Kenilworth Books is teaming up with an award-winning local horror author for a series of spooky events this Halloween, and you're invited to come along…if you dare!

The Talisman Square-based book shop will host a series of talks, events and a special Saturday signing session during the week leading up to Halloween, which also happens to be October half term.

This special, seasonal, takeover is a collaboration between the book shop and Kenilworth horror author and YouTuber Dave Musson, who was named the Bookstagram Awards author of the year in 2024 and sets many of his own stories in a fictional version of Kenilworth.

The first tingles of something creepy will be felt in mid-October, with a Halloween widow display featuring brand new artwork by Tabitha Marsh and a collection of classic and contemporary horror stories personally curated by Dave - perfect for anyone looking for a chilling read this October.

Then, the fun really starts during the October half term break.

First, on Tuesday 27 October, Dr Jen Baker from the University of Warwick will be in store to discuss the history of horror fiction.

An Associate Professor in Warwick's English department, Jen specialises in gothic literature.

She will walk people through the history of the genre, distill what a gothic story really is, and take questions from the audience. Jen's talk will run from 6-7pm - it will be free to attend but you will need to order a ticket from the book shop's website.

The spooky fun continues on Wednesday 28 October, when the book shop's monthly Book Club also leans into the season. October's book is Welsh author Liam Higginson's debut novel The Hill in the Dark Grove - a haunting folk novel set in the mountains of North Wales.

Liam will join the book club remotely to talk about the inspiration behind the novel and answer questions. Tickets for the book club with Liam are £5, while copies of his book are available in store and via the shop's website, where you can use the code 'BOOKCLUB' for 15% off.

There will also be plenty of family Halloween fun on offer in the shop throughout the week. Specifically, there will be spooky crafting on Monday 26 October from 1-2pm, storytime with Debs on Wednesday 28 October from 2-3pm, a ghostly Pokemon swap on Thursday 29 October from noon-1pm, and calming colouring on Friday 30 October from 10-11am.

All of these events are, and no need to book - just drop in!

Finally, on Halloween itself - Saturday 31 October - the haunted week will draw to a close with a special Saturday signing with Dave Musson, who will be selling and signing copies of A Nice Place to Live - a special book that gathers his four novellas about his fictional version of Kenilworth into an exclusive, numbered edition that will only be available in Kenilworth Books.

He will also be signing copies of his award-winning short story collection Once More Round the Sun from 2024, which is also set in his version of Kenilworth.

Speaking about the collaboration, Dave Musson said: "I'm so excited to team up with Kenilworth Books for what will be a fantastic celebration of horror fiction and all things spooky as we head towards Halloween.

"As a horror junkie, this is obviously my favourite time of year, so I'm truly grateful that my favourite book shop was happy to let me curate this programme with them. I can't wait to hear all of the talks and look forward to meeting plenty of people during my book signing too."

Charlotte Jennings from Kenilworth Books added: "We are super excited to partner up with Dave, a long time customer of ours and horror expert for our 'Spooky Takeover Week'! We haven't done anything like this in the shop before but we can't wait to get stuck in and we hope people enjoy it!"

For more details about the Kenilworth Books Halloween season of events and to book tickets for any of them, head to the Kenilworth Books website.

Tickets for the History of the Gothic free talk with Dr Jen Baker can be purchased here.

Tickets for October's book club are available here.

Kenilworth Books sponsors Kenilworth Nub News.