Halfway Horror Reads of 2025

How is it July? Well almost August at this point.

I don’t, I can’t with how time is going right now. It’s too fast and too slow. And as a reader, it has been very interesting so far this year. I feel like I’ve read more non horror books lately and purchased and picked them up more which I don’t have a problem with. I mean, reading is about expanding our tastes and our minds and with that being said, boy, I miss reading some horror. Granted, I have read some great horror (and non) this year so far but looking at my current TBR, it’s looking a little lackluster.

I’ve read so much of my previous horror/thriller books that now it’s becoming like a missing piece on my shelf. There’s some leftover Stephen King and Anne Rice books but there are so many options that I don’t have.

I gotta book shop soon or thrift some good ones.

But today’s post will be about the handful of horror books that I have read so far, giving some reviews, some honorable mentions of what I am interested in finding and reading, all of my current insights!

Here are my Halfway Horror Reads of 2025 so far. And these will be in order of reading so month by month.

THE ONLY GOOD INDIANS (Stephen Graham Jones) – The second book read in 2025 and I feel like I need to rate it higher in my notebook now looking back. A favorite part of the book? The slow burn of the “massacre” being revealed and the last section/part of the book. This book is classified as thriller and horror, I finished this Jan 13-21 and almost gave it 4 stars. I might bump it up to a full 4.

NINETEEN CLAWS AND A BLACK BIRD (Agustina Bazterrica) – Does this count as horror? I’m counting it. She writes very bizarre situations. This book isn’t Tender is the Flesh (I still think about that book constantly) but it is a collection of short stories. Some feel less complete or less fleshed out than others. But I do have favorites: Candy Pink, Dishwasher, Elena Marie Sandoz, Hell and Mary Carminum. A big take away is that there are some trigger warnings, especially for suicide and SA (potential, the bones are there).

JURASSIC PARK (Michael Crichton) – The ONLY 5/5 rating out of this bunch. This book was a whole journey and a half that I was not prepared for. The horror, the gore, the constant narcissism of John Hammond, I loved this book. My favorite characters were Grant, Ellie, Tim and Lex, Malcolm and even Wu and Muldoon were standouts. Please note that Hammond is not included but well written. Also the decorated book page for this is one of my absolute favorites. Did y’all know Crichton also created the show ER?

THE DARK TOWER: THE GUNSLINGER (Stephen King) – I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. You know what intrigued me before reading this? The “Man in Black” which I had known as Randall Flagg from The Stand and since I read that book previously (a year ago), is my biggest reason. And to see this character again in a different light and setting, he’s a feared character. It is a slow burn, I am going to throw that out there and a western. If you can handle that, it is a Stephen King novel worth spending your time with!

LOVECRAFT COUNTRY (Matt Ruff) – Forever mad HBO cancelled this show. This book does a great job of showcasing various kinds of horror with historical and sci-fi elements (Lovecraftian) while the setting of the 50s being prominent and horrifying in its own way. There’s references to the Green Book, Jim Crow laws and all the sci-fi horror shitshow that you can want! I mean, a character changes race. That’s all I’m gonna say to that! Lovecraft got a 4.5 out of 5 from me.

THE CURSE OF CAMP COLD LAKE (GOOSEBUMPS) (R.L. Stine) – Another average Goosebumps book. I enjoyed parts of this book and I wish it was explored more (the twist/climax to be specific) but I know this is for younger readers, a shorter book but still. That’s always my problem with Goosebumps books as an adult, I’ve noticed. This was one of the few times where the protagonist (Sarah in this case) was very overexaggerated with disliking camp. I was like “oh my gosh, shut up Sarah”, you just deal with it. It’s camp, summer camp. I barely gave it a 3.

THEME MUSIC (T. Marie Vandelly) – A Dollar Tree book exceeded my expectations. For “favorite part”, I wrote: The last 3 chapters were wild, lol. And remembering those 3 chapters, I’ll agree again. There is a prominent TWIST that I didn’t see coming. I had my own theories and some pieces were correct but oh my goodness. Theme Music is about Dixie and her tragic (and traumatic) past and navigating within a haunted house. This book also deals with some trigger warnings as well (SA hints? I don’t know how to describe what happens but it is there) and it is categorized as a psychological thriller (and horror).

VAMPIRES OF EL NORTE (Isabel Canas) – Set in 1840s Mexico during the American-Mexican war, we follow two childhood sweethearts navigate colonialism and strange beasts. This book made me mad but like not at the reading or writing itself. Nena’s parents, I wanted to pop them in the mouth so much! I understood this time period, how parents were or even how people were when it came to family structure, traditions, etc but my goodness. I was so proud of Nena (main protagonist) and her character development/growth throughout the book as well. ALSO also, I really liked how vampires were portrayed here. It’s very different from what I have read.

CEDAR MILLS (Dylan James) – Now, I just read this book and there’s a whole review for it so I’m not gonna go through it again. I will say if you are into a decent mix of horror and sci-fi, you might be interested in the world of Cedar Mills! This was the last horror book read this year so far (June 16-26th) and I’m craving for more horror to come.

So these are what I’ve read so far in 2025 within the genre. At the moment, I am reading The Odyssey (yes, that one) after reading Circe which was one of the best reads so far and next up is NOS4A2 by Joe Hill (my first first Joe Hill read!). BUT I didn’t want to end this post off just yet so I came up with some highlights:

HIGHEST RATED: Jurassic Park (5)
LOWEST RATED: The Curse of Camp Cold Lake (3, barely, I’m generous)
ENJOYABLE: Jurassic, Lovecraft Country, The Dark Tower
A LITERAL EXPERIENCE: The Only Good Indians, Nineteen Claws, Jurassic Park
WOULD REC: The Only Good Indians, Vampires of El Norte
UNDERRATED: The Dark Tower
INDIE DARLING: Cedar Mills, Theme Music

Okay, okay, now we can finish this out! Let me know if you guys are reading and if you are, what’s on the TBR? Leave a comment below and I’ll see you guys in August. Maybe I can finally get a start on a certain post that is so hard to do. HELP MEEEEEE.

Peace, love and chicken grease.