A Halloween Reading List!

As you know, I love love love horror. I adore the extent to which the genre can be taken and am more scared by concepts than gore. This is probably why I find books scarier than movies because I know that the movie isn't real and hundreds of people are involved - but the book was the brainchild of one person and the more messed up the book is, the more you get worried about the author.

Today for Halloween, we are going to be looking at the scary books I've read in 2024 that constitute a re-read and a go-over for the Halloween season. If you're interested, I highly suggest you get reading because we are in a very special time in the year.

If you want to look at previous Halloween celebrations from me, take your pick of the links:

The Genre of Folk Horror: A Halloween Post - 2023

3 Great Horror Podcasts - 2023

20 Books that Terrified Me - 2021

Quarantined Halloween - 2020

100 Horror Books to Read for the Halloween Season - 2019

Now, without further introduction, let's get on to the main part: the horror novels I have read this year that make for perfect Halloween reading.

A Halloween Reading List

Part 1: Novels

• Mister Magic by Kiersten White - This novel is terrifying as it uncovers the sinister truths behind a children’s TV show, playing on the nostalgia and innocence of childhood memories gone dark.
• The Haar: A Horror Novel by David Sodergren - The relentless fog of the Scottish coast is filled with creeping dread and unseen horrors, making it a character of its own that traps and terrifies.
• The Terror by Dan Simmons - Based on true events, this tale of Arctic exploration descends into claustrophobic horror as the crew becomes prey to both the unyielding ice and a relentless supernatural predator.
• The Gathering by CJ Tudor - The novel grips with its blend of psychological suspense and sinister small-town secrets that slowly reveal themselves with chilling results.
• No One Saw a Thing by Andrea Mara - The fear here comes from a perfectly ordinary family that descends into psychological horror as trust and safety erode, exposing the fragility of everyday lives.
• The Devil and Mrs Davenport by Paulette Kennedy - A woman’s life unravels in the face of a dark force haunting her family, exposing the terrifying impact of generational curses and societal restraints.
• O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker - The haunting atmosphere of a desolate Scottish mansion and a tragic young girl’s fate creates a dark, chilling exploration of isolation and familial cruelty.
• The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson - This classic is frightening as it transforms a seemingly ordinary home into a source of relentless evil, playing on our primal fear of the places we consider safe.
• The Glutton by AK Blakemore - A terrifying blend of grotesque excess and depravity, this novel disturbs by pushing the boundaries of obsession and the body’s limits in the most horrifying ways.
• The Night Ship by Jess Kidd - Ghosts of the past and present collide in a haunting maritime mystery that reveals dark secrets lurking in the depths, evoking fear of both history and the unknown - based within the tragedy of the Batavia.
• Crawlspace by Herbert Lieberman - The suffocating fear of being trapped and hunted in confined spaces underpins this story, making every shadow and creak a source of dread.
• The White Hare by Jane Johnson - A folkloric horror story set in an eerie rural landscape, where ancient spirits and superstitions come alive, leaving readers with an unsettling feeling that nature itself is watching.

Part 2: Anthologies

• Glimpses of the Unknown, edited by Mike Ashley – This anthology evokes fear through chilling encounters with supernatural entities and eerie events that push the boundaries of what we believe possible.
• The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories, edited by Michael Newton – A timeless collection where classic ghost tales play on universal fears of mortality, regret, and the unknown realms beyond life.
• Stephen Fry’s Ghost Story Collection – A selection of haunting stories that tap into Fry’s fascination with human vulnerability when faced with inexplicable and often sinister apparitions.
• Crawling Horror, edited by Daisy Butcher and Janette Leaf – This anthology delves into the terrifyingly grotesque, blending themes of physical horror with psychological torment in claustrophobic, creature-filled stories.
• Victorian and Edwardian Ghost Stories, Volumes 1 and 2 – These volumes capture the eerie elegance of Victorian terror, where ghosts serve as omens and symbols of deeply buried secrets in shadowy, atmospheric settings.
• Mortal Echoes, edited by Greg Buzwell – A hauntingly poetic collection that confronts the fear of death, where ghosts echo unresolved grief and spectral visitors reveal long-buried emotions.
• The Platform’s Edge, edited by Mike Ashley – Set on the fringes of life, these stories bring fear to the forefront through tales of railway stations haunted by death, disappearances, and eerie apparitions.
• Weird Woods, edited by John Miller – The darkly enchanting forest settings of these stories evoke primal fears, revealing a world where nature itself becomes menacing, teeming with supernatural forces.
• Celtic Weird, edited by Johnny Mains – These stories unearth the ancient dread of Celtic folklore, exploring eerie landscapes, curses, and spirits with deep ties to the mystic past of Celtic mythology.
• The Whisperers and Other Stories, edited by Mike Ashley – This collection fills readers with dread as whispers and murmurs foreshadow terror, exploring the fear of unseen forces lurking just beyond our perception.
• Doomed Romances, edited by Joanne Ella Parsons – With haunting tales of love gone wrong, this anthology reveals the terrifying consequences of passion turned dark, where love itself becomes an agent of horror.
• The Doll-Master and Other Tales of Terror by Joyce Carol Oates – Oates crafts psychological horror that unsettles by turning familiar, everyday obsessions into monstrous manifestations of inner fears.
• Apple and Knife by Intan Paramaditha – Inspired by Indonesian folklore, these feminist horror stories twist traditional tales, evoking dread with their explorations of retribution and the supernatural.
• Dark Tales by Shirley Jackson – Jackson’s stories chill readers by exposing the darkness within ordinary lives, where subtle malevolence and psychological horror lurk under the surface of daily existence.

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this list and have a happy, safe and haunting Halloween - wishing you great scares (within reason).