A Selection of Horror Books Released, 18 to 24 May 2025
Themes: Supernatural, psychological, ghosts, medieval, and gothic horror
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Table of Contents
Aftertaste – Daria Lavelle
Ghost horror
What if you could have one last meal with someone you’ve loved, someone you’ve lost?
Konstantin Duhovny is a haunted man. His father died when he was ten, and ghosts have been hovering around him ever since. Kostya can’t exactly see the ghosts, but he can taste their favorite foods. Flavors of meals he’s never eaten will flood his mouth, a sign that a spirit is present. Kostya has kept these aftertastes a secret for most of his life, but one night, he decides to act on what he’s tasting. And everything changes.
Kostya discovers that he can reunite people with their deceased loved ones, at least for the length of time it takes them to eat a dish that he’s prepared. He thinks his life’s purpose might be to offer closure to grieving strangers, and sets out to learn all he can by entering a particularly fiery ring of Hell: the New York culinary scene.
But as his kitchen skills catch up with his ambitions, Kostya is too blind to see the catastrophe looming in the Afterlife. And the one person who knows Kostya must be stopped also happens to be falling in love with him.
BookMail – Jason R. Davis
Psychological horror
Lexi just wanted a signed book from her favorite author…
She never expected what he wanted from her in return.
Lexi wants to be the next book influencer. Jacob is a writer who kidnaps fans and make them characters in his upcoming books. They meet as she wants a signed copy of his latest book.
Now Lexi has found herself to be his next victim. While trapped, she uncovers his secret to what makes him a successful writer, and it is not his insane habits or his writing skills. Can she use it to be the next big thing?
Will she be able to change the plot in time, or will her story end with his next bestseller?
Crate Full of Chaos – Iain Rob Wright
Horror collection
28 new tales of terror featuring exclusive, never-before-released stories that will have the hairs standing up on the back of your neck.
From classic slashers, to poignant tragedies, and hilarious satire, you’ll never know what’s coming next.
Feeders – Matt Serafini
Supernatural horror
A would-be influencer’s dreams of online fame spiral into nightmare territory when she encounters a mysterious and dangerous social media platform.
When a video depicting the brutal murder of a former classmate leaks online, Kylie Bennington’s curiosity gets the better of her, leading to the discovery of an off-the-grid social media app called MonoLife.
It turns out, there are certain cryptic rules in the user agreement that must be adhered to, such as interacting with other users at least twice daily or risk losing it all. And never, ever speaking of MonoLife’s existence to non-users or risk dire consequences.
For this is a platform that primarily rewards the worst in human behavior, and which begins chipping away at Kylie’s sanity across post after post for an ever-increasing audience of immoral fans.
Now Kylie’s going to find out just how far she’s willing to go on her unyielding rise to the top, even if that means coming face-to-face with the frightening and ruthless forces behind MonoLife, who see all from deep within the shadows.
Going Home in the Dark – Dean Koontz
Psychological horror
As kids, outcasts Rebecca, Bobby, Spencer, and Ernie were inseparable friends in the idyllic town of Maple Grove. Three left to pursue lofty dreams, and achieved them. Only Ernie never left. When he falls into a coma, his three amigos feel an urgent need to return home. Don’t they remember people lapsing into comas back then? And those people always awoke, didn’t they?
After two decades, not a lot has changed in Maple Grove, especially Ernie’s obnoxious, scary mother. But Rebecca, Bobby, and Spencer begin to remember a hulking, murderous figure and weirdness piled on mystery that they were made to forget. As Ernie sinks deeper into darkness, something strange awaits any friend who tries to save him.
For Rebecca, Bobby, and Spencer, time is running out to remember the terrors of the past in a perfect town where nothing is what it seems. For Maple Grove, it’s a chance to have the “four amigos,” as they once called themselves, back in its grasp.
Maniac Cop – Christian Francis
Horror movie trilogy novelization
He was a hero. Then he was framed. Now he’s something else.
In the shadows of New York City, a brutal force stalks the streets-one that wears a badge, but serves no justice.
Officer Matt Cordell was once a cop with a reputation for doing things his own way, until corruption sent him to prison and betrayal left him for dead.
But Cordell didn’t die. Not really. Now he’s back. Undead. Unstoppable.
And out for vengeance.
Nightmare Jungle – Ross Killey
Psychological horror
Old Man Eli has waited decades to tell his story. When a guest shows up on his porch, he finally has the chance to be heard, an opportunity for the world to know what really happened back in 1970.
In ‘Nam.
