Oct. 28, 2025 – Halloween is around the corner - what better time to dive into a scary story? Horror is hot right now, and these new novels are sure to send shivers up your spine.
"Bochica" by Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro (2025)
In 1923 Soacha, Colombia, La Casona – an opulent mansion perched above the legendary Salto del Tequendama waterfall – was once home to Antonia and her family, who settle in despite their constant nightmares and the house's malevolent spirit. But tragedy strikes when Antonia's mother takes a fatal fall into El Salto and her father, consumed by grief, attempts to burn the house down with Antonia still inside.
Three years later, haunted by disturbing dreams and cryptic journal entries from her late mother, Antonia is drawn back to her childhood home when it is converted into a luxurious hotel. As Antonia confronts her fragmented memories and the dark history of the estate, she wrestles with unsettling questions she can no longer ignore: Was her mother's death by her own hands, or was it by someone else's? In a riveting quest for answers, Antonia must navigate the shadows of La Casona, unearthing its darkest secrets and confronting a legacy that threatens to swallow her whole.
"House of Monstrous Women" by Daphne Fama (2025)
Josephine del Rosario feels like a pariah in her town. Long orphaned after her father's political campaign ends in tragedy, she's all alone taking care of the family home while her older brother is off in Manila, where a revolution brews. And it's starting to feel like he's abandoning her. When she receives a letter from her cherished childhood friend Hiraya, inviting her to play a game, she jumps at the reason to leave town. Josephine will have whatever her heart desires if she wins. Maybe Josephine can change her life. It doesn't matter that dark rumors have always surrounded Hiraya.
"My Ex, the Antichrist" by Craig DiLouie (2025)
1998: A punk band is formed by Lily Lawlor and Drake Morgan. Drake inspires faith in some. Fear in others. Lily is a believer. 1999: A Battle of the Bands ends in a shocking death, and a riot that claims the lives of three teenagers. 2009: At the height of her stardom, Lily walks into a police station and confesses to murder. Now: The band has refused to talk to the press about the night of the riot, Lily's confession, or anything else. It's been over a decade, but Lily has finally agreed to an interview. And the band is following her lead. What follows is a story of prophecy, death, and apocalypse. A story about love and love lost. A story about the antichrist. Maybe it's all true. Maybe none if it is. Either way, this is their story. And they're sticking to it.
"Feeders" by Matt Serafini (2025)
When a video depicting the brutal murder of a former classmate leaks online, Kylie Bennington’s – whose dreams of becoming a successful influencer remain frustratingly elusive – curiosity gets the better of her, leading to the discovery of an off-the-grid social media app called MonoLife. As it turns out, there are certain cryptic rules in the user agreement that must be adhered to, such as interacting with other users at least twice daily or risk losing it all …a nd never, ever speaking of MonoLife’s existence to non-users or risk dire consequences.
For this is a platform that primarily rewards the worst in human behavior and which begins chipping away at Kylie’s sanity across post after post for an ever-increasing audience of immoral fans. Now Kylie’s going to find out just how far she’s willing to go on her unyielding rise to the top – even if that means coming face-to-face with the frightening and ruthless forces behind MonoLife, who see all from deep within the shadows.
"Hungerstone" by Kat Dunn (2025)
It’s the height of the Industrial Revolution, and ten years into Lenore’s marriage to steel magnate Henry, their relationship has soured. When Henry’s ambitions take them from London to the remote British moorlands to host a hunting party, a shocking carriage accident brings the mysterious Carmilla into their lives. Carmilla, who is weak and pale during the day but vibrant at night. Carmilla, who stirs up something deep within Lenore. And before long, girls from the local villages fall sick, consumed by a terrible hunger.
As the day of the hunt draws closer, Lenore begins to unravel, questioning the role she has been playing all these years. Torn between regaining her husband’s affection and the cravings Carmilla has awakened, soon Lenore will uncover a darkness in her household that will place her at terrible risk.
