Spooky MG recommendations //because it’s the right time for this

Posted 15-09-2020 by Marion in Allgemein / 16 Comments

Do you guys know what I miss about not working at the bookstore anymore? It’s random people coming up to me and asking for bookish advice. I miss that little old lady that came in every two weeks, walking straight up to me and ask me about new books because she trusted my judgement. (Which is the highest honour you can bestow on a bookish worker, everyone will agree.)

Anyway. I miss that and because you are random persons – although I quite doubt that any of you is my little old lady, unfortunately – I will give you bookish recommendations. Totally for free. I don’t get paid for this. Also unfortunately.

Since it’s fall (or autumn), I thought it would be nice to give you some spooky MG recommendations that give you all the fall feels. So cozy up with a mug of your favourite beverage, some fuzzy socks and a blanket and best take all the recommendations to heart.

The Witches of Willow Cove by Josh Roberts

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Witches and mysteries and friendship and secrecy and plots. This book gives you the feeling of small town Halloween and witch covens and a whole lot of mystery. Here you will find my full review.

It’s not easy being a teenage witch. Seventh grader Abby Shepherd is just getting the hang of it when weird stuff starts happening all around her hometown of Willow Cove. Green slime bubbling to life in science class. Giant snakes slithering around the middle school gym. Her best friend suddenly keeping secrets and telling lies. Things only begin to make sense when a stranger named Miss Winters reveals that Abby isn’t the only young witch in town—and that Willow Cove is home to a secret past that connects them all. Miss Winters, herself a witch, even offers to teach Abby and the others everything she knows about witchcraft. But as Abby learns more about Miss Winters’ past, she begins to suspect her new mentor is keeping secrets of her own. Can Abby trust her, or does Miss Winters have something wicked planned for the young witches of Willow Cove?


Small Spaces by Katherine Arden

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Who would have thought that an old farm and a couple of scarecrows could be this creepy? If you are looking for a book with great atmosphere, a haunting story and spookiness around every corner, this book could be for you. Also, here is my review if you wanna check it out.

After suffering a tragic loss, eleven-year-old Ollie only finds solace in books. So when she happens upon a crazed woman at the river threatening to throw a book into the water, Ollie doesn’t think–she just acts, stealing the book and running away. As she begins to read the slender volume, Ollie discovers a chilling story about a girl named Beth, the two brothers who both loved her, and a peculiar deal made with “the smiling man,” a sinister specter who grants your most tightly held wish, but only for the ultimate price. Ollie is captivated by the tale until her school trip the next day to Smoke Hollow, a local farm with a haunting history all its own. There she stumbles upon the graves of the very people she’s been reading about. Could it be the story about the smiling man is true? Ollie doesn’t have too long to think about the answer to that. On the way home, the school bus breaks down, sending their teacher back to the farm for help. But the strange bus driver has some advice for the kids left behind in his care: “Best get moving. At nightfall they’ll come for the rest of you.” Nightfall is, indeed, fast descending when Ollie’s previously broken digital wristwatch, a keepsake reminder of better times, begins a startling countdown and delivers a terrifying message: RUN. Only Ollie and two of her classmates heed the bus driver’s warning. As the trio head out into the woods–bordered by a field of scarecrows that seem to be watching them–the bus driver has just one final piece of advice for Ollie and her friends: “Avoid large places. Keep to small.” 


Nightmares! by Jason Segel & Kirsten Miller

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Is there anything worse than nightmares when you are a kid? I’m not so sure. What I’m sure about is, that Nightmares! was a fun and spooky read, full of action and scary-ness!

Charlie Laird has several problems:
1. His dad married a woman he is sure moonlights as a witch.
2. He had to move into her purple mansion, which is not a place you want to find yourself after dark.
3. He can’t remember the last time sleeping wasn’t a nightmarish prospect. Like even a nap.
What Charlie doesn’t know is that his problems are about to get a whole lot more real. Nightmares can ruin a good night’s sleep, but when they start slipping out of your dreams and into the waking world—that’s a line that should never be crossed. And when your worst nightmares start to come true . . . well, that’s something only Charlie can face. And he’s going to need all the help he can get, or it might just be lights-out for Charlie Laird. For good.


