Stay-Home Winter Reads

The Savage Garden could be a good read for lovers of historical fiction who enjoy a mix of mystery and romance with a touch of gothic atmosphere. The book is set in post-war Italy and follows a young scholar named Adam who is drawn to the mysterious Docci family and their beautiful garden. The story interweaves two tales of love, revenge, and murder, separated by four centuries, and builds up to a gripping conclusion full of suspense. The author, Mark Mills, creates a vivid sense of place and time, and the descriptions of the garden are particularly evocative, making readers feel like they are walking alongside the characters. Overall, The Savage Garden is a haunting and atmospheric page-turner that will transport readers to a bygone era and keep them guessing until the end.

Roseblood might be a good read for fans of mystery, music and dark romance. The unique twist of inspiring Phantom of the Opera but with a backstory that is as thrilling and creepy as the original is captivating. The character of Rune and her "mysterious affliction" engages readers to want to learn more of her as the story progresses. The relationships and love plotlines are not any less intense and satisfying.

The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls is a great read for fans of spooky stories with a heart. The unique and distinctive feature of this book is the atmospheric and intriguing setting of the mysterious home for misfits. Readers who enjoy books like Coraline and The Mysterious Benedict Society will love the creepy yet heartfelt tone of this novel. The book is perfect for young adult and adult readers who want to be entertained and captivated by a compellingly spooky story.

An iconic novel dressed in a fierce design by acclaimed fashion illustrator Ruben Toledo. This couture-inspired collection also features The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dracula, The Scarlet Letter, Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice.Orphaned Jane Eyre endures an unhappy childhood, hated by her aunt and cousins and then sent to comfortless Lowood School. But life there improves and Jane stays on as a teacher, though she still longs for love and friendship. At Mr. Rochester’s house, where she goes to work as a governess, she hopes she might have found them—until she learns the terrible secret of the attic.

Stay up all night with this modern day Rebecca! Perfect for fans of Truly Devious—a haunting story about a new girl in an old town filled with dark secrets . . . that might just kill her.People say the house is cursed.It preys on the weakest, and young women are its favorite victims.In Louth, they're called the Dead Girls.All Bram wanted was to disappear—from her old life, her family's past, and from the scandal that continues to haunt her. The only place left to go is Louth, the tiny town on the Hudson River where her uncle, James, has been renovating an old mansion.But James is haunted by his own ghosts. Months earlier, his beloved wife died in a fire that people say was set by her daughter. The tragedy left James a shell of the man Bram knew—and destroyed half the house he'd so lovingly restored.The manor is creepy, and so are the locals. The people of Louth don't want outsiders like Bram in their town, and with each passing day she's discovering that the rumors they spread are just as disturbing as the secrets they hide. Most frightening of all are the legends they tell about the Dead Girls. Girls whose lives were cut short in the very house Bram now calls home.The terrifying reality is that the Dead Girls may have never left the manor. And if Bram looks too hard into the town's haunted past, she might not either.

Peter Ackroyd’s imagination dazzles in this brilliant novel written in the voice of Victor Frankenstein himself. Mary Shelley and Shelley are characters in the novel.It was at Oxford that I first met Bysshe. We arrived at our college on the same day; confusing to a mere foreigner, it is called University College. I had seen him from my window and had been struck by his auburn locks.The long-haired poet — “Mad Shelley” — and the serious-minded student from Switzerland spark each other’s interest in the new philosophy of science which is overturning long-cherished beliefs. Perhaps there is no God. In which case, where is the divine spark, the soul? Can it be found in the human brain? The heart? The eyes?Victor Frankenstein begins his anatomy experiments in a barn near Oxford. The coroner’s office provides corpses — but they have often died of violence and drowning; they are damaged and putrifying. Victor moves his coils and jars and electrical fluids to a deserted pottery and from there, makes contact with the Doomesday Men — the resurrectionists.Victor finds that perfect specimens are hard to come by . . . until that Thames-side dawn when, wrapped in his greatcoat, he hears the splashing of oars and sees in the half-light the approaching boat where, slung into the stern, is the corpse of a handsome young man, one hand trailing in the water. . . .From the Hardcover edition.

Hide Me Among the Graves' compelling mix of history and the supernatural makes it a must-read for those looking for a unique take on the vampire genre. Tim Powers' exquisite writing style transports readers from high society to grimy slums, providing a richly detailed portrayal of 19th-century London. With an unforgettable cast of characters, including Lord Byron's doctor turned bloodthirsty vampire, this haunting novel is sure to leave readers wanting more.

