Beat the heat with this ‘choose your own adventure’ that leads to an exciting new book recommendation. Follow the prompts through multiple story options to your new spooky summer read. Because let’s be real, horror isn’t just for Halloween.
The Beginning: The Forest of Forgotten Lives
You decide to take a walk through the forest today because it is so nice out. About an hour into your hike, the clouds begin to fill the sky, and it no longer seems like it’s daytime. You begin to feel disoriented and scared. You no longer know which direction you came from.
What should you do?
If you want to continue on and stay in the woods, go to Subaru Spotting.
If you want to find civilization, go to Parking Garage.
Parking Garage
You ran so fast through the forest brush that you swear you could hear the sound of tires on a tar road. Eventually, you find the road, but there are no cars in sight. You walk up the road and find yourself in a parking garage. It’s empty and dark. You sense an eerie presence.
What should you do?
If you want to explore the parking garage, go to Mysterious Masked Man.
If you want to turn around and continue up the road, go to Haunted House.
Subaru Spotting
You slowly walk through the forest, careful not to step on any branches. You are scared, but you tell yourself you are paranoid. Eventually, you see an abandoned car. You make your way towards it, hoping someone might be around. When you hear rustling, you are startled but expect to see a friendly face. Instead, you see blood-crazed people. They begin to chase you. As you run, you see what could be a campfire in the distance.
What should you do?
If you want to run towards the campfire, go to Pumpkin People.
If you want to continue through the dark forest and test your luck, go to Haunted House.
Pumpkin People
By the time you make it to the campfire, you are so out of breath you can hardly gasp for air. Nobody seems to have followed you all the way. You crouch next to the fire. As the sun begins to leave the sky, you realize how cold you are. You look around and wonder whose campsite this must have been. The fire is still fresh. Soon, you hear the sound of rustling leaves. When you turn, you are greeted by tall figures with the heads of jack-o’-lanterns. You become speechless, but they begin to beckon you to follow.
What should you do?
If you want to follow the pumpkin people, go to Odd Home of Oddities.
If you want to run away from them, go to Cliff Climbing Creature.
Mysterious Masked Man
You notice how the walls are cracked and leaking inside the parking garage. Each step you make echoes through the empty lots. Suddenly, out of the corner of your eye, you see someone move. You walk in that direction. Eventually, you see a man hiding in the darkness. You think you see him wearing a mask, but from this distance, you’re not sure.
What should you do?
If you want to get his attention, go to Followed Frenzy.
If you want to turn and run out of the parking garage, go to Haunted House.
Odd Home of Oddities
They lead you towards, what you assumed to be, their campgrounds. The house is old and built of small twigs and sticks roped together. They show you inside. The home is filled with things that would spook any average person: heads in jars, animals embalmed, a witchy cauldron and lots and lots of candles. The Pumpkin people begin to chant as they leave you alone in their home. You are frightened and begin to mess with the things around you. You accidentally knock a jar into the brewing cauldron. The house begins to smell and smoke fills the room. You run out of the house and look around, confused about where you should go.
What should you do?
If you want to run in a new direction, go to Cliff Climbing Creature.
If you want to run toward the forest, go to Werewolf War.
Haunted House
You run away from whatever might still be following you. You can’t trust anyone out here. When you come across a rundown and overgrown house, you enter it. You want to find a phone or even a map. You walk around the home. The wallpaper is peeling off the walls. The floorboards are stained with dirt. You notice a small vanity, and you take a long-deserved seat. You stare into the mirror. You catch a glimpse of what might have been movement from behind. You turn around and see nothing.
What should you do?
If you want to run for your life, go to Cliff Climbing Creature.
If you want to run because you’re starting to get annoyed, go to Werewolf War.
Cliff Climbing Creature
At this point, you run so far that the world seems to end. You stop at the edge of a cliff, that you are sure doesn’t fit the natural landscape of the town you live in. You inch your way towards the edge and peer over. You see waves crashing against the rocks below, then, out of nowhere, something begins to climb up the cliff’s side. It grips its fingers onto the rocks, pulling itself up at a considerable speed. You watch as it gets closer and closer to you. You are frozen with fear, left swaying with the harsh wind. When its hands reach over the edge, it grabs your ankle. This might be the end.
