Love The Glass Lake? Readers share 98 books like The Glass Lake...

By Maeve Binchy,

Here are 98 books that The Glass Lake fans have personally recommended if you like The Glass Lake. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Book cover of The Demon's Apprentice

Bill Hiatt Author Of Haunted by the Devil

From my list on How bargaining with supernatural beings can ruin your whole day.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve loved reading ever since I learned how. Sometimes, that can be inconvenient. I now own over 8000 books, not including ebooks, so storage space is an issue. Fortunately, my heart space is not as constrained as my physical space. Anyway, given my keen interest in reading, it’s no surprise that I began to write. Though my reading tastes are wide, I mostly write in fantasy, my favorite genre. It’s an opportunity to explore new worlds and to use them to reflect upon our own. We may not make literal pacts with demons, but we all face temptation. Figuring out how to navigate our desires is a crucial part of life.

Bill's book list on How bargaining with supernatural beings can ruin your whole day

Bill Hiatt Why did Bill love this book?

This book hooked me initially by drawing hope out of a difficult situation. When Chance Fortunato is just a little kid, his own father sells him to a demon. He spends eight years learning magic and then tempting other teenagers to sell their souls. But then, he flips the script, winning his freedom and setting out to undo the evil he has done by helping others to avoid or escape demonic pacts.

I was impressed by Chance’s ability to overcome a catastrophic upbringing. I was fascinated by how seamlessly Reeder has him switch between navigating ordinary teenage issues and supernatural threats. Chance’s dialogs with his “hairy monkey brain”—which mostly wants sex—and his efforts to find a relationship that is more than that are moving and realistic. His bravery in the face of overwhelming threats is inspiring. 

By Ben Reeder,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Demon's Apprentice as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.


Book cover of Coraline (The Graphic Novel)

Carolyn Watson Dubisch Author Of Deluge: The People That Melt in the Rain #1

From my list on YA graphic novels about a magical world that are not Harry Potter.

Why am I passionate about this?

As an author and illustrator, I much prefer to present my writing with visuals. It’s how I write, by “seeing the story” in my mind. I have written and illustrated many graphic novels and comics on my own and as a part of a team. The art in comic books can be so much work it is often broken into stages: penciled art, then inked, and then colored. These graphic novels are some of the best magical stories for kids that I’ve ever read, and as someone who reads all the time, that’s saying a lot.    

Carolyn's book list on YA graphic novels about a magical world that are not Harry Potter

Carolyn Watson Dubisch Why did Carolyn love this book?

Coraline and her very preoccupied parents move into their new house. They seem to have very little time for her. While exploring the house, she finds a little door that takes her to another house. One that is exactly the same but different. Her “other” parents are doting on her, and aside from the fact that they have terrifying buttons for eyes, they seem to love and need her around. 

This is the graphic novel version of the creepy story that captivated so many kids by Neil Gaiman and the first visualization of the story before it was animated. I have always loved this version illustrated by P. Craig Russell.

By Neil Gaiman, P. Craig Russell (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Coraline (The Graphic Novel) as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

When Coraline moves to a new house she is fascinated by the fact that their house is in fact only half a house. Divided into flats years before, the other flat, it soon becomes clear to Coraline, is not quite as cosy and safe as her own.


Book cover of The Boughs Withered: When I Told Them My Dreams

Celine Kiernan Author Of Resonance

From my list on supernatural books written by Irish women.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was a weird kid. Often accused of ‘thinking too much’, I cut my literary teeth on Stephen King, Ray Bradbury, Phillip K Dick, and Shirley Jackson. Raised on their dark milk, I grew up wanting more than hollow scares and mindless eviscerations. Don’t just give me a scary story, give me a scary story that resonates, one that raises a lens to our world, our history, the rules we’re asked to live by. Unsettle me, make me think. Most of all, give me characters worth my precious time. These are the kind of stories I endeavor to write and the ones I most enjoy reading. I hope you enjoy this small selection as much as I have.

Celine's book list on supernatural books written by Irish women

Celine Kiernan Why did Celine love this book?

