5 Horror Novels I Want to Read

Hello! It’s me. I’ve changed the name of my newsletter to Wait Until Dark (after the Audrey Hepburn film) because I didn’t like having my URL as my full name and I couldn’t find a decent and available URL that matched my previous title. Also yes it’s been a long time since I wrote anything here and that’s because I’ve had a lot going on and I still do. But for now, I’m back with this short list of horror books I want to read soon. Please let me know if there’s anything you’d like to see from me, book-related or otherwise.

Autumn/winter feels like the perfect time to read horror because it’s dark and cold which sets the perfect atmosphere. It’s so good to get warm and cosy, maybe light a few candles, and dive straight into a spooky story. And listen, I know that one of these is technically a romantic supernatural thriller so please don’t show up at the foot of my bed at 3am to tell me I fucked up. Alright, here they are:

I’ve only read Carrie by Stephen King but I’ve always wanted to read more. The books that most peak my interest are Christine, IT, and The Green Mile. IT is beyond intimidating because of its length (over 1,000 pages) and the fact I’ve never read a book that long before, but I always hear such great things about it. I love the films and the depth of King’s character writing (at least based on the many film adaptations I’ve seen of his work), so reading the original source sounds fantastic. However, I might give Christine a go first, especially as it’s one my dad recommended to me a good entry point that isn’t as long. Although I must say that I think 700 pages (kindle edition) is still really damn long. If you have any Stephen King recs, please send them my way!

Christine follows nerdy teenager Arnold Cunningham who buys and falls in love with a custom-painted red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury named Christine. The car, however, is inhabited by evil. Dennis Guilder, alongside Arnold’s girlfriend, Leigh Cabot, attempts to uncover the truth behind Christine, but discovers more than he bargained for. Christine will get revenge on anyone standing in her path and it’s up to Dennis to save Arnold from her wrath.

The Lamb follows Margot and her Mama who have lived in the forest for as long as Margot can remember. When Margot isn’t at school, they spend quiet days at their cottage, waiting for strangers to knock on their door. Mama calls them strays. She feeds them wine, keeps them warm, and then satisfies her burning appetite by picking apart their bodies. When Mama’s want grows stronger than her hunger, Margot must confront the shifting dynamics of her family and untangle her own desires when a white-toothed stray named Eden turns up in the heart of a snowstorm. Will Margot make a bid for freedom?

This had been on my radar before its publication but I was unsure about getting it. It wasn’t until a friend messaged me telling me that I need to read it that I finally bought it. This was in May and I still haven’t gotten around to it yet because there’s just so many books. I’m drawn to its premise, the gruesome horror, and the promise of a sapphic love story of sorts.

Private Rites follows sisters Isla, Irene, and Agnes, who have not spoken in some time when their father dies. An architect as cruel as he was revered, his death offers an opportunity for the sisters to come together in a new way as they converge in the grand glass house they grew up in, which happens to be their father’s most famous creation. As the sisters’ lives spin out of control, they sort through the secrets and memories left behind until their fragile bond is shattered by a revelation in their father’s will. All of this is set to the backdrop of constant rain, which has fallen for so long that land has reshaped itself, allowing arcane rituals and religions to creep back into practice.

I read Julia Armfield’s debut novel, Our Wives Under the Sea, in 2024 and was blown away by it. It was so eerie, full of horror imagery and unsettling deep-sea facts that really got under my skin. I need to see what Armfield has cooked up in her latest, a book I’ve had sitting on my shelf since it came out last year. Oops.

I recently read four of Rachel Harrison’s novels and a short story she published. This leaves The Return and Black Sheep, and I already have the latter. The book follows Vesper Wright, who never had a “normal” family, but who does? She left home at eighteen and never looked back, mostly because she was told that leaving the staunchly religious community she grew up in meant she couldn’t return. But one day, an envelope arrives on her doorstep inviting her to the wedding of her beloved cousin Rosie at the family farm. Vesper wonders if they’ve made an exception to the rule? While unsure of what lies ahead, something inside Vesper insists she goes to the wedding, even if it means returning to the toxic environment she escaped from… including her mother, Constance, a former horror film story and forever ice queen. While at home, Vesper is forced to reckon with her family’s beliefs and her own crisis of faith.

My favourite of Harrison’s books so far is Cackle, and while I’ve rated most of her books around 3 stars, I’ve really enjoyed reading them. They’re easy reads but often contain a spooky atmosphere and engaging relationship dynamics while the protagonist deals with a tricky situation like, you know, turning into a werewolf or a vampire or something. Black Sheep seems fairly grounded, though, focused on a cult instead.

In this supernatural love story, New York architect Tate Donovan arrives in Cape Cod to design his best friend’s summer home. Recently discharged from an upscale psychiatric facility where he was treated for acute depression, Tate is making a fresh start though he is still wrestling with the pain of losing his beloved sister, Sylvia. Her deathbed revelation—that she can see spirits who are still tethered to the living world, a gift that runs in their family—sits uneasily with Tate, who struggles to believe in more than what reason can explain. But when he takes up residence on the Cape, he encounters a beautiful young woman named Wren who will challenge every assumption he has about his logical and controlled world.

As a fan of M. Night Shyamalan and the odd Nicolas Sparks adaptation, I was thrilled when I learned they collaborated on an idea that has a novel and screenplay counterpart. The book is out now, but the film (starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Phoebe Dynevor) is coming next year and I am seated. I am really looking forward to reading this one. Remain’s premise is intriguing and will surely be an emotional journey. This will be my first Sparks novel.

Be sure to follow me on Goodreads to see me read absolutely none of these books. No I’m sure I’ll get around to them within the next 5 years. Don’t give up on me, I can do it.