Horror

Books with Horror as the main genre within the Speculative category. Discover stories featuring paranormal, supernatural, and psychological disturbances.

Works are alphabetized by author. Genres are listed beside works. For details about a specific work, refer to the author’s Substack. The Library is not responsible for content on individual authors’ Substacks.

(N) Novel / (NA) Novella / (NT) Novelette (B) Nonfiction Book

(C) Complete / (I) Serial In Progress

(F) Free / ($) Paid / (F)→($) Preview Available

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Sleep, Dearie, Sleep | Jean Marie Bauhaus | Historical, Gothic Horror (NT) (C) (F)

An ambitious young architect is poised to make his mark on a new nation when he’s tasked with building a stone bridge that will connect North Carolina to the Southwest territory and help make the way for western expansion. But the project is met with disaster upon disaster, until it seems that Nature itself has rejected the bridge and seeks to punish all who attempt to build it. A devout Presbyterian, Archie is nevertheless a Scot, having been raised on tales of mischievous faeries and capricious gods. As much as his enlightened, modern mind rails against those old superstitions, his work crew is not so enlightened, having performed a ritual that seems to have awakened something ancient and elemental, something that hungers for obeisance and blood. Something that haunts Archie, intent on driving him mad. As the deadline looms, pressure builds and desperation takes hold, Archie’s faith falters and he succumbs to the old ways, making an unspeakable promise to save his career, his family’s future, and his sanity. When modernity and reason are confounded by ancient, forgotten realities, Archie learns that the true price of progress is his heart and soul.

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Terror at Lake Eucha | Jean Marie Bauhaus | Horror (NT) (C) (F)

Something lingers in the woods of Lake Eucha... something that refuses to be forgotten. A year following her brother's disappearance, Melanie Fisher is determined to get answers. Her quest takes her to the site of an abandoned amusement park, where she finds a lost video camera containing evidence that her brother was losing his mind. She begins to question her own sanity when memories surface of childhood visits to the lakeside amusement park that occurred long after the park was destroyed by fire. An online search tells her she's not the only one with such impossible memories. Common sense—and her concerned boyfriend—tell her to leave it to the authorities. But Melanie's own instincts tell her that giving in to the madness and opening herself up to the forces drawing her back to Lake Eucha may be the only way to get the answers she seeks, along with any hope of saving her brother.

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The Hag | Jean Marie Bauhaus | Supernatural/Psychological Thriller (NT) (C) (F)

Michael Latimer is living the good life. He's head of his university's English department, he has a great marriage to a beautiful wife, an assistant who makes him look good at work… What more could he ask for? But when one night he finds himself immobile in his own bed as terrifying visions taunt and torture him, his life begins to crumble--along with his sanity. Rational man that he is, Michael gladly seizes on a diagnosis of sleep paralysis--a sensible, scientific-sounding name for the ghastly night visits that plague him. But as he continues to grapple with his condition, his research takes him down paranormal rabbit holes that make him question everything he knows about the nature of the world, and evil… and Kathy, his wife.

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Hiding from Shadows | John Coon | Horror/Paranormal (NA) (C) ($)

Every night is a personal battle to survive until morning for Ellen. An unseen menace lurks in the shadows outside her home. Will it strike without mercy once she lets her guard down? Hiding from Shadows is a paranormal horror tale set in the Deer Falls universe first introduced in John Coon's debut novel Pandora Reborn.

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Snow Dragon | John Coon | Horror (NA) (C) ($)

An ancient mythical monster has awakened beneath Deer Falls following a major earthquake, and humans are on the menu. Can the Duggan family destroy this vicious and lethal predator before it drives their sleepy Colorado town to extinction? Snow Dragon is a monster horror story and a prequel to Pandora Reborn.

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Obscurity | Elle Griffin | Gothic (N) (C) ($)

Set amidst the wild palms of 1790s New Orleans, the widow St. Vincent appears in the wake of her husband's death the wealthiest plantation owner in the South. But strange occurrences ensue in her wake and the town becomes obsessed with their superstitions about her. As they attempt to unravel the widow's secrets, we find she knows something of their secrets as well and the philosophical underpinnings of their pasts all surface to haunt them all. Written in the style of 19th century gothic novels such as The Count of Monte Cristo, Dracula, Dangerous Liaisons, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Phantom of the Opera, and featuring a lush atmospheric setting with mysterious female lead, Obscurity reads like a wandering through apothecary shelves, each step more haunting and mercurial than the last.

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Vârcola | Brothers Krynn | Romantasy (N) (I) (F)

Called away from his home to a distant island, on behalf of the Emperor he serves faithfully, Arnfried is a man who dreams of little more than becoming a priest, serving his country and marrying the woman he loves. Unfortunately for him, from the moment he sets foot on the island he is drawn into a web of shadows and horror the likes of which he could never in his darkest nightmares have imagined.

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The Devil Sings in D Minor | hiragi | Gothic horror/Romance | (N) (I) (F)

Dee, a failing musician, accidentally sells his soul to the Devil in return for YouTube subscribers. He’s convinced his childhood hallucinations have intensified after his friend’s grisly suicide, but they may in fact be real - and desperately trying to warn him about something. He takes a risky chance at fame after his band (and relationship) falls apart in the wake of the frontman’s grisly death. His agent, Luci, convinces him that the return of his childhood hallucinations are signs of supernatural attack, and that the only way to save Dee is through magic. With increasing reasons not to trust anyone else in his life, including his good friend Theon, Dee does as he’s told. Because Luci loves him, he must know what’s best, right? But if Dee really wants a life of his own making, he’ll have to look the Devil in the eye and confront the monsters he pretends he cannot see. The Devil Sings in D Minor is a gothic novel with a touch of romance; Hellblazer meets Hitchcock’s Vertigo.

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A Slow Ascent of Madness | ReddOscar | Horror/Lovecraftian (NA) (C) (F)→($)

First chapter free

Newlyweds Charles and Abigail desire wealth beyond their dreams and have heard rumours of gold beneath the town of Sageburn. People have flocked from miles around in the hunt for luxurious wealth but find more than gold beneath the hills of Sageburn…

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North Dark | Lane Talbot | Survival Horror (NA) (I) (F)

Set in a lonesome failed state, North Dark is the story of a lone man traveling by dogsled across a dark tundra in pursuit of the fugitive who destroyed his family. Haunted by predators, the musher’s journey takes him through the remains of civilizations long-lapsed into madness. All the while, his enemy slides in and out of striking distance, always one step ahead, always one act of violence away.

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CRYBABY | Mark Watson | Horror | (N) (I) (F)

Crybaby by Mark Watson is a heart-pounding thriller that grips you from the first page and doesn't let go until long after you've closed the book. The author's skillful storytelling paints vivid images of the elephant's imposing presence, turning it into a symbol of both majesty and menace. The tension is palpable as Crybaby's interactions with humans oscillate between moments of eerie calm and sudden violence. The author creates a claustrophobic atmosphere as the characters navigate the dense jungle and crumbling colonial ruins, mirroring the tension of being stranded at sea in Jaws. Each encounter with Crybaby is a nerve-wracking experience, and the sense of impending doom is ever-present. Reading Crybaby is akin to watching "Jaws" for the first time—it's an adrenaline rush that leaves you breathless. Crybaby will do for elephant rides what Jaws did for swimming in the sea. It is a gripping, terrifying read that will linger in your mind long after the final page. The novel's ability to transform an otherwise gentle creature into a source of dread is reminiscent of the fear elicited by "Jaws." For those seeking a thrilling, edge-of-your-seat experience, Crybaby is an absolute must-read. 

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