Here at The Uncorked Librarian, we scream for ghost books like The Haunting of Hill House, Mexican Gothic, Other Birds, and Aftertaste.
See our top recommendations for adults, filled with a variety of horror stories, haunted houses, and even a little romance. 💜 Christine & Sheree
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Wondering what to read next? Try these seriously spooky books for adults.
Must-Read Classic, Horror, & Literary Ghost Fiction
These are just a few must-read ghost books, many of which helped shape the genre today.
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
First published in 1959, meet psychic researcher, Dr. Montague, who rents the haunted mansion Hill House for the summer. He invites several friends, each with supernatural experiences, hoping to once and for all prove that the haunting is real.
👻 Why Sheree Recommends The Haunting of Hill House: Start with the master of the genre, Shirley Jackson. Her classic gothic horror novels and short stories will send chills up your spine. Plus, it’s perfect if you enjoy books with haunted houses.
Hell House by Richard Matheson
Millionaire William Reinhardt Deutsch hires a physicist, a spiritualist, and a medium to investigate the possibility of life after death, beginning with haunted Belasco House. Will the investigators get to the bottom of the mystery before Deutsch himself passes over to the other side?
👻 Why Sheree Recommends Hell House: Matheson’s 1971 novel incorporates all of the best aspects of ghost horror fiction: a haunted house, malevolent spirits, a burning mystery, and a ticking clock.
Lincoln In The Bardo by George Saunders
Inspired by a story about Abraham Lincoln visiting the crypt of his son, who died aged 11 while his father was still in the White House, Saunders’s story takes place in the “bardo.” This is the liminal space between life and death, featuring over 150 ghosts of people caught in the in-between who don’t realize that they have died.
👻 Why Sheree Recommends Lincoln In The Bardo: This is a hauntingly beautiful – if, at times, confusing and infuriating – novel, and one of the best ghost story books of this century (so far). With all of the different voices, Lincoln In The Bardo makes for an incredibly enjoyable fantasy audiobook.
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Beloved is based on the real-life experience of Margaret Garner, an escaped slave who killed her own children rather than have them captured and re-enslaved under the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850.
👻 Why Sheree Recommends Beloved: Such trauma is unimaginable but beautifully rendered by Morrison’s skilled hand. It’s an incredible metaphor for the inherited trauma that continues to affect the descendants of victims of the Transatlantic trade of enslaved African people.
Gothic, Atmospheric, & Historical Ghost Novels
With imagery that seeps off the pages… or out of the walls… discover your next favorite Gothic fiction read, including modern and Southern Gothic books.
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Travel to the Mexican countryside in the 1950s. Noemí Taboada leaves for High Place to help her struggling cousin, Catalina. However, the estate’s walls are teeming with demons and death. Noemí knows that something isn’t quite right. With so many secrets, can the two women escape High Place alive?
👻 Why Christine Recommends Mexican Gothic: Mexican Gothic is eerily atmospheric and rich in detail. This book is also great if you champion kick-butt women in historical fiction.
Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
Jojo slaughters a goat on his thirteenth birthday to prove to his grandfather that he is truly a man. Pop tells Jojo stories as the goat cooks, about his time in prison as a teenager and the boys he met there. Although one of the boys is dead, his story isn’t over. It’s a visceral beginning to a story that will churn your insides.
👻 Why Sheree Recommends Sing, Unburied, Sing: In Jesmyn Ward’s third novel, stark Southern realism collides with the gothic to make one of the best ghost books for adults in recent years. It’s also a National Book Award Winner.
The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner
Spiritualist Vaudeline D’Allaire and her protégé, Lenna Wickes, travel across 1870s Paris and London as they help families catch the murderers of their beloved deceased ones. Told in dual perspectives, they work to see who is attacking members of the male-only London Séance Society.
👻 Why Christine Recommends The London Séance Society: Something sinister is at play – with major The Lost Apothecary vibes – and along with the seductive LGBTQ+ romance, find quite the suspense. The last 100 pages are action-packed (the beginning is more informative). This read is great if you love books with ghosts and séances that aren’t too scary.
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas
Head to Mexico after the Mexican War of Independence. Beatriz’s father is dead, forcing her to marry for convenience. Beatriz moves into Don Rodolfo Solórzano’s grand estate, but something terrible happened to his last wife here. Haunted Hacienda San Isidro not only requires a priest exorcism, but also a few witch spells.
👻 Why Christine Recommends The Hacienda: Find a bit of romance in this Gothic historical fiction novel and Rebecca retelling. Plus, you know I love a good witch book.
Suspenseful, Thrilling, and Psychological Ghost Fiction
Find yourself staying up late into the night with these chilling but not too scary ghost novels.
