Gretchen's Picks
Gretchen joined the Snowbound crew in the summer of 2020, and has a very handsome dog named Rosie Cotton.
Do you judge a book by its cover?
ALWAYS! I dare you to find one book on this page with a bad cover. It's not possible.
Dogear or bookmark?
Now I am become death, the destroyer of books--dogear all the way.
Monogamist or polygamist reader?
I consider myself a read-onist--the more the merrier.
What's your most terrifying book experience?
When I'm reading in bed and drop my book on my face.
Do you eat while reading?
If tequila and wine count, yes.
Your mission as a bookseller?
To share some freaky books with some fellow freaks!

A manic black comedy absolutely bursting at the seams with outlandish & horny energy. Great pick for fans of The Last Taxi Driver and Touch of Jen. I can already tell this will be one of my top reads of 2023. Fantastic!

Beautiful, smart, & disconcerting--The Employees oozes with unexpected humanity. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize, this is literary sci-fi that transcends the genre. Gorgeous!

An instagram-fueled obsessive fantasy turns two millennials into monsters. Sharp & funny, Morgan slowly ensnare you in a web of psychedelic horror... this book features some of the most delightfully unlikeable characters I've read. Repulsive, deviant, & wonderful!!

A zany satire of academia, racial politics, and just about everything else. Funny, scathing, & full of surprises; you'll love to read this heroine's "coming of consciousness." -Gretchen
Grief, family, and love provide a perfect backdrop for the horrors within Johns' Bad Cree. This mesmerizing debut novel is full of creeping suspense and thrills that make it nearly impossible to put down. Bonus points for an almost exclusively female cast!

This exploration into the queerness of horror is absolutely fantastic--and just as off-kilter as the genre deserves. Devastating, beautiful, funny, and smart; this is a must-read for horror fans!

Are you a fan of filth & depravity? Please, please, please read this sadistic and fevered black comedy. Best Moshfegh yet. Holy shit!!!

This book is a must for fans of classic darkness à la Poe, Kafka, & the like. Dávila is a master of fear, obsession, paranoia, & terror. Deeply unsettling. Five stars.

This is a perfect fantasy read. It checks all the boxes without being cliche. Great adventure, characters, and a surprising amount of humor. 10/10.

This collection of poems is beautiful and devastating. Every line--even the most sparse--feels striking and weighty. Definitely worth a read.

Absolutely disgusting! Bizarro body horror & hyper-sexuality; this book is truly nasty, and I loved every second of it!

This book--woah. Beautiful. Awful.
A man processes the sudden loss of his wife... darkness & cosmic horror slowly unspool. I've never read anything quite like this. A truly stunning read. Transcendent.

Damn. Not sure I've ever read anything quite like this. So heavy, so sharp; an incredible revenge fantasy full of blood-soaked humor. A totally unforgettable read.

Wow!! I loved this one. What a beautiful collection of short stories. All tinted with dreamy, bizarre, and unsettling hues. Good read for fans of Her Body and Other Parties.

Not necessarily scary, but haunting. Ghost Variations traverses the many ways one can be haunted, with ease--leaping from chilling to sweet, and devastating to beautiful.


This book is INSANE!! In the best possible way. Lee Durkee has written a book that is both hilarious and heart-wrenching. You need to read this book, and then tell your friends to read this book. It's that good.