Reminiscent of Ray Bradbury at his very finest, this absorbing collection of supernatural tales has it all: fascinating characters, palpable atmosphere, and delicious, chewy plots. McHugh brings the uncanny into the every day, most often through the experiences of women, and often using a distinctly Irish lens. From the Irish countryside, in all its windswept, boggy, or tangled forms, to modern office life, this is a glorious kaleidoscope of experiences that feel real even as the surface of human experience is punctured to expose the void beneath.  Each story in this collection has a lot to offer, and - another thing this writer has in common with Bradbury - you’ll find yourself returning time and again for rereading 

By Maura McHugh,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Boughs Withered as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Boughs Withered is the debut collection from accomplished Irish author Maura McHugh. It includes twenty tales - four of them original to the volume - which represent the best strange visions from an award-winning writer of fiction, non-fiction, comic books and plays. Among the featured stories is "Bone Mother", which was adapted into the award-winning stop-motion animated short film by See Creature in Canada.

In her horror and dark fantasy stories, Maura McHugh explores her love of the uncanny, delves into the eerie past, and evokes weird landscapes that might just co-exist with our own.

"These stories [are] made…


If you love The Glass Lake...

Ad

Book cover of From Famine to Fortune

From Famine to Fortune by Maurice Holloway,

1848. Ireland is starving in the middle of the Potato Famine. For many there seems to be only two choices – stay and die, or leave and survive. Families split up. A young potato-farming couple, Pat and Caitlin, evicted from their home in Mayo, decide to seek their fortunes beyond…

Book cover of Snow So White: Urban Magick & Folklore

Bill Hiatt Author Of Haunted by the Devil

From my list on How bargaining with supernatural beings can ruin your whole day.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve loved reading ever since I learned how. Sometimes, that can be inconvenient. I now own over 8000 books, not including ebooks, so storage space is an issue. Fortunately, my heart space is not as constrained as my physical space. Anyway, given my keen interest in reading, it’s no surprise that I began to write. Though my reading tastes are wide, I mostly write in fantasy, my favorite genre. It’s an opportunity to explore new worlds and to use them to reflect upon our own. We may not make literal pacts with demons, but we all face temptation. Figuring out how to navigate our desires is a crucial part of life.

Bill's book list on How bargaining with supernatural beings can ruin your whole day

Bill Hiatt Why did Bill love this book?

I like how C. Gockel leads me to expect one type of story but then gives me another. I thought that Snow So White was going to be a retelling of a fairy tale. While the book does allude to the fairy tale, “Snow White” is just a nickname for Jack Frost, which in turn is a nickname for an identity the character himself can’t quite remember.

I’m also a big fan of the world-building. The story is set in a time when old technology has collapsed, replaced by a resurgence of magic. Other planes of existence now intersect with ours so that unwary travelers can meet anything from animal spirits to old gods.

The characters are equally diverse and include my personal favorite, a vampire who retains her humanity, likes to play with dogs, and reminisces about her long-dead family. It’s hard to make a vampire heartwarming, but Gockel…

Book cover of Pretty Painful

S. G. Blinn Author Of Rebellion

From my list on rebellious characters with a villainous twist of fate.

Why am I passionate about this?

I write what I see. Dark Fantasy has been the escape I have needed my entire life. It helped me understand hard topics such as war, greed, and loss. Working through a character's struggles has saved me from the darkest parts of my mind and guided me to where I can love myself.

S. G.'s book list on rebellious characters with a villainous twist of fate

S. G. Blinn Why did S. G. love this book?

The strongest creatures have tried and failed to fulfill their destiny. Rather than succumb to the fallout of their actions, they ran away and hid amongst the world separately. All it took was one glance from a stranger to turn their world upside down. Can love break the curse that is their existence?

I found that the bond of family, found or born, can create a bearable existence when all hope is lost. 

By K.A. Knight,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Pretty Painful as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Seven sons, each with a bloodline of supernaturals that can be traced back to them, but where did they go? Humiliation, pain and hunger become Dabria’s everyday life as a captive but when she is forced to watch the one person in the world she loves die...what will she become?Rising from the blood and ashes, Dabria is tossed into a cell and left to rot...only she isn’t alone. A monster so feared they locked him up and threw away the key...and now, he has his sights set on her. Nothing is safe from him, not her body nor her mind,…


Book cover of Coraline

T. Alan Horne Author Of Secret Sky: The Young Universe

From my list on middle grade books that adults can appreciate.

Why am I passionate about this?

As an author of experimental and genre-bending books, I evangelize people not only to read more books but to read books outside of their comfort zone. And while it doesn’t take much work to get adult readers to consider Young Adult titles, getting them to read Middle-Grade books has been a much greater challenge, which is a shame because middle school has a lot to offer. Some of the best and most life-changing books exist within the Middle-Grade category. My own Middle-Grade books were written with readers of many age ranges in mind. 