Not only will he tell of the horrors of war, but of other things…
Things that wait under dark canopies…
Things that shamble through the flooded reeds of the Mekong…
Things that hunger for flesh…
Path of Totality – KN Gould
Supernatural horror
This world is a cruel and arbitrary place. Hope cannot last when it turns its gaze upon you.
With a simple phrase, Tucker Gibsen is taken back to the day when, as a child, he came face to face with a madman and barely escaped with his life.
Now, as an adult, he finds himself embroiled in a decades-old grudge between two modern-day witches, putting his life, and the lives of those he cares for most, in danger.
What chance does one ordinary person have when threatened by uncaring supernatural forces set in motion long ago?
The Starving Saints – Caitlin Starling
Medieval horror
Three women in a besieged castle that descends ravenously into madness under the spell of mysterious, godlike visitors.
Aymar Castle has been under siege for six months. Food is running low and there has been no sign of rescue. But just as the survivors consider deliberately thinning their number, the castle stores are replenished. The sick are healed. And the divine figures of the Constant Lady and her Saints have arrived, despite the barricaded gates, offering succor in return for adoration.
Soon, the entire castle is under the sway of their saviors, partaking in intoxicating feasts of terrible origin. The war hero Ser Voyne gives her allegiance to the Constant Lady. Phosyne, a disorganized, paranoid nun-turned-sorceress, races to unravel the mystery of these new visitors and exonerate her experiments as their source. And in the bowels of the castle, a serving girl, Treila, is torn between her thirst for a secret vengeance against Voyne and the desperate need to escape from the horrors that are unfolding within Aymar’s walls.
As the castle descends into bacchanalian madness, forgetting the massed army beyond its walls in favor of hedonistic ecstasy, these three women are the only ones to still see their situation for what it is. But they are not immune from the temptations of the castle’s new masters or each other; and their shifting alliances and entangled pasts bring violence to the surface.
To save the castle, and themselves, will take a reimagining of who they are, and a reorganization of the very world itself.
We Live Here Now – Sarah Pinborough
Gothic horror
After an accident nearly kills her, Emily and her husband, Freddie, move from London to a beautiful Dartmoor country house called Larkin Lodge. The house is gorgeous, striking, and to Emily, something about it feels deeply wrong.
Old boards creak at night, fires go out, and books fall from the shelves, and all of it stems from the terrible presence she feels in the third-floor room. But these things happen only when Emily’s alone, so are they happening at all? She’s still medically fragile; her postsepsis condition can cause hallucinatory side effects, which means she can’t fully trust her own senses. Freddie doesn’t notice anything odd and is happy with their chance at a fresh start.
Emily, however, starts to believe that the house is being haunted by someone who was murdered in it, though she can find no evidence of a wrongful death. As bizarre events pile up and her marriage starts to crumble, Emily becomes obsessed with discovering the truth about Larkin Lodge.
But if the house has secrets, so do Emily and her husband.
And they live here now.
Whistle – Linwood Barclay
Supernatural horror
A woman and her young son move to a small town looking for a fresh start, only to be haunted by disturbing events and strange visions when they find a mysterious train set in a storage shed.
Annie Blunt has had an unimaginably terrible year. First, her husband was killed in a tragic hit-and-run accident, then one of the children’s books she’s built her writing and illustrating career on ignited a major scandal. Desperate for a fresh start, she moves with her son Charlie to a charming small town in upstate New York where they can begin to heal.
But Annie’s year is about to get worse.
Bored and lonely in their isolated new surroundings, Charlie is thrilled when he finds a forgotten train set in a locked shed on their property. Annie is glad to see Charlie happy, but there’s something unsettling about his new toy. Strange sounds wake Annie in the night, she could swear she hears a train, but there isn’t an active track for miles, and bizarre things begin happening in the neighborhood.
Worse, Annie can’t seem to stop drawing a disturbing new character that has no place in a children’s book.
You Need to Leave – Sarah Jules
Supernatural horror – Book 2 of You Invited it In
They thought it was over.
Six months after the events of You Invited It In, world-renowned parapsychologist Emmanuel Stark releases a video sent to him by Lilith Lavelle, claiming it shows proof of an afterlife.
The video goes viral and Asher Eastwood finds himself at the epicentre of a media frenzy, one that puts him in danger.
To escape the too-eager reporters and paranormal enthusiasts, Asher, his uncle Eli, and their dog Specs flee to a holiday let in the middle of nowhere.
The only problem is, they’re not alone.
Published: 24 May 2025
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