So, you would think that given I have just completed a three month, 20 book challenge, that a new challenge would be the last thing I would want to dive into.

But…

I have a very soft spot for R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril which is now in its seventeenth year, hosted by the lovely Andi, and runs from now until Halloween. It’s a challenge I have done once or twice before and one that gets me firmly in an autumnal frame of mind.

I wasn’t going to participate this year, but I have seen a lot of your lovely (or should that be creepy?) posts detailing your plans and just couldn’t resist. Plus, this is a very relaxed challenge and you can read as much or as little as you like from the following genres:

• Mystery
• Suspense
• Thriller
• Dark Fantasy
• Gothic
• Horror
• Supernatural

There are several different levels of participation, so you can read as much or as little as you like.

I’ve had a look through the old TBR and Kindle backlog and have found 6 options. I am hoping to read at least four of the following before the end of October (click on the links for Goodreads descriptions).

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women killed by Jack the Ripper by Hailie Rubenhold

I have heard such great things about The Five by Hailie Rubenhold which tells the story of the victims of Jack the Ripper. Rubenhold sets the record straight about these women, revealing a world not just of Dickens and Queen Victoria, but of poverty, homelessness and rampant misogyny.

The Other by Thomas Tryon

I listed this as part of last year’s RIP challenge and didn’t get around to reading it . Tyron’s horror classic was originally published in 1971 and features creepy twins! What more do you need?

The Daylight Gate by Jeanette Winterson

Winterson’s novella is set in 1612, during the feverishly paranoid reign of James I. It describes the plight of a group of paupers, mostly women, accused of evil practices and tried at the August assizes.

The Auctioneer by Joan Samson

First published in 1976, Samson’s horror classic is the story of a small town being quietly overrun by the greed of a terrifying auctioneer Perly Dunsmore. Acclaimed by writers including Stephen King, and named as an influence on King’s Needful Things, it sounds perfect for this time of the year.

Come On All You Ghosts by Matthew Zapruder

I’m cheating a little with this one, but it’s not often you get to include a book of poetry in an RIP challenge. Zapruder’s collection, Come On All You Ghosts explores the difficulty of true communication, the fear of aging and addresses the ghosts of the dead writers that have influenced his writing.

The Graveyard Apartment by Mariko Koike, translated by Deborah Boliver Boehm

One of the most popular writers working in Japan today, Mariko Koike is a recognized master of detective fiction and horror writing. The Graveyard Apartment is the suspenseful tale of a young family that believes it has found the perfect home to grow in to, only to realize that the apartment’s idyllic setting harbors the specter of evil and that longer they stay, the more trapped they become.

As part of this year’s Witch Week, Chris at Calmgrove and Lizzie Ross are hosting a readalong of Black Water Sister by Zen Cho, which I recently got from the library, so if I have time, I might join in with that as well.

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I’m not making any grand plans to read all of these, I’ll just include them in my reading over the next few months. I’m looking forward to some dark evenings in front of a warm fire, cuddled in a blanket with these scary pals for company.

To follow along with the challenge, follow Readers Imbibing Peril on Twitter or Instagram (@perilreaders) and use the hashtag #ripxvii

Do any of these take your fancy or are there any spooky reads you would recommend? Is anyone else taking part in the R.I.P. challenge this year?

Reading Challenge #ripxvii horror fiction jeanette winterson joan samson mariko koike Matthew Zapruder patricia highsmith RIp Challenge Thomas Tyron