"Wake Up and Open Your Eyes" by Clay McLeod Chapman (2025)
Noah has been losing his polite Southern parents to far-right cable news for years, so when his mother leaves him a voicemail warning him that the “Great Reawakening” is here, he assumes it’s related to one of her many conspiracy theories. But when his phone calls go unanswered, Noah makes the drive from Brooklyn to Richmond, Virginia. There, he discovers his childhood home in shambles and his parents locked in a terrifying trancelike state in front of the TV. Panicked, Noah attempts to snap them out of it. Then Noah’s mother brutally attacks him.
But Noah isn’t the only person to be attacked by a loved one. Families across the country are tearing each other apart – literally – as people succumb to a form of possession that gets worse the more time they spend glued to a screen. In Noah’s Richmond-based family, only he and his young nephew Marcus are unaffected. Together, they must race back to the safe haven of Brooklyn – but can they make it before they fall prey to the violent hordes?
"Strange Houses" by Uketsu (2025)
When a writer fascinated by the macabre is approached by an acquaintance, he finds himself investigating an eerie house for sale in Tokyo. At first, with its bright and spacious interior, it seems the perfect first home. But upon closer inspection, the building's floor plans reveal a mysterious "dead space" hidden between its walls. Seeking a second opinion, the writer shares the floor plans with his friend Kurihara, an architect, only to discover more unnerving details throughout. What is the true purpose behind the house's disturbing design? And what happened to the former owners who disappeared without a trace? When a body suddenly appears and a young woman reaches out about a second house, it soon becomes clear that the writer and his friend may be in over their heads.
"Overgrowth" by Mira Grant (2025)
Since she was three years old, Anastasia Miller has been telling anyone who would listen that she's an alien disguised as a human being, and that the armada that left her on Earth is coming for her. Since she was three years old, no one has believed her. Now, with an alien signal from the stars being broadcast around the world, humanity is finally starting to realize that it's already been warned, and it may be too late. The invasion is coming, Stasia's biological family is on the way to bring her home, and very few family reunions are willing to cross the gulf of space for just one misplaced child. What happens when you know what's coming, and just refuse to listen?
"Killer on the Road: The Babysitter Lives" by Stephen Graham Jones (2025)
When high school senior Charlotte agrees to babysit the Wilbanks twins, she plans to put the six-year-olds to bed early and spend a quiet night studying: the SATs are tomorrow, and checking the Native American/Alaskan Native box on all the forms won't help if she chokes on test day. But tomorrow is also Halloween, and the twins are eager to show off their costumes. Charlotte's last babysitting gig almost ended in tragedy when her young charge sleepwalked unnoticed into the middle of the street, only to be found unharmed by Charlotte's mother. Charlotte vows to be extra careful this time. But the house is filled with mysterious noises and secrets that only the twins understand, echoes of horrors that Charlotte gradually realizes took place in the house eleven years ago. Soon Charlotte has to admit that every babysitter's worse nightmare has come true: they're not alone in the house.
"Listen to Your Sister" by Neena Viel (2025)
Twenty-five-year-old Calla Williams is struggling since becoming guardian to her brother Jamie. Calla is overwhelmed and tired of being the one who makes sacrifices to keep the family together. Jamie, full of good-natured sixteen-year-old recklessness, is usually off fighting for what matters to him or getting into mischief, often at the same time. Dre, their brother, promised he would help raise Jamie – but now the ink is dry on the paperwork and in classic middle-child fashion, he's off doing his own thing. And through it all, The Nightmare never stops haunting Calla: recurring images of her brothers dying that she is powerless to stop. When Jamie's actions at a protest spiral out of control, the siblings must go on the run.
"Lucky Day" by Chuck Tingle (2025)
Four years ago, an unthinkable disaster occurred. In what was later known as the Low-Probability Event, eight million people were killed in a single day, each of them dying in improbable, bizarre ways: strangled by balloon ropes, torn apart by exploding manhole covers, attacked by a chimpanzee wielding a typewriter. A day of freak accidents that proved anything is possible, no matter the odds. Luck is real now, and it's not always good.
