Recs if you like Looking Glass Sound...

are you sick of being recommended stephen king when you ask for a horror novel? have you picked up a book expected to be scared, but the scariest thing about it was a woman being needlessly tormented and gaslit? have you read 4627473 books about a man in a haunted house and need something different?

if so, this list is for you :)

a masterlist of horror by anyone who isn't a straight cis white man, started in 2022 and brought to pb in 2026.

the darker side of new england. crumbling colonial-era brick, run down coastal towns, abandoned factories, dilapidated mills, foggy orchards, cold dark waters, whispers of witchcraft, venerated institutions, secret societies, and uneasy echoes of the past.

covers featuring skulls that aren't

Inspired by the sea fog, whistling winds, and the dark sea crashing against the rocks in summer

if you’re craving something that feels like the next martha’s vineyard (iykyk)! books that evoke the same feeling as the magnificent tv show ‘widows bay’

Created from the list on Goodreads by Cybil and Sadie Hartmann (September 29, 2025)

Horror books swimming with thalassophobia

Books where there's a relationship that's codependent/obsessive, even to a small degree.

Why read a cozy book, when instead you can feel unsettled while reading of another women’s journey through the horrors of life?

From a slow descent into madness, covering up murder for siblings, accidentally(?) joining a cult, to insurance fraud over taxidermy - this list covers it all!!

I’m insanely obsessed with Widow’s Bay and I want to read some books with similar vibes once the season is over, so I figured I’d make this list! The books listed are recommendations I’ve gathered from Instagram, Reddit, etc, but I’d love some more recommendations!

Cozy or creepy books set in Maine or New England to get you in the mood for a romantic staycation or a ghostly getaway.

Queer horror

Welcome to widows bay - or well, as close to it in book form!

Patricia welcomes you.

Ongoing list

all books summerween: spooky, scary, and some romance all with the perfect ambiance and atmosphere

sweeping sagas that cover whole decades of a person or family's life