The Best Gothic Fiction Books: A Comprehensive Guide

Gothic novels offer a unique reading experience that combines elements of romance, fantasy, mystery, and horror.

What is gothic fiction?

Gothic literature originated in the 18th century and gained popularity in the 19th century. The stories often feature dark and atmospheric settings, such as haunted castles or isolated landscapes. Many of the novels explore themes of madness, obsession, and the supernatural, delving into the depths of human psychology.

Elements of romance and forbidden love add an extra layer of intrigue and suspense to these stories. Readers can engage with taboo topics such as death, sexuality, and the paranormal in a safe and thought-provoking manner. It has a rich literary history and provides insights into the cultural and historical context of different time periods.

Horror Gothic Fiction Books

These horror books explore taboo topics and subjects such as death, sexuality, and the supernatural. The vivid descriptions of these eerie and isolated locations create a sense of suspense and mystery.

Tales of the Tattooed: An Anthology of Ink by John Miller

The beauty, exoticism, and mystery of tattoos are laid bare in this collection of 12 stories ranging from the 1880s to 1940s.

A Good House for Children by Kate Collins

See the Page & Pairing book club guide or discussion questions.

"A feminist gothic that evokes Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House." -- New York Times Book Review

The Boatman's Daughter by Andy Davidson

Go read Andy Davidson's lush nightmare, The Boatman's Daughter. It put an arrow through my head and heart." --Paul Tremblay, author of Growing Things

Vathek by William Beckford

When you have all you could ever want--power, wealth, influence, status--what's left to wish for?

Hawk Mountain by Conner Habib

Both gruesome and tender, Hawk Mountain offers a compelling look at how love and hate are indissoluble, intertwined until the last breath.

Romantic Gothic Novels

Many gothic romance stories incorporate elements of dark romance and forbidden love. The strong connections between characters, often with secrets and hidden motives, bring more excitement and suspense to the story.

A Lullaby for Witches by Hester Fox

Two women. A history of witchcraft. And a deep-rooted female power that sings across the centuries.

Where Ivy Dares to Grow: A Gothic Time Travel Love Story by Marielle Thompson

Mexican Gothic meets Outlander in this spellbinding, atmospheric timeslip debut novel, as a woman struggling with her mental health spends the winter with her cruel in-laws in their eerie, haunting manor that sweeps her back through time and into the arms of her fiancé's mysterious, alluring 19th-century ancestor.

Wild and Wicked Things by Francesca May

In the 1920s, a lush, decadent gothic tale unfolds as a young woman slips into a glamorous world filled with illicit magic, tantalizing romance, and murder.

A Dreadful Splendor: An Edgar Award Winner by B R Myers

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER - WINNER OF THE MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD - In this wickedly whimsical Gothic murder mystery brimming with romance, betrayals, and chills, a fake spiritualist is summoned to hold a séance for a bride who died on the eve before her wedding, but as nefarious secrets are revealed, the line between hoax and haunting blurs.

Haunting Adeline and Hunting Adeline by H D Carlton

#BookTok: These dark romance books are some of the most popular romance fiction on TikTok.

Classic Gothic Fiction

Classic gothic books have a rich literary history. Reading these works allows you to engage with a genre that has influenced countless other art forms, including literature, film, and art.

Medusa's Daughters by Theodora Goss

This collection of rare and strange gems serves as a tantalizing sampler of work by turn-of-the-century women writers, whose legacy still echoes in the speculative fiction we know and love today.

The Call of Cthulhu: And Other Stories by H P Lovecraft

A collection from one of literature's "most critically fascinating and yet enigmatic figures" (Alan Moore), featuring H. P. Lovecraft's most bone-chilling tales.

The Gospel Singer by Harry Crews

The Gospel Singer is at once a surreal investigation into the nature of the American South, as well as an intricate mediation on faith and its place in the community.

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston LeRoux

"One of the most famous ghost stories that no one has actually read" (New York Times). The Phantom of the Opera is the first in the Haunted Library Horror Classics series presented by the Horror Writers Association. An unabridged edition of the novel that inspired the famous Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

Fantasy Gothic Fiction Books

Reading a fantasy gothic story offers a captivating blend of imaginative escapism and spine-tingling excitement.

The Witches of New York by Ami McKay

"A dark, atmospheric, and feminist story of three women in New York City's Gilded Age, each determined to thrive in a society hell-bent on keeping them down, and using their coven to do so." --Buzzfeed

One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

For fans of Uprooted and For the Wolf comes a dark, lushly gothic fantasy about a maiden who must unleash the monster within to save her kingdom--but the monster in her head isn't the only threat lurking.

A Dowry of Blood by S T Gibson

This sensational novel tells the darkly seductive tale of Dracula's first bride, Constanta.

Ghost Stories

These paranormal fiction stories are narratives that revolve around supernatural occurrences involving spirits or apparitions of deceased individuals. These tales create an atmosphere of unease and mystery and are set in eerie locations such as haunted houses, graveyards, or isolated places. Ghosts are very popular in the gothic literature genre as they evoke a sense of suspense and terror.

The Haunting of Alejandra by V Castro

A woman is haunted by the Mexican folk demon La Llorona in this "utterly terrifying and wholly immersive . . . story about generational trauma, colonization, systemic oppression, and the horror at the heart of motherhood" (Library Journal, starred review).

