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The Last Day of October
- Author
- Phil Hickes
- Narrator
- John Chancer
- Publisher
- HarperCollins Publishers
- Publish Date
- 9 October 2025
- Run Time
- 1 hour 10 minutes
- Format
- x-book®
What to expect
Bored with trick-or-treating, three friends venture into the woods on Halloween night to hunt for the haunted McBride House in this spine-tingling horror story from Phil Hickes.
If you go down to the woods today, you’re in for a nasty surprise …
Seeking creepy thrills instead of candy, Cody and his friends set out on Halloween to search for the ruins of the haunted McBride House in the woods near his home in Oregon.
The house has taken on a sinister legendary status after it burned down a hundred years ago with tragic consequences, and it’s said that the ghosts of the family who lived there return each year on the last day of October.
But when they find the house, the truth of what is happening on this eerie autumn night is more terrifying than the three teenagers could ever have imagined …
Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.
Critics Review
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"Nobody does spooky stories better than Phil Hickes … I love it when horror stories for young readers aren’t afraid to be proper scary." — Dan Smith
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"Hickes’ first novel for Barrington Stoke is a scary pageturner, publishing ahead of Halloween." – The Bookseller
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"Hickes is at his ghostly, gothic best in this Halloween horror story in which the past bleeds into the present with terrifying results and is brought to vibrant, visceral life by the atmospheric and haunting illustrations of Oriol Vidal. Packed with eerie, electrifying small town America vibes, this is a spectacular spine-chiller from a master of the macabre." – Lancashire Post
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"Phil Hickes knows just how to send shivers down the spine and The Last Day of October … a very creepy old house story with a thoroughly unsettling ending." – Books for Keeps
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"Halloween chills and thrills throng through this gripping haunted house horror story … what unfolds is an entirely unexpected tale that rises to a gripping, gasp-inducing climax … A treat of haunted Halloween trickery … brilliantly inclusive, and sure to satisfy swathes of spooky-story fans as the nights draw in." — LoveReading4Kids
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"This is scare-a-minute stuff once it gets going and only the genuinely brave youngster should be dipping their toes in this scare-fest." — The Letterpress Project
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"Phil knows just how to get under his readers’ skin … Unnerving and captivating, it’s horror at its best (and best read before bedtime!)." — Check 'Em Out Books, blog
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"Overflowing with autumn vibes, the thrill of North American Hallowe’en, a real haunted house and the kind of adventure that only happens with friends, this story is the stuff of nightmares." — Scope for Imagination, blog
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"This is everything I love about middle-grade horror. It’s genuinely spine-tingling with a brilliantly eerie atmosphere that kept me on the edge of my seat … This really is the perfect autumnal spooky season read, but one I think best enjoyed before darkness descends." — Book Craic, blog
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Details
- Author
- Phil Hickes
- Narrator
- John Chancer
- Duration
- 1 hour 10 minutes
- Release Date
- 9 October 2025
- ISBN
- 9780008769987
- Format
- x-book®
- Publisher
- HarperCollins Publishers
- Genre
- Children’s / Teenage fiction and true stories
Synopsis
Bored with trick-or-treating, three friends venture into the woods on Halloween night to hunt for the haunted McBride House in this spine-tingling horror story from Phil Hickes. If you go down to the woods today, you’re in for a nasty surprise … Seeking creepy thrills instead of candy, Cody and his friends set out on Halloween to search for the ruins of the haunted McBride House in the woods near his home in Oregon. The house has taken on a sinister legendary status after it burned down a hundred years ago with tragic consequences, and it’s said that the ghosts of the family who lived there return each year on the last day of October. But when they find the house, the truth of what is happening on this eerie autumn night is more terrifying than the three teenagers could ever have imagined … Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.
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