It’s the Spooky Season and it’s time to read Spooky books for the season! Here are my top picks to read for this spooky season
1 Home Before Dark – Riley Sager
One of the best books by Riley Sage and a perfect book to read for Spooky Season. The story follows a girl who moves back into her childhood house that shares a traumatic past.
This is more like a psychological thriller with a hint of horror in it
2 Hidden Pictures – Jason Rekulak
This is one of my top favorite horror/thriller books I have read! There are creepy pictures drawn by the child which also makes the story more haunting.
A girl gets a job as a nanny to work for a family but the child seem to be drawing disturbing pictures.
3 We Used to Live Here – Marcus Kliewer
A family claims that they used to live in the house and then weird thing starts happening in the house.
Perfect read if you want to read something of a horror genre
4 September House – Carissa Orlando
Haunted House and how to survive in a haunted house when there is an evil entity residing in the house–perfect read for this Halloween season.
5. The Sun Down Motel – Simone St James
This is the most one of the scariest books I have read. The Sun Down Motel will keep you up all night and boy, there are some parts that made you jump at the scene.
A worker works in the motel at night–the same motel where her own aunt disappeared more than thirty years ago. And she realizes this motel has a dark history…
6. The Broken Girls – Simone St James
This is also another one of my favorite Simone St James books, perfect to read for the Halloween season.
7. Never Lie – Freida McFadden
Freida McFadden’s Never Lie is a thriller to die for and perfect to read during the spooky season. A newly wedded couple move into their dream house but the house has a darker secret.
8. Daisy Darker – Alice Feeney
It’s a thriller with a bit of horror in it. Daisy Darker follows the story of Daisy Darker who reunites with her family to celebrate Nana’s 80th birthday. But Nana is found dead and one by one seem to follow them.
9. Ask for Andrea – Noelle W Ihli
A thriller–a girl becomes a ghost after becoming a victim of a serial killer and tries to bring justice for herself.
What are your book recommendations to read this spooky season? Leave a comment below!
Date published:- will be published on 24th September 2025
No. of pages:- 306 pages
Genre:- Psychological Thriller
Rating:-
Plot:- 3/5 Writing:- 3/5
Overall rating:- 3/5
Your biggest mistake is your sister’s new boyfriend.
All the family are gathered to meet my sister’s new boyfriend, including my husband Seth, and it should be a happy occasion. But the moment I see him my stomach drops. It’s Mateo. My worst mistake. My biggest secret. I hoped I’d never see him again – why is he here now?
‘It’s nice to meet you,’ he says. As I look into Mateo’s cold green eyes, I know he’s playing a deadly game. My hands tremble. This man can’t be trusted. He’s pretending not to know me… and he knows I have to pretend, too.
I’m caught in a lie with no way out. Mateo is dangerous. I don’t want my sister to get hurt. But if I admit who Mateo really is – what really happened between us – I could lose everything. My gorgeous husband. My precious little boy.
Or even my life…
Corinne and her husband Seth and son Freddie were excited to meet her sister Georgia’s new boyfriend along with their parents. But when Corinne meets him, she realized and recognized who he was–he was Mateo and five years ago, when Corinne was questioning about her relationship with Seth, she had an affair with Mateo which didn’t last long. But now Mateo is back and he wants nothing but getting back with Corinne. But Corinne will make sure that no one will know about her secret affair with Matteo even if it involves killing Matteo.
This was a fast-paced thriller–the story is told in the POV of Corinne entirely. I just like how the atmosphere in this book is tense overall, with Corinne worried about her husband finding out about her secret affair and Matteo threatening to tell everyone about their affair so it was well written in my opinion. However, I actually have a problem with the main character, Corinne–I think she is flawed in my opinion. Also compared to other thrillers written by Daniel Hurst, this wasn’t really great. Not many twists or turns you would expect and I kind of predicted what the ending was going to be. Nonetheless, I would continue reading Daniel Hurst’s books even though this wasn’t great.
Overall this is worth 3 stars.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.
Date published:- will be published on 22nd September 2025
No. of pages:- 350 pages
Genre:- Psychological Thriller
Rating:-
Writing:- 4/5 Plot:- 3/5
Overall rating:- 3.5/5
Nobody trusts her. How far will they go to get rid of her?
