016 Read Harder Challenge
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Task 1: Read a Horror Book
I am trying to fill the BR Tasks with books I have slated for other challenges. For this one, I will read Midnight by Dean Koontz.
That's part of the reason I'm considering Dracula, Bea. I have it slated as part of the Classics Club.
I'm thinking either Bird Box or Slade House for this one. Probably whichever I can get first from the library!
For this one I am reading The Library at Mount Char, which also according to the NYPL also fits the task Read a book about Religion.
Rainey wrote: "For this one I am reading The Library at Mount Char, which also according to the NYPL also fits the task Read a book about Religion."Rainey, I marked that one for my TBR Wishlist after seeing your previous post. It really looks good.
Julia wrote: "That's part of the reason I'm considering Dracula, Bea. I have it slated as part of the Classics Club."I haven't read Dracula yet, Julia. Although I am sure at some future time, it will be on my list.
I've gotten on the waitlist at my library for
I enjoy books based off of classics and just the cover gives me chills!
I'm planning to read A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay. (I'm also trying to fill in my list with books I'm using for other challenges.)
I never read horror books, but I will for this challenge since I'm trying to push myself to read things I might not otherwise choose. I may play it safe with a classic like Frankenstein, which I've never read, but I'm intrigued by the discussion about The Library at Mount Char and may read that instead. I'm so grateful to those of you who share your suggestions!
I got a bunch of horror books from the Book Riot Horror Box, so I'm going to probably go with one of those. Haven't decided which yet, though.
Horror is definitely not my thing, but I love Shirley Jackson so I think I'm going to read The Haunting of Hill House. I might have to save it for Halloween though.
Certainly, it will be Slade House for me as I am trying to also read books from the GR choice nominees list. Plus David Mitchell is one of my all time favourite authors. However, really keen to hear reviews of some of these other horror novels as people read them - it is not a genre I normally gravitate towards.
Shirley Jackson's Haunting of Hill House was a backup choice. Maybe I'll use it for the movie adaptation comparison instead. I've heard the 1960s version was closer than the awful 1990s one I unfortunately have seen.
Justin Cronin's The City of Mirrors comes out May 24. It's the last of The Passage trilogy and I've been waiting a long time for it.
I am going to read
--which I did, but added it to a different reading challenge.I ended up reading
instead.
I'm either going to do The Shining, which I have slated for another challenge, or House of Leaves, which I have been wanting to read for awhile!
Just won a copy of The Grownup from a Book Riot giveaway but it's really short, so I'm going to double up on the horror category and also read The Haunting of Hill House, as I have been wanting to read it for a few months now.
I read The Library at Mount Char this year and LOVED it, it was super unique! Also enjoyed Alice--it's a good pick for fantasy fans looking for something that's also horror. I'd also highly recommend Neil Gaiman and Kelly Link's short story collections (Smoke and Mirrors, Magic for Beginners, Stranger Things Happen) which are sort of a blend of fantasy and horror with a little scifi thrown in.
Let's be honest here, I'm a total wuss when it comes to anything horror and was less than thrilled when I saw this as the first item on the list. However, I read Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Picture of Dorian Gray last year and would recommend all of them to folks like me who aren't particularly fond of scaring themselves half to death. What scares each person is different of course, and there is no doubt that Shelley's Frankenstein will stay with you for some time. It is for that reason that book is one of my favorites.
I'm working my way through the book riot horror box and I'm going with Night Sister by Jennifer McMahon. Very excited for this year's challenge!
Definitely gonna be Slade House for me. I've read all of David Mitchell this year up to The Bone Clocks, which I'm currently reading, so Slade House will be a perfect way for me to kick off 2016. Excited :)
All the mentions of Mount Char have got me intrigued though...
I read a lot Stephen King but wanted to pick a new to me author for this. Going with Dark Avenging Angel by Catherine Cavendish.
Dom wrote: "Definitely gonna be Slade House for me. I've read all of David Mitchell this year up to The Bone Clocks, which I'm currently reading, so Slade House will be a perfect way for me to kick off 2016. E..."Totally with you on this, although I need to fill in a few gaps on my DM back catalog
I'm a zombie lover! So for my horror book I think I'm going to read Feed which is the first of the Newsflesh Trilogy by Mira Grant! ... Braiiiins!
Bird Box was really very good. I read NOS4R2 this year and it was also very effective - if you go for that one, try to read it at Christmas!
I'm planning on the little stranger by Sarah waters. Love ghost stories. Bird box was on my shortlist too. The haunting of hill house was great , I just finished dark matter by michele paver which would be perfect for this task a ghost story set in the artic. I also think anything by Susan hill would be a great choice. I'm fully expecting throughout the year to keep changing my choices. Far too many books
Julia wrote: "Shirley Jackson's Haunting of Hill House was a backup choice. Maybe I'll use it for the movie adaptation comparison instead. I've heard the 1960s version was closer than the awful 1990s one I unfor..."The 1960s film was good, all about the atmosphere
Leslie Ann wrote: "I'm going to try again House of Leaves, or perhaps Stephen King - The Shining or The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon."
I remember really liking The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon back in 2006, although Gerald's Game may have been the most horrific King I read (I went through a phase when I was 16/17).
I remember really liking The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon back in 2006, although Gerald's Game may have been the most horrific King I read (I went through a phase when I was 16/17).
I'm thinking either Slade House by David Mitchell, or Ghostly: a collection of ghost stories, introduced and illustrated by Audrey Niffenegger....
Rainey wrote: "For this one I am reading The Library at Mount Char, which also according to the NYPL also fits the task Read a book about Religion."I loved this book, Rainey! I am jealous that I cannot use it for the challenge this year.
I'm planning on either NOS4A2 or Slade House they've both been recently added to my TBR list this year!
Natalie wrote: "Thibk I'm going to go with Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs"An excellent choice!
Yuska wrote: "I'm planning to read The Shining. It's been on my TBR for long."This is one of the scariest books I've ever read, also one of his best!
This category is easy for me, since I read a lot of horror/suspense. I will probably go with Slade House, since I am getting it for Christmas.
Would Mr. Mercedes (Steven King) count as horror? I've read some of his classics - It, The Stand, The Shining, but I'm not sure about some of his more recent stuff. I read 11/22/63, but not sure I'd put it in the "Horror" category. Suspense, yes, but this category is just horror. I don't read a ton of horror, although I'm pretty sure I was captivated by Dean Koontz for a while in high school. It's been a long time...
Kelli wrote: "Would Mr. Mercedes (Steven King) count as horror? I've read some of his classics - It, The Stand, The Shining, but I'm not sure about some of his more recent stuff. I read 11/22/63, but not sure I'..."I read it and it didn't seem like horror to me, but maybe just because it's Stephen King, it will count?
Books mentioned in this topic
Anna Dressed in Blood (other topics)We Have Always Lived in the Castle (other topics)
Something Wicked This Way Comes (other topics)
We Have Always Lived in the Castle (other topics)
Something Wicked This Way Comes (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Shirley Jackson (other topics)David Mitchell (other topics)
Shirley Jackson (other topics)
Susan Hill (other topics)
Shirley Jackson (other topics)
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A few resources to get you started:
http://bookriot.com/2015/05/19/5-book...
http://bookriot.com/2015/10/20/horror...
http://bookriot.com/2015/08/14/genre-...
http://bookriot.com/2014/10/21/175-fa...
http://www.nypl.org/blog/2015/12/15/r...