The most recommended ghost story books

Jane-Emily is a YA classic, both a sweet romance and a spooky ghost mystery, set in the early 1900s. 

It’s also the book I described in my introduction as the one that made me fall in love with this genre! I first read it when I was about ten, and I immediately recommended it to my best friend, who was also an avid reader. To this day, we are both still scared of those mirrored gazing balls people display in gardens.

When my own children were young, I bought an old paperback on eBay and read it to them, savoring the story that I’ve re-read so many times once again. Even after all these years, Emily’s ghost still delivers chills as she unleashes her wrath on the innocent nine-year-old Jane, and the romance developing between Jane’s young aunt and an old friend of the family plays a part.

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It’s not quite clear at first whether the two children who appear one day out of the mist asking for help are ghosts, or whether the word is better used to describe the children who go back in time, as requested, to help them. Either way, this is a cracking story with a very satisfactory solution for all of them. And the amazing Mr. Blunden? For me, he is the best and the most moving part of the story. An old gentleman who made a terrible mistake in the past, but who has now been given a chance to put it right, and earn forgiveness and peace.

I did not seek this book out. It found me by way of a random box of paperbacks my father had read and mailed to me. I consider The Stranger Diaries my gateway book into Griffiths’ writing.

Since reading it, I have read Griffiths’ books exclusively, one after the other, for the last several months. My local librarian must think I am obsessed. All of this to say, this book really sucked me in.

Harbinder Kaur is a closeted lesbian and a damn fine police investigator. Without giving too much away, I will say that I enjoyed all the characters, which were well-developed and unique.

The mystery kept me curious until the end. Griffiths does a fantastic job of enveloping each scene with lovely descriptions, including the seaside and other spaces where the story takes place.

I have always sought out the strange and unusual. This book covers many different phenomena. Whether it is ghosts, aliens, legends, cryptids, or just weird lore, this book has a wide scope. I live in the state and occasionally participate in investigations of these subjects. I even wrote a play Ghosts, Aliens, and Bigfoot. This book almost reminds me of being with my grandfather as a child. He loved to scare with local legends and ghost stories spun with his special brand of creepiness and humor. Reading this late at night took me back to those special times.

Ghosts was the first book of Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct series that I read, primarily because I was interested in the paranormal aspect—I’ve always been a sucker for ghost stories. This was the first true police procedural I’d read, and I was most impressed with McBain’s mastery of writing dialogue. I was hooked and I’ve read most of the series since. As I wrote my own debut novel I referred to McBain’s novels many times to see how he handled dialogue tags and beats throughout his books. His dialogue is almost seamless. I’d recommend the 87th Precinct series to any writer serious about writing police procedurals.

Bullies beware! Bad Girls Don’t Die features a vengeful poltergeist that possesses the little sister of protagonist Alexis Warren.

Alexis is a lonely misfit teenager on the fringes of her high-school social scene. Her home life isn’t much better as her mother’s desire for corporate success leads to regular dinner table conflict. The sisters find comfort in each other, but that’s when Alexis notices a change in her sibling Kasey. Subtle at first, Kasey’s transformation into a malicious psychopath sends Alexis into an investigation that reveals a small-town secret of a fatal bullying incident. 

Bad Girl’s Don’t Die is a story of sisterly bonds, secret pasts, and the sacrifices that are sometimes made to protect loved ones.

This novel set in Sri Lanka blends murder mystery with historical fiction and upends expectations at every turn.

The story opens with anti-hero Maali waking up to find he's a ghost. I was immediately in his corner despite his being a shady character. (His business card: "Photographer, Gambler, Slut.")

When Maali learns he has seven moons (one week) to move into the Light, he opts to spend his precious time investigating his own murder. I was immersed in this world of the In-Between (think: ghosts, ghouls, demons) and real-life Sri Lanka during its war years. 

This book stomped on my heart multiple times, but it's funny and wise, too, thanks to Maali's jaded yet hopeful outlook. When the truth of his death was revealed, I was devastated—but the story's ending is bright and life-affirming.

This one is a bit of a fudge because it takes place in mid-August during the Hungry Ghost Festival, but the full moon and cool evening breeze capture that atmosphere of summer sliding into fall. Bound Feet is a modern ghost story centered on a grieving mother whose friend helps her break into Portland’s Chinese Garden and Ghost Museum in order to try to connect with her late daughter. What she finds, though, is a sinister presence from centuries ago and secrets that may upend her world. I love a story haunted by literal ghosts of the past, and this one had me smiling ear to ear as it descends into a nightmare phantasmagoria and twist after delicious twist is revealed. A great, quick read for beginning the season. 

Famous during her life for her social commentary novels like North and South, Elizabeth Gaskell (1810-1865) was also a spectacularly gifted author of ghost stories (Charles Dickens, in fact, frequently included her ghost tales in his periodical Household Words). This collection would be worth it for "The Old Nurse's Story" alone - considered to be one of the finest ghost stories ever written - but it contains other bone-chilling classics as well. 

I wear two hats. In addition to being a children’s book writer, I’m also the executive copy editor at Random House Books for Young Readers. I had the good fortune recently to work on a new novel from R. J. Palacio, of Wonder fame. It’s a one-of-a-kind Western that seamlessly and skillfully melds the material and the supernatural worlds. And it’s beautifully written and filled with heart-stopping suspense and iconic characters. Pony, a mysterious horse, leads a boy, Silas, on an epic quest to rescue his father from desperadoes. This haunting, deeply moving coming-of-age tale stayed with me long past its completion.