Corrupt churches burning witches, a town where everyone knows everyone and everyone keeps secrets, heavy boots walking through your house at night, these are the things of Southern Gothic. With Halloween approaching, what could be more scary than reading some terrifying stories about places close to your own home? Lock your screen door and close the rickety shudders, I’m going to count down my favorite books in one of the best genres.
The Resurrectionist by Matthew Guinn
In the nineteenth century, it was illegal to dissect human corpses for medical education. So former slave Nemo was hired to “acquire” some specimens for South Carolina Medical College. Nemo, quiet, mysterious, and way too skilled with a carving knife, obeyed his white masters. But what are those talismans he carried? And what happened before he came to America on a slave ship?
Meanwhile, in the present, piles of human bones are discovered buried at the college. Dr. Jacob Thacker begins digging through the school’s past and finds a much darker history than he bargained for.
A Good Man Is Hard to Find (and other stories) by Flannery O’Connor
Imagine you are driving down a dusty dirt road in the middle of nowhere, trying to find an old house with a secret passage, when the car strikes something. You are flung from the vehicle, and standing above you is the infamous escaped convict The Misfit. This story and more like it are what make up the bone-chilling collection that is A Good Man Is Hard to Find. Flannery O’Connor is a classic Southern writer, and her short stories were a prominent layer in the foundation of Southern Gothic today.
Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
Southern Gothic is not complete without New Orleans, and this list would not be complete without my favorite vampire book. Anne Rice is one of the most respected Gothic writers today. Her tale of the poor vampire Louis weaves wonderfully through New Orleans. Her story is of French finery, cathedrals, and cold blood. While it is a Gothic story, it has hints of Romanticism, but no romance. Anne Rice makes you think, her characters are flawed and struggle with the morality around their existence, but are still extremely likeable.
P.S., Anne Rice just wrote a new a new Vampire Chronicles book!!!! It’s called Prince Lestat, and we have signed first editions. Um, can we say HOORAY?
Written by Nicola
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