The Elizabeth has never been good enough for my perfect son Richard. I see through her pearly-white smiles and swanky hospital fundraisers to the real reason she married him. When I hear Richard is missing, I know she’s done something terrible. I will find my boy, and force her out of the family…
The Richard has always played away, so I just shrug my shoulders as I’m told he’s missing. But Jane’s accusations are like a dagger to my heart. I love my husband, despite everything we’ve been through. But she lost her grip on her son the day we got married. Has she set me up to get rid of me for good?
The When Jane asks me to watch Elizabeth, she doesn’t need to explain why. I know what it’s like to come from nothing just like Elizabeth did. What people will do to hide their past. And I see the way she looks around at the house she now owns as if a weight has been lifted off her shoulders. She can’t be trusted, but then neither can I…
Jane does not trust her daughter-in-law Elizabeth. She believes that Elizabeth has something to hide. She hires Marie to work as a cleaner at Elizabeth’s house. Marie’s role is simple–spy on Elizabeth and report whatever she finds to Jane. Marie keeps a close tab on Elizabeth but the more she works for Elizabeth the more she believes that Elizabeth may not be getting along with her mother-in-law and that Elizabeth’s marriage to Robert Jane’s son isn’t happy. But then Robert goes missing and Jane suspect that Elizabeth has something to do with his disappearance.
The story is told in the POVs of Jane and Marie. There are some twists and turns on the story and the story was quiet fast paced and intriguing as well. We see Jane who is determined to prove that Elizabeth has something to do with Robert’s disappearance and we see Marie who is doubting Jane’s theory and is trying to get closer to Elizabeth. The ending was completely unexpected but it was an OK ending in my opinion. The complete diversion of Marie’s character at the end was also completely unexpected.
The writing overall was good, and the author managed to keep the reader feel like they are at the edge of their seat.
Overall this is an OK thriller, worth 3.5 stars.
Willow Rose is a multi-million-copy best-selling Author and an Amazon ALL-star Author of more than 70 novels.
Several of her books have reached the top 10 of ALL books on Amazon in the US, UK, and Canada. She has sold more than three million books all over the world.
She writes Mystery, Thriller, Paranormal, Romance, Suspense, Horror, Supernatural thrillers, and Fantasy.
Willow’s books are fast-paced, nail-biting pageturners with twists you won’t see coming. That’s why her fans call her The Queen of Scream.
Willow lives on Florida’s Space Coast. When she is not writing or reading, you will find her surfing and watch the dolphins play in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
A Black father. A white father. Two murdered sons. A quest for vengeance.
Ike Randolph has been out of jail for fifteen years, with not so much as a speeding ticket in all that time. But a Black man with cops at the door knows to be afraid.
The last thing he expects to hear is that his son Isiah has been murdered, along with Isiah’s white husband, Derek. Ike had never fully accepted his son but is devastated by his loss.
Derek’s father Buddy Lee was almost as ashamed of Derek for being gay as Derek was ashamed his father was a criminal. Buddy Lee still has contacts in the underworld, though, and he wants to know who killed his boy.
Ike and Buddy Lee, two ex-cons with little else in common other than a criminal past and a love for their dead sons, band together in their desperate desire for revenge. In their quest to do better for their sons in death than they did in life, hardened men Ike and Buddy Lee will confront their own prejudices about their sons and each other, as they rain down vengeance upon those who hurt their boys.
I enjoyed S.A. Cosby’s All Sinner Bleed (I have given the review for the book) and so this is the second book I have been reading from this author.
Razorblade Tears follows the story of two fathers seeking vengeance and revenge from their sons’ killers. Ike Randolph and Buddy Lee were both criminals having been in prison and they both had estranged relationship with their sons–Isaiah and Derek. Isaiah and Derek were married to each other and both fathers struggled to come to terms they their sons were gay. But their sons’ brutal murders shocked both fathers and as the police failed to catch the criminals, both Ike and Buddy come together to handle the matters on their own.
