Team Undead! You guys have been absolutely killing it, winning three out of the last four Hocus Pocus Readathon rounds! That is incredible, there must be something magical about this team!
However, Team Undead was defeated last year by Team Trick-or-Treaters! Will this happen again or will Team Undead take back their winning streak! Time will tell!
Anyway, I know you have been hard at work building your TBRs for the Hocus Pocus Readathon! But if you are still struggling to fulfill some of the prompts, I got you! Here are five book recommendations for each of Team Undead’s prompts.
Remember, these prompts are super loose! If you can’t find a book that fits a prompt exactly, as long as it’s the same vibe you can still earn the points!
I have not been able to read every book on this list. However, I am almost positive that these books fill these prompts. Plus, if I’m wrong that’s okay! You can still get the points for your team!
And if you have no idea what I am talking about, click here to learn more about the Hocus Pocus Readathon!
If you are looking for recommendations for a specific prompt, feel free to click the specific one down below! Or you can scroll through all these book recommendations. So many good reads on this list.
Prompt 1: Frightening events in a small town lead to a group of people digging up the grave of a recently deceased townsperson… but it’s empty! Read a mystery book!
There are so many mystery books out there! Mystery thrillers, cozy mysteries, fantasy mysteries, and more! Check out a couple I found that would fit this prompt perfectly!
Title: The Paris Apartment
Author: Lucy Foley
Genre: Mystery
Release Date: February 22, 2022
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This story follows Jess, who has quit her job and is looking for a change. So, she decides to move in with her brother to his apartment in Paris. However, soon after she arrives, her brother goes missing. Trying to figure out what happened, Jess goes to her brother’s neighbors but some of them aren’t as welcoming as she expected.
A classic whodunit book is perfect for October! I love guessing who the real killer is. I’m usually wrong but that’s okay!
Title: Jackal
Author: Erin E. Adams
Genre: Mystery, Horror
Release Date: October 4, 2022
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Jackal is set in a small town in Pennsylvania, where young black girls go missing a lot. And Liz might be the only one who is noticing this trend. Will Liz figure out what is taking these girls, or will she be consumed by the darkness herself?
Aside from the gorgeous cover, this story sounds riveting, intriguing, and incredibly mysterious! I have had my eye on this book for a long time!
Title: Killers of a Certain Age
Author: Deanna Raybourn
Genre: Mystery
Release Date: September 6, 2022
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Aside from the simple yet interesting cover, the plot of this book sounds like something I have never heard of before. This story is about Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie, four women who were trained as assassins. Now, at 60 years old, they have retired. However, while on their joint celebration vacation, they realize that they are now targets of the very organization they come from.
This book sounds so unique, I can’t wait to see what these four women do in this situation!
Title: The Widows of Malabar Hill
Author: Sujata Massey
Genre: Mystery, Historical Fiction
Release Date: January 9, 2018
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This book focuses on Perveen, a new lawyer who is passionate about fighting for women’s rights. So, when working on one of her first cases, she notices that the three wives of a very wealthy mill owner have signed their inheritance to a charity and kept nothing for themselves, she gets worried. She is unsure how they will support themselves and wants to ensure nothing strange is going on.
This story sounds unlike the other mysteries on this list. I am so excited to read Perveen’s story and her fight for these three women’s rights.
Title: The Night Shift
Author: Alex Finlay
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Release Date: March 1, 2022
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This book was all over my social media feeds last year! There are so many positive reviews, I am interested in seeing what all the hype is about.
The Night Shift is about a town where two crimes occur. These crimes were almost identical, except for one fact. They happened 15 years apart. Now, a group of three very different people will try and work together to figure out what is going on.
Prompt 2: I didn’t believe in ghosts until one night I was playing the piano and heard clapping which was strange since I live alone! Then I looked up… Read a spooky book!
Spooky books are my specialty. And by that I mean, I am really good at putting spooky books on my TBR and then never reading them! Here are a couple I currently have on my TBR!
Title: The Taking of Jake Livingston
Author: Ryan Douglass
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
Release Date: July 13, 2021
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Jake has a hard enough time fitting in as it is, but it is especially hard because he can see ghosts and they are all around him. Usually, he doesn’t mind them, but then he meets Sawyer, a kid who shot and killed 6 classmates before killing himself. Sawyer wants to use Jake in another plan of his own and Jake isn’t so sure he wants to be involved.
