May ScaredyKit: Out in the Wild

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One of my favorite themes in reading is Survival and in May our theme for ScaredyKit is “out in the wild” which brings “survival” to mind. Surviving in the wilderness would be difficult but adding that touch of horror – a monster or something supernatural that is tracking you adds an extra shiver.

I’ve listed a few books that would fit this theme but I am looking forward to seeing what everyone is reading and perhaps pick up a few ideas for myself. Enjoy your reads and if you use it, here is the link to the Wiki:

https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/2025_ScaredyKIT#April:_Spiders_Insects_R...

Devolution by Max Brooks
Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates
The Devil Crept In by Anna Ahlborn
Claw by Katie Berry
Five Survive by Holly Jackon
The Ruins by Scott Smith
The Troop by Nick Cutter

I am planning on reading The Ritual by Adam Nevill.

I will most likely read Deliverance by James Dickey

I think I'm going to read Ice Hunt by James Rollins--it's more in thriller territory than horror, but definitely fits the survival theme!

Such a great theme, and I have so many choices! I’ll probably read one of these:

Dark Matter by ‪Michelle Paver
The Fisherman by ‪John Langan
Echo by ‪Thomas Olde Heuvelt

But if something else catches my eye between now and May, I may change my mind.

>5 Charon07: Thanks for bringing The Fisherman to my attention. It gets good reviews and the cover is beautiful.

I have Disappearance at Devil's Rock on my shelf.

Not sure that I'll get to this one but if I do it will be Claw by Katie Berry.

I finished the audiobook of The Fisherman. I suspect this was a good one to have listened to rather than reading in print. It was a little long-winded, but the narrator made this tolerable. I’d say this was chthonic horror, except being more underwater than underground, it’s really more Cthulhic horror.

I have finished my read of The Ritual by Adam Nevill and although I liked the survival aspect of the story, the horror was a little too intense for me.

I read a bonus story this month: The Willows by Algernon Blackwood, a horror classic that would make an excellent creepy story for around the campfire.

The June thread is up: https://www.librarything.com/topic/370848

I have wanted to read Whalefall for a while and it came up when I searched survival horror.

I haven't written my review yet, but I read and very much enjoyed Picnic at Hanging Rock for this month's theme.

Update: I posted my review.

I finished Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice about surviving the Canadian winter after being completely cut off from civilization. I really enjoyed with Indigenous aspects but I'm not a fan of dystopian novels, so I didn't love it as many as others did.

Finished Ice Hunt by James Rollins. I'd been meaning to re-read some of his early works (the ones that made me fall in love with his storytelling way back when) for a while now, and I'm glad this challenge pushed me to get around to it. I enjoyed this book just as much as I did twenty years ago, and it certainly fit the challenge with all of the exposure to arctic weather and water! Full review written.

Deliverance by James Dickey ★★★

Four middle-class suburban men decide to embark on a three-day canoe trip down a particularly wild section of a river in Georgia. For Ed Gentry, Bobby Trippe, Drew Ballinger, and Lewis Medlock, the trip represents a break from their daily routines, a chance for adventure with few real risks, and the last occasion to see a beautiful valley before the river is dammed up. Lewis, an enthusiastic outdoorsman and champion archer, is obsessed with the desire to pit himself against nature.
When two of the friends are viciously attacked by mountain men, their mild adventure becomes a fight for their very lives. Men prey upon one another; the treacherous river becomes a graveyard for those without the strength or luck to survive. Ed, forced to lead his friends to safety, calls upon primal instincts buried within him to achieve deliverance. (description from Amazon)

This is not a badly written book, however, survival stories (especially in nature) are not my choice of genre.

Wilderness Survival: Staying Alive Until Help Arrives

I had a few of my own non-fiction books I considered for this, but at the last minute I decided one wasn't focused enough on the wilderness aspect and the other wasn't focused enough on survival, and since I'm trying to read more female authors this year, I sought out an ebook written by a woman on wilderness survival.

There are a few bits of this book that are very focused in North America (such as where you can take preparedness classes, find resources and information, and of course northern hemisphere weather/season/etc. details) but overall this was a great, quick resource about general survival advice in a wilderness setting, including what survival needs should be your priority & how to address those needs, what you should always pack with you, skills you should master to be prepared for emergencies before one happens, and the best ways to get help if you do become stranded. Overall a helpful, if short, informational resource.