Recs if you like Goddess of Filth...

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.

Horror books written by Latin American authors.

This list was a winner of the Q1 2026 Community Voting event. To participate in the Side Quest, please follow the link pinned in the comments.

I am planning on keeping this list alive and will be adding more recommendations as I find them. Thank you everyone for nominating and voting for the list to be made into a Side Quest!

Shorter books (under 200 pages) that are part of at least one quest. Many are also in the public domain, making them easily accessible when you want to grind for that next badge.

the gurls NEED to read horror books 💋 i wouldn’t say these are all horror but that’s left to the reader to make that assumption

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.

*or gothic and generally horror-adjacent. i have not read all of these! some self-published i think as well

the season for cleaning is upon us!

books about exorcisms 😈 featuring both fiction and nonfiction

as always, taking any and all suggestions!

I love novellas and short stories, I feel like it really gives authors a place to flex their talents on just how much they can reveal of a character or world in minimal page space. These are some I feel really pack a punch. They are weird, unique, and can be read in a day.

Horror stories focusing on female characters who commit acts of violence rather than being the victims.

Jennifer’s Body is one of my favorite movies ever, and I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately, so I just haaad to make this list. So far, this list is a combination of books I’ve read in the past that have a similar vibe and books people recommend online, so please give me your recommendations if you have them! Going to go listen to the song Jennifer’s Body by Julia Wolf. 😌

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

possession n that Most of these are recs I found on r/horrorlit so apologies if they don’t actually include possession 🫡 recs are always welcomed 🙂‍↕️

Stephen King is overrated, read these horror books instead.

💬OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS. Just comment and I will add.

A fun list of the best modern horror from 2010-2026 I think are staples in the genre and should be read! Will continuously be updating.

All sorts of stories about all sorts of women. Mostly litfic, some horror.

Under appreciated horror and books lost in the annals of history.

💬OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS. Just comment and I will add.

Read your way through the awesome offerings from Creature Publishing (creature horror.com)

If you want to live deliciously, you must summon the dead by reading cursed books at night, alone, with the closet door open. But don’t practice any of this in real life. Ouija boards and seances open doors to a whole host of supernatural nightmares you don’t want to invite into your personal space - best just to read about fictional people making that mistake.