This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Any story that defies expectation and logic immediately sparks my interest. Paranormal tales usually specialize in these factors, which makes the subgenres that paranormal fiction is a part of (i.e. paranormal romance, paranormal/supernatural thrillers, etc.) some of my favorite genres.
And although we’re exiting the Halloween season—farewell, favorite season—we’re still in the midst of a grand time for paranormal stories. Indeed, Christmas Eve has been known for being a time for ghost stories, and the Winter Solstice is the longest night of the year. Ghosts are a part of the large umbrella of paranormal genres, and for this particular post, we’re spotlighting paranormal horror.
But What is Paranormal Horror, Exactly?
Like paranormal romance, paranormal horror often features beings that are not of this world. Think ghosts, witches, werewolves, etc. The Lost Angeles Film School has a definition for paranormal horror films that, I think, fits paranormal horror fiction as well:
Paranormal horror is closely related to the demonic subgenre in that it focuses on characters who aren’t living beings.
The Los Angeles Film School, “Subgenres of Horror Films Explained”
Think of movies like The Conjuring, Paranormal Activity, etc. Haunted locations, lore made real, and the revenge of histories. Many stories are set in the modern world as we know it, yet there is another presence, something we cannot see, and in which events occur that cannot be, and sometimes are not, always explained.
I have eight paranormal horror tales that fit this definition in some form or another. Some are more obvious in their paranormal horror, while others are subtle. Some are epic in scope, odysseys and quests, while others take a more microscopic approach to a single person or house. Many of these tales have other horror genres and tropes at play as well, but make no mistake: all are brilliantly creepy paranormal horror tales.
8 Paranormal Horror Tales to Give You the Creeps
The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro
As I mentioned earlier, one of the hallmarks of paranormal horror is ghosts, and that can include hauntings, demons, folk tales, and the like. V. Castro uses all of these at her disposal in this deeply creepy novel.
Alejandra is many things to her family: mother, wife, and daughter to her adoptive mother. But behind these roles lies a growing darkness within her and the constant ghostly vision of a woman crying in a white gown. Castro takes on the Mexican folk demon La Llorona in an intense and brilliant fashion.
The Spite House by Johnny Compton
I didn’t realize what a spite house was until discovering Compton’s gothic thriller of a novel. Eric is a father of two daughters, who are all running away from the life they left behind in Maryland. Desperate for cash, Eric takes on the job of being a type of caretaker for Masson House in Degener, Texas. His new role includes documenting the paranormal activity in the house for the owner, and hopefully not losing his faculties, as previous caretakers have done.
This is a bold and necessary paranormal tale about a father’s love, grief, and death.
Ghost Summer: Stories by Tananarive Due
You know I can’t have a book list without highlighting some short stories and short story collections. Due is a titan in the horror genre and has been deservedly racking up the awards on her latest book The Reformatory. Ghost Summer is the book that blooded me to Due’s brilliant work.
“Summer,” a story from the collection—one you can also read in Nightmare Magazine—continues to haunt me. It follows Danielle, a mother with a baby girl, Lola, who is putting Danielle through the ringer. Danielle is living in her grandma’s house by the swamp in the heat of summer, a situation deemed unwise by the local folks. Then, as warned, Lola changes somehow. A truly chilling tale.
Things We Lost in the Fire: Stories by Mariana Enríquez, trans. by Megan McDowell
Keeping with my love for collections, each and every book by Mariana Enríquez is worth your while, but I will never forget the experience of reading her first collection. These stories are disturbing, dread and unease constantly building at the back of the mind and throat. Throughout the collections there are undertones of the politics and history of Argentina.
“The Intoxicated Years” can be read in Granta, a story told over the years about government-enforced blackouts, and a group of friends bound together by drugs and pain.
A Haunting on the Hill by Elizabeth Hand
A worthy and triumphant follow-up to Shirley Jackson’s famous The Haunting of Hill House, this story follows another group that takes on the notorious Hill House.
Holly received a grant to develop her play The Witch of Edmonton, which might just be her big break. After stumbling upon Hill House, she believes it’s the perfect place to rehearse. Along with her girlfriend Nisa and other actors with haunting pasts, things quickly go off the rails. There is the familiar unsettling nature of the house itself, and there are new scares, an evolution if you will, that grows in the house with the passage of time.
The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias
This book has it all for any horror fan: It’s a violent thriller, but it also has moments that defy explanation, a nightmare-ish fever-dream quality.
This story follows Mario, a man brought to violence to keep his family together and provide for them. Mario has a gift for being a hitman, and his final job takes him on a paranormal odyssey of violence and treacherous terrain. Iglesias knows how to write the type of stories that have us on the edge of our seats, blood pumping, eager and unsettled about where the tale will take us.
Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw
There are images in this book that will stay with me forever, and that’s one of many reasons why this novella is exceptional. It follows a group of thrill-seeking friends who reunite to host a wedding in an abandoned Heian-era mansion. There are stories of girls being sacrificed, their bodies encased in the mansion’s walls, to keep the spirit of a bride company.
What begins as a night of nostalgia, celebration, food, and drinks, quickly becomes a nightmare. Featuring a labyrinth of a house, lurking demons, and the parasitic nature of toxic friendship, this novella is an absolute thrill ride of paranormal horror perfection.
What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher
While the first book in this series, What Moves the Dead, struck me more as sporror (horror with a focus on fungi and botany), What Feasts at Night really puts the pedal to the metal on paranormal horror.
Retired soldier Alex Easton returns in this tale. They’re still recovering from the horrific events of the previous book (spoiler alert: Alex survives) and are looking for some time to recover. As a favor to friends, they retreat to their old family hunting lodge deep in the forests of Galicia. There, near a town riddled with superstition and folklore, they find themself in the middle of a folk tale come to life, with a breath-stealing spirit haunting the house and inhabitants.
I’ll be honest with you, I had vivid nightmares after reading this book, which is how you know it’s really good.
Let The Spirits Guide You: More Paranormal Horror
If these books don’t bring out all the paranormal horror vibes that you’re looking for, fear not, dear readers. I’ll provide a list of other Book Riot articles AND a few paranormal horror short stories that I’ve enjoyed. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of paranormal horror for everyone.
