I do not love Halloween the way some people do, but I enjoy the autumnal season immensely like every white Millennial femme. The sweaters! The lattes! The blankets! The cats! This is all to say, that I have always enjoyed cozy. And last year, I began to dip my toes into spooky!
The reason I needed to dip my toes in, is that I have always avoided scary vibes. I abhor jump scares, am prone to nightmares, and frankly life is scary enough so why would I add to that in order to relax and/or have a good time -- no thank you, please. A result of this lifelong avoidance was having no idea where to begin my spooky journey -- I ended up dabbling in some cozy mysteries, one or two horror novels, and a lot of fantasy -- and I'm so excited to do the same this year now that I know more about what I'm into! I found some new favorites, and have a handful of 2022 releases that I'm eagerly anticipating.
What I'm looking forward to for 2022's spooky season (in order of release date): The Fae Keeper (The Witch King, #2), May 31st This actually came out in the summer, but I have saved it for spooky season! I can't wait to see where the author takes us.
Suburban Hell, August 30th The first line of the synopsis is "A Chicago cul-de-sac is about to get a new neighbor...of the demonic kind." That's frankly all I need to know. Plus, the cover is lovely. I'm expecting a Santa Clarita Diet vibe?
Gallows Hill, September 6th A mysterious death at a family-owned winery, perhaps caused by said winery being cursed? I'm in.
The Kiss Curse (The Ex Hex #2), September 20th The Ex Hex was cute enough and kept my attention, and sometimes that is all I'm looking for. Hopefully the sequel will be similar!
Such Sharp Teeth, October 4th I enjoyed last year's Cackle, so I'm looking forward to Rachel Harrison's new release. Sounds like a feminist werewolf story, which I didn't know I needed until now.
A Dowry of Blood, October 4th I'm not super familiar with the original Dracula story, as my pre-2021 life was all about staying away from scary stuff, but I love feminist retellings so hopefully this will be in my wheelhouse.
Sign Here, October 25th
A dark comedy about a Hell employee (or maybe technically he's Satan's employee? I'm not sure.) who needs one more member of a family to sell their soul? Sounds like Lucifer aka SIGN ME UP.
Spooky Nikki seems like she's here to stay, and will provide reviews in the future! Whee!
