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We are finally approaching my absolute favorite time of year-fall! The leaves are changing, the temperature is dropping, and I am pulling out all the creepy, scary books I can handle.
The most popular post on my blog is definitely last year’s list of 13 Creepy Books To Read This Fall, so of course I had to give you an updated list because I’ve read 13 more books for you to add to your list for fall reading!
Related: 13 Creepy Books To Read This Fall
Truthfully, I had a hard time narrowing down my list of thirteen this year because I’ve read some amazing horror and thriller books since my last list post. As usual, I tried to find a wide range of thrills and chills because I know not everybody enjoys losing sleep because they’re terrified. Whether you are terrified by people in real life or fear something not of this world, I’m sure you will find your next spooky read on this list!
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead
This might end up being my favorite thriller of 2021!
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife is a dark academic thriller told in dual timelines following seven friends in college and at their ten year reunion. One of the friends was murdered senior year and someone knows what really happened that night.
I love rich people drama and that’s pretty much what this book is about! Secret after secret is revealed as the mystery of what happened the night one of their friends died unravels, and I was living for it!
This is a bit of a slow burn, but I promise once you get into the story, you won’t be able to put it down!
The Mary Shelley Club by Goldy Moldavsky
If you like Gossip Girl and Scream, then I think you will like The Mary Shelley Club.
Rachel is the new girl in a private school. She feels like she doesn’t fit in because she is one of the few scholarship students in the school. While attending a party with a friend, Rachel gets caught up in a prank gone wrong and learns these pranks are common among the students. Eventually she is invited to join The Mary Shelley Club-a group of students who compete to come up with the scariest prank in the group.
This was such a fun time and I really loved the twist at the end. I loved the idea of the Mary Shelley Club-the members were so different but bonded over their love of horror movies. I loved all of the horror movies references sprinkled through the novel and would actually love to read a sequel!
The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix
If you enjoy the slasher genre, then I think you will really enjoy The Final Girl Support Group.
Personally, I am a sucker for any book, movie, or TV show featuring the final girl trope. The Final Girls Support Group is the ultimate homage in my opinion because we rarely get to explore what happens to the final girls when the machetes and chainsaws stop on the screen/page.
Lynette Tarkington is part of a support group for other final girls. Every day of her life for the last twenty two years has been a preparation for the day her monster comes back for her. When one of the other women in the group misses a meeting, Lynette’s worst fear comes true as someone comes for the final girls one by one.
The rest of the book is a wild ride as Lynette races to save the other women and herself. I will admit the journey is a bit unbelievable at times, but any slasher-horror fan knows that is exactly what the genre is 99% of the time! The book plays out exactly like a slasher movie, so definitely steer clear if you are squeamish!
Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson
If you enjoy thrillers with isolated settings, then you definitely need to pick up Every Vow You Break.
I would definitely go into this one completely blind. The basic plot of the book is a woman has a one night fling with a man on her bachelorette weekend. A few weeks later, the man shows up on the island where she and her husband are on their honeymoon.
This was super creepy, unique, and amazing! I actually listened to the entire book in one afternoon because I couldn’t stop reading.
The Lost Village by Camilla Sten
If you enjoyed The Blair Witch Project and Midsommar, then I think you will enjoy The Lost Village.
A documentary film crew is scouting their future filming location-an abandoned mining village where all of the residents disappeared one day and were never seen or heard from again. As soon as the crew arrives, they get the feeling they are not alone. Then strange things begin to happen-equipment is destroyed, people are missing, and the crew keeps seeing a mysterious figure.
There were some very creepy scenes in this book, and I really wish I had read it during the fall instead of spring!
Possession by Katie Lowe
If you enjoy true crime podcasts, then I think you will enjoy Possession.
Hannah’s husband was murdered in their home ten years ago. The police called it a burglary gone wrong, and Hannah has tried to move on with her life since then. But now a true crime podcast, Conviction, is digging into the past, bringing unwanted attention to Hannah. Conviction thinks Hannah has something to hide, and in a way they are right.
There were several twists to this psychological thriller that I did not figure out! I feel like this is an underrated gem of the 2021 thriller releases.
The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher
If you like the Upside Down aspect of Stranger Things, then I think you will enjoy The Hollow Places.
