My best creepy books

I know I'm late to the party and Halloween was quite a while ago - I've been very busy with life stuff - but I thought I'd still write about the best creepy books that I've read. Even though we're now well in to November, I still think it's the best time of year to read some spooky literature. I find that the encroaching darkness as we approach the end of the year really adds to the experience of reading slightly unsettling books - I just finished reading Sally Hinchcliffe's Hare House and I really set myself on edge walking around my house in the dark! Without further ado, here are my recommendations for creepy books to read this autumn.

Dracula - Bram Stoker

Vampires are a horror and supernatural classic, but I find that I haven't met many people who have read the original vampire story. Whilst it can be challenging to read at times, I found that this book perfectly conveyed the gothic aesthetic I was after, and if you like undertaking a close analysis of what you read, the book is situated in the fascinating historical context of being a piece of fin de siecle Victorian literature dealing with themes of degeneration, gender and sexuality. If you're interested in horror and the supernatural, Dracula is definitely worth reading.

Cornish Horrors

I read this anthology of Cornish horror stories this time last year and enjoyed it massively. I'm a big fan of folk-horror, and this collection perfectly fulfilled my craving for unsettling and atmospheric stories.

Mexican Gothic - Silvia Moreno-Garcia

I really enjoyed this book for its slightly different but worthy take on the Gothic genre. Moreno-Garcia uses her heroine to poke fun at Gothic tropes like old houses and damsels in distress, but nevertheless leads the reader through a heart stopping horror story.

The Sanatorium - Sarah Pearse

Moving away from the supernatural, The Sanatorium is a murder mystery set in a newly opened hotel in the Swiss Alps. I particularly enjoyed this for the way that it employed some of my favourite tropes (a storm traps the characters at the hotel with a serial killer on the loose) in an interesting way and for its perfectly tense execution of the story, not to mention the fantastic character building that leaves the door wide open for a sequel. Bonus points for reading it when I was staying in a hotel in the Alps and really freaking myself out.

Hare House - Sally Hinchcliffe

This was one of the books on my reading list for the autumn, and I would definitely recommend it. It falls into the category of Scottish Gothic and folk-horror, and whilst it is a bit of a bizarre story, it was delightfully atmospheric and succeeded in really giving me the creeps.