Reading Sanctum Potpourri #20: All Hallows Month Book Goal (Part II)

Posted on by The Mustache

Most of you know that I read more than I watch television and movies. I set a goal to read only Horror novels for October, and tried to read 20. I only managed 19, but have finished the 20th on November 1st. So, here is a quick gander at what I read, and how I felt about the last ten books. The first ten were covered a few days ago in Part I.

#11

One of my habits as a reader, is that when I get into a groove reading and enjoying works by any given author, I sometimes will read multiple works from that author. The Island of Dr. Moreau was the third book I read by H.G Wells in October, and I loved it. I haven’t read it since I was a kid and it certainly counts as my favorite by Wells. This is a definite 5 Grey Geeks and it is available for free on Amazon Kindle and YouTube Audiobooks.

#12

Book Two from the Earth Hive Aliens trilogy is Nightmare Asylum written by Steve Perry. It continues the story of Bueller, an artificial person, Wilks, a colonial marine, and Billie, a surrogate for Newt. They arrive at a secret outpost and General Spears is not too happy to see them. He instantly realizes that they are going to muck up his plans. I gave this a 4 Grey Geeks rating. I bought the Earth Hive trilogy for 99 cents.

#13

Creepy was a magazine-formatted comic book filled with horror stories published by Warren Publishing’s stable of writers and artists from the 1960s and beyond. The Creepy Archives collects five of Creepy’s issues and puts them in a gorgeous trade paperback. I only read the first one for the month but loved the way it tickled my nostalgia goggles. Free on Read Comic Online and rated 5 Grey Geeks.

#14

Meadowlarks is a nature horror novel that begins with a horrific inciting incident that will remain secret to you unless you read it for yourself. Mother and son move away from the city to a town that they will inherit in an isolated valley. Every full moon, the Amerindian / Christian community leave a cow as offering to the nature god. Mother and son try to buck that trend, and it doesn’t go so well when they mess with nature. I received it free and gave it a thrilling 4 Grey Geeks.

#15

Marie Wilkens has a style about writing these haunted house narratives. They involve imminent family drama revolving around status and affluence. The wealthy are generally generous and the less affluent are considered bottom-feeding slumdogs. Similar to Agatha Christie’s murder mysteries the ghost of the murdered has unresolved issues that prevent resting in peace. On one of my mailing lists, I get offered a free compilation of these every day. I rated it 3 Grey Geeks.

#16

Archie Horror Presents: are a series of trade paperback compilations collecting the most recent Archie Comics offerings of the horror line. Chilling Adventures are from the Sabrina stories of which the Sabrina TV series focused most especially the Satanic church and the school of witchcraft. There are some macabre stories included and the editor tries to group stories to provide an understandable context for anyone who is not a follower of the titles. 4 Grey Geeks and enjoyed free via Read Comic Online.

#17

Amy Cross is one of my go to horror authors, and this was a very good choice. The Dog is a zombie apocalypse narrative told from the Dog’s point of view. The Dog is a Jack Russell Terrier that is with his owner at a log cabin getaway when the ZomPoc occurs. There are some wonderfully humorous parts as well as some horrific notes of pathos and pain. I’m calling it 4 Grey Geeks although, it probably should be more. 99 cents on Amazon Kindle.

#18

The Haunting of Brandt Mansion is my first Mason Dean novel and probably not my last. Here, the main character is a horror writer that decides to rent a haunted house for inspiration. While he stays in the house he discovers a murder mystery with a vengeful spirit, the possibility of hidden treasure, and salty relatives that believe the property should belong to them. A real paranormal mystery with scary beats and a fascinating premise. 4 Grey Geeks and one of those Haunted House narratives available for 99 cents or free on specific mailing lists.

#19

Blame the Goth Girl #1: In the Beginning There Was Bauhaus is more a horror adjacent first story by Bettina Busiello involving vampires, werewolves, a wendigo, and various other monsters. Onyx, the main character is gifted in her ability to detect monsters. The police decide to have her assist them in their investigations. Books 1 and 2 were both free on Amazon, but I didn’t enjoy this one as much as the second one which was definitely more horror. 3 Grey Geeks on this one.

#20

My brother, Marc, would have loved these Busiello novellas, even if just for the alternative music titles. Blame the Goth Girl #2: All Give Thanks and Praise to the Cure, is definitely hardcore horror with the characters from the first novel (vampires, werewolves, and a wendigo), but also demons in this second installment. Here, Onyx is searching for a serial killer who happens to be a non-human. 4 Grey Geeks, also free on Kindle.

Well, that’s it for me, the Mustache, with my All Hallows Month book goal (Part II). I hope you find something that strikes your fancy. I had fun reading these books. As always, I thank you for checking out the post. The Mustache and the Beard are grateful. Stay safe. Take it easy. See you later. And Peace!

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My name is Louie Matos and I’m a geek. I’m such a geek that the week my best friend moved to Puerto Rico, I asked him to co-write a blog. Of course he said, “Yes!” because I’m SOOO flipping interesting, and because since we’ve known each other, we collaborate even when we don’t know we’re doing it. For the purposes of this blog, I’m the mustache. I’ve had a mustache since I was 12 years old, and I’ve never shaved it off. (We Puerto Ricans love our facial hair.) I was born into my geekdom. My Mom was a collector, and my Dad was a huge reader. So early on Dad would read to me and when he was done with the book, I would keep it until I learned to read for myself. And then I read everything, inhaling books from our school library 5 or 6 per week. When we moved to a new, safe neighborhood, I began to walk to the library, weekly. That’s when I became obsessed with books in general, and horror in particular. In Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, my brother, Marc, and I moved into the basement together. We had our own TV and because we were in the basement, Mom and Dad pretty much left us to our own devices if we let our little sister, Dee, tagalong. There in that basement we would watch creature features, chiller theatre, and horror marathons. We collected comic books, toys, and books. When we could afford our own VCR, we collected movies. So if I were to communicate my geekdom, I would say I’m a horror guy, former collector of Fangoria magazine. I still read 3 or 4 books per week (mostly horror and sci fi but practically anything.) I still read comics when I can get my hands on them (no small feat here in Puerto Rico). Dungeons and Dragons is still a must at family gatherings and we never fight about which is better (Star Wars or Star Trek). We can enjoy both. This blog will have all of that and a whole lot more. Stay tuned.