6 bone-chilling Halloween reads
BY Maya Fernandes
29th Oct 2026
If there’s ever an excuse to indulge your darker reading habits, it’s Halloween. From eerie gothic tales and unsettling secrets to twisty murder mysteries, we’ve gathered a selection of gripping reads from our talented alumni to keep you turning pages long into the night. So settle in, light a candle and prepare to lose yourself in some deliciously spooky stories.
Gothic Fiction
Little Wild by Laura Evans
Suffolk, 1937. Margaret has always been part of the Winther family, but when she and Joanie, their only daughter, dream of escaping the lives mapped out for them and building a future together, their secret is discovered. Sent away to the woods and separated from the person she loves most, Margaret is forced to confront the darkness within her.
Laura was a student on our London Writing Your Novel – Six Months course in 2014. Read our interview with Laura here. Little Wild is out now with Mantle (Pan Macmillan).
The Silver Bones of Frances Winter by Fiona Goggin
At eight years old, Frances is almost the same height as her father; by sixteen, she is over six feet tall. As she continues to grow to an extraordinary height, Frances seeks a way to reduce her size and struggles not to lose herself in the process. Drawn into the lives of showmen and Pre-Raphaelite artists, she searches for a place to belong. But in a city that makes a spectacle of her, Frances must reckon with what it means to inhabit a body that does not conform.
Fiona was a student on our online Writing Your Novel – Three Months course in 2021. Read our interview with Fiona here. The Silver Bones of Frances Winter is out now with Everything with Words.
Lochbound by Rebecca Templeton
Kilmara, Scotland, 1725. For fifty years, Iris has lived under a terrible curse, condemned to wander the shores of Kilmara by night and transform into a monster by day. When bodies begin washing ashore, the villagers turn to a ruthless hunter to rid them of the creature they fear. As suspicion closes in, Iris finds herself drawn to the very man sent to kill her, and must confront the past she has long tried to bury.
Rebecca was a student on our online Writing Your Novel – Three Months course in 2021. Read our interview with Rebecca here. Lochbound is out now with Sphere (Hachette).
Crime Fiction
Murder Most Cryptic by Alys Cummings
Nina is a promising young journalist, struggling to keep her alcoholism a secret. When a stranger arrives at her weekly recovery group and promptly drops dead, the police dismiss it as an accident. But a cryptic clue found in his pocket suggests something far more sinister. As increasingly threatening clues appear in the newspaper, Nina and her fellow recovering addicts must solve the puzzle before one of them becomes the next victim.
Alys was a student on our online Writing Crime & Thrillers – Advanced course in 2023. Read our interview with Alys here. Murder Most Cryptic is out now with Michael Joseph (Penguin).
The Vanishing Place by Zoë Rankin
A young girl wanders into the small town of Koraha, her hands stained with blood, leading the police to a cabin deep in the wilderness and the scene of a double murder. For Effie, the discovery brings back memories of the night she fled her family home twenty years ago. As old secrets begin to surface and more lives are lost, Effie must return to the forest she escaped and confront the truth of what happened there – before the past claims another victim.
Zoë was a student on our Edit & Pitch Your Novel and online Writing Your Novel – Three Months courses in 2019, and our Writing a Psychological Thriller course in 2021. Read our interview with Zoë here. The Vanishing Place is out now with Viper Books.
Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests by K J Whittle
Seven strangers gather for an anonymous dinner party, where an unexpected final course reveals the age at which each of them will die. At first, the guests dismiss it as a macabre joke. But when the first prediction comes true, unease gives way to fear. As the years go by, the other guests begin to die in line with the predictions given on that first night. And it's up to the remaining few to uncover the truth behind that fateful evening before their own time runs out.
K J was a student on our online Writing Your Novel – Three Months course from 2019 to 2020. Read our interview with her here. Seven Reasons to Murder Your Dinner Guests is out now with HarperNorth.
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