Stories by @horrorbloodhound

Trad Wife

Trad Wife by Saratoga Schaefer is a horror novel about a social media influencer who embraces the "tradwife" lifestyle, but feels her online image is incomplete without a baby, leading her to make a wish at a mysterious well that results in a demonic, supernatural pregnancy. The book is described as a gory, darkly funny, and disturbing take on influencer culture, body horror, and the pressures on women, featuring a rapidly developing pregnancy with monstrous cravings and an unnaturally fast-growing fetus. It's often compared to Rosemary's Baby but with a modern, satirical twist, and is praised for its blend of elevated horror and schlocky, 80s-inspired aesthetics.

Maggie's Grave

Maggie's Grave by David Sodergren is a folk horror novel about a small, dying Scottish town haunted by the vengeful ghost of Maggie Wall, a woman executed as a witch centuries ago, who returns to claim a baby she believes is hers. The story follows the remaining residents as they are terrorized by the witch's gruesome rampage, uncovering dark secrets about their town's history and their own connection to Maggie's curse. It's known for its extreme gore, small-town atmosphere, and 80s slasher/creature feature vibes, with a focus on survival horror and a shocking twist ending.

The Haar

The Haar by David Sodergren is a folk horror novel about an elderly woman, Muriel McAuley, in a Scottish fishing village threatened by developers, who finds a mysterious, sentient ooze creature in a fog bank (the "haar") that helps her fight back with extreme, gory violence, blending themes of greed, love, loss, and body horror. It's described as a "gore-soaked folk horror fairy tale" with a mix of John Carpenter-style body horror and a heartfelt, emotional core, often compared to The Thing.

Memorials

Memorials by Richard Chizmar is a 2024 horror novel about three college students filming a documentary on roadside memorials in 1983 Appalachia, who uncover a sinister, supernatural secret tied to the memorials, leading to paranoia, strange symbols, and a terrifying, occult-based threat. The book is noted for its 80s nostalgia, well-developed characters, and slow-burn tension that builds to a suspenseful climax, blending coming-of-age themes with supernatural horror.

Ballad of Black Tom

The Ballad of Black Tom is a 2016 novella by Victor LaValle that reimagines H.P. Lovecraft's "The Horror at Red Hook" from a Black perspective. Set in 1920s Harlem, it follows Charles Thomas Tester as he navigates racism and poverty before a delivery to a sorceress in Queens opens him to a world of cosmic horror. The novella is a critical and popular success, winning the 2016 Shirley Jackson Award and the 2017 British Fantasy Award for Best Novella.

Everything is Fine

Based on the webcomic

Hell House

Richard Matheson's 1971 horror novel, Hell House, is about a group of four people who investigate the notoriously haunted Belasco House to prove the existence of life after death. The group includes a physicist, his wife, and two mediums, who are hired by a wealthy publisher to explore the mansion's secrets. The novel is known for its graphic content, blending supernatural horror with psychological terror as the house's evil influence attempts to destroy the investigators.

The Pallbearers Club

The Pallbearers Club is a 2022 horror novel by Paul Tremblay that blurs the lines between reality and memory through a unique "found footage" style. The story is presented as a memoir by a shy teenager named Art Barbara, which is then "edited" by his mysterious friend, Mercy Brown, who adds her own notes and corrections. The novel explores a complex and unsettling friendship, a parasitic creature, and a New England folklore about digging up the dead.

The One with the Cannibals

A mix of Friends and horror

The Children of Red Peak

The Children of Red Peak is a 2020 psychological horror novel by Craig DiLouie about three adult survivors of a doomsday cult who must confront their traumatic past. The story, told through dual timelines, follows David, Deacon, and Beth as they reunite after a fellow survivor's suicide to share their repressed memories and return to the mountain where the cult's horrific final days took place. The book explores themes of faith, trauma, and the blurred line between religious belief and cult-like fanaticism.

From Below

From Below is a 2022 horror novel by Darcy Coates about a documentary dive team that discovers the sunken wreck of the SS Arcadia, a ship that vanished years earlier. As the team explores the eerie, underwater graveyard, they uncover the terrifying secret of the ship's disappearance, facing a claustrophobic and suspenseful underwater environment. The story alternates between the modern-day dive and the events leading up to the ship's sinking in 1929.

My Best Friend's Exorcism (But It's Actually the 80s)

Basically what the title says

My Best Friend's Exorcism

My Best Friend's Exorcism is a 2016 horror novel by Grady Hendrix that blends 1980s nostalgia, teen angst, and demonic possession into a story about enduring friendship. Set in 1988, the story follows high school sophomores Abby and Gretchen, whose friendship is tested when Gretchen begins to act strangely after a night of skinny-dipping, leading Abby to believe her best friend is possessed. The book is known for its blend of horror and humor, with comparisons to The Exorcist and Heathers, and explores themes of female friendship, self-image, and the challenges of the 1980s.

Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires is a 2020 horror novel by Grady Hendrix that blends supernatural thrills with social commentary on the lives of 1990s suburban housewives. The story follows Patricia Campbell, a bored housewife whose book club becomes her only joy, until a handsome new neighbor, James Harris, arrives and is suspected of being a vampire. The novel explores themes of sexism, classism, and the repression of women, all while delivering a suspenseful story with a satisfying, action-packed resolution.

Ghost Eaters

Ghost Eaters: A Novel by Clay McLeod Chapman is a 2022 horror novel about a woman named Erin who, after her reckless ex-boyfriend Silas dies of an overdose, takes a new drug called "Ghost" that allows her to see the dead. The drug, which functions as a "pill-popping séance," leads to terrifying supernatural encounters and forces Erin to confront the dark history of her hometown, Richmond, Virginia, as well as themes of addiction, grief, and white guilt.

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes is a 2025 social horror novel by Clay McLeod Chapman about a demonic possession epidemic spread through media, focusing on Noah Fairchild as he tries to save his family from a far-right cable news channel that turns people into violent monsters. The book explores themes of political division and media corruption through graphic, transgressive horror, though some critics find its social commentary heavy-handed and its horror exploitative.

Mapping the Interior

Mapping the Interior is a 2017 horror novella by Stephen Graham Jones about a Native American boy named Junior who encounters the ghost of his deceased father, leading him to discover his house is larger and more complex than he knew. The story explores themes of grief, loss, cultural identity, and the blurred lines between reality and the supernatural as Junior tries to map his home and understand his father's legacy.

Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights is the only novel by the English author Emily Brontë, initially published in 1847 under her pen name "Ellis Bell". It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their turbulent relationships with the Earnshaws' foster son, Heathcliff. The novel, influenced by Romanticism and Gothic fiction, is considered a classic of English literature.

The Long Walk

The Long Walk is a dystopian horror novel by American writer Stephen King, published in 1979, under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. Set in a dystopian alternative version of the United States ruled by a totalitarian regime, the plot follows the contestants of a grueling annual walking contest.

How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive

"How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive" is a novel by Craig DiLouie that explores the dark side of filmmaking, specifically within the horror genre. The story follows a 1980s slasher director, Max Maurey, who discovers a cursed camera that films real-life horrors. He uses this camera to create a movie, but the camera's deadly intentions begin to manifest, blurring the lines between fiction and reality.