“But it wasn’t evil that I was seeing here. It was alien, a monstrous alienness so far removed from what I understood that every fibre of my being screamed to reject it, to run, to get away.”
Sheriff Leigh Brackett in John Carpenter’s Halloween claimed that ‘everyone’s entitled to one good scare’, and the thrill that comes from being jolted or chilled from something so grotesque or unsettling makes horror one of the world’s most popular genres. Tales of ghosts, ghouls, haunted houses, and strange goings-on, check out 8 of the best spooky and supernatural horror books from 2022 here at What We Reading!
The Hacienda – Isabel Cañas
In the turmoil and chaos of the Mexican Revolution, Beatriz finds herself homeless and without a father following his execution. Despite rumblings over his first wife’s demise, she accepts a proposal from the handsome Don Rodolfo Solórzano, moving out to his huge estate in the country, Hacienda San Isidro.
It is a spellbinding debut horror novel from Isabel Cañas, The Hacienda is a Mexican gothic story following Beatriz and the supernatural encounters that follow her around her new home. With the help of a young local priest, she will have to confront the sinister forces at play in Hacienda or face the threat of it being her own doom.
What Moves The Dead – Ursula Venom
A retelling of the Edgar Allan Poe classic “The Fall of the House of Usher”, What Moves The Dead is one of the best 2022 supernatural horror books from T. Kingfisher, the pen-name for Ursula Venom.
The book follows Alex Easton, a retired soldier who, after receiving word that his old friend is on their deathbed at their stately home, rushes to be by their side. However, upon arriving at the Usher estate, Alex begins to be embroiled in the strange goings-on around this rural setting. Filled with disgusting fungal matter, possessed animals, and a foreboding black lake, this is a supernatural horror book unlike any other.
The Pallbearers Club – Paul Tremblay
The Pallbearers Club is the 2022 psychological thriller from Paul Tremblay, bestselling author of The Cabin at the End of the World and Survivor Song. In it, readers are introduced to protagonist Art Barbara, an unpopular high school student that runs an extracurricular volunteer pallbearer group.
When the coolest kid in the school suddenly says she’s interested in joining the club, Art can hardly believe his luck. However, this friend also came with a fascination with local folklore and for photographing the dead, strange goings seem to follow the club. Decades on from their time as teenagers in the 1980s, Art decides to write his memoirs of the club, only his old friend appears to have her hands on the original manuscript, and has a few editorial changes in mind…
Blurring the lines between fiction and memory, The Pallbearers Club is one of the best supernatural horror books from 2022, coming jam-packed with crackling wit, chilling tension, and spine-tingling twists.
Ghost Eaters – Clay McLeod Chapman
Clay McLeod Chapman’s Ghost Eaters is a deliciously dark gothic graveyard tale. The story revolves around a timid woman named Erin who, after living under the thumb of her boyfriend, finally cuts him off after he leaves rehab.
However, after she learns her ex-partner has overdosed, she discovers that she hasn’t moved on from the hole his presence has left with her. It is then Erin learns of a miraculous new drug that allows her to speak to the dead. In this 2022 horror novel about loss and addiction, Erin will find herself being haunted by the ghosts of her past, with the side effects of this seance proving to be longer-lasting than she might have first feared.
A Black And Endless Sky – Matthew Lyons
Author of The Night Will Find Us Matthew Lyons brings readers a terrifying tale set across America’s southwest in A Black and Endless Sky.
This 2022 paranormal horror book follows Jonah and Nell Talbot who, after seeing their relationship grow apart, embark on a road trip to their hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico. However, following a strange accident in an abandoned industrial estate, Nell begins to change. With ghostly visions, terrifying symptoms, and a stranger pursuing the pair wherever they go, Jonah is forced to accept there is something more sinister than he could ever imagine lurking underneath his sibling’s skin.
All The White Spaces – Ally Wilkes
Paying homage to cult classics such as John Carpenter’s The Thing, All The White Spaces is one of the best supernatural horror books from 2022. Set in the immediate aftermath of World War One, the book follows Jonathan Morgan, a stowaway on a polar expedition.
But, in the isolated frozen wilderness, a sinister presence begins to stalk the group as they go. Delivered with chilling suspense, the frozen wastelands bring with their isolation and paranoia that will threaten to pick off this group one by one.
The Hollow Kind – Andy Davidson
After discovering her grandfather has willed her his entire estate, Nellie Gardner flees with her son from her abusive husband in the hunt for a new life. When she arrives at the estate, she realises that the thousand-acre estate is little more than a derelict farmhouse.
The Hollow Kind by Andy Davidson follows Nellie as she begins to notice strange goings-on around the estate following her arrival. Strange noises coming from the nearby woodland, scratch marks in the walls, and an eerie presence radiating from the nearby Redfern Hill all combine to make this gothic horror novel a thrilling ride about the dark legacy a family’s history can hold.
The Fervor – Alma Katsu
Japanese American internment camps are one of the darkest and least talked-about parts of the history of the Second World War. Thankfully, author Alma Katsu sheds light on this dramatic point in history with their 2022 horror novel, The Fervor.
The book follows Meiko Briggs and her daughter Aiko, detained in one of these camps despite being law-abiding US nationals. Whilst in this camp, a strange disease begins to ravage the camp, inviting in a group of doctors almost as dangerous as the illness itself. Starting out as a minor infection, the virus soon mutates into something that can turn even the tamest of souls into rabid animals.
Inspired by the Japanese yokai and the Jorogumo spider demon, The Fervor is a supernatural and terrifying novel looking at the dangers of demonisation and prejudice in society.
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
