Here are 95 books that Harrow Lake fans have personally recommended if you like
Harrow Lake.
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I'm passionate about ghost stories, classic gothic literature, and horror comics, and I have always felt that October is too short to contain the atmospheric chills and versatility of horror stories. I am also passionate about graphic novels and have worked as a professional illustrator, comic artist, and colorist for 7 years. I love the camp, the fun, and the macabre invoked by Summerween. Now that I have written and published my own cozy, spooky graphic novel, which made both the American Book Association's Indies Introduce List for Summer 2024 and People Magazine's Summerween 2024 Book List, I want to shine the spotlight on other comics with the feeling of October.
A hauntingly beautiful anthology of five twisted fairytales that, to me, felt like stepping into a pastoral Twilight Zone and stayed in my mind for days after the final page. Carroll’s artwork is eerie and subtle, and the limited color palette turns scenes of the mundane into a visual nightmare.
The stories are well-paced and spooky, and in my opinion, best read during a dark summer thunderstorm.
I am and have always been fascinated with supernatural creatures, particularly if they have horns and dwell in the dark swamps of wooded hinterlands. I spent a greater part of my childhood in the African bush. A formative experience was the day an isangoma(witchdoctor) cast knuckle bones at me in a particularly energetic frenzy. Rather than being scared, I was fascinated by the power these little bones had to command spirits and creatures I had only seen in my nightmares. An obsession was born.
When I went into this book, I sensed that Amelinda would pull zero punches. I was so right it was glorious. Skye isfed up. Fed up of being responsible for her insufferable little sister, Dierdre. Fed up with the stories, with the games, with their endless childhood fantasies. Moving halfway across the country seems like the perfect chance to start over. Finally, in this new, isolated neighbourhood, Skye is managing to fit in. Not Dierdre, though. No, Dierdre seems to be slipping more and more into a world of her own. And then one day: Dierdre vanishes. When a creature unlike anything Skye has ever seen comes scratching at her door claiming to know who took Dierdre, Skye is going to have to suspend her disbelief and re-enter a childhood of warped imagination.
A bone-chilling read about creating monsters, sisterhood turned toxic, and secrets that won't stay buried, perfect for fans of The Night She Disappeared, Wilder Girls, and The Blair Witch Project. Sixteen-year-old Skye is done playing the knight in shining armor for her insufferable younger sister, Deirdre. And moving across the country seems like the perfect chance to start over as someone different. In their isolated new neighborhood, Skye manages to fit in, but Deirdre withdraws from everyone, becoming fixated on the swampy woods behind their house and building monstrous sculptures out of sticks and bones. Then Deirdre disappears. And when…
I grew up in a small town full of ghosts. They broke plates in a doctor’s office-turned-restaurant, feuded in a house built by twins, emerged from cornfields to stand in our headlights, and turned headstones blue in a cemetery where tombstones protruded from the ground like jagged teeth. The stories that surrounded me while I was a teen still bleed into my writing. And as reader, I gravitate toward books that are atmospheric, rich in moments of magic or the unreal, and riddled with stories of the past and long-forgotten.
As one of four sisters, I appreciate a good sister story because there’s always something going on under the surface. House of Hollow is no different. There’s the complicated dynamic of the three sisters—the model and fashion designer, the grunge musician, and the loner high school student—revealed when the eldest goes missing and the two younger sisters search for her. And then there’s the twist of something otherworldly—the fact that the girls disappeared for a month as children, reappearing with black eyes, white hair, mysterious scars, and the ability to entrance others with their scent and touch. I couldn’t stop turning the pages.
'A gorgeous, grisly modern fairy tale.' - THE GUARDIAN
'Dark and delicious. House of Hollow hums with malice and mystery. I devoured it whole.' - KIRAN MILLWOOD HARGRAVE
** SHORTLISTED FOR THE YA BOOK PRIZE 2022 **
The Hollow sisters - Vivi, Grey and Iris - are as seductively glamorous as they are mysterious. They have black eyes and hair as white as milk. The Hollow sisters don't have friends - they don't need them. They move through the corridors like sharks, the other little fish parting around them, whispering behind their backs.
I am and have always been fascinated with supernatural creatures, particularly if they have horns and dwell in the dark swamps of wooded hinterlands. I spent a greater part of my childhood in the African bush. A formative experience was the day an isangoma(witchdoctor) cast knuckle bones at me in a particularly energetic frenzy. Rather than being scared, I was fascinated by the power these little bones had to command spirits and creatures I had only seen in my nightmares. An obsession was born.
