Pick up a Ghoulishly Good Book!

Looking for a scare? Or can't get enough vampires, zombies, and other witchcraft stories!? Here are some of my favorites:


Favorite Vampire books:

• Blood of Eden series by Julie Kagawa
• House of Night series by P.C. Cast 
• at least the first few books.....
• Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz
• Vampire Diaries series by L.J. Smith
• another series that started off well enough...
• Tantalize series by Cynthia Leitich Smith
• LOVE this series (it also has some werewolves too)
• Den of Shadows series by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
• Peeps series by Scott Westerfeld
• Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
• and the sequel - Jessica Rules the Dark Side!
• Chronicles of Nick series by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Zombies:

• White Rabbit Chronicles (series) by Gena Showalter
• World War Z by Max Brooks
• The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks
• The Riser Saga (series) by Becca C. Smith
• Revenants series by Amy Plum
• Gone With the Respiration series by Lia Habel
• Generation Dead series by Daniel Waters
• I Kissed a Zombie and I Liked it by Adam Selzer
• The Enemy series by Charlie Higson
• Zombies vs Unicorns by Holly Black
• The Forest of Hands and Teeth series by Carrie Ryan

Werewolves:

• Deviants series by Jeff Sampson
• Fateful by Claudia Gray
• Fairytale Retellings (series) by Jackson Pearce

Demons:

• Ruined by Jus Accardo

Horror:

• In the Shadows by Kiersten White & Jim Di Bartolo
• (Don't You) Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn

Paranormal:

• Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore
• Spirit and Dust by Rosemary Clement-Moore
• The Lynburn Legacy series by Sarah Rees Brennan
• Falling Under series by Gwen Hayes
• Paranormalcy series by Kiersten White
• Strange Angels series by Lili St. Crow
• Night World series by L.J. Smith
• liked this series much better than her Vampire Diaries series....
• Dead Is... series by Marlene Perez
• The Soul Seekers series by Alyson Noel
• The Immortals series by Alyson Noel
• Unearthly series by Cynthia Hand
• The Violet Eden Chapters (series) by Jessica Shirvington
• I enjoyed the first books in this series
• Shade series by Jeri Smith-Ready
• A Need So Beautiful series by Suzanne Young
• Misfit by Jon Skovron
• Possess by Gretchen McNeil
• The Hollow series by Jessica Verday
• Kiss Me Deadly: 13 Tales of Paranormal Love by Trisha Telep
• Enthralled by Melissa Marr & Kelley Armstrong
• Dark Visions by L.J. Smith
• Gemma Doyle series by Libba Bray
• Ghost of a Chance by Laura Peyton Roberts
• The Haunting by Joan Lowery Nixon
• Premonitions by Jude Watson
• The Forbidden Game by L.J. Smith
• Maggie Quinn: Girl Vs. Evil series by Rosemary Clement-Moore
• The Splendor Falls by Rosemary Clement-Moore
• The Eternal Ones series by Kirsten Miller
• Such Sweet Sorrow by Jenny Trout

What are your favorite spooky books to read this fall?

Dead is a Battlefield

By Marlene Perez

Series: Book #6 Dead Is..
ISBN: 9780547607342
Publisher: Graphia
Publication Date: March 6th 2012
Number of Pages: 240
Source: ILL 

Goodreads Summary: Jessica Walsh is starting her freshman year at Nightshade High and trying to forget about the tragic events surrounding her brother’s graduation. She wants to have a normal high school experience. But that’s easier said than done in Nightshade. There’s a new guy at school who seems to be turning the girls into lovesick zombies. And Jessica has other worries—like her crush on a cute but moody lead singer, and the mysterious tattoo that appeared on her arm one day that lets her know whenever there is trouble brewing. Jessica learns she’s a Virago, a woman warrior chosen to fight evil whenever it threatens her hometown. But does a lowly freshman really have
what it takes to keep Nightshade safe?

My Rating:  

Since this is book #6 in this series, you might already be familiar with the setting and such. Thing is, this book marks the beginning of a new narrator and supporting characters. No longer do we have the physic Daisy Giordano, who graduated from high school at the end of book #5 (Dead is Not an Option). We now have Jessica, who is the younger sister of Sean (who is dating Samantha, Daisy's best friend from previous books). 

