All the Queer Horror Books I Read During a 24 Hour Readathon

I’ve been doing the readathon twice a year every year for more than a decade now. In the early years, I did them on my own, taking to social media to share my progress and cheer other people on. It’s transformed over the years, though. First I convinced my roommate to do them, who now celebrates Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon days almost as religiously as I do. Then we roped in another friend of ours, who sleeps over so she can start at 5 a.m. with us. This time, my roommate’s girlfriend joined us for the full day, and another friend swung by for five hours.

It was a great day, full of snacks, books, and good company. It was pouring rain, which was perfect reading weather. I love how readathon has become more social for me over the years, but it does mean I got a little less reading done than I have in previous years. I also went to bed a little early, which affects my page count: I woke up at 5 a.m. and went to sleep around 2 a.m.

But enough about the vibes, let’s talk books! First, I finished Of Monsters and Mainframes by Barbara Truelove, which I was in the middle of. I always recommend being partway through a book to start readathon, because I don’t want to have to acclimate to a new book at 5 a.m.. I had a good time with it! It feels almost episodic and is mostly narrated by the ship and the medical AI on board, but there is also a sapphic point of view character and several nonbinary characters. If you like pulpy sci-fi and/or classic monster movies, give this one a try.

Next, I picked up House of Beth by Kerry Cullen. This is a bisexual modern gothic that I really enjoyed for reasons that are hard to talk about without spoiling it. As a content warning, it has a main character with harm OCD, which means she has frequent intrusive thoughts about injuring or murdering people (including children). If that’s not a dealbreaker for you, I highly recommend this one, and it was a quick read.

Then I wanted a graphic novel I could get through quickly, so I read Toxic Summer by Derek Charm. This is about two gay teens who get lifeguard jobs for the summer to check out the local beach hunks, but when they arrive, the beach has been contaminated by toxic waste! This was a kind of Scooby Doo-style adventure, which is exactly what I should have expected, but I found it pretty forgettable.

One book I was really looking forward to was I Am the Dark That Answers When You Call by Jamison Shea, the sequel to I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me. I read book one last year and loved this “feral eldritch ballerinas” sapphic YA horror book. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel like it needed a sequel. I am the Dark really dragged for me. I’m not sure if I would have felt differently if I read them back-to-back. I still recommend book one, but it may be stronger as a standalone.

I finished readathon by starting A Game in Yellow by Hailey Piper, which I’m still reading. It’s a shame I didn’t start it earlier in the readathon, because it’s a surreal sapphic erotic horror novel that would be a perfectly mind-melting book to read in the early hours of the morning.

I still have so many short queer horror books out from the library that I’m considering doing a solo, mini readathon on Halloween to get through more of my TBR, including some of the books I shared with you earlier, like Coup de Grâce by Sofia Ajram and Graveneye by Sloane Leong and Anna Bowles. But there’s always next Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon, if I don’t get around to them!