Ghost stories
Ghost stories books to start from. Open one to see books like it, or tell BookSense what you loved for four picks made for you.
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New to the genre? These 5 are the books to read first.
The Haunting of Hill House
Shirley JacksonA study of isolation and psychic breakdown in a malevolent house, defining modern haunted house literature.
The Turn of the Screw
Henry JamesA governess suspects apparitions are corrupting her charges, creating a benchmark for narrative ambiguity.
A Christmas Carol
Charles DickensA novella that linked ghost stories to Christmas and used spectral visitations for social and moral critique.
Ghost Stories of an Antiquary
Montague Rhodes JamesThe foundational collection of the English antiquarian ghost story, known for tactile and unsettling manifestations.
The Woman in Black
Susan HillA late-20th-century pastiche of Victorian ghost conventions featuring a vengeful spirit in a tidal marsh setting.
Chosen and described with AI from our notes on the genre.
Reading lists
More ghost stories books
- The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas
The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras CubasMachado de Assis - The Shining
The ShiningStephen King - The Lovely Bones
The Lovely BonesAlice Sebold - Dark Matter
Dark MatterMichelle Paver - Beloved
BelovedToni Morrison1987 - The New Girl
The New GirlRobert Lawrence Stine1989 - The Amityville Horror
The Amityville HorrorJay Anson1977 - The Great God Pan
The Great God PanArthur Machen1894 - Remember Me
Remember MeChristopher Pike1989 - Daisy Miller
Daisy MillerHenry James1877 - Ghost Sty
Ghost StyPeter Straub1979 - The Penguin Book of Horror StoriesThe Penguin Book of Horror StoriesJ. A. Cuddon