Recs if you like Tantrum...

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. i've been maintaining it for myself since 2022 and it was time to share the wealth!

books where women eat or think about eating other people

Fiction & nonfiction books that explore the complexities and traumas of mother-child relationships or in which such relationships play a central role. While many books on this list are what I’d classify as including “mommy issues” there are others that are more about the different perspectives and nuances of the mother-child (often specifically mother-daughter) relationship. Some books center the child, some the mother, some both.

Suggestions are welcome.

Horror books with a page count of 200 pages or less.

Before we started defining novellas by word count, they were defined as being any book less than 200 pages. Source: my Analysis of Short Stories & Literature professor in community college. I loved that class. But he loved James Joyce. So, ymmv, I guess.

Horror, dystopia, intimacy, and supporting women's wrongs.

Weird, mostly girlys going through different unique life adventures. Supporting girlies (the girls, theys and thems) rights and wrongs.  Regina George screaming down her hallway into her room hunting down the Burn Book

A reading list celebrating the women who know exactly how to get under your skin! Thankful for the gurlies!!!

Books that are just as good as the cover promises. AKA: Fantastic book covers that also happen to be fantastic books! List will be added to in the future because I can’t leave well enough alone. (Suggestions welcome, leave it in the comments.)

books where there's motherhood and cannibalism

Being weird is fun!

i love an unhinged woman

A collection of stories that explore themes of motherhood & mother-child relationships through a darker lens.

Tags: Horror, Motherhood, Matriarch, Matriarchy, Magical Realism, Thriller

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

There are horrors in these homes. (Recommendations appreciated!)

Short Horror Novellas to scratch the itch.

Horror with themes surrounding motherhood, childbirth, pregnancy, and/or offspring that isn't quite so cute and cuddly. Proceed with caution..these books may bite.

Creepy kids (Let me know any recs to add to this list!)

books where there's monsters and (alleged) cannibalism