17 Spooky Halloween Books for Adults

Are you a seasonal reader?

A few years ago, I started doing Halloween readings with my girls in October and they were SO FUN.

It’s the perfect way to add a little magic to your read-aloud routine and make October feel special.

But why should kids have all the fun?

Now reading something a little spooky and fun during the month of October is one of my favorite ways to welcome the holiday season!

Whether you’re looking for a spooky title for your book club to read in October or just want something a little interesting (but not too scary) to read on your own next month, these Halloween books for adults are perfect!

17 Spooky Halloween Books for Adults

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
If I had to choose one scary October read, this would definitely be it. I read it with my mother when I was in middle school and have read it many times. Tells the story of a young woman who marries a wealthy widower, but feels unable to get out of the shadow of his late first wife, Rebecca. It’s a classic for a reason (note that the first chapter is a bit slow and you won’t be able to put it down).

The Thirteenth Story by Diane Setterfield
This bestseller was one of the first books I read after I finished my undergraduate degree and started reading in earnest again. It definitely has a Gothic feel and lots of unexpected twists. Vera Winter was a famous novelist and never told the true story of her life until her death approached and she asked a young woman she did not know to be the one to write her true biography.

7 1/2 The Death of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
This is the story of a man who attends a celebratory party at a remote plantation, where the guest of honor is murdered. Every day, he wakes up in the body of a different party attendee and it will continue to happen until he completes his murder! The perfect Halloween book for adults! (full review here)

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
This is another classic book that I read with my mother when I was in middle school and I still remember my shock when I found out that Frankenstein was not the monster, but rather the doctor/scientist who created the monster. This is very scary (and sad).

Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
I read this novel years ago and all the reviews compared it Rebecca not wrong. Linda is an orphan in her early 20s who becomes a governess in France for a rich boy who will inherit the family’s entire fortune when he is old enough. Of course, things get a little scary very quickly. You’ll swear you’re in a Gothic mansion in the French countryside, all without leaving your sofa.

Really Crafty by Maureen Johnson
If you’ve been around here any time, you know I love a good young adult book and this one features a private school, an unsolved kidnapping, and a true crime-loving teenager and new student determined to solve the case. This was my Halloween read of October 2021 and I finished the entire four audiobook series in a few weeks – SO FUN.

Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham
This is one of my favorite books that I read several years ago. When a skeleton is unearthed on 17-year-old Rowan Chase’s family property, he immediately becomes determined to find out who it belongs to and how it came to be buried in his Oklahoma yard. The story switches between the lives of Rowan in the present and that of Will Tillman, who is also 17, but lives in 1921. A perfect historical fiction murder mystery that I couldn’t put down.

Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney
This twisty thriller was at the edge of my scary tolerance and I loved every second of the story about a couple who win a weekend getaway in Scotland and hope a change of scenery will save their crumbling marriage. But when they arrive at the church-turned-hotel and find it empty, it’s clear that there’s more to this trip than meets the eye. How can they win this trip? With jumping timelines, tension-filled moments, multiple narrators, and a twist this one really surprised me. I read the paper copy, but I’ve heard the audio version is also good (the husband’s part was read by the beloved Richard Armitage).

A Witch Comes to a Call by T. Kingfisher
I read this one in the fall and it was a fun Halloween read for me (but really can be read any time of year). It’s based on a fairy tale Swan Girl and it’s full of evil magic, fantasy, and one dangerous witch! I also love the romance between the older characters!And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Nobody does suspenseful mysteries quite like Agatha Christie and this one, in which ten strangers arrive at a deserted mansion and then start dying one by one, is perhaps her most famous. We also went to see the stage version Mousetrap (his other book) last year in October and it was a very scary mystery. I need to read the book version now!

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelide
Alicia is a famous painter who is married to a brilliant photographer and their life looks storybook perfect. Until one night, her husband arrived home and he shot her five times. And then he wouldn’t say a word about it. In fact, he won’t say a word and Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist determined to uncover the mystery. (Fair warning that this is probably the most mature title on this list)

The Hounds of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
If you want something shorter, you can’t go wrong with this Sherlock Holmes story which is only 100 pages long. I mean, legendary hellhounds and attempted murders? Hello Halloween.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
I’ve been wanting to read this one for years and I finally picked it up this fall for the Everyday Reading Book Club and it immediately hooked me (I’m currently listening to the second in the series!). It’s about a high school girl who for her senior project begins investigating a closed case of a murder/suicide that rocked her town five years earlier. But it seems like the past doesn’t want to stay buried. This audio is full cast and VERY amazing. (Full review here)

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
I got a copy as a gift YEARS ago (like… 20 years ago) and I finally read it last year as the October book of the month for the Everyday Reading Book Club and I am so glad I read this classic mystery!

Death of Mrs Westaway by Ruth Ware
This book has been recommended over and over again to people using phrases like “the best book I’ve read this year.” Hal gets a letter informing him of the large inheritance he received, but he knows it wasn’t meant for him. But she thinks her job as a tarot card reader may have given her the skills she needed to earn money. I really like this one – it reminds me of Thirteenth Story And Rebecca in the best way!

Caster and Crown by Elizabeth Lowham
It’s been on my TBR list for a while and it really is a great Halloween read! Magical without being too intense or scary and romantic without being steamy! And I’ve heard the second book is even better!

Babysitter Needed by Georgina Cross
I made it through this thriller in one plane ride and then couldn’t stop thinking about it! Sarah Larsen was desperate for a new job and when she found a notice for a nanny position in the lobby of her building, it felt like a golden ticket. And when she lands a job with a wealthy NYC family, she’s elated enough to ignore the red flags that immediately pop up, like a mother who never leaves the apartment alone or the mystery of her former nanny. This one is spooky enough to be fun without being downright scary.

The Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
If October reminds you of costumes and mythical beasts, this is the book for you. Fantasy isn’t a genre I’m particularly fond of, but it’s a great one about a young woman who lives in Prague as an art student by day, while at night she travels the world collecting human teeth for the non-human monsters who raised her. Prepare to be completely sucked in by this magical story (then read the rest of the trilogy). (Full review here)

A Halloween book for adults that I haven’t read yet, but it’s on my list

I asked for recommendations on Instagram and now my list of Halloween books for adults will keep me going for several years! I haven’t read any of these, but can’t wait to check them out, assuming I can work up the courage to read something scary!

The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson
This is the only non-fiction book on this list, but I’ve been wanting to read it for almost a decade and it seemed like the perfect book to read in October.

We Always Live in a Castle by Shirley Jackson
This book is from the 60s and seems to be a classic, although I’ve never heard of it (of course, anything scary is something I usually avoid, so this wasn’t a big surprise). This one is about a family living a very isolated life until a cousin comes to their house. The blurb on Amazon says it takes readers “deep into a labyrinth of dark neurosis.” Pretty sure that’s code for “nightmare until Valentine’s Day.”

Broken Girl by Simone St. James
I’m getting goosebumps just reading this description but it sounds scary too. Will my curiosity or my fear win? In the 50s, there was a boarding school for troublemaking girls that was rumored to be haunted. Four roommates become friends and one of them disappears. Now in the present (well, 2014), a journalist is investigating the death of his sister in the school yard.

Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Another one I wanted to read but never opened because. . .coward. In this film, a young woman finds an old book and a stack of ancient letters in her father’s library and discovers all kinds of secrets about her parents’ past.