T.'s book list on middle grade books that adults can appreciate

T. Alan Horne Why did T. love this book?

It’s quite possibly the scariest book ever written. Much scarier than most adult horror books. Adult horror books rely on cheap shock value to elicit cheaper scares. It provides the same (or greater) level of unease without resorting to the gratuitous.

I cannot fathom how this book managed to pull that off. But I can say that this book has more to offer adults than it can give to children. An adult can see the subtext of a story where a child disappears because a stranger offers them candy and toys, as well as the implication that such strangers may not be entirely human.

And I can’t tell you what makes it so great without spoiling the whole story. I was so engrossed in this story that it practically kidnapped me. I can’t recommend it enough.

By Neil Gaiman, P. Craig Russell (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

16 authors picked Coraline as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 10, 11, 12, and 13.

What is this book about?

"Sometimes funny, always creepy, genuinely moving, this marvellous spine-chiller will appeal to readers from nine to ninety." - "Books for Keeps". "I was looking forward to "Coraline", and I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I was enthralled. This is a marvellously strange and scary book." - Philip Pullman, "Guardian". "If any writer can get the guys to read about the girls, it should be Neil Gaiman. His new novel "Coraline" is a dreamlike adventure. For all its gripping nightmare imagery, this is actually a conventional fairy story with a moral." - "Daily Telegraph". Stephen King once called Neil Gaiman 'a treasure-house…


Book cover of Gita on the Green: The Mystical Tradition Behind Bagger Vance

Jayne Storey Author Of Connected Golf: Bridging the Gap between Practice and Performance

From my list on mind-body golf.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been fascinated by the link between golf and the Eastern arts since I heard the great Jack Nicklaus say that golf is played with the feet. This immediately struck a chord with me as my background spans over thirty years of Tai Chi training and I have understood from this art that all movement comes from the ground upwards. The early training of Nicklaus in fact echoes that of the ancient warriors who understood the link between intention and action, which is a very different approach to the modern way of over-thinking technique. The simplicity of flow cancels out the need to separate the golf swing into individual positions. 

Jayne's book list on mind-body golf

Jayne Storey Why did Jayne love this book?

I have always been interested in Vedic philosophy and have greatly enjoyed the film The Legend of Bagger Vance. While there has been much watering down of ancient truths to fit with our 21st Century lifestyle (the plethora of mindfulness apps being one example) the author of this book has a depth of literary and spiritual knowledge that helps unlock the mysteries of golf and allies them with the epic tale, The Bhagavad Gita. Rosen explains that Rannulph Junuh, (played by Matt Damon in the film) is really Arjuna, the charioteer who is instructed by the Supreme Being, Bhagavan (Bagger Vance, the caddie played by Will Smith). It is an approach to the game that brings us face to face with the eternal battles within and how to overcome them. 

By Steven J Rosen,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Gita on the Green as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In 1995, Steven Pressfield decided to introduce the Bhagavad-Gita to a contemporary audience, so he restructured the Gita in terms of a golf novel, The Legend of Bagger Vance. Now a major motion picture directed by Robert Redford and starring Matt Damon and Will Smith, The Legend of Bagger Vance is loosely based on the ancient Hindu epic, The Bhagavad-gita. Steven Rosen, in Gita on the Green: The Mystical Tradition Behind Bagger Vance, draws the story out further using some thirty years of Gita scholarship and a writing style that is both eloquent and thorough.


Book cover of Who Fears the Devil (Planet Stories 24)

William Meikle Author Of Carnacki: Heaven and Hell

From my list on occult detective collections.

Why am I passionate about this?

Even before I found Lovecraft and Stephen King and my world turned, I was raised on Doyle, Wells, Hodgson, and Robert Louis Stevenson which gave me both a love of the "gentleman detective" era and a deep love of the late Victorian/early Edwardian historical period in general. Once you merge that with my abiding interest in all things weird and spooky, you can see where a lot of my stories come from. There seems to be quite a burgeoning market for this kind of mixing of detection and supernatural, and I intend to write more... maybe even a lot more.

William's book list on occult detective collections

William Meikle Why did William love this book?