Title: Our Wives Under the Sea
Author: Julia Armfield
Genre: Horror
Release Date: March 2, 2022
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The ocean terrifies me so much, that I’m not sure if I could handle this book. This is the story of Miri and Leah. Leah has just come up after almost dying during her underwater research mission. Miri is just happy to have her wife home. However Miri starts to notice differences in Leah, and she starts to suspect that Leah might have brought something up with her from the bottom of the ocean.
My goodness, this book sounds spooky, but I am kind of here for it, not going to lie!
Title: White is for Witching
Author: Helen Oyeyemi
Genre: Gothic, Horror
Release Date: June 23, 2009
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This story follows a family, alone in their home trying to deal with loss and grief. Then, Miranda, a member of the family, disappears, just as the house is falling apart and strange things are happening.
The summary of this book is so mysterious, I’m so curious as to how this story will play out! This book is definitely on my list of must-reads this autumn season.
Title: Frankenstein in Baghdad
Author:
Genre:
Release Date:
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Frankenstein is a classic horror tale that most people know. You know what I love about classic tales? They get retold, like this one!
Frankenstein in Baghdad is about Hadi, who rummages through the streets of US-occupied Baghdad for body parts. He then sews these body parts together with the goal of showing the US that these are real people. However, his sewn-together body goes missing one day followed by a string of murders in the city. Are these two things related?
This sounds like such a fascinating and wild twist on a well-known story, I am so interested to see what the author did with this! Plus, the book cover is so cool!
Title: Horrorstör
Author: Grady Hendrix
Genre: Horror, Comedy
Release Date: September 23, 2014
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While browsing the shelves of Barnes and Noble after a very long day, I came across a copy of a book that looked like an Ikea manual. Little did I know, it was actually a horror comedy book set in a fictionalized Ikea-like store! In the story, three employees decide to take an overnight shift to try and investigate weird sightings that have been going on at their store.
I am literally so excited to read this book, the cover is amazing and the premise sounds spooky and funny at the same time!
Prompt 3: You find out that you are not only undead but you can also spread an affliction to others. But maybe the cure is worse than the illness! Read a book featuring a zombie, ghost, or other undead character!
I am going to focus on zombie and undead characters for this prompt, but if you want to look at some books about ghosts I would recommend checking the book recommendation list for Team Trick-or-Treaters.
Title: Zone One
Author: Colson Whitehead
Genre: Horror, Post-Apocalyptic
Release Date: October 6, 2011
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If you like Zombies or The Walking Dead, this might be the book for you! This book is set in a post-apocalyptic world where a plague leads to half the population turning into the undead. Now, as the world is trying to rebuild, groups of civilians are tasked with going out and killing the undead.
I quite literally just finished watching The Walking Dead today, so this book is sounding really tempting right now! Also perfect for Team Undead!
Title: Feed
Author: Mira Grant
Genre: Horror, Science-fiction
Release Date: April 10, 2010
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I read this book a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it! I loved the characterization in the story, and it was also the very first book I read about zombies!
This story follows two bloggers who are trying to get to the bottom of an illness that swept through the world and left a lot of people as the living dead. They are going to do everything in their power to find answers, even if it kills them.
Title: Bruja Born
Author: Zoraida Córdova
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Release Date: June 5, 2018
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This book follows Lula, who has just lost the most important people in her life to a car crash. Lucky for her, she has power and does a dark spell to get her boyfriend back. However, when all the bodies from the car crash go missing, Lula realizes she might have raised an army of the dead.
I’m obsessed with this book cover and I’m obsessed with the plot of this book! I can’t wait to meet Lula.
Title: Undead Girl Gang
Author: Lily Anderson
Genre: Young Adult, Mystery, Fantasy
Release Date: May 8, 2018
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Another wonderful book cover, Young Adult Horror has some of the best book cover designs out there!
This book is about three young students who were murdered. In order to solve this case, Mila decides to reanimate their corpses so they can tell her who killed them. Unfortunately, the three zombies have no memory of their murder.
By the sounds of this plot, I think Undead Girl Gang will be a light-hearted read that is still perfect for the spooky season.
