Category: Events

Music and Literature have been some of humanity’s favorite forms of storytelling for thousands of years, often inspiring and building off each other. So we thought we’d celebrate the magic of music and literature with a full day devoted to them! We’re exploring books about musicians, bookish playlists, magical music in fantasy, lyrics as literature, music and the poets, and more. Press play and dive in!

It’s Dark Academia Day here at Book Riot, a celebration of the gothic, the intellect, and the aloof. You’ll find us sitting in the corner of the drafty hall, sipping black coffee, clothed in tweed, brooding over demonic prep boys, Dark Academia tropes, Dark Academia in science fiction and fantasy, horror, YA, and even manga, and of course contemplating the reasons Dark Academia is so perennially popular. Grab your cardigan and pull up a chair, the library’s open all night and there’s plenty to read.

We’re exploring the wide-ranging world of thrillers and mysteries this week, and you’re invited to join the adventure! From “gentle thrill” cozies to the best procedural series, mystery books about dogs to those involving treasure hunts, BookTube channels to TikTok creators to follow, and much more. Or perhaps you’re new to thrillers and mysteries? We got you. We’ll have posts going live each day this week that are sure to explode your TBR. The game is afoot!

There’s never been a better time to be a fan of retellings — from the Mahabharata to King Arthur, the Odyssey to Peter Pan, Arabian Nights to Anne Shirley, writers are exploring beloved older stories and finding ways to make them their own. Today we’re celebrating all of these different retellings, from Asian myths and the many (many!) takes on Cinderella, to the importance of retellings by queer and BIPOC authors, retold tales for kids, and then thinking about the ones we hope to see next. Because there can never be enough, as far as we’re concerned. Come join us!

Oh, you thought the season of scare ended on October 31? HA. Welcome to Dark Reads Day, friends! From dark novels in verse to wintery thrillers, horror literary magazines to Goosebumps, we got you covered. We’ve even included a roundup of bookish goth goods this year, perfect for holiday gifting.

As one Rioter shares in their piece, YA Horror Books Inspired my Love of Reading: “To this day, as an avid young adult books reader, I still gravitate to the dark… these type of books paved the way to today’s most chilling and entertaining slasher lit. I thank these authors for letting me be the reader I am today, and for not letting me be afraid of the dark.”

Cheers to that, and happy (dark) reading!

Welcome back, ghosts, ghouls, and goblins, to the Haunted Riot! Whether you’re looking for full-on spine-tingling reads, just a touch of hair-raising horror, or are a spooky season novice, our writers have been brewing up posts that should suit.

Want some feel-good horror, or perhaps books rated Safe For Scaredy-Cats? Perhaps you need read-alikes for your favorite horror movies, or a travel guide to the most haunted bookish places around the world. Maybe you’ve got your thinking cap on and want to contemplate the popularity of gothic horror, or the enduring appeal of Stephen King to teenagers. Perhaps haunting queer tales are more likely to float your (ghostly pirate) boat. Pick your poison, and enter if you dare!

Calling all nature-lovers, whether you’re a camping pro, always down to get dirty, or prefer to enjoy the view from a distance and ideally indoors, thanks very much! Today we’re exploring everything from ecofiction to sustainability, hopepunk to Indigenous nature-writing, environmental themes for kids to murder in the wild, and beyond. Come along for the ride, won’t you?

Do you love a good love story? Do you hate pining but can’t get enough enemies-to-lovers — or vice versa? Maybe you’re all about unrequited love, or only want happy endings. We’re here for all of it, and we’re talking about all of it today! Come join us: we’ve got romantic queer SF/F, a deep dive into Anna Karenina, poetry, recs for your Enneagram Type, and much, much more. Heart-eyes in 3, 2, 1…

It’s Children’s Book Week, the longest running literacy initiative in the US, and we’re celebrating all week long! We’re talking parents in middle grade fiction, indestructible books (because we know how helpful those are), adaptations, cooking with kids, marginalized main characters, and so much more.

Our coverage begins today and continues through-out the week, so make sure to check back. Here’s to all the kids, and the kids in all of us!

Whatever the weather is where you are, be it sunny and balmy or full-on Fall, we’re here to get cozy and chilly by turns and hunker down with some great Winter Reading. We’ve got mysteries, cookbooks, reads for the young’uns, magical fantasy, comics and romance, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg! (Sorry, not sorry.)

Grab your favorite warm beverage, snuggle up, and read on.