What lies within the depths... Speculative Horror books where the main horror element directly relates to a body of water (whether that be a swamp, ocean, lake, river, etc.)
Note: must be more than just the setting (e.g. Friday the 13th wouldn't count)
Keyword: aquatic horror recommendations welcome!
created by meganisnotokay
last updated October, 2025
Decided to rename this list with something a bit more unique than just "aquatic horror" lol
immediately thought: âCHLONOEE đ§ââïžâ
(edit: she did indeed mean CLENOEEE, but they lost privilege for jokes)
girl who the hell is CHLO? put some respect on miss cleo sertoriâs name đĄ /jk
I have never been more embarrassed of a typoâplease forgive me đ©đ©đ©đ©đ© (will personally never recover from this)
h2okay youâre forgiven, letâs go play mermaids later đ
oh yay!! okay but i get to have the blue tail with yellow sparkles this timeâyou have to make something else
wow pretty! iâve got my purple tail and the scales shine rainbow and also i have a dolphin friend đŹ
Is this the reference to H2O: Just Add Water?đ CLEorrr nAURRr
thank you for understanding, wasnât sure how the joke would land, but Iâve saved the list regardless đ€
I'm so proud of myself for getting it haha! Loved that show (and the subsequent memes lol) & thank ya, glad you like it!đ
Have u read the Bone Drenched Woods by LV Russell? It would fit this list so well
No I havenât!! Will def add :)
I have to say itâs watery horror that scares me most irl. Maybe it was because I read Jaws when I was 12 or 13, and it felt so realistic. Not to forget those unfathomably black depths. đ
100%!! Ocean-related aquatic horror is def the spookiest to me. I always think back to the stat that we've only fully explored like 5% of it đ«Ł
i loveeeeeee this list, i love water-anything horror
Thank youđAnd me too!! Sci-fi horror and aquatic horror are becoming my fave horror subgenres for sure
Have you read They Drown Our Daughters?
Oooo I havenât! Iâll add it to the list!
Im nearly finished now. The last half is so far questionable to me (it may redeem itself though who knows) but the first half is very good!
Good to know! Going in with the right expectations makes a difference haha
The Salvage by Anbara Salam is on my tbr this month-- don't know a ton about it but it sounds like it's about a haunted shipwreck!
Ooooo I'll look into it! Thanks for sharing!