This was well written–just like All Sinners Bleed. The raw emotions and heartbreak that each father was experiencing was too real. Ike having been in prison seemed to be having a successful landscaping business while Buddy seem to be struggling with his addiction in alcohol. One of the unique thing about this is, one of them, Ik is Black while Buddy is white and how despite racial differences, they work together to find their sons’ killers. The language and the words used in this novel give a hint of southern atmosphere in this novel.
I enjoyed this book and so overall I rate this book 4 stars.
Older women often feel invisible, but sometimes that’s their secret weapon.
They’ve spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they’re sixty years old, four women friends can’t just retire – it’s kill or be killed in this action-packed thriller.
Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie have worked for the Museum, an elite network of assassins, for forty years. Now their talents are considered old-school and no one appreciates what they have to offer in an age that relies more on technology than people skills.
When the foursome is sent on an all-expenses paid vacation to mark their retirement, they are targeted by one of their own. Only the Board, the top-level members of the Museum, can order the termination of field agents, and the women realize they’ve been marked for death.
Now to get out alive they have to turn against their own organization, relying on experience and each other to get the job done, knowing that working together is the secret to their survival. They’re about to teach the Board what it really means to be a woman–and a killer–of a certain age.
If you have Richard Osman’s Thursday Murder Club, then you will like this book as well. This story involves four former assassins–Billie, Natalie, Helen and Mary Anne who worked for an organization called the Museum . Their job involves killing Nazis then gradually to terrorists and Dictators and other deemed bad people. Now they have retired from their official duties and embarked on a cruise ship that was meant for them. But then the four women realize that someone is out to get them–someone from the Museum want to get rid of them. And so Billie, Natalie, Helen and Mary Ann escape from the cruise and then set out to find who was responsible for their near death experience and get rid of them all.
This was an interesting story. The plotline was interesting. The story kind of divides between past set in 1970s, 80’s and 90’s when the four women were working for the Museum and the present day, where they embark on a journey to England. I just like the friendship and camaraderie between the four women. Although the story line was interesting, intriguing and not to mention there were funny parts that would make you laugh out loud, I felt that overall, the plotline wasn’t realistic. The women are all in their sixties in the present day and seem to be communicating the way twenty-year-olds do. The present day was told in Billie’s POV while the past was told in third person point of view. Nevertheless, I did enjoy the book, I thought the pacing in the book was OK. The writing was great however.
This book is the first book of the series so maybe hopefully, I am looking forward for the second book. Overall this is worth only 3.5 stars.
New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist Deanna Raybourn is a 6th-generation native Texan. She graduated with a double major in English and history from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Married to her college sweetheart and the mother of one, Raybourn makes her home in Virginia. Her novels have been nominated for numerous awards including two RT Reviewers’ Choice awards, the Agatha, two Dilys Winns, a Last Laugh, three du Mauriers, and most recently the 2019 Edgar Award for Best Novel. She launched a new Victorian mystery series with the 2015 release of A CURIOUS BEGINNING, featuring intrepid butterfly-hunter and amateur sleuth, Veronica Speedwell. Veronica has returned in several more adventures, most recently AN IMPOSSIBLE IMPOSTOR, book seven, which released in early 2022. Deanna’s first contemporary novel, KILLERS OF A CERTAIN AGE, about four female assassins on the cusp of retirement publishes in September 2022. (Please note: Deanna is not active on GR.)
Two women haunted by their sisters’ unsolved disappearances band together in this captivating mystery from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of All Good People Here and host of the #1 true crime podcast Crime Junkie.
Nicole “Nic” Monroe is in a rut. At twenty-four, she lives alone in a dinky apartment in her hometown of Mishawaka, Indiana, she’s just gotten a DWI, and she works the same dead-end job she’s been working since high school, a job she only has because her boss is a family friend and feels sorry for her. Everyone has felt sorry for her for the last seven years—since the day her older sister, Kasey, vanished without a trace.
On the night Kasey went missing, her car was found over a hundred miles from home. The driver’s door was open and her purse was untouched in the seat next to it. The only real clue in her disappearance was Jules Connor, another young woman from the same area who disappeared in the same way, two weeks earlier. But with so little for the police to go on, both their cases eventually went cold.