Title: Masters of Death
Author: Olivia Blake
Genre: Paranormal, Romance
Release Date: January 30, 2018
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This book seems to have had a resurgence in popularity this year, despite being released five years ago. I am just intrigued by the book cover, look at it!
This book is about a vampire who is also a real estate agent. She has been tasked to sell a house that happened to be haunted by a murder victim. Now, she must work to solve this murder, or she’ll never be able to sell this house.
This book has vampires and ghosts! And I think they fall in love!
Prompt 4: An individual develops a terror of water after seeing the dead walk out of it one night! People can no longer touch, drink, or even be near water! Read a book about something you personally fear!
This prompt is very personal, so I am just going to give some books about some common fears!
Title: The Deep
Author: Alma Katsu
Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction
Release Date: March 10, 2020
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If you are afraid of the ocean or deep waters, like me, you might want to read The Deep. This book tells the fictional story of Annie, who had survived the sinking of the Titanic and was now sailing on Titanic’s sister ship, Britannica. However, while Annie is working on the ship as a nurse, she comes across a soldier named Mark who she is convinced never made it off the Titanic.
This book also excited me, as someone who hyperfixated on the Titanic as a kid. I am so looking forward to reading this book at some point soon.
Title:
Author:
Genre:
Release Date:
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This book is a double whammy, hitting people who are afraid of flying on airplanes and people who are afraid of getting sick.
In this book, a full plane of passengers has been infected by a new, deadly virus while they are up in the air. The pilots search for a place to land the plane while they are denied entry to airports for fear of spreading the sickness.
As someone with flight anxiety who is very cautious when it comes to getting sick, this definitely sounds like a book I would not want to read. But it would be perfect for this prompt!
Title: The Loneliest Girl In the Universe
Author: Lauren James
Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller
Release Date: July 3, 2018
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Are you afraid of outer space, or being alone? This might be the book you want to read to fulfill this prompt.
This book tells the story of Romy, the last surviving crew member aboard a ship headed to a new planet. She feels utterly alone. That is until she receives an email from a boy named J, who is on a spaceship heading towards her. Although they don’t message very much, Romy thinks she might be in love.
When I tell you I had no idea where this book was going, I was completely shocked by how this story ended.
Title: My Best Friend’s Exorcism
Author: Grady Hendrix
Genre: Young Adult, Horror, Paranormal
Release Date: May 17, 2016
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Another common fear people have is the fear of demons or other dark entities. This coincides with the fear of exorcisms.
My Best Friend’s Exorcism has all of these things. In this story, Abby and Gretchen are best friends. However one day Gretchen begins to act weird. The only explanation Abby can find is that Gretchen has been possessed by a demon and she needs an exorcism.
I picked up a copy of this book one day while I was strolling through Barnes and Noble simply because of the book cover. I loved how the designer made it look like an old VHS tape, it definitely caught my eye. Plus the story inside sounds pretty good too!
Title: The Hatching
Author: Ezekiel Boone
Genre: Horror, Science Fiction
Release Date: July 5, 2016
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Do you have the very common fear, arachnophobia? Well, this is definitely the book for you if you are looking to face that fear. In The Hatching, weird occurrences start happening all over the world. It isn’t until people start seeing them running around that they understand that it is all connected. It is connected to an ancient species of spider that is coming and taking over the world.
I have a very mild, totally normal fear of spiders. But if one gets on me I will scream and run around in circles. So imagining an apocalyptic situation full of spiders is terrifying.
Prompt 5: There is a serial killer running around your town! This murderer actually put up an ad for a victim and they have found a willing participant! Read a book about a serial killer or a murderer!
I don’t read. a lot of crime novels, but there are so many out there that sound creepy and perfect for October!
Title: The Devotion of Suspect X
Author: Keigo Higashino
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Release Date: August 29, 2005
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In this psychological thriller, Yasuko lives a quiet life until one day, when she decides to help her neighbor cover up a murder. Detective Kusanagi works for the Tokyo police and is trying to solve this murder, but things are not adding up as they should.
One of my favorite movie genres is psychological thriller! This book sounds exactly like something I would enjoy!
Title: American Psycho
Author: Bret Easton Ellis
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Release Date: March 6, 1991
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Did you know one of the most popular and well-known murder movies is also a book! This story follows Patrick Bateman, a successful and charming member of society. But he is also a murderer who spends his free time finding people to kill.
