Books that go bump in the night: spooky suggestions from Mainstreet's reading panel

There are all kinds of reasons a book might keep you up at night. If youlike being scared out of your skin, look no further.

The Reading Town book panel hosted byMainstreet: P.E.I. is gettinginto the Halloween spiritwith book recommendationsthat serve up thrills and chills.

Writers Keith Burgoyne, Ryan Gallant and Ivy Wigmore joined Mainstreet host Matt Rainnie to share their favourites from the horror genre.

"Right off the bat I like a good grab-you-by-the-throat scene. Something off the bat that just hooks you," said Gallant. "I guess that's true for any story, but in a horror story that might literally be a hook."

Burgoyne: 'nightmare fuel' for kids, scary story with heart

Burgoyne's first suggestion is geared toward children, but he said it's not to be taken lightly. Alvin Schwartz's series, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, is best read out loud for the full frightening experience, Burgoyne said.

"I almost feel bad recommending this book because I read it when I was a kid and it was pure, 100 per cent nightmare fuel," Burgoyne said.

Burgoyne said the stories, inspired by urban legends and folklore, are scary but what really terrified him was the artwork.

"You will not regret it. Or you will."

His next recommendation is meant for adult readers.The Saturday Night Ghost Club by Craig Davidsontells the story of a group of kids and one of their uncles who spend a summer investigating urban legends. They eventually discover a "sad, tragic relationship between all of them," Burgoyne said.

"This book is more about the heart than it is about the scares," said Burgoyne. "Plenty of scares if that's what you're looking for, but there's just a little bit more than that."

Gallant: serving up big scares

Gallant's first book recommendation is Hell House by Richard Matheson, a book that he said "keeps you guessing as it goes."

Centred on a haunted manse in New England, Gallant said the book serves up many classic ghost story scares with a central theme of science versus faith.

"It just draws you in, and then it just keeps tightening its grip on you. It's kind of like the house itself is a character in the novel."

His second pick, The Ruins by Scott Smith, takes readers on "a white-knuckle ride the whole way through," Gallant said.

The book is about four college students who go on vacation to Mexico and go off the beaten path, ending up atan ancient Mayan ruin.

"Things go very wrong," said Gallant."It becomes a survival horror story."

Wigmore: witches and mysterious figures

When it comes to horror stories, Wigmoresaid "it's all about the spookiness factor and the writing has got to be strong no matter what."

Wigmore shared two suggestions that offer up just that. Her first pick isWitches on the Road Tonight by Sheri Holman. The story begins with a young boy growing up in the Appalachians, whose mother is one in a long line ofwitches.

"It's interesting about power dynamics in this book, because most of the 1940s Appalachian women, and including this witch, [are] under the thumb of the husband. But boy does she get power back from the men in a big way," Wigmore said.

Wigmore also recommends The Woman in Black by Susan Hill.

"It's a great, classic ghost story. The elements are all there. There's the mysterious figure that keeps appearing, and the protagonist who knows nothing about what the story is."

That mysterious figure is a woman, who appears before a child dies. For a while it is unclear if the figure is foretelling or actually causing things to happen, Wigmore said.

"But it becomes terribly, terribly clear eventually."

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