There’s something endlessly seductive about stories cloaked in shadows.

The kind where the walls creak with secrets. Where grief lingers like fog. Where the line between love and ruin blurs into something almost beautiful.

If you’re like me—drawn to the eerie elegance of crumbling estates, twisted family legacies, and emotionally charged tales that whisper of madness and longing—then this list is your candle in the dark. These are not your mainstream picks. These are hidden gems—Gothic stories with teeth, beauty, and broken things.

So light a candle. Let the rain fall. And let’s get lost in these ten gloriously haunted books.

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1. The House on Vesper Sands by Paraic O’Donnell

Summary:
In this stylish Victorian mystery, women are vanishing, and their last moments are tied to eerie symbols sewn into their clothing. A cynical journalist and a sharp-witted orphan unravel a conspiracy with whispers of the supernatural. The prose is atmospheric and lyrical, blending dry humor with haunting themes of class, grief, and invisible power.

A haunting gothic mystery threaded with wit — Read on
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2. Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand

Summary:
Told through interview transcripts, the surviving members of a 70s British acid-folk band recount a summer spent in an ancient country house—where their lead singer vanished without a trace. The story fuses British folk horror with mythic creepiness and melancholia, pulling you into a slow unraveling mystery of memory, music, and loss.

A ghost story in the form of a fading melody — Read on
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3. An Autumn Story by Tommaso Landolfi (Translated Fiction)

Summary:
A fugitive fleeing wartime Italy stunbles into a remote mountain mansion, where labyrinthine rooms echo with uncannt sounds and whispered warnings. He discovers portrait of a woman and eventually meets her — uncannily alive yet trapped in mourning. What begins as refuge spirals into uncannt horror, where grief and myth blend into obsession. Landolfi’s prose is dreamlike, unnerving, and haunting long after the final page.

A gothic novella drenched in longing and uncanny beauty — Read on
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4. The Spirit Engineer by A.J. West

Summary:
Based on true events in 1914 Belfast, this novel follows a grieving man obsessed with exposing spiritual mediums—until he’s drawn into their world. Elegant and eerie, the story explores the fine line between belief and delusion, the living and the dead. An underrated entry into modern gothic historical fiction.

A dark séance of grief and obsession — Read on
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5. The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich

Summary:
Through medical files, video transcripts, and diary entries, readers piece together the story of Carly and Kaitlyn—two souls in one body. Set in a haunted boarding school, this twisted YA/adult crossover explores trauma, identity, and madness in a format that keeps you guessing until the final page.

A fractured mind becomes a haunted house — Read on
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6. The Resurrectionist by E.B. Hudspeth

Summary:
A gothic tale masquerading as a lost biography, The Resurrectionist tells the tragic story of Dr. Spencer Black—surgeon turned mythological anatomist. The book is split between his fictional biography and his terrifying anatomical studies of mythical creatures. Visually stunning and chillingly poetic, it’s a disturbing meditation on obsession and monstrosity.

A dark blend of fiction, art, and madness — Read on
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7. The Family Plot by Cherie Priest

Summary:
Dahlia and her crew are hired to salvage a historic mansion—but the house holds secrets that don’t want to be unearthed. Ghosts linger in mirrors, graves are hidden beneath trees, and grief breathes through the walls. A moody, slow-simmering ghost story that balances suspense with eerie Southern charm.

The past never stays buried — Read on
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8. The Grip of It by Jac Jemc

Summary:
A young couple moves into their dream home, only to be consumed by unease, stains that grow, and rooms that don’t exist on blueprints. Told in alternating perspectives, the novel slowly dissolves their reality. Jemc crafts a deeply gothic narrative disguised as literary horror—haunting in the quietest of ways.

A disorienting descent into domestic terror — Read on
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9. And Her Smile Will Untether the Universe by Gwendolyn Kiste

Summary:
This collection of strange, gothic short stories features broken women, ghost girls, vanished realities, and dark rebirths. Kiste writes with a lyrical sharpness, threading together tales of sorrow and spectral transformation. Every story feels like a wound stitched with ribbons—aching, gorgeous, unforgettable.

A love letter to monstrous women and sorrowed beauty — Read on
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10. Mr. Splitfoot by Samantha Hunt

Summary:
Ruth and Nat, raised in a cult-like orphanage, once claimed to speak to the dead. Years later, Ruth reappears—silent and mysterious—leading her pregnant niece on a silent, eerie journey. Told in alternating timelines, Hunt’s haunting tale blends spiritualism, trauma, and feminine resilience with lyrical beauty and gothic unease.

A transcendent tale of loss, silence, and spirit — Read on
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🕯️ Final Thoughts

Gothic fiction lingers in the shadows of the human heart—quiet, eerie, and unforgettable. These books may not always sit on bestseller shelves, but they carry haunting prose, morally complex characters, and twisted histories that will leave you breathless. If you’ve made it this far, perhaps you too crave the beautiful ache of a story that unsettles and stays.

Which one will you read first?

💔 More Vibes You Might Love:
→ Griefcore Reads: Books That Hurt Beautifully
For when you’re in the mood to feel everything—soft pain, raw memory, and the weight of absence.