A spooky Halloween evening (or night) is incomplete without a good scary tale. This is where the horror novella comes in.
Longer than a chilling short story but not as long as a full-fledged horror novel, a novella can be read in a single sitting (or two) and delivers spectacularly on the suspense and scares without demanding a huge commitment from the reader.
From horror classics to paranormal adventures, there’s plenty to choose from—including experimental, genre-defying work. So, if you’re in the mood for quick reads with plenty of spooky vibes, our selection of horror novellas will definitely scare you out of your wits.
And if you have an eBook reader with a Kindle Unlimited subscription, you’re in luck—because you can get these creepy titles for free!
The Abandoned
If you can’t visit an actual graveyard on Halloween, you can always do the next best thing—spend time in a fictional graveyard within the pages of a book. The Abandoned by Amanda Stevens is the haunting prequel to her well-regarded Graveyard Queen series, dealing with ghost hunts and spooky visitations with some romance also thrown into the mix. It also introduces readers to Amelia Gray, a character who plays a minor part in this tale, but becomes rather important as the series goes on.
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If you can’t visit an actual graveyard on Halloween, you can always do the next best thing—spend time in a fictional graveyard within the pages of a book. The Abandoned by Amanda Stevens is the haunting prequel to her well-regarded Graveyard Queen series, dealing with ghost hunts and spooky visitations with some romance also thrown into the mix. It also introduces readers to Amelia Gray, a character who plays a minor part in this tale, but becomes rather important as the series goes on.
The Spirit and the Skull
J.M. Hayes’ The Spirit and the Skull is a captivating book that transports readers to an utterly intriguing ancient world, blending history, spirituality, and suspense in less than two hundred pages.
The story takes place in the Paleolithic era, with the action and mystery elements unfolding across the frozen tundra.
The tale draws upon the author’s own experiences in archaeology and anthropology, presenting a compelling murder mystery set in a prehistorical context for readers to solve.
What Moves the Dead
Those who’ve grown up with the spine-tingling horror tales of Edgar Allan Poe might find themselves at home in T. Kingfisher’s Sworn Soldier series. It kicks off with What Moves the Dead, an utterly fascinating retelling of Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher”.
While reading the original tale isn’t strictly necessary to enjoy this one, astute readers will love how T. Kingfisher fills in on the missing details with fungal horror elements.
Kingfisher’s narrative is mediated through the non-binary protagonist Alex Easton, a retired soldier who visits the Ushers in their remote home, befriends a mycologist and uncovers a terrifying Gothic mystery within the strange countryside.
Strange Houses: A Chilling Mystery Unraveled Through Sinister Floor Plans – From the bestselling author of Strange Pictures
Now if you’re looking for something truly experimental and macabre, Uketsu’s Strange Houses (translated by Jim Rion) which plays with spatial dimensions and messes with the mind most brilliantly, might be up your alley.
The book literally subverts the “haunted house” trope by focusing on strange architecture—houses with secret rooms, confusing floor plans, and bizarre voids. The story follows a freelance writer and his architect friend as they go about solving the mystery of the strange Tokyo house—only to find that it’s bigger on the inside with plenty of secrets buried in it.
You can also check out Uketsu’s other bestseller, Strange Pictures once you’re done with this one.
Featured image: Kiwihug / Unsplash
