The OUABC List of Halloween Horrors

Here at Once Upon a Book Club, we’re getting ready for all things spooky, magical, and, at times, downright scary. We are busy packing our latest book subscription boxes (including shipping out our Halloween boxes) which is always an exciting time. The office is a complete buzz when all the newly released novels and our surprise gifts arrive. We love putting our magical boxes together - it's like being one of Santa’s elves the night before Christmas.

Halloween is always a fun time of year — even those who sometimes shy away from a great horror read get tempted to pick one up. We have been having so much fun looking at our latest and past Halloween boxes, October’s new releases, and our best Halloween bookish products, that we thought we needed to put a list together of the OUABC List of Halloween Horrors.

It’s time to get ready for things that go bump in the night, that unexplained noise, the rattle of a window, the wink of a pumpkin — breathe, relax if possible, and join us for some spooky fun!

Halloween Book Boxes

Our Halloween boxes are always popular and have become a tradition here at Once Upon a Book Club. These limited edition book boxes are packed with a punch and are guaranteed to keep you captivated, especially when you open our surprise gifts at just the right time, bringing these spooky novels to life in the palm of your hands!

Magic Halloween

This year's Magic selection is sure to sweeten your Halloween season! Yes, Halloween doesn’t always have to be terrifying!  This year's Magic box features The Spellshop by OUABC alumnae author Sarah Beth Durst and is paired with 5 adorable gifts perfect for the season!

A gorgeous hardcover edition featuring lavender-sprayed edges! The Spellshop is Sarah Beth Durst’s romantasy debut—a lush cottagecore tale full of stolen spellbooks, unexpected friendships, sweet jams, and even sweeter love. 

Like a Hallmark rom-com full of mythical creatures and fueled by cinnamon rolls and magic, The Spellshop will heal your heart and feed your soul.

This Magic Book Box is ready-to-ship and includes a collectible vinyl sticker and more!

Mischief Halloween

Get ready to keep reading into the early hours of the morning with this year's Mischief selection! Paired with 4 chilling gifts perfect for the season, we cannot wait for you to be thrilled with this box! This year's Mischief box features What Have You Done? by bestselling author, Shari Lapena!

Nothing ever happens in sleepy little Fairhill, Vermont. But this morning that will change. And one innocent question could be deadly. What have you done?

The teenagers get their kicks telling ghost stories in the old graveyard. The parents trust their kids will arrive home safe from school. Everyone knows everyone. Curtains rarely twitch. Front doors are left unlocked.

But Diana Brewer isn’t lying safely in her bed where she belongs. Instead she lies in a hayfield, circled by vultures, discovered by a local farmer.

How quickly a girl becomes a ghost. How quickly a town of friendly, familiar faces becomes a town of suspects, a place of fear and paranoia.

Someone in Fairhill did this. Everyone wants answers.

This Mischief Book Box is ready-to-ship and includes a collectible vinyl sticker and more!

Spooky Halloween 2023

This terrifying read comes with a collection of 4 hauntingly good gifts to bring this suspenseful tale to life! Be careful reading this past your bedtime, as the things that go bump in the night may be all too dangerous…

There are tensions and secrets, whispers in the woods, and before long, the discovery of a hand poking up from the earth. Then the body that goes with it… But by that time, someone has taken off with their one and only means off the island, and they’re trapped with someone—or something—that doesn’t want them leaving the island alive.

Our Spooky Halloween Box is ready-to-ship and includes a hardcover edition of Hemlock Island by Kelley Armstrong, a signed bookplate by the author, a letter from the author, and so much more!

Scary (Good) Book Boxes

Thriller Mini Box

A new mini-reading experience has arrived! Shop now for a ready-to-ship mini box to be delivered right to your door! The Thriller 2024 Mini Box features a mass-market copy of You Can Run by Rebecca Zanetti, plus 2 adorably wrapped gifts to open as you read!

Laurel Snow wouldn’t call hunting a serial killer a vacation, but with a pile of dead bodies unearthed near her Genesis Valley, WA, hometown, she’ll take what she can get. Yet something about this case stirs her in unexpected ways. Like the startling connection she feels to Dr. Abigail Caine, a fiercely intelligent witness with a disturbing knack for making Laurel feel like she has something on her. Then there’s Laurel’s attraction to Huck Rivers, the fish and wildlife officer guiding her to the crime scene—and into the wilderness…

Our Thriller Mini Box is ready to ship and also includes a custom-designed quote print, bookmark, and exclusive collectible sticker!

Secrets of the Sea

We think you will definitely enjoy our Secrets of the Sea Young Adult box, featuring Those We Drown by Amy Goldsmith plus a set of four stunning gifts that bring this thrilling tale to life!

An ocean-drenched, atmospheric horror debut! Liv's best friend disappears on their first night aboard their dream semester-at-sea program—but is he really sick like everyone says, or is something darker lurking beneath the water?

Liv quickly discovers that the only reason she was invited to join the trip is because another girl disappeared shortly after enrolling—and no one seems to know what happened to her. When further disappearances rock the ship and strange creatures begin haunting Liv’s dreams, she wonders: Is the Eos hiding a dark secret within its shadowy decks?

The truth will come at a price . . . only, how much is Liv willing to pay?

Leave No Trace

Our Leave No Trace July 2023 Adult box featured a custom hardcover edition of What Remains by Wendy Walker plus three incredible gifts that bring this book to life!

She saved his life. Now he‘ll never let her go.

Detective Elise Sutton is drawn to cold cases. Each crime is a puzzle to solve, pulled from the past. Elise looks for cracks in the surface and has become an expert on how murderers slip up and give themselves away. She has dedicated her life to creating a sense of order, at work with her ex-marine partner; at home with her husband and two young daughters; and within, battling her own demons. Elise has everything under control, until one afternoon, when she walks into a department store and is forced to make a terrible choice: to save one life, she will have to take another.

Our exclusive special edition features a stunning dust jacket, custom end papers, beautiful digital edges, and a signed bookplate from the author!

Halloween Bookish Products

We love everything bookish and are super proud of our bookish products. This Halloween, we are adding that extra touch of scary flair to our world! After all, attention is in the details! These also make the best gifts for your favorite book buddies, so make sure to check out our Bookish Halloween Collection!

Here are a few of our favorites 🎃👻

We loved our stunning, custom-designed coffin-shaped purse inspired by My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine! Did we mention that the interior lining is red with skulls? This ultimate Halloween accessory measures 9”x5" and has an adjustable shoulder strap up to 45".

Isn’t this black ceramic cauldron mug just fantastic? This was also inspired by My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine and is the perfect addition to your Halloween horror routine — otherwise known as having a cup of hot chocolate while snuggling under a blanket and reading a scary story!

It’s time to get into the Halloween spirit and add those much-needed decor accessories to your home. These adorable Halloween-themed pillowcases inspired by Hemlock Island by Kelley Armstrong are just what you need to take any room to the next level of fun!

Conclusion

So, as you can see, we have our hands full of some of the best Halloween book boxes and bookish products around. We can’t wait to get into the spirit with pumpkin carving, spooky decorating evenings, and, of course, our Halloween reading marathons — there is something about being a little too scared to turn the page — you just never know what may jump out!