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…
Fans of Undead Girl Gang and The Babysitters Coven will love Breakup from Hell, a witty YA rom-com with a supernatural twist, starring horror novel obsessed Mica Angeles, who discovers the guy she fell for comes straight out of one of her beloved books.
Miguela Angeles is tired. Tired of her abuela keeping secrets, especially about her heritage. Tired of her small Vermont town and hanging out at the same places with the same friends she's known forever. So when another boring Sunday trip to church turns into a run-in with Sam, a mysterious hottie in town on vacation, Mica…
As a practicing psychologist for the past twenty years, I have treated hundreds of children and teens who have behavior problems, as well as provided help for parents who want to improve their parenting skills. Central to many, if not most, of the problems I see revolve around poor communication. Many parents don’t know how to effectively communicate about certain issues, which often causes even more problems with their children. However, when parents learn how to approach their children without reacting in frustration and anger, I’ve witnessed amazing improvement in both behavior and the parent-child relationship.
For children, secrets can be a fun part of life. However, some secrets can be disturbing and even dangerous for a child to keep. Do You Have a Secret helps young children make the distinction between good secrets and bad secrets. Read together with a parent, a child can learn which secrets should not be kept inside, as well as how talking about them can actually help them feel better. This well-written book should be considered essential to a parent’s library of books that increase communication between parents and children. In today’s world, some secrets can be devasting to a child’s emotional health and well-being. Setting the stage for children to talk about them is one of the best things we can do in a world where there are simply too many secrets for children to cope with.
Every child has secrets, and many secrets are fun to keep. This book will help distinguish between the fun secrets and the secrets that can make children feel bad or scared. These are the difficult ones that are best shared with parents, or with a trusted adult.
Parents, teachers, and gift givers will find:
A book for kids about secrets, feelings, boundaries, and consent
A children's book to keep kids safe
Do You Have a Secret? helps kids distinguish between good and bad secrets. Everyone has concerns and anxieties, and Let's Talk About It! books are written and illustrated specifically…
As the mother of four children, I have observed over the last twenty years how women are viewed and often judged under a stifling patriarchal lens. Writing about motherhood in all its glorious colours has been one way for me to channel my frustrations. Stories that reach out to women and give them a voice when they feel unheard are vital. In a world where appearances and facades are taking over our social media feeds, where filters blur out the rough edges of our lives, I’m more determined than ever to write female characters who are raw and flawed but also valued as an integral part of an evolving society.
I love any book that delves into the psychology of cults. This is a fictional account of a real-life cult that existed not far from where I live, and I have grown up hearing about the victims. The charismatic and highly disturbed female leader was an unusual twist on the standard stories we read about cults that are often led by men.
Her determination to be the ‘mother’ of every child, have them all look the same (blond hair cut into a bob), and worship her was infuriating and intriguing. Taking vulnerable women, who were also mothers, and luring them into her secret commune, forcing them to make sacrifices, including their own children, deeply affected me as a woman and a mother.
Set against a ticking clock, this "haunting" and "atmospheric" thriller that inspired the Hulu miniseries "The Clearing" pits a ruthless cult against a mother's love, revealing that our darkest secrets are the hardest ones to leave behind (Sally Hepworth, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Sister).
Four days to go Amy has only ever known life in the Clearing, amidst her brothers and sisters--until a newcomer, a younger girl, joins the "family" and offers a glimpse of the outside world.
Three days to go
Freya is going to great lengths to seem like an "everyday mum," even as…
Ever since I was a young girl, I have fallen deeply into the pages of novels that feature strong female characters, with Anne of Green Gables and Little Women capturing my imagination early. As an Australian, I’ve also always enjoyed books set here but anywhere where I can walk in a relatable character's shoes is fine by me. The magical experience of being immersed in ‘her’ world, feeling what she feels, relating to her, being frustrated with her, celebrating with her, loving with her…what are books if not gifting us such experiences? Every book I have penned has been based on this ideal, an intimate experience, a close relationship. A BFF.
Rachael Johns has a very chatty, familiar way of writing that has you soon forgetting that you are sitting at home, reading a book. The Art of Keeping Secrets is transportive, funny, and intimate and I particularly loved the lead character, Felicity, although I was equally invested in the lives of her BFFs Emma and Neve. ‘Secrets’ is indeed the key theme of this novel and, as they slowly unravel, you’ll find yourself hooked as to the outcome. Love the romantic twists and you’ll be turning the pages fast at the end! (No spoilers!)
