All the Spooky, Thrilling, and Mysterious Books We’re Reading in October
By Erin Roll
October is just around the corner, which means it’s almost time for that most wonderful time of the year: spooky season! Pour yourself a big mug of something pumpkin-spiced—or not, per the needs of your taste buds—and curl up with some of these scary-good reads.
Maggie McCabe was once a well-respected army surgeon, saving lives in risky situations, until a series of tragic misfortunes destroys her career and causes her to lose her medical license. She is adrift in life and in work until a colleague presents her with an unexpected new opportunity: working in a plastic surgery clinic that caters to the highest echelons of the elite, no questions asked. Out of options, Maggie agrees—and she is asked to treat a patient who is one of the most mysterious men in the world. When that patient vanishes while still under Maggie’s care, Maggie has to go on the run and find out the truth before she is the next one to disappear.
It’s Christmas morning, but there’s no celebrating for Kay Scarpetta. The Phantom Slasher, a serial killer that has been terrorizing northern Virginia, has claimed two more victims. The Slasher is as clever as he is dangerous, using technology to track his prospective victims and to cause them to see a ghostly hologram in their rooms before he strikes. Kay goes to Mercy Island, the site of a now-abandoned psychiatric hospital, where the two latest victims have been found. And one of them is someone that Kay knows—which means that the Slasher may have her in his sights.
Seven-year-old Layla wants to be more independent. She wants to decide where she wants to go and what she wants to do. And one of those dreams is to be able to ride a donkey out beyond the boundaries of her neighborhood. But that becomes increasingly impossible when a man is murdered behind a shop: the first of many murders. There are whispers of a female spirit preying on men, and the local men start blaming the women and girls. Over time, Layla grows up and starts to become a woman: a woman that men will fear and run from.
Kicking the habit can kill you—possibly in the most literal sense. Madison, dealing with a bad case of heartbreak, has been overindulging in junk food. But a “fitness boot camp” for women may be just what she’s looking for. She can’t help but notice, however, that there is something strange, even possibly dangerous, about the camp’s ex-military director and her methods—but Madison is getting into shape, so it can’t be that bad—right? Meanwhile, musician Johnny, addicted to pain pills since a bad accident, is trying to detox in a secluded cottage. But he has an unexpected roommate: an unearthly creature who issues Johnny an ultimatum: kick the pain pills, or be eaten alive. ou want it?
There is a serial killer haunting Chicago, known only as the Pied Piper. For Detective Lauren Medina, stopping the Piper is personal as well as professional; her own sister was one of the Piper’s victims. But when a teenager is found dead in the same lagoon where Lauren’s sister was found, Lauren remembers the promise she made to her sister’s killer a long time ago. And now the Piper has come to collect—and she may have to destroy her own life in order to stop him.
Erin Roll is a freelance writer, editor, and proofreader. Her favorite genres to read are mystery, science fiction, and fantasy, and her TBR pile is likely to be visible on Google Maps. Before becoming an editor, Erin worked as a journalist and photographer, and she has won far too many awards from the New Jersey Press Association. Erin lives at the top floor of a haunted house in Montclair, NJ. She enjoys reading (of course), writing, hiking, kayaking, music, and video games.