You must accept defeat. Go to Book Recommendation One!
Followed Frenzy
You shout “Hey” to get his attention. You can see, even in the dark, that he stiffens at the sound of your voice. He moves towards you quickly, and before you can think, you run. You hear his heavy stomps as he chases you. You weave down the parking garage, but you can’t tell if it’s fast enough. You see a door, probably leading to an elevator, and push through it. You hold your body against the door as he bangs and pushes at it. You examine the hall you’re in. You see that the hall turns to another corridor and you see a door with an exit sign above it.
What should you do?
If you want to go through the door, go to Werewolf War.
If you want to run down the hall, go to Darkened Halls.
Darkened Halls
You sprint down the hall. The lights flicker above as you run. Eventually, after a considerable amount of running, you realize you are probably alone. You slow down until you feel yourself walking at a relaxed pace. You follow the halls and turn in every direction it goes. You begin to think this hallway will never end. You moved through them for a long time. You make one last turn and find yourself faced with a door. For some reason, you know there is something horrible behind it. You try to turn around, but a wall has appeared behind you. There is just this stretch of hall as if no other halls ever existed. You walk slowly towards the door, afraid of what you will find.
You must accept defeat. Go to Book Recommendation Three!
Werewolf War
Away you go. You run and run in what are probably circles. In the end, it seems like you never left the forest. The tall trees are beginning to overtake your view. Now you’re forever trapped in the darkness, as you feel unsettled by the howling around you. Soon the howling grows so loud you realize you are surrounded by hideous, large beasts. You fall to your knees once you are able to see the whites of their teeth.
You must accept defeat. Go to Book Recommendation Two!
Book Recommendation One
Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White
Genre: Horror, Young Adult, LGBTQIA+, Dystopian
Sixteen-year-old trans boy Benji is on the run from the cult that raised him—the fundamentalist sect that unleashed Armageddon and decimated the world’s population. Desperately, he searches for a place where the cult can’t get their hands on him, or more importantly, on the bioweapon they infected him with. But when cornered by monsters born from the destruction, Benji is rescued by a group of teens from the local Acheson LGBTQ+ Center, affectionately known as the ALC. The ALC’s leader, Nick, is gorgeous, autistic and a deadly shot, and he knows Benji’s darkest secret: the cult’s bioweapon is mutating him into a monster deadly enough to wipe humanity from the earth once and for all. Still, Nick offers Benji shelter among his ragtag group of queer teens, as long as Benji can control the monster and use its power to defend the ALC. Eager to belong, Benji accepts Nick’s terms… until he discovers the ALC’s mysterious leader has a hidden agenda and more than a few secrets of his own.
Find it Now!
Book Recommendation Two
Spontaneous Human Combustion by Richard Thomas
Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Short Stories
In this new collection, Richard Thomas has crafted 14 stories that push the boundaries of dark fiction in an intoxicating, piercing blend of fantasy, science fiction and horror. Equally provocative and profound, each story is masterfully woven with transgressive themes that burrow beneath the skin. With stories including werewolves, twisted poker games, clowns, aliens and so much more.
Find it Now!
Book Recommendation Three
Hide by Kiersten White
Genre: Horror, Mystery Thriller, Paranormal
The challenge: spend a week hiding in an abandoned amusement park, and don’t get caught. The prize: enough money to change everything. Even though everyone is desperate to win—to seize a dream future or escape a haunting past—Mack is sure she can beat her competitors. All she has to do is hide, and she’s an expert at that. It’s the reason she’s alive and her family isn’t. But as the people around her begin disappearing one by one, Mack realizes that this competition is even more sinister than she imagined and that together might be the only way to survive. Fourteen competitors. Seven days. Everywhere to hide but nowhere to run. Come out, come out, wherever you are…