46 books like Go to Hell

I was astonished when I opened this book and saw all the gorgeous art depicting heavens, hells, and afterlives from around the world. The colors and printing are lush, and it’s incredible to see everything from brightly colored Islamic art showing magnificent gardens of paradise to ancient illustrated manuscripts of Valhalla and mind-bending medieval portraits of Christian hell.

I also love the full, yet concise, descriptions of every hell, underworld, purgatory, and heaven that humans around the world and throughout history have imagined. I learned so much about the different cultures and religions through their visions of the afterlife, and all alongside the art depicting it. I feel like I got an art history class as a bonus!

I was so surprised to learn from this book how little the Bible actually focuses on heaven and hell, given how much emphasis I heard about them growing up. This book is written by a historian and scholar of early Christianity, and I found his analysis of the history of thought on heaven and hell and modern ideas about the afterlife to be thoughtful and thorough.

This book really made me think about the Christian ideas of heaven and hell in a new way.

I love the originality of this book—who ever would have thought to write about the geology of hell but a geologist? As a big-time nerd, I loved the deep dive into science, mixed with the stories and legends of people around the world.

I laughed out loud several times reading this guide to the afterlife; who knew Jeopardy Champion and host Ken Jennings was so funny? I really felt his sense of wonder and excitement come through as he explores the various forms of heaven, hell, purgatory, and underworld that people have described over the course of human history, including plenty from modern pop culture.

It’s all done with a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor, like the “travel tips” for the newly dead who wakes up in an unexpected afterlife. It’s a light, fun read, and I liked that I could pick it up and read a short section at any time.

This book is very unique. Written through the psychic medium named Farnese in 1896. The spirit named Franchezzo told his experience in the afterlife. There is a fantasy and reality here. Even though we haven’t experienced death and don’t know how’s life in the afterlife, but I feel a strong connection with this book. I feel like I can believe everything this book depicted about the world on the other side.

For insights into non-western afterlife theory, the Bardo Thodol offers a collection of texts covering aspects of death, reincarnation, and the ‘space’ in between. The work, which dates back to the 8th century, serves as a ‘guidebook’ on preparing the soul for its continuing journey, including advice on meditation, the six states of consciousness, death rituals, and the pursuit of karma. Over the centuries the Bardo Thodol has inspired numerous interpretations as well as literary works. Screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin, who spent time secluded in a Buddhist monastery, describes his film Jacob’s Ladder as a modern take on the ancient text. 

Madison Spencer is a fourteen-year-old girl who dies of a drug overdose, only to discover that she has been condemned to Hell. However, she soon realizes that the damned souls in Hell are not punished in the classic sense but are instead subjected to a monotonous, soul-crushing existence where they are forced to relive their worst experiences. With the help of a few allies she meets in Hell, Madison sets out to unravel the mysteries of her afterlife, challenge the status quo, and find a way to escape her eternal torment.

Yes, another dark comedy. But Chuck Palahniuk has a particular talent for taking what makes humans squirm and serving it with a wholesome dollop of relatable ontology. In Damned, he explores themes of the afterlife, societal norms, and human behavior, all set against the backdrop of a reimagined Hell. This Hell is not just a place of eternal suffering… show more.

Hideaway explores the question: what would happen if people who’ve had near-death experiences bring something back with them from the other side? Koontz offers two characters resuscitated after being clinically dead for more than half an hour, one who tastes Heaven while the other sees Hell. Is the carnage that follows the result of their angel/demon hitchhikers wreaking havoc among the living, or is something else at play? The novel offers unique perspective on the desire to return to the land of the dead, and how closely the forces of Heaven and Hell are linked to the realm of the living. 

The Great Divorce is part allegory, part fantasy, part self-help, part cautionary tale as readers tag along on a bus ride from Hell to Heaven. Through the course of the journey, Lewis uses a fascinating variety of unique characters and strange situations to illustrate how individual perspective and personal choices determine how happy (or miserable) we humans are in this life, as well as what we can expect in the next. 

This one is a little bit of a cheeky pick, because, at the time of writing, it hasn’t been published yet. I was lucky enough to get an early read and I loved it. Miguela is frustrated by the tight reign her Puerto-Rican grandmother keeps on her. She is bored with going to church, going to school, being forbidden to date, or basically anything fun. So when Sam, a new gorgeous boy comes to her school and she feels an irresistible pull towards him, she doesn’t resist very hard. Until Sam learns of Sam’s family roots… and has to break up with him. But you don’t just break up with Sam without potentially apocalyptic consequences. This book reminded me of a YA Imaginary Friend by Chbosky, only funny. And why did I pick it for this creepy creature list? Well, the creatures in this one definitely freaked me out. Despite… show more.