In a southern Illinois college town where horror is carved in flesh and corruption knows no bounds, a young English professor with a shrouded past is about to learn higher education can be murder.     No one remembers how the body of Josie Fortune was found deep inside Lues Creek Canyon twenty years ago. No one remembers how corrupt police officials framed an innocent man and handed the victim’s daughter into the state’s welfare system. No one remembers, no one but a killer left to carve out a brutal legacy of torture and murder with absolute impunity in this rural southern Illinois college town.     When Josie Darling returns to Lues State to assume a teaching position and come to terms with her mother’s murder, she takes every precaution to hide her tainted past from her colleagues. But someone close remembers, and the shadows of history close in. Threats come, intimate promises of violence written in a desperately psychotic scrawl, invading every aspect of her life. Confronted by personal and professional jeopardy at every turn, Josie must face her terror and expose the identity of her mother’s killer—a killer who is now stalking her.     “If you think you can sleuth this thing, I’m afraid you’re in over your head,” warns a local investigator, but Josie’s stake in this case is all too personal and all the more immediate as she uncovers other murders. Her list of potential suspects includes her deranged ex-husband, her outlaw stepfather and any of his rogue clan, several manipulative Englishprofessors, and a host of corrupt local lawmen.      Struggling against an unseen but ever-present enemy and with few allies to counsel her, Josie embarks on an odyssey of self-discovery. Using her well-honed research skills, the academic becomes the detective and sets out to recover her birthright. Josie transforms herself from tormented victim to relentless avenger as she takes on the intense willfulness of her namesake. But even her renewed strength of character may not help Fortune’s Darling save herself and find the elusive killer’s true identity in time, an identity heard only in the whisper of leaves.

"A welcome chance to catch up with old friends... Fascinating... When we emerge from its folds, there's good news on the last page: 'The chronicle of the vampires will continue.' Yum."PHILADELPHIA INQUIRERA feat of mesmerizing storytelling, a chilling entertainment, THE QUEEN OF THE DAMNED unleashes Akasha, the Queen herself, who has risen from a six-thousand year sleep to let loose the powers of the night. Akasha has a marvelously devious plan to "save" mankind and destroy Lestat--in this extraordinarily sensual novel of the complex, erotic, electrifying world of the undead.

Olivia Mead is a headstrong, independent girl—a suffragist—in an age that prefers its girls to be docile. It’s 1900 in Oregon, and Olivia’s father, concerned that she’s headed for trouble, convinces a stage mesmerist to try to hypnotize the rebellion out of her. But the hypnotist, an intriguing young man named Henri Reverie, gives her a terrible gift instead: she’s able to see people’s true natures, manifesting as visions of darkness and goodness, while also unable to speak her true thoughts out loud. These supernatural challenges only make Olivia more determined to speak her mind, and so she’s drawn into a dangerous relationship with the hypnotist and his mysterious motives, all while secretly fighting for the rights of women. Winters breathes new life into history once again with an atmospheric, vividly real story, including archival photos and art from the period throughout.

On an icy winter weekend, seven friends celebrate New Year's Eve at Stoneborough, a grand manor in the English countryside. They've been brought together by Lucas Heathfield, a young man who recently inherited the property after the tragic death of his uncle Patrick. Though still raw from the loss of his last family member, Lucas welcomes this tight-knit group of friends to the estate he hopes will become their home away from home-an escape from London where they can all relax and rekindle the revelry of their college days.Lucas's best friend, Joanna, finds herself oddly affected by the cavernous manse, with its lavish mythological ceiling mural and sprawling grounds, and awakened to a growing bond with Lucas. Much to her surprise, he reveals that he's loved her for years. But as they begin to find their way from friendship to romance, Joanna can't shake the feeling that the house is having its own effect on them.Back in London, Joanna is stunned when Lucas announces that he and their impetuous friend Danny are moving into Stoneborough full-time. Her concern seems justified as Lucas, once ensconced, becomes completely ensnared in the turbulent past that seems to haunt the house - a past that is captured in old movie reels featuring Lucas's now-dead his charismatic uncle Patrick, his lovely mother, Claire, and his golden-boy father, Justin.Over one decadent, dramatic year, as the friends frequently gather at the shadowed residence, secrets slide out and sexual tensions escalate, shattering friendships and forever changing lives. And all the while, the house cradles a devastating secret.By turns taut and sensual, mesmerizing and disturbing, The House at Midnight is a gripping psychological novel that pulls the reader into the thrall of its ominous atmosphere. Newcomer Lucie Whitehouse has written a tense and captivating story that will linger long after the final, shocking pages.

Following a shattering and exceedingly public personal tragedy, Antonia Weston moved to the sleepy town of Amberwood seeking peace and anonymity. As she struggles to rebuild her life, Antonia finds herself increasingly fascinated by the macabre history surrounding the town. The abandoned watermill, Twygrist, with its brooding darkness, and the now-vanished Latchkill Asylum—where, a hundred years ago, the unfortunate inmates suffered gruesome fates—both pique her interest. Eventually, however, Antonia's obsession with the linked histories of Twygrist and Latchkill alerts someone from her own past, a person who knows the town’s brooding secrets and who is prepared to use that knowledge in the most horrifying manner.

Marina could be a good read for those who love mystery novels with elements of friendship and young love. Carlos Ruiz Zafon's writing style creates a vivid image of postwar Barcelona and the characters' journey into the unknown. The storyline is unique and filled with surprises.

An alternative cover edition for this ISBN can be found here.Orphaned Jane Eyre endures an unhappy childhood, hated by her aunt and cousins and then sent to comfortless Lowood School. But life there improves and Jane stays on as a teacher, though she still longs for love and friendship. At Mr Rochester's house, where she goes to work as a governess, she hopes she might have found them — until she learns the terrible secret of the attic.