Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Ghost Stories

 Top Ten Tuesday topic is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top Ten All-Time Favorite Books in X Genre, so I picked my top ten ghost story books! Not all of these are scary, so even if you're not into horror you might find something you'd like. :)


1. A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle: This is one of my favorite books of all time. It's sort of like a grown-up version of Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book. Both the prose and the story are heartrendingly beautiful.

2. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R. A. Dick: This is the sweetest little story that left me feeling warm and happy. The relationship between Captain Gregg and the widowed Mrs. Muir is adorable. I haven't seen the 1947 film adaptation yet, but it's on my list!


3. Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill: By Stephen King's son, Heart-Shaped Box is one of the scariest books I've ever read, but the journey of aging rock star Judas Coyne, who bought a vengeful ghost on the internet, is compelling.


4. A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb: Another favorite of mine in any genre. The love story between the two ghosts is one of the best I've ever read, and the writing is gorgeous.


5. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell: A childhood classic! These stories and illustrations were burned into my subconscious from many a late-night sleepover reading.

6. The Ghost and Goth by Stacey Kade: More funny than spooky, this YA book has humor and heart. Popular cheerleader-turned-ghost Alona and goth loner Will have a great dynamic together.

7. From the Dust Returned by Ray Bradbury: The inspiration for The Addams Family, this book is best read under covers on a chilly October night.

8. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman: I alluded to this one earlier, but it really is a sweet book . . . about a boy living in a graveyard, befriended by ghosts. Neil Gaiman  has a wonderful handle on the parallel sensations of magic and fear that are so integral to childhood.

9. The Shining by Stephen King: You can't mention ghosts without thinking of the infamous Overlook Hotel!

10. The Woman in Black by Susan Hill: The book is much spookier than the Daniel Radcliffe film. Haunted houses isolated by haunted swamps, secret rooms, and tragic histories are the perfect backdrop for a good spine-tingling ghost story.

Book 19: Body and Soul by Stacey Kade (Ghost and the Goth #3)

This is book three of Kade's The Ghost and the Goth series. I'd actually read the first two way back in 2011 when I first got a Nook, and I had no idea that a third book even existed until I looked it up for my Top Ten Tuesday post this week. Pleasant surprise! The first two books were absolutely adorable, and this one was no different. Alona is a more likable Regina George, with far more depth, and Will is just so sweet. This series is a lot of fun without being totally mindless, and it's always a good sign when the last book in a series just makes you want to immediately pick up the first one again. A

Book 14: Gunnerkrigg Court Vol. 4 by Tom Siddell

Another Gunnerkrigg book! I'm always amazed at stuff I catch when reading these in book form that I missed when I read it online. Everyone ought to at least give this series a try, especially since you can read the whole thing free online. It's so good!

Book 11: Friends with Boys by Faith Erin Hicks

So cute! So this was the graphic novel book club read I missed when I moved out of Virginia, but Nathan liked it so much he bought me a copy for Christmas, and I'm so glad I have it! This graphic novel is about a formerly home-schooled girl's first year of high school and her relationship with her three older brothers and her new friends Lucy and Alistair. And there's a ghost!

The art is super cute, and the characters are all likable and relatable. Hicks does a great job of portraying all the little tragedies and rivalries of high school in even just a few wordless panels. This is more of a vignette than a story, but it's no less engaging for being a little light on plot. I'd love to read more with this group.