Then There Was One! Ten Creepy Monsters by Carey F. Armstrong-Ellis

The usual suspects are all gathered in the dark, ten terribly scary sorts--a ghost, zombie, ghoul, sea monster, witch, vampire, et al--presumably out to do no good on All Hallow's Eve. But before they can get started, an ill wind catches the ghost's shroud and lifts him up and away. Unaware, the remaining nine set forth.

NINE CREEPY MONSTERS TRUDGED WITH LURCHING GAIT.

ONE LOST HIS FOOT AND THEN THERE WERE EIGHT.

Zombies! They're always falling apart just when you need them!

The remaining monsters ignore their de-parted comrade and stagger on with their midnight mission. But then another of their number loses focus: the werewolf spots the full moon and launches into a lyric howl, leaving the rest to lurch on without him. The scarecrow makes the mistake of striking a match and sets himself alight instead of his torch; the sea monster is waylaid by a lovely lady in a swimsuit, and mummy snags his trailing wrappings and comes quite undone.

At last only the witch, the vampire, and the green goblin remain--but not for long. The witch spills some of her brew on herself and melts into a puddle, and the vampire vanishes when he spots the first rays of the sunrise, leaving only that small, grimacing goblin, who runs with surprising agility straight for a nearby cozy house. Is he set for solo mischief inside that homey-looking cottage?

Inside, there are only some candies and wrappers scattered on the floor, a little boy dozing off sweetly in his little bed, and .... a grisly green mask dangling from his bedpost.

HE PULLED UP HIS BLANKETS

AND THEN THERE WERE NONE.

Carey Armstrong-Ellis's Ten Creepy Monsters (Abrams, 2012) is a counting book perfect for the scary season, with suitably scary-but-comic Halloween frightfuls, each of which stays perfectly in character as they make their departure from the countdown as the suspense builds, with a giggle-provoking surprise in the turn of the last page. For Halloween surprise endings, pair this one with Lorna Balian's venerable classic, Humbug Witch, with its similar premise which stays well on the humorous side of scary for youngsters in the pre-Halloween season.