Shadowsmith by Ross MacKenzie

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I’m so in love with this book. It might be one of my favourite reads of this year. It has atmosphere and creepiness and witches and magic and storms and sheep… I loved it. Here is my review if you wanna know more.

Are you brave? When mysterious Amelia Pigeon turns up at Kirby’s bedroom window in the dead of night, this is the question she asks him – immediately before they tumble into a world of ancient malevolent spirits who have torn their way into Kirby’s sleepy seaside village.


City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab

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By now I’m sure everybody has read Victoria Schwab’s City of Ghosts. But what would a spooky, fall recommendations list be without some proper ghosts and hauntings. I’m actually really bummed out that the third installment of this series is only coming out next year but what can you do? Here you will find my full review.

Cass can pull back the Veil that separates the living from the dead. When Cass’s parents start hosting a TV show about the world’s most haunted places, the family heads off to Edinburgh. Here, graveyards, castles and secret passageways teem with restless phantoms. But when Cass meets a girl who shares her “gift”, she realizes how much she still has to learn about the Veil—and herself. And she’ll have to learn fast. The city of ghosts is more dangerous than she ever imagined.


Half-Minute Horrors

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This book is a collection of very short horror stories that have been collected by Susan Rich and feature authors like Lemony Snicket, Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, Kenneth Oppel and many, many more. It’s a fast and thrilling read with all kinds of scary stories for you to discover.

How scared can you get in only 30 seconds?
Dare to find out!


Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh

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If you want scary and diverse for your MG fall reading list then this might be for you. It is nothing for the faint of heart but definitely gripping. Check out my full review here.

Harper doesn’t trust her new home from the moment she steps inside, and the rumors are that the Raine family’s new house is haunted. Harper isn’t sure she believes those rumors, until her younger brother, Michael, starts acting strangely. The whole atmosphere gives Harper a sense of déjà vu, but she can’t remember why. She knows that the memories she’s blocking will help make sense of her brother’s behavior and the strange and threatening sensations she feels in this house, but will she be able to put the pieces together in time?


Crater Lake by Jennifer Killick

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This is the only book I haven’t read yet. But I have already started it and it’s already scary and that’s why this goes on this list. Maybe some of you have read it and can back me up here?

Who is the mysterious bloodstained man who stops their coach? Why is no one around when Lance and the rest of Year Six arrive at the brand new Crater Lake activity centre? But this is just the beginning of the school trip from hell; a fight for survival that sees five pupils band together to save their classmates from an alien fate far worse than death. But whatever happens, they must Never. Ever. Fall asleep!

Have you read any of these books? Or do they look interesting to you? What are your fall recommendations?

16 responses to “Spooky MG recommendations //because it’s the right time for this

  1. laurabooksandblogs

    As a middle grade author of a horror novel, I love this list and the readers of these titles. So much of the middle grade genre is taken up by fantasy. I love that there are titles for readers in this age group who like to be scared.

  2. this post is so amazing!!! I’ve been looking for spooky books & middle grade books, and this post combines both things <3 I especially excited for Small Spaces, the title alone gives me goosebumps :')

    • Oh, I’m so glad that you find it helpful! I loved Small Spaces. It’s perfectly spooky and has great atmosphere. I definitely recommend.

  3. Now who’s adding books to whose TBR?! Is this what payback feels like? xD I’ve already added Spirit Hunters to my fall TBR for sure after reading your review of it haha. Also … I kind of haven’t read City of Ghosts yet? Or the sequel. But I’m adding those to the list now, too. Nightmares sounds fantastic, and I know my library has it, so maybe I need to grab that now. All the spooky mid-grade reads next month, yes. 😉

    • That’s great! I really liked Small Spaces and the sequel too. I’m currently rereading City of Ghosts and it’s just as cute as I remember. 🙂

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