A recently divorced woman moves in with her uncle to help him manage his eclectic business, Wonder Museum. One day she discovers a strange hold in the wall of the museum and enters a corridor. The corridor eventually leads to a door and beyond that door is multiple islands with more doors.
This book was super weird but it totally worked! There were a few moments in the beginning where I almost gave up on the story, but I’m glad I stuck with it. I enjoyed the main characters and their banter and appreciated a friendship element instead of a romance. If the premise of a portal to another world appearing in a museum of oddities is at all interesting to you, then I highly recommend picking up this sci-fi/horror book!
172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad
If you are looking for a sci-fi horror, then look no further than 172 Hours on the Moon.
Three teenagers win a chance to go to the moon in a global competition held by NASA. But nobody could have guessed the true reason for this mission to the moon.
Seriously one of the scariest books I’ve ever read! It is a YA book and has been translated to English, but once you get past some of the character development in the beginning, you won’t be able to put this down!
Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
I rave about Lock Every Door every chance I get! This is a book that I still think about two years later because the ending was so unsettling.
Jules takes a too-good-to-be-true job as an apartment sitter at the high profile Bartholomew. The Bartholomew has an interesting and somewhat sinister past, but Jules is desperate for money. When one of the other apartment sitters in the building goes missing, Jules is determined to find out what happened to her. But she soon learns that this is not the first time an apartment sitter has gone missing from the Bartholomew.
This is one of the few psychological thriller/horror books that literally left my jaw on the floor because I was so shocked by the ending! The gothic setting is perfect for fall reading.
Related: Book Review | Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
Lock Every Door can be chosen as an add-on with Book of the Month, a monthly book subscription service. I have been a member of BOTM for years now. You can use my link to sign up for Book of the Month and get your first book for only $5! Add-ons are $9.99 and shipping is always free! If you don’t like the picks one month, you can skip the month and your credit rolls over to the next month. You won’t be charged for another credit!
Related: Is a Book of the Month Subscription Worth It?
Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare
Another book I recommend if you enjoy the slasher genre is Clown in a Cornfield.
This is a YA horror, but the body count is high and the gore is extreme! It reads just like a teen horror flick when clowns descend on a high school party in the cornfield and begin a murderous spree all night.
This was honestly not one of my personal favorites, but I still think it is the perfect scary, but fun, book for fall! I think you’ll be thoroughly creeped out if you have a fear of clowns.
The Patient by Jasper DeWitt
If you liked The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, then you will probably like The Patient.
The book is written in a blog/Reddit post type formula where the anonymous doctor, Parker, posts his encounter with a patient with no known diagnosis. The patient, Joe, has been in the facility for over 30 years. Parker soon learns that every person who has had contact with Joe has either been driven to madness or suicide. Parker is an ambitious first year doctor and decides he is going to be the one to finally diagnose Joe. His first encounter with Joe does not go as expected, and soon Parker is questioning everything he thought he knew.
I definitely think you should give The Patient a chance if you are a horror fan. I was hoping for a more psychological thriller story, but this is 100% a horror novella!
You can read The Patient on Kindle Unlimited! You can get a free trial here.
The Troop by Nick Cutter
If you like isolated settings and survival horror, then you will probably like The Troop.
A scoutmaster and his troop of boys are enjoying a camping trip on an island. One night, a man stumbles upon their campsite. The stranger is very thin and pale…and very hungry.
I would not recommend this book to just anybody, but if you are not squeamish and enjoy body horror, then you’ll love The Troop. I would caution you that there are some very graphic scenes of animal cruelty, so please proceed with caution if you choose to read this one.
Secret Santa by Andrew Shaffer
If you love horror set in the 80s or books about the book publishing world, then you’ll probably enjoy Secret Santa.
I know this is a list of books to read for fall, but I couldn’t resist including a holiday-themed horror book on this list!
Lussi is desperate for a job in publishing and accepts a job at the prestigious Blackwood-Patterson publishing house. She has been tasked with finding the next big name in horror, which is a fast-growing and popular genre in the 1980s. Soon Lussi finds herself at the receiving end of some pranks and hazing among her officemates. The oddest prank was a demonic looking toy she received as a gift in the Secret Santa exchange at the office party. Now people in the office are dying under mysterious circumstances and Lussi must figure out who the gift giver is so she can end the murders.
This was a fun book to read during the holidays and I think there needs to be more holiday-themed horror books!
Which book on my list are you most excited to read this fall? Let me know in the comments!
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