Adult Recommendations

My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

What’s more tragic than no one coming to your birthday party at the local roller rink? The new girl being the lone attendee. At least that’s what Abby thinks when Gretchen is the only person from their fourth grade class to show.

Fast forward six years – it’s 1988 and Abby and Gretchen’s friendship is tighter than ever. But after an evening of skinny dipping goes awry, Gretchen begins to act odd. Not only is she more aggressive, but strange incidents seem to happen whenever she is nearby.

After some investigating, Abby comes to the conclusion that her best friend has been possessed by a demon. Is their friendship strong enough to combat this entity, or is Gretchen doomed for a life of eternal hell?

Grady Hendrix’s My Best Friend’s Exorcism is a supernatural horror, filled with eighties nostalgia, that is bound to keep the reader hooked to the very end.

Lore: Monstrous Creatures, by Aaron Mahnke

Have you ever been afraid by things you knew were not real, felt unseen eyes upon you, or witness something that cannot happen? 

Aaron Mahnke knows the fears that haunt us, and has done a wickedly good job recounting the folktales that still keep us up at night.

Everything from Bigfoot to Werewolves are in this lovingly curated volume of Mahnke’s best Lore Tales, featuring the “not-quite-human” side of horror. As a historian and lover of all things creepy, Mahnke dives deep into the background and history behind some of our favorite myths and legends, while still leaving enough mystery to set your spine tingling as your turn the pages. 

I wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone who wants a little bit of fact with his or her frights, or a little more horror in their history.

The Girl from Venice by Martin Cruz Smith

Martin Cruz Smith paints a vivid picture of daily life in Venice, 1945 in his latest novel The Girl from Venice.

Cenzo is a local fisherman with a deep familial bond – Giulia is a Jewish girl running from the Nazis. When Giulia washes up in his life, Cenzo goes against his family’s wishes, risking his life and family name to help her find her family, who has been betrayed by the Wehrmacht. 

German-occupied Italy sets the back drop to this fascinating novel about the power of love, the responsibility of family, and tenuous friendships during wartime. A very intriguing and winding story that keeps the reader wondering what will happen next.

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