As a queer reader who loves all things Halloween, I knew this collection was for me before I even started it. Sara Farizan was the only contributor whose work I had read before (and, as always, she did not disappoint!) but I was excited to read the stories by the other authors as well. You do not often see queer characters in scary books, shows, and movies and BIPOC characters in this genre tend to be stereotyped, so I love this collection for totally shifting the narrative in so many excellent stories. While I love Halloween (and even got married on the spookiest night of the year), I am not a huge horror reader and only dabble; however, this collection is fitting for those who love spooky stuff but do not consistently gravitate toward the horror genre when selecting a book. Short story collections are always fun for me and this is a great one. I definitely want to get my hands on a physical copy to revisit it during spooky season. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

I loved the idea of a queer centred anthology of spooky stories for Halloween time! I'd say that some of these stories scratched the itch and some made me roll my eyes.

That said, they are all YA and that's likely my disconnect. Each story was well written just not all to my personal taste.

Here are the thoughts per story.

1. Welcome to the Hotel Paranoia - This was okay it would have made for a really excellent movie short, and appreciated the moral of the story but wish a little more went into how the note came to be etc or why she was chosen.

2. The Visitor - expected more out of this one as it was written by Kaylynn Bayron, but it was kind of hokey, and the twist was meh..

3. A Brief Intermission - dig this one, was again slightly hokey to start but very much liked the ending.

4. Guested- This one was pretty creepy, but it was written in the second person and that's pretty tough to pull off.. think this one would make a really cool movie. The rich attend parties where you are "guested" (ie taken over by someone you'd like to be for a night) only.. sometimes the guest doesn't want to leave..

5. Rocky Road with Caramel Drizzle oof that was a tough one. and I'm not sure how I feel about it.

6. The Three Phases of Ghost-Hunting - Nope. This one was incredibly lame, not remotely scary, not even interesting.

7. This one was messed up. Dealt with grief, loss, and depression. It was eerie, though I admit I'm a little confused by the ending.. not my fave, but not the worst.

8. Leyla Mendoza and the Last House on the Lane - This is another 2nd person perspective, but done better than the other. I really loved this story of a trans man's acceptance of themselves, with magic and time travel!

9. In You to Burn -I guess this one is based on the Chinese story of Nezha and the Fight with the Dragon King over his son, but make it women and a mild love story? wasn't familiar with the original, but this was excellent.

10. Anna-| liked this one! At first an eye roll with yet another Ouija board story, but this one was done well! Little kids make everything creepier.

11. Hey There, Demons - Okay this one was kind of funny/ cute!

12. Save Me from Myself - ooof this was a hard one! Like Freaky Friday but better, but that ending!😭

13. Knickknack - liked the love story in this one, but everything else was kind of lame.

Why wait for Halloween to read some spooky stories? ‘Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror Delight’ is a YA anthology featuring a rare blue moon Halloween night. All things paranormal haunt the variety of queer characters as they try to overcome, endure, or utilize the situation they are in.

By the end of each story, I wanted more! The way queerness was introduced and how well thought-out the plots were despite the short length, left an impression on me. I mean how many other stories have you read where a demon has to choose their pronouns? The endings of every story leaves you wanting a sequel or the story equivalent of an end credit scene.

There is a wide variety of LGBTQ+ and cultural representation that needs to be present in more literature. The inclusion of queer elements are introduced subtly (depending on the story of course) and naturally. Maybe it’s because this anthology is composed by queer authors of colour, but I’ve rarely seen such thorough and imaginative queer moments in horror literature. So reserve this anthology for your Fall reading shelf and be prepared for some spooky tales that will follow you in your dreams.

While all the stories had their spooky scary moments, my absolute favorites were the stories by Kosoko Jackson and Kalynn Bayron for different reason since they handle the queerness of their stories in opposite ways. I cannot wait to revisit this collection when the weather starts feeling like full-moon-on-halloween cool. This is a must read collection.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Night of the Living Queers is a short story anthology collection centering on LGBTQ+ characters on the night of a rare blue moon. It successfully delivers chilling stories that are perfect for a quick Halloween read that isn't too scary. Each of the stories is unique, and some are even a little heartfelt, touching on the topics of young love, growing up, and embracing queerness.

While I personally am not a huge fan of short story collections, I would still recommend Night of the Living Queers to anyone looking to add to their spooky season TBR list.

I received this book for free for an honest review.

Ooo queer love! What great fun this book was! Thank you.

3.5

Like with most short story collections, this was a mixed bag. In general, I found several of the stories forgettable, whether that be because I found something missing from the story or because the tone felt off to me. While this is a Halloween/horror themed collection, I found some of the stories more cozy and heartwarming and just so happened to take place on Halloween.

My favorites were: Leyla Mendoza and the Last House on the Lane by Maya Gittelman and Hey There, Demons by Tara Sim. While both of these fell on the more cozy end, I found them to be the more successful short stories to my taste. In Leyla there’s a haunted house with some sci-fi elements and Hey There has a demon who wants to experience humanity.

Honorable mentions:
Guested by Rebecca Kim Wells
A Brief Intermission by Sara Farizan
Save Me From Myself by Ayida Shonibar

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for granting me access to this fantastically frightening anthology! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Do you enjoy a good scare? Then check out Night of the Living Queers: 13 Tales of Terror & Delight! Thirteen queer authors of color have written thirteen short stories starring queer teens of color in magical and frightful mayhem that all takes place on Halloween during a blue moon. Thinking about going into a haunted house for a party? Think again! You want to babysit on Halloween? Better hide the ouija board from the kids!