They started out as the “misfit moms”—the trio of less-than-conventional parents at their sons’ tiny private school. They’ve shared everything. Or so they thought. Now, on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to New York City, they’ll sightsee, they’ll shop, they’ll catch a few Broadway shows. They’ll tell all…
After seventeen years as a single parent, Neve will reveal a past sin that could destroy her relationship with her son. Emma will uncover the roots of her exhaustion and divulge the inappropriate feelings she has for her boss. And Flick—who knows a little about crafting a…
Horror has had a place in my life since my parents let me watch horror movies at far too young an age. But horror comes in many forms, and I’ve found that my love for atmosphere supersedes that of cheap thrills. In Gothic literature, atmosphere is everything. Done right, it paints an unsettling picture that builds tension for readers hoping to get lost in a disquieting world. A lover of classics, I was drawn to Gothic texts, from Dracula to the works of Edgar Allen Poe, and my Gothic novel The Alchemy of Moonlight is a love letter to the pioneers who shaped these shadowy worlds for generation of readers.
Roiling fog and shadows cloak the evil at the heart of this tale of hidden pasts and restrained magic.
Strange occurrences and vague prophecies push our cast of characters together, even if they would rather not be, creating an unsettling dynamic between the forces at work in the small town of Four Paths.
Violet doesn’t seem to fit in, but as a descendant of one of the founding families, it’s her destiny to confront what awakens in the woods, as well as her ties to a mysterious and dark legacy. In my opinion, this book is a perfect marriage of a Gothic novel and YA.
On the edge of town, a beast haunts the woods, trapped in the Gray, its bonds loosening...
Uprooted from the city, Violet Saunders doesn't have much hope of fitting in at her new school in Four Paths, a town almost buried in the woodlands of rural New York. The fact that she's descended from one of the town's founders doesn't help much, either-her new neighbours treat her with distant respect, and something very like fear. When she meets Justin, May, Isaac, and Harper, all children of founder families, and sees the otherworldly destruction they can wreak, she starts to wonder…
Kim Long loves to write stories with a sense of adventure, a dash of magic, and a hint of science. Her debut, Lexi Magill and the Teleportation Tournament, was a 2021-2022 Texas Bluebonnet Master List Selection. She loves board games, scavenger hunts, and puzzles, so books with aspects of those elements have always appealed to her. Every book recommended below has at least one of those elements, and the great news is that it's also the first in its series, so if you fall in love with the first book, there’s a good chance you’ll love the others, too!
Told in alternating points of view by several characters as they compete in a national competition to find the tastiest confection in the country, this book lets the reader into the minds of all the main competitors. The enemy isn’t really the enemy once we get to know their feelings and thoughts. Being in a candy factory is an added bonus, as it’s such a unique location.
Four children have been chosen to compete in a national competition to find the tastiest confection in the country. Who will invent a candy more delicious than the Oozing Crunchorama or the Neon Lightning Chew?
Logan, the Candymaker's son, who can detect the color of chocolate by touch alone?
Miles, the boy who is allergic to merry-go-rounds and the color pink?
Daisy, the cheerful girl who can lift a fifty-pound lump of taffy like it's a feather?
Or Philip, the suit-and-tie wearing boy who's always scribbling in a secret notebook?
This sweet, charming, and cleverly crafted story, told from each…
When I first visited Scotland, I drove north from Edinburgh, driving through much of the country to catch a ferry to Orkney. This northern archipelago is certainly one of the most magical places I’ve ever been to; the steep sea cliffs and standing stones, windblown grasses, and violent waves put me in a gothic state of mind. I moved to Scotland a few years later to live by the sea. Since that first visit to Orkney, I’ve written my own Scottish gothic novels, as well as presented research on the gothic at various academic conferences. It’s a topic that I’m certain will compel me for a long time to come.
This book is such an usual book, and I love it for how strange and unexpected it is.
The story takes place in a near-future Edinburgh, where the world has dramatically changed due to an undefined apocalyptic event but has more of a gothic sensibility than a post-apocalyptic one.
There’s magic, history, and an extremely likable narrator wrapped in an almost-crime-novel package.
"An absolute delight . . . kept me totally hooked." – Genevieve Cogman, bestselling author of The Invisible Library
Sixth Sense meets Stranger Things in T. L. Huchu's The Library of the Dead, a sharp contemporary fantasy following a precocious and cynical teen as she explores the shadowy magical underside of modern Edinburgh.
WHEN GHOSTS TALK SHE WILL LISTEN
Ropa dropped out of school to become a ghostalker – and they sure do love to talk. Now she speaks to Edinburgh’s dead, carrying messages to those they left…