I don't know if Perez is trying to reach out to the younger spectrum of young adult readers because why else would we go from following the tale of sisters in high school and college to some freshmen (who happen to go after older, junior guys)? Because of this, I think that the characters seemed a little too immature for my reading taste. I mean, the way that Dominic treats her (switching between hot & cold) really got on my nerves. Jessica as a character over all didn't seem to have much depth to her. 

The two characters I really liked were Flo and Raven (fellow Viragos along with Andy). Flo is the kind of girl who kicks butt and I like her sense of humor through the t-shirts she wears. Example: I PUT THE FATAL IN EMME FATALE. and PLEASE DON'T FEED THE ZOMBIES. I've always liked her in the previous books and I am glad we get to see more of her. 

Raven also fascinates me. She's a Virago but also a pacifist (interesting combo right?). She doesn't let the relationship issues between Jessica & her brother Dominic define her friendship with Jessica, which I admired. 

One thing that made this book difficult to read was the fact the characters seemed oblivious to the danger that was right in front of them! At least in the other books, there was a sense of mystery and the reader didn't know what was up from the beginning. Saying that, the book is a quick read (it being just shy of 250 pages).

Things that redeemed this book from being two-stars: 

1. ZOMBIES! Though not actual zombies, it still is a plus in my mind to involve zombies :)
2. Though I didn't like Dominic at all, his seer abilities were really cool. Clues given as songs? Awesome! It is a recycled idea - the "haunted" jukebox in Slim's Diner is ringing bells. Still, it is a unique paranormal talent.

That all being said, I did go on to read book #7, Dead is a Killer Tune. My review on that one will be up shortly. *UPDATE* Review is posted and can be found here!

Update: To clarify, the author did say on her website that this book was part of a spin-off series. 

Through the Zombie Glass

By Gena Showalter

Series: Book #2 White Rabbit Chronicles

ISBN: 9780373210779

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Publication Date: September 24th 2013

Number of Pages: 480
Source: Local Library

GoodreadsSummary: Inspired by the childhood classic Alice in Wonderland, this harrowing and romantic story features teen zombie slayer Alice Bell who has lost so much—family, friends, her home. After a strange new zombie attack, Alice fears she may be losing her mind as well. A terrible darkness blooms inside her, urging her to do wicked things. The whispers of the dead assault her ears and mirrors seem to come frighteningly to life. She’s never needed her team of zombie slayers more—including her boyfriend, Cole—than she does now. But as Cole strangely withdraws and the zombies gain new strength, Ali knows one false step may doom them all.

My Rating:  

Warning: Review contains spoilers

This was a pretty good second book (thank goodness it didn't succumb to the dreaded "second book syndrome: just a filler book")! We meet up with Alice a couple weeks after the last attack (where Cole accidentally happens to STAB her). She is bedridden and just wants to get back in the zombie-slaying game. Mysterious and creepy things start happening to Alice after a new attack where she is bitten by a fellow student (not really a fellow slayer as Justin betrayed them to Anima in book 1) who was bitten in turn by a zombie. Because of this, Ali now has a zombie Ali now growing inside of her, competing with her human self for dominance. Then there's a twist - her spirit is toxic to zombies, which now means she is slowly poisoning herself. She starts seeing strange things in the mirror, hearing voices in her head, and developing a terrible hunger for her friends. And wouldn't you guess? Just when she needs that bad-a** boyfriend of hers, Cole dumps her. This is all because she had a not-so innocent vision with the new guy, Gavin.

"Gavin's a [player], you know. Never been with the same girl twice. And he's never liked blondes. He won't stay with you for long." - Through the Zombie Glass, 84

I guessed the secret to the visions long before they came true :P Silly teenagers, don't know how to trust their significant others! This book has romance, spies, zombies, cat-fights  and humor. The cover is beautiful and we are given a good ending (though open-ended, not a cliffhanger!) I could not put the book down, it read very fast for being almost 500 pages. Also, I have to mention that I really love Kat & Frosty!! They are so cute and perfect for each other. Their characters are very well written and seem totally natural. I will be extremely angry if she dies in the next book. Can't we find a cure already?? I did find the part at the end with all three girls recuperating in the same room and then having their significant others there a tad bit weird and unrealistic..