Nic wants nothing more than to move on—from her sister’s disappearance and the state it’s left her in. But then one day, Jules’s sister, Jenna Connor, walks into her life and offers Nic something she hasn’t felt in a long hope. What follows is a gripping tale of two sisters who will do anything to find their missing halves, even if it means destroying everything they’ve ever known.
I enjoyed All The Good People Here by this author and saw I got my hands on her second book. The Missing Half follows the story of Nic who is devastated when her sister mysteriously disappeared without a trace. Nic is DWI, doing the same job she has been doing since high school and her life doesn’t really seem to be improving. Then a woman named Jenna comes to Nic, telling her that she has proof that Nic’s sister may be connected to Jenna’s sister’s disappearance case. Nic and Jenna work together reopening their wounds, both suffered from the loss of their sisters.
This was an emotional thriller. Both Nic and Jenna are suffering from the aftermath of their sisters’ disappearances. Nic however took it harder than Jenna. The entire story is told in Nic’s POV. Nic is somewhat a complicated character but at the same time you could relate to her in someway and is quite a likable character. The story is interesting from the start of the book–there are unexpected twists and turns and the book manages to keep the reader at suspense. Is there a serial killer on loose? Are the two cases connected? Many secrets were unraveled in the story which made it more interesting to read. Who is responsible for their sisters’ disappearances?
The ending however wasn’t what I actually expected. To be frank, I didn’t really like the ending. What started as a suspense kind of went down the drain with that ending. However, with that being said, I couldn’t wait what this author has in store for the next book.
Catherine Sterling thinks she knows her mother. Ruth Sterling is quiet, hardworking, and lives for her daughter. All her life, it’s been just the two of them against the world. But now, Catherine is ready to spread her wings, move from home, and begin a new career. And Ruth Sterling will do anything to prevent that from happening.
Ruth Sterling thinks she knows her daughter. Catherine would never rebel, would never question anything about her mother’s past or background. But when Ruth’s desperate quest to keep her daughter by her side begins to reveal cracks in Ruth’s carefully-constructed world, both mother and daughter begin a dance of deception.
I have read Sarah Pekkanen’s books before–she had co authored with Greer Hendricks The Golden Couple, The Anonymous Girl.
Gone Tonight follows the story of mother and daughter. The daughter Catherine Sterling believes that her mother is on the set of getting Alzheimer’s but when Catherine finds out some things about her mother, she wasn’t sure if she could trust her mother or not. Ruth Sterling has been moving around and running away from someone–and she would do anything to keep her daughter by the side.
The story is told in the POVs of Catherine and Ruth, so we would know what each of them thinks about each other. Ruth’s part was actually more interesting to read in my opinion as she describes her life in the past, what made her to leave behind her family and move to different cities. There are some twists and turns in the book, the book itself was engaging and intriguing to read. The writing was great, as the author knows how to draw the reader into the story. The ending was what I actually expected it to be, not really surprising. However there is not much suspense going on in the story in my opinion although the ending part was interesting to read.
Overall, I would rate this book 3.5 stars.
I’m a #1 New York Times bestselling author of 15 solo and coauthored books, including HOUSE OF GLASS, which is a Goodreads Choice award nominee and Amazon best book of the year.
My upcoming thriller, THE LOCKED WARD, is being hailed by Lee Child as “psychological suspense at its very best.”
I’m also the coauthor of four bestselling thrillers: THE GOLDEN COUPLE, THE WIFE BETWEEN US, AN ANONYMOUS GIRL, and YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
I’ve also written eight novels that are contemporary fiction, not thrillers: THE EVER AFTER, THE PERFECT NEIGHBORS, THINGS YOU WON’T SAY, CATCHING AIR, THE BEST OF US, THE OPPOSITE OF ME, SKIPPING A BEAT, and THESE GIRLS. My linked free short estories, published by Simon&Schuster exclusively for ereaders, are titled “All is Bright,” and “Love, Accidentally.”
When I’m not writing or spending time with my three kids, I’m a passionate advocate for rescue animals. I serve as Ambassador of RRSA India, a shelter and sanctuary for abused and injured street dogs and other animals in Anand, India. And I’m the founder of the nonprofit charity IndiaStreetPaws.com.
