2025 I Read Horror Year-Round Challenge - Third Quarter Check-in

How did your reading go in the third quarter? 

I'm doing the Chilling level which is 12 books in a year (plus, I'm trying for the Cryptid Bingo). I only have three categories left for the main challenge, and five for Cryptid Bingo. 

My planned reads for the three main categories are Slewfoot (Brom) for Witches, The Root Witch (Mexican American author Debra Castaneda) for BIPOC, and The Beast of Brenton Woods (Jackson R. Thomas) for Frightening Cover. For Cryptid Bingo, right now I have The Jersey Devil (Hunter Shea) and The Wendigo (Algernon Blackwood) on my list for fall reading.

Here's how it's going so far...

• Vampires - The Vampire Armand, Anne Rice
• Witches
• Folk Horror - Pine, Francine Toon
• Written by a BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) author
• A Ghost Story - The Hacienda, Isabel Canas
• Written by a female author - Pine, Francine Toon
• Cosmic Horror - Annihilation, Jeff Vandermeer
• Frightening Cover
• Adapted as movie/series - The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde
• Katsu, Ketchum, King, or Koontz - Holly, Stephen King
• Black, gray, orange, or red cover - Horseman, Christina Henry
• Book featuring a Cryptid (mark off one BINGO square!) - The Dover Demon, Hunter Shea

I keep track of my yearly challenges over on my sister site, True Book Addict. There's a link to my 2025
challenge page in the menu above.

I hope you're enjoying your horrific reading! Share your progress in the comments (update, links to posts/reviews, etc.)...

Something Wicked Fall - My spooky season TBR

I've been meaning to share this since Something Wicked Fall began, but...September was a crazily speedy month! Anyway, in light of our FrightFall 24-Hour Opposite readathon tonight at 8:00 pm, here is my ridiculously ambitious spooky season TBR. Will I read all of them? Probably not, though I have finished a couple, so there is that. 

The Pale Blue Eye, Louis Bayard 
The Sorrows, Jonathan Janz (currently listening)
Hell House, Richard Matheson (currently reading)
The Reckoning, Jeff Long (currently reading)
Merrick, Anne Rice
Dead Until Dark, Charlaine Harris

The Keep, F. Paul Wilson
The Wendigo, Algernon Blackwood
The Long Walk, Stephen King (reread)
The Running Man, Stephen King (reread)
Slewfoot, Brom
Children of Demeter, EV Knight
The Beast of Brenton Woods, Jackson R. Thomas
The Doll, Daphne Du Maurier
Hummingbird, T.C. Parker
The Toll, Cherie Priest
The Jersey Devil, Hunter Shea
Jack, Howley & Willcocks
The Root Witch, Debra Castaneda
Frankenstein: Prodigal Son, Dean Koontz

I'll be finishing The Reckoning starting off the FrightFall 24-Hour event and will pick up The Keep next.

You can still join us for the FrightFall Readathon which lasts through the end of October and/or join us for tonight's 24-Hour readathon. Sign up for FrightFall here. Full details on the 24-Hour event here.

I was hoping to share more scary in September, but...see my comment about September above. I'm planning a review of the film, Weapons. Also, tomorrow is the start of Banned Books Week 2025. I'll be doing a series of posts on my sister site, True Book Addict. However, since learning that Stephen King is the most banned author in schools (2024/2025 school year), I will probably include a feature here as well. Stay tuned!

What kind of scary have you been getting up to?

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