One of my favorite stories was “Leyla Mendoza and the Last House on the Lane” by Maya Gittelman where a teen comes face to face with a magical figure (rumored to have a taste for kidnapping and death) who lives in a seemingly abandoned house. My second favorite story was “Knickknack” by Ryan Douglass and it’s about a teen who must rescue his younger brother from the ghost of a kidnapping clown and is assisted by his crush and several kids in his neighborhood.

There’s a lot of variety in this anthology’s storytelling ranging from new takes on vampires and ghost stories to technological hauntings. Some stories have terrifying conclusions where our main characters don’t make it and others have happy endings. There’s also variety in terms of the races, genders, religious beliefs, and sexualities of our authors and main characters of the stories. This is an excellent collection and we need more like this so queer kids of color can see themselves in scary story survivors (especially considering how characters of color and queer characters are often the first to die in scary stories).

I highly recommend this story collection to horror fans.

5 out of 5 stars!

A fantastic collection of dark, compelling and twisted stories. There is a delight in the examination of monsters, real and imagined. These talented writers entice the reader into a world where queerness is at the forefront, scratching against a background of extraordinary experiences. A highly recommended collection.

Hello, fellow queer here and I gotta say I loved this book. Man am I giving so many positive reviews today. But I just read so many good books lately. I came into this book not knowing what to expect but damn did I come out loving it. It was a good time and I am so happy to have been able to read this ARC.

I am OBSESSED with this anthology. It's so wonderful to have these spooky stories with LGBTQIA+ characters at the center. I especially loved Alex Brown's story. A must reed for horror lovers.

Thank you, NetGalley!

I liked some stories more than others but overall I really think this is an important short story collection for the younger generation. I think I'm too old to relate to some of the stories but it was nice to read about diverse and inclusive stories. I really liked how the collection had everything for everyone with the horror genre.

A horror anthology full of stories by queer authors of color? Right up my alley! This was such a great collection, I only wish I'd read it in the fall for the ultimate spooky vibes. I'll just have to revisit it later this year! I loved the variety between the stories, and it's a very fun look at what different authors can do when presented with a similar concept. Since this is YA, the themes are not too intense, which is perfect for a reader like me who isn't much for gore or heavy themes. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC copy of this book. Opinions are my own.

This anthology of short stories was entertaining! The Some stories I enjoyed more than others, but overall a very solid and terrifyingly creepy collection.

This anthology contained some stellar stories but it also had some duds. Unfortunately for me there were more misses than hits. The stories with depth and intrigue ( my absolute favorite was the story by Kosoko Jackson) didn't quite make up for the simple "it's a ghost!" stories that didn't have much payoff. Either way, I got a good scare from most if not all, I'll be happy to recommend this book to students looking for diverse horror or quick and easy reads.

Night of the Living Queers is a fun anthology featuring a wide variety of queer authors and fun stories.

This is a wonderful book of horror short stories, all taking place on Halloween night during a blue moon. The first story instantly drew me in and the greatness of that followed throughout the entire book. I will say however that it is a lot more supernatural than horror, and as someone who loves horror and gore I was a little disappointed by that but I will also say that that was my only complaint so if you love supernatural anthologies of queers with lots of emotions this book is for you!

I really liked this anthology, even if there wasn't a ton of "queer" representation for a book with that in the title

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

A curious title and an exciting book cover? This Halloween anthology doesn’t stop there. Night of the Living Queers includes 13 teen and young adult-focused short stories, all set during a rare blue moon and on Halloween night.

As for the stories themselves, there’s a little bit of everything: a haunted drive-in movie theater, ghost hunters, demons, urban legends, an eerie hotel, Ouija boards, costume parties, evil wizards, supernatural powers, creepy clowns, and unexplained ghosts.

Some of the short stories are bigger page-turners than others. “A Brief Intermission” by Sara Farizan takes place at an old drive-in movie theater where a ghost car shows up every Halloween night for a ghost couple to enjoy their annual holiday tradition of catching a film. It has a nice creepy vibe and a light touch of humor. “Rocky Road with Caramel Drizzle” by Kosoko Jackson is another gem. It deals with bullying and harassment and what might happen if the victim were to get a chance at revenge.

One very minor problem concerns the title. There isn’t much “queer” here regarding sexual or gender identity. While it’s a breath
of fresh air to have fictional stories that don’t necessarily focus on those attributes, readers may find it hard to relate to the characters from that perspective. There are some minor love interests and brief mentions of “boyfriends” or “girlfriends,” but being “queer” isn’t the focus here.

The introduction also mentions a need for more QPOC representation in the genre. The editors are queer women of color and feel the “intersection of queerness and ethnic diversity is functionally invisible in most things, horror included.” They explain that this anthology hopes to reclaim some of that narrative. The stories are intentionally set during Halloween because it’s a time they are most visible. There are also some culturally-based names and other traditions that will be unique to some readers and appreciated by others who consider themselves minorities in the genre.

Does the anthology pull off what it set out to do? Not entirely, but it’s undoubtedly a devote and honest effort! If you enjoy a good frightening story once October is here, then this short story collection will certainly satisfy that thrill for readers of all backgrounds, orientations, and ages.

Night of the Living Queers will be released August 29th from Wednesday Books, a division of Macmillan Publishers.

I really liked most of the stories here, all horror shorts centered around young, queer characters. Some end well for the protagonist, others, well, at least it's not always the same "dead lesbian" trope. There's ethnic diversity galore, and the characters sound and act like real teenagers,, which doesn't always happen in YA. I'd love to put a copy of this in the trick-or-treat bag of every kid over 9 who comes to my house for Halloween. Go read--read about the scary house that's really a palace of wonder, about Terrifying Bob the mall ghost, about bad step-siblings, about very, very cute demons.