Silver John, a balladeer with a silver-stringed guitar, crisscrosses rural USA encountering all manner of supernatural entities, and does it with a song in his heart. There's a deep love of ancient folklore that shines through in this wonderful collection. It's far removed from Carnacki or Silence's cozy sitting rooms and libraries, but every bit as tied to a desire to get to the root of ancient mysteries. There's an almost Bradburyesque sense of wonder in these tales that lifts you up and carries you alongside John on his travels.

By Manly Wade Wellman, Mike Resnick, Karl Edward Wagner

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Who Fears the Devil (Planet Stories 24) as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

There's a traveling man the Carolina mountain folk call Silver John for the silver strings strung on his guitar. In his wanderings, John encounters a parade of benighted forest creatures, mountain spirits, and shapeless horrors from the void of history with only his enduring spirit, playful wit, and the magic of his guitar to preserve him. Manly Wade Wellman's Silver John is one of the most beloved figures in fantasy, a true American folk hero of the literary age. For the first time the "Planet Stories" edition of "Who Fears the Devil?" collects all of John's adventures published throughout Wellman's…


Book cover of The Secret Life of Puppets

Brandon R. Grafius Author Of Lurking Under the Surface: Horror, Religion, and the Questions that Haunt Us

From my list on horror and religion.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been a fan of horror since I got sucked into Scooby-Doo as a three-year-old. When I started my academic career, I kind of kept that passion tucked inside as something to be embarrassed about – after all, I wanted to do serious work, and horror movies aren’t serious, right? Graduate school made me rethink that assumption, and pushed me towards seriously considering the engagement of horror and religion. I wrote my dissertation on a chapter of the Book of Numbers as a slasher narrative, and I haven’t looked back since.

Brandon's book list on horror and religion

Brandon R. Grafius Why did Brandon love this book?

Nelson’s book is a revelation in how it explores the work that both religion and popular culture can do – her readings of Lovecraft’s work are particularly evocative. I’m not on board with the sharp line she draws between high and low culture, but it’s one of those books that’s fascinating even when you disagree with it.

By Victoria Nelson,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked The Secret Life of Puppets as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In this work, Victoria Nelson illuminates the deep but hidden attraction the supernatural still holds for a secular mainstream culture that forced the transcendental underground and firmly displaced wonder and awe with the forces of reason, materialism, and science. In a backward look at an era now drawing to a close, "The Secret Life of Puppets" describes a curious reversal in the roles of art and religion: where art and literature once took their content from religion, we came increasingly to seek religion, covertly, through art and entertainment. In a tour of Western culture that is at once exhilarating and…


Book cover of Supernatural: What the Bible Teaches About the Unseen World - and Why It Matters

R.J. Wilson Author Of Awakening

From my list on powerful young adults and supernatural worlds.

Why am I passionate about this?

Reading certain texts in the Bible growing up began my love for all things supernatural. The more I studied the subject and understood the worldview of the biblical authors and of other ancient cultures, the more I began to see these scenes in vivid color. With my passion for theological study (personally and as part of a master’s program), my work as a police officer, and my love for fantasy fiction perfectly positions me to write stories in which deep supernatural elements intersect with the gritty and real space of everyday life.

R.J.'s book list on powerful young adults and supernatural worlds

R.J. Wilson Why did R.J. love this book?

I’ve always wondered what an apocalyptic battle between angels and demons would look like.

Though this book is a theological non-fiction piece, it vastly expanded my imagination, in that realm, as I came to learn more about the supernatural worldview of the biblical authors and of other ancient religions.

What I loved most about the book was the exploration of this theme that hidden, divine beings walk among us.

It captures the fascinating image of the ordinary world being interrupted by that which is extraordinary—and these extraordinary phenomena are a lot closer than we think.

By Michael Heiser,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Supernatural as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

You may never read the Bible the same way again.

Angelic beings taking human wives. Ancient giants. God holding royal court among other gods. In Supernatural, Dr. Michael S. Heiser tackles these remarkable biblical themes and many more, based on his fifteen years of research into what the Bible really says about the unseen realm. Heiser shines a bright light on the supernatural world--not a new light, but rather the same light in which the original, ancient readers and writers of Scripture would have seen it.


Book cover of The Demon's Apprentice
Book cover of Coraline (The Graphic Novel)
Book cover of The Boughs Withered: When I Told Them My Dreams

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,888

readers submitted
so far, will you?

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in the supernatural, human nature, and vampires?

The Supernatural 377 books
Human Nature 32 books
Vampires 306 books