Her Little Flowers: A Spellbinding Gothic Ghost Story by Shannon Morgan

Readers of Eve Chase, Kate Morton, and Anita Frank will devour this bewitchingly atmospheric, melancholy modern ghost story set in the lush hills of England's Lake District.

The Haunting of Brynn Wilder by Wendy Webb

From the #1 Amazon Charts bestselling author of Daughters of the Lake comes an enthralling spellbinder of love, death, and a woman on the edge.

The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell

"[An] extraordinary, memorable and truly haunting book." --Jojo Moyes, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth

A NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR - A darkly funny take on mothers and daughters, about a woman who must take drastic measures to save her husband and herself from the vengeful ghost of her mother-in-law.

The Haunting of Ashburn House by Darcy Coates

From USA Today bestseller and rising queen of atmospheric horror Darcy Coates comes a haunting story of intrigue, misery, and fear. There's something wrong with Ashburn House...

Psychological Fiction

Psychological fiction explores themes of madness, obsession, and the supernatural. These complex characters and their inner struggles add depth and intrigue to any story and are a compelling read for those interested in the human psyche.

Charles Brockden Brown: Three Gothic Novels: Wieland / Arthur Mervyn / Edgar Huntly by Charles Brockden Brown

Haunted, dreamlike scenes define the fictional world of Charles Brockden Brown, America's first professional novelist.

The Absolutes by Molly Dektar

For fans of Emma Cline and Garth Greenwell, an arresting, seductive novel about one woman's headlong dive into a reckless affair that leaves her teetering on the edge of sanity.

The Blackhouse by Carole Johnstone

From the author of the "dark and devious...beautifully written" (Stephen King) Mirrorland comes an "atmospheric, thrilling, and utterly captivating" (Booklist) gothic tale set on a remote Scottish island where the locals are hiding a deadly secret.

Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel

Spine-chilling and sharp, Anne Heltzel's Just Like Mother is a modern gothic from a fresh new voice in horror, and "will disturb readers to their core." (Library Journal)

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

THE FIRST RULE about fight club is you don't talk about fight club.

Thrillers & Suspense

Tension, suspense, and eerie circumstances keep you on the edge of your seat, making these thriller fiction reads an engaging and exciting reading experience.

The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa M Matlin

Most people wouldn't buy an infamous murder house to renovate for fun . . . but Sarah Slade is not most people.

The Beetle by Richard Marsh

Rediscover the classic and come face-to-face with a creature “born of neither god nor man.” The Beetle is a tale of revenge that takes the reader on a dark journey, one that explores the crisis of late imperial England through a fantastical and horrific lens.

Such Pretty Flowers by K L Cerra

RECOMMENDED BY GILLIAN FLYNN ON THE TODAY SHOW - "A lush, seductive Southern Gothic that's deliciously queer.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Seek: The Strange Case Continues by Anthony O'Neill

In this dark, atmospheric sequel to Robert Louis Stevenson's timeless classic, the strange case continues with the return of Dr. Jekyll.

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

The bestselling author of The Wife Upstairs returns with a brilliant new gothic suspense set at an Italian villa with a dark history.

Historical Fiction

Explore the cultural and historical context of different time periods by reading a historical gothic fiction novel. Discover unique stories that delve into the social and political issues of the time.

The Haunting of Maddy Clare by Simone St James

A woman of limited means and even less experience must confront a vengeful spirit in this haunting novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Broken Girls and The Sun Down Motel.

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

"A terrifying twist on classic gothic horror" (Kirkus Reviews) set in glamorous 1950s Mexico.

The Devil's Playground by Craig Russell

A riveting 1920s Hollywood thriller about the making of the most terrifying silent film ever made, and a deadly search for the single copy rumored still to exist.

The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox

In Salem, they burned the witches. Now, they will rise.

Revelator by Daryl Gregory

The dark, gripping tale of a 1930's family in the remote hills of the Smoky Mountains, their secret religion, and the daughter who turns her back on their mysterious god.

Gothic Short Stories

Embrace the darkness and confront your fears with a quick story of thrill and horror.

Fantastic Tales by Iginio Ugo Tarchetti

Italian Gothic tales of obsessive love, mysterious phobias, and the hellish curse of everlasting life.

The Gothic Tales of Sheridan Le Fanu by Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu

This anthology explores eight thoroughly Gothic tales of murderous families, dark castles, and ghosts whose business with the living remains unfinished.

Corpsemouth and Other Autobiographies by John Langan

In these ten tales of cosmic horror, John Langan continues to chart the course of 21st-century weird fiction.

Her Body and Other Parties: Stories by Carmen Maria Machado

Machado bends genre to shape startling narratives that map the realities of women's lives and the violence visited upon their bodies.

Fresh Dirt from the Grave by Giovanna Rivero

Shipwrecks, dive bars, possession, and science--this is where contemporary horrors and ancient terrors meet.

Medusa's Ankles: Selected Stories by A S Byatt - David Mitchell

A ravishing, luminous selection of short stories from the prize-winning imagination of A. S. Byatt, "a storyteller who could keep a sultan on the edge of his throne for a thousand and one nights" (The New York Times Book Review).

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