The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James
In 1982, Carly Kirk’s Aunt Viv disappears from The Sun Down Motel. In 2017, and with the death of her mother, Carly heads to upstate New York in search of answers – and her aunt. In an alternating timeline, meet the ghosts of the hotel; just don’t get locked in with the candy machine as you start to smell cigarette smoke.
👻 Why Christine Recommends The Sun Down Motel: You could easily put any of Simone St. James’ ghost books on this reading list: The Book of Cold Cases, The Broken Girls (dark academia), Silence for the Dead, and The Haunting of Maddy Clare – to name a few. However, The Sun Down Motel reignited my love for suspense and ghost novels. 🏨 Discover even more great books set in hotels.
The Third Hotel by Laura van den Berg
Clare’s husband, Richard, was a horror movie buff and scholar. Widowed and grieving, she attends the annual Festival of New Latin American Cinema in Havana, with the tickets Richard purchased before his death. As she steps out of the movie he most wanted to see, Clare sees him, in a white linen suit he didn’t own in life, across the street.
👻 Why Sheree Recommends The Third Hotel: This is one of the most subtle and striking ghost stories you’ll find on the literary fiction shelf – not to mention it will have you desperate to book a flight to Cuba. 🇨🇺
Home Before Dark by Riley Sager
With the death of her father, Maggie returns to her haunted childhood home, Baneberry Hall. Previously, her father’s bestselling story about the property changed all of their lives – and not for the better. Did her father fabricate the ghostly tales of Baneberry Hall to make a quick buck? Or, was Maggie’s father covering up for something much worse?
👻 Why Christine Recommends Home Before Dark: Ghost thrillers with twists don’t get any more dangerous and unnerving than this. You might find yourself believing in ghosts.
Cozy, Magical Realism, Foodie, Friendship, & Romantic Ghost Stories
Whether you are looking for translated literature, a cozy story, or a dash of magical realism with your foodie fiction, this section is for you.
The Vanishing Cherry Blossom Bookshop by Takuya Asakura
Translated by Yuka Maeno, follow four sets of patrons: a young woman who just lost her mother and is struggling at work, two sisters who grew apart as they lost their childhood friend/crush, an older man with dementia who misses his wife, and one final visitor to the bookshop who learns its meaning. The bookshop is run by a mysterious young woman and her calico cat.
👻 Why Christine Recommends The Vanishing Cherry Blossom Bookshop: This is great for readers of Before the Coffee Gets Cold, and if you enjoy books set in bookshops. The story is gentle, healing, and hopeful, filled with loving relationships and people striving to do their best. I wish I could sit under that beautiful tree with a snack and The Little Prince.
For more translated fiction, you might also try Where the Wild Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda, a unique, ghost story collection based on Japanese folklore. With themes of jealousy, identity, work, revenge, and family, embrace these spirited women.
Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle
Kostya will never forgive himself for his last words to his father. But, what if there is a way he can bring him back – and bring back other spirits for closure, too? Kostya gets “aftertastes,” a memory of a meal that, when prepared properly and eaten, does just that. However, it all comes at a high price. Check the TWs.
👻 Why Christine Recommends Aftertaste: This is a unique and gripping plot, fitting for book club discussions that left me with a book hangover. Atmospheric, I felt like I was in NYC. Fans of foodie fiction and books set in restaurants will be blown away – and you even feel a bit of The Bear here. For mood readers, note that the subject and themes are intense.
Good Spirits by B.K. Borison
The ghost of Christmas Past, fisherman Nolan, is haunting Harriet York (including all those haunting dreams…). They need to determine her transgressions by visiting her memories (time traveling) before there are consequences.
👻 Why Christine Recommends Good Spirits: B.K Borison is a go-to author for me. If Dickens’s A Christmas Carol isn’t usually for you (or is), Good Spirits brings a ‘lil steamy time and magic to the plot. Harriet is clearly an Enneagram 9 people-pleaser (like me), and her pjs are the cutest. This is perfect for a Hallmark-y winter romance.
Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen
Set on Mallow Island in South Carolina, Zoey is about to start college. With the death of her mother, her father and his new wife want little to do with her, except for transforming her former bedroom into the perfect Instagram office.
Charismatic Zoey charms the once-isolated and unfriendly residents of The Dellawisp into becoming part of her newfound family and friends. When one of them dies, everyone’s secrets are revealed.
👻 Why Christine Recommends Other Birds: As a local, I always support Asheville authors, and this slow-burning novel had me in tears. Other Birds will sing to those who appreciate a little delicious foodie fiction
Before You Go, You Might Also Enjoy These Spooky & Paranormal Reads
🧛🏼♀️ Books With Vampires
🧛🏼♀️ YA Vampire Books
🧙🏻 Salem Witch Trial Books
🐺 Books With Werewolves
🧙🏻 Witches in Graphic Novels & Comics
As always, let us know your favorites in the comments.