5 of the Best Spooky Stories for Halloween

There are some stories and books out there that are perfect for this time of year. Whether they take place in October or in other worlds, they feed into the Halloween spirit regardless. Even if you have read these before, I’ll do my best to not spoil the fun for you so you can enjoy reading them again this season.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

If you’ve ever read anything from Neil Gaiman, you know that he is great at creating some scary, weird, worlds in his novels. Regardless of this book being classified as a children’s novel, it’s still scary no matter your age.

One day in her family’s new home, a girl named Coraline finds a small door that links two flats. Despite being told to not open the door, she does, and it leads to a flat that is exactly like hers. She discovers the “Other World” and finds it much more interesting and fun with her “Other Mother” and “Other Father”. But in order to stay, she has to make some sacrifices.

If you haven’t seen the 2009 film or read this yet, I’ll just say you won’t look at buttons the same way ever again.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

This is a well-known, gothic Halloween classic. It tells the story of a young scientist, Victor Frankenstein from different perspectives and primarily takes place in Germany. He extensively studies how to bring the dead back to life after the death of his mother. After which creates a large, 8-foot creature through an eccentric experiment.

If you didn’t read this in high school, I recommend you do. Like I said, it’s a classic, but it’s one for a reason.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

This is also a classic, but I decided to listen to this one. I’ve listened to two different versions of this book, one on Audible read by Alan Cumming and Tim Curry (and a cast) and the podcast version Phoebe Reads a Mystery read by Phoebe Judge. She’s also the voice and creator of other podcasts such as Criminal and This is Love.

This 1897 story starts with diary entries from Jonathan Harker traveling to Transylvania. He’s visiting Count Dracula to help him in a real estate purchase in England. After a few nights in the castle, Jonathan soon realizes he has become a prisoner.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

To be very honest, I have not read this story recently. Regardless, I do know this story well and it fits the season perfectly.

The town of Sleepy Hollow is notorious for being scary and full of ghosts. A lot of rumors go around about the town, but the most infamous is the story of the Headless Horseman. He’s said to be a solider from the Revolutionary War whose head was shot off and he still “rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head”.

The story recounts the tale of Ichabod Crane and while he is traveling home from a feast, he encounters the ghost. Being a superstitious man, he races away realizing that he has encountered the Headless Horseman.

This has everything: ghosts, a harvest party, and even a pumpkin.

Nearly anything from Stephen King

Stephen King is truly the...king of horror and scary stories. He does tend to write very long, huge books. So if you’re pressed for time but still want the spooky effect, I recommend some of the movies made based off some of his novels. I personally really enjoy “Doctor Sleep” and “The Shining”.

Bonus Round!

If you have Audible, The Conception of Terror: Tales Inspired by M. R. James is great. It’s a little over 4 hours long and is a collection of Halloween-esque scary stories. It’s recorded with a cast and has other scene sounds (like a radio drama). Personally, I usually don’t like stories read with casts and other sounds, but with these stories it was perfect. At time of writing and posting this, it appears to still be available. If you have a credit available, I recommend downloading it!

Have you read or listened to any of these books? What are your favorite Halloween reads? Do you have a story or book you read every year? Let me know in the comments below!