Vera, a former statistics and probability professor, lost everything that day, and she still struggles to make sense of the unbelievable catastrophe. To her, the LPE proved that the God of Order is dead and nothing matters anymore. When Special Agent Layne shows up on Vera's doorstep, she learns he's investigating a suspiciously – and statistically impossibly – lucky casino. He needs her help to prove the casino's success is connected to the deaths of millions, and it's Vera's last chance to make sense of a world that doesn't. Because what's happening in Vegas isn't staying there, and she's the only thing that stands between the world and another deadly improbability.
"Girl in the Creek" by Wendy N. Wagner (2025)
Erin's brother Bryan has been missing for five years. It was as if he simply walked into the forests of the Pacific Northwest and vanished. Determined to uncover the truth, Erin heads to the foothills of Mt. Hood where Bryan was last seen alive. He isn't the first hiker to go missing in this area, and their cases go unsolved. When she discovers the corpse of a local woman in a creek, Erin unknowingly puts herself in the crosshairs of very powerful forces – from this world and beyond – hell-bent on keeping their secrets buried.
"Victorian Psycho" by Virginia Feito (2025)
Grim Wolds, England: Winifred Notty arrives at Ensor House prepared to play the perfect governess – she'll dutifully tutor her charges, Drusilla and Andrew, tell them bedtime stories, and only joke about eating children. But long, listless days spent within the estate's dreary confines come with an intimate knowledge of the perversions and pathetic preoccupations of the Pounds family – Mr. Pounds can't keep his eyes off Winifred's chest, and Mrs. Pounds takes a sickly pleasure in punishing Winifred for her husband's wandering gaze. Compounded with her disdain for the entitled Pounds children, Winifred finds herself struggling at every turn to stifle the violent compulsions of her past. French tutoring and needlework are one way to pass the time, as is admiring the ugly portraits in the gallery ... and creeping across the moonlit lawns. ... Patience. Winifred must have patience, for Christmas is coming, and she has very special gifts planned for the dear souls of Ensor House.
"We Live Here Now" by Sarah Pinborough (2025)
After an accident that nearly kills her, Emily and her husband Freddie move from London to a beautiful Dartmoor country house called Larkin Lodge. The house is gorgeous, striking – and to Emily, something about it feels deeply wrong. Old boards creak at night, fires go out, books fall from the shelves, and all of it stems from the terrible presence she feels in the third-floor room. But these things happen only when Emily's alone, so are they happening at all?
She's still medically fragile; her post-sepsis condition can cause hallucinatory side effects, which means she can't fully trust her own senses. Freddie doesn't notice anything odd and is happy with their chance at a fresh start. Emily, however, starts to believe that the house is being haunted by someone who was murdered in it, though she can find no evidence of a wrongful death. As bizarre events pile up and her marriage starts to crumble, Emily becomes obsessed with discovering the truth about Larkin Lodge. But if the house has secrets, so do Emily and her husband. And they live here now.
"Tantrum" by Rachel Eve Moulton (2025)
Thea's third pregnancy was her easiest. She wasn't consumed with anxiety about the baby. She wasn't convinced it was going to be born green, or have a third eye, or have tentacles sprouting from its torso. Thea was fine. The baby would be fine. Then they handed Lucia to her, and Thea knew. Not only was Lucia born with a full set of teeth and a devilish glint in her eye, but she is always hungry. Indiscriminately so. Thea learns quickly that she needs to keep Lucia away from the chickens and watch her closely around her baby brother. Thea doesn't know whether to be terrified or proud of her rapacious baby girl. But Lucia's rapid growth starts to bring dark memories to the surface. Flashes from Thea's childhood that won't release their hooks from her heart. Lucia wants to eat. Thea might just let her.