I also serve on the board of the International Thriller Writers. Readers and writers – come join us at Thrillerfest in NYC every spring!
Anna Green thought she was marrying Liam “West” Weston for access to subsidized family housing while at UCLA. She also thought she’d signed divorce papers when the graduation caps were tossed, and they both went on their merry ways.
Three years later, Anna is a starving artist living paycheck to paycheck while West is a Stanford professor. He may be one of four heirs to the Weston Foods conglomerate, but he has little interest in working for the heartless corporation his family built from the ground up. He is interested, however, in his one-hundred-million-dollar inheritance. There’s just one catch.
Due to an antiquated clause in his grandfather’s will, Liam won’t see a penny until he’s been happily married for five years. Just when Liam thinks he’s in the home stretch, pressure mounts from his family to see this mysterious spouse, and he has no choice but to turn to the one person he’s afraid to introduce to his one-percenter parents — his unpolished, not-so-ex-wife.
But in the presence of his family, Liam’s fears quickly shift from whether the feisty, foul-mouthed, paint-splattered Anna can play the part to whether the toxic world of wealth will corrupt someone as pure of heart as his surprisingly grounded and loyal wife. Liam will have to ask himself if the price tag on his flimsy cover story is worth losing true love that sprouted from a lie.
Anna Green is broke and struggling artist. She got fired from her job at the convenience store, Anna also needed money to pay for her father’s medical bills. But then Liam Weston comes back into her life–Anna has been “fake” married to Liam when they were in college. Liam wants Anna to pretend to be his wife again to attend for his sister’s wedding which will be held in an island in Indonesia. Anna willingly accepts the offer as she needs money. As Anna is getting ready to be Liam’s wife, Anna gets into the world of luxury but at the same time couldn’t help but falling in love in real with her fake husband.
This kind of reminded me of Crazy Rich Asians little bit but then the storyline is different. The similarities between the two books is an extravagant wedding is being held in a luxurious island in southeast Asian. Here, Anna and Weston are fake couple, pretending to be married, Anna pretending to be a doctor although she is a struggling artist.
There were some funny moments in the book, the whole descriptions of the island itself made you the reader feel like you are also in the island. Anna is such a funny loving and at the same time caring and loyal character, perfect for Liam who had a strained relationship with his own father. I like how Anna is trying to help Liam get is portion of the inheritance as the will stipulated that in order to get the inheritance, the children had to be married. Either way, it was an enjoyable read in my opinion.
Hiding her own dark past in plain sight, a TV reporter is determined to uncover the truth behind a gruesome murder decades after the investigation was abandoned. But TWENTY YEARS LATER, to understand the present, you need to listen to the past…
Avery Mason, host of American Events, knows the subjects that grab a TV audience’s attention. Her latest story—a murder mystery laced with kinky sex, tragedy, and betrayal—is guaranteed to be ratings gold. New DNA technology has allowed the New York medical examiner’s office to make its first successful identification of a 9/11 victim in years. The twist: the victim, Victoria Ford, had been accused of the gruesome murder of her married lover. In a chilling last phone call to her sister, Victoria begged her to prove her innocence.
Emma Kind has waited twenty years to put her sister to rest, but closure won’t be complete until she can clear Victoria’s name. Alone she’s had no luck, but she’s convinced that Avery’s connections and fame will help. Avery, hoping to negotiate a more lucrative network contract, goes into investigative overdrive. Victoria had been having an affair with a successful novelist, found hanging from the balcony of his Catskills mansion. The rope, the bedroom, and the entire crime scene was covered in Victoria’s DNA.
But the twisted puzzle of Victoria’s private life is just the beginning. And what Avery doesn’t realize is that there are other players in the game who are interested in Avery’s own secret past—one she has kept hidden from both the network executives and her television audience. A secret she thought was dead and buried . . .
Accused of a brutal murder, Victoria Ford made a final chilling call from the North Tower on the morning of 9/11. Twenty years ago, no one listened. Today, you will.
