What New Horror Books Should I Read This Year?

The horror genre in 2020 had some absolute gems that kept me up way past my bedtime. One that still lingers in my mind is 'The Only Good Indians' by Stephen Graham Jones. It’s a masterclass in blending cultural horror with psychological dread, following four Blackfoot men haunted by a disturbing event from their youth. Jones’ writing is visceral—I could practically feel the freezing Montana wind and hear the elk’s eerie cries. The way he subverts expectations with brutal, poetic violence made it unforgettable. Another standout was 'Mexican Gothic' by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, which drips with atmospheric decay. Set in a crumbling mansion in 1950s Mexico, it’s like if Jane Austen met Lovecraft, with a protagonist whose sharp wit cuts through the moldy gloom. The slow unraveling of the house’s secrets had me flipping pages like a maniac. For those craving something more surreal, 'The Hollow Places' by T. Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon’s horror pen name) delivered creepy, otherworldly vibes. Imagine stumbling upon a portal to a dimension where the laws of physics are… wrong. Kingfisher’s knack for dry humor somehow makes the horror hit harder—I laughed nervously while checking my closet for eldritch monstrosities. On the quieter side, 'The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires' by Grady Hendrix is a darkly comic twist on suburban horror. It nails the frustration of women being dismissed even as they uncover literal monsters in their neighborhood. Hendrix’s balance of humor and genuine tension is chef’s kiss. And let’s not forget 'The Silence of the White City' by Eva García Sáenz—a Spanish thriller with supernatural undertones that’s as much about twisted history as it is about body horror. That one ruined my appetite for Basque desserts for weeks. What I loved about 2020’s horror was how diverse it got—no two books felt alike, and each left its own unique scar.