It would be interesting to see how similar or different this book is to the movie! What better way to spend your October than reading American Psycho and then having a movie night to match!
Title: The Devil in the White City
Author: Erik Larson
Genre: Non-Fiction, True Crime
Release Date: February 11, 2003
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Looking to add a little non-fiction to your October TBR? Check out this true story of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. This book tells the story of Daniel H. Burnham, the man who created the fair, and H.H. Holmes, a serial killer posing as a doctor. Holmes used the fair to find and murder his victims.
This honestly sounds like it could be a work of fiction, but apparently it’s all true. Although I am not the biggest fan of true crime, I am interested in reading this book, I am so intrigued by this story.
Title: The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
Author: Stuart Turton
Genre: Fantasy, Mystery
Release Date: February 8, 2018
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This is another book that I read a couple of years ago that I think fits perfectly with this prompt. The main character of this story spends eight days waking up in the bodies of eight different witnesses to Evelyn Hardcastle’s murder. His only goal is to figure out who did it and try to stop it before it happens.
I love that this story incorporates fantasy with mystery. It was such an intriguing read, I would definitely recommend reading this with the audiobook!
Title: Confessions
Author: Kanae Minato
Genre: Horror, Mystery
Release Date: August 5, 2008
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This story sounds kind of terrifying I’m not going to lie! In Confessions, a grieving mother, who is also a teacher, seeks to get revenge for the murder of her daughter.
I get such a sick feeling in my stomach when I think of young people harming other young people. So, this book sounds particularly scary to me!
Prompt 6: He locked the doors and shuttered the windows. But the witch still came in through the roof! The only safe place is holy ground, so you run back to the graveyard! Read a book that is set at a graveyard, or features a graveyard!
Funnily enough, I don’t see graveyards very often where I live, so I rarely think about them unless I am going to a funeral. The people in these books definitely think about them more than I do!
Author: Neil Gaiman
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
Release Date: September 30, 2008
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I have a very specific memory of seeing this book in the scholastic book fair when I was a kid. Back then I didn’t like scary stories, so I avoided it like the plague. Now, I might be intrigued!
This book is about a young boy who was raised in a graveyard by ghosts. Now he is trying to figure out how to live in the world of the living and the dead!
Title: The Shadow of the Wind
Author: Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery
Release Date: May 1, 2001
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This book has a graveyard in a different sense than you might think. In this book, Daniel finds a rare antique book that he loves. So, he sets out to find the author, however, he discovers that he might be in possession of the only copy! On this journey, he visits the Cemetery of Forgotten Books.
So, basically, the character visits a graveyard of forgotten books! That totally counts for this prompt!
Title: Stalking Jack the Ripper
Author: Kerri Maniscalco
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery
Release Date: September 20, 2016
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I read this book a couple of years ago and enjoyed the unique plot surrounding an infamous murderer. I am also interested in reading more from this series, it definitely gives all the fall vibes! Plus, this book features a scene in a graveyard.
This book follows Audry, a girl fascinated by forensic science, despite the wishes of her father. When this interest brings her into the middle of a murder investigation, she must abandon everything she thinks she knows to get to the truth.
Title: The Graveyard Apartment
Author: Mariko Koike
Genre: Horror, Paranormal, Mystery
Release Date: July 1, 1988
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This story follows a family who has moved into an apartment right next to a graveyard. As time goes on, their neighbors begin moving out one by one until they are the only ones left. But maybe they aren’t alone!
This book is set right next to an graveyard! Perfect for this prompt and for the spooky season!
Title: The Death of Mrs. Westaway
Author: Ruth Ware
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Release Date: May 29, 2018
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This story centers around Hal, who has received a letter informing her that she has a large inheritance coming her way. However, she believes it was sent to the wrong person. Now, she finds herself at a funeral (in a graveyard) trying to figure out what is going on and how she came into possession of this letter.
Ruth Ware is an incredibly popular mystery writer, I am sure this will be a good read!
I had so much fun finding all these books, I probably added 100 more books to my already long TBR! If there are any other books you think should be on this list, let me know! I will happily add them!
Click here to see the book recommendations for Team Sanderson Sisters!
Click here to see the book recommendations for Team Trick-or-Treaters!