Read my original post (from March 11, 2011) here.
My Most-Awesomely-Horrifying-Reads-Of-All-Time (hereafter referred to as my MAHROAT. I was going to attempt a cooler title, but I like how MAHROAT looks as an acronym, so, it stays.).
Anyway, the qualifications for a book to be included on my MAHROAT list? The book has to deal with a horrific situation in such a realistic setting that readers know it can and probably does happen all the time in real life, but for the most part we remain blissfully unaware that such things happen. Basically, it's a book that's obscenely difficult to read because of the subject matter, but one that sticks with us long after we've finished it. For my MAHROAT, these books have to be realistic fiction; the fear that this is something that could happen to me, to my daughter, to my family is most of what makes the read so terrifying to me.
For me, the bar is set pretty high--the list began with just three titles, and the trio remained for the longest time:
1. Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott (my review is here)
2. Lessons from a Dead Girl by Jo Knowles (my review is here)
3. Such a Pretty Girl by Laura Wiess (my review is here)
The list remained as you see it above until July 26, 2011. The Babysitter Murders by Janet Ruth Young now holds the coveted #4 spot on my MAHROAT list.
I think Living Dead Girl will always remain at #1 on my MAHROAT--it is the standard by which all other MAHROAT titles must live up to, and I have yet to read anything in YA realistic fiction that is as terrifying to me. (Is that a challenge, authors?) This page will be updated as I find new MAHROAT titles to add.
Enjoy your reading!
Christi
Christi