Avery Mason is a popular host of a reality TV series. Avery came across a new story that involves murder, kinky sex, tragedy and betrayal that will grab the attention of the general republic. In 2001, months before 9/11, Victoria Ford was accused of the brutal murder of a famous author Cameron Young as her DNA was all over the crime scene. On the day of 9/11, she was meeting her lawyer at the North Tower when the plane barged into the top part of the building. Before her death, Victoria made a frantic call to her sister, telling her that she was innocent and that someone was trying to frame her for murder. Now twenty years later, through the latest DNA technology, the remains of Victoria Ford was identified and Avery takes up the case to prove that she was innocent. She has to work with Walt Jenkins, the detective who was involved in Victoria’s murder case at the time. Walt Jenkins is also dealing with own drama as well as tasked to follow Avery Mason as she is running from her past and that she could be helping someone who is a fugitive.
This was very interesting and intriguing. How science and latest technology is able to identify the remains of the victims of 9/11 was interesting to read. This was fast paced and the writing was great that I was hooked into the story from the start of the chapter. Both the main characters, Avery and Walt are dealing with their own drama and demons. The first 10% of the story wasn’t really interesting but soon it got way more interesting and unputdownable. There is dual time line–between present (2021) and the day when Cameron Young got murdered and Walt investigating the case twenty years ago, and you could actually see the vast contrast of technology when reading both the timelines. This is the first time I am reading from this author and this thriller was quiet page turning and not able to put down at all. Whole concept of the story was interesting and unique as well–a murder that happened twenty years ago and the fact that the suspects’ remains were found at the scene of 9/11. Literally, this is one of the authors that thriller fans must look for as this book was unputdownable. Not to mention the ending was totally unexpected as well.
Overall this is worth 4.5 stars.
Charlie Donlea is the USA TODAY, IndieBound, and #1 Internationally bestselling author of critically acclaimed, propulsive thrillers including THE GIRL WHO WAS TAKEN, DON’T BELIEVE IT, TWENTY YEARS LATER, and THOSE EMPTY EYES. His ninth thriller, GUESS AGAIN, is out now.
Published in 40 countries and translated into twenty-five languages, his books have sold nearly 3 million copies in the U.S. alone.
He spends a part of each year fishing with his father in the far reaches of Canada, where the roads end and lakes are accessible only by floatplane. These majestic trips to “God’s Country” inspired the settings for his novels Summit Lake and GUESS AGAIN, coming in August 2025.
He resides in Chicago with his wife and two children.
It’s the perfect holiday with her fiancé—until his mistress arrives…
My drink almost slips from my hand when the gorgeous blonde arrives by the infinity pool and gives my fiancé Dale a little wave. It’s her. His other woman, Hannah, with her own boyfriend in tow.
When he cheated, I was devastated. He always made me feel like I was his whole world. This trip was supposed to be our last chance to reconnect. Dale swears he didn’t invite her here—but how did she know which resort we’d be at?
I can see Dale stealing glances at her when he thinks I’m not looking. If that’s the way he wants to play it, fine. I can pretend too. I’ve been keeping my secrets for years, but I really did love him.
I know I can’t trust Hannah. She’s obviously here for Dale, but does she know more about me than she’s letting on? Either way, she’s dangerous.
Four people landed in Florida, but only three might make it home alive…
Uninvited is a completely unputdownable psychological thriller, perfect for fans of The Housemaid, The Perfect Marriage and The Girl in Seat 2A.
This is the second book I am reading by Emily Shiner and she brings out a thriller that brings out about manipulation, betrayal and cheating all mingled together.
Dale brings his fiancée Aimee to a trip to make up for the fact that he cheated on Aimee. However at the trip, Dale’s mistress Hannah also joins in trip. Aimee was devastated that Hannah is up to something and Hannah too wants to destroy Aimme which was in her agenda. However, there is even a bigger reason as to why Hannah wants revenge on Aimee.
The story is told in the POVs of Aimee and Hannah. Both characters are unreliable and both characters particularly Aimme is hiding a deep secret. The writing style was intriguing and interesting and there are twists and turns that will keep the reader feel like they are at the edge. All characters seem to be hiding some dark secret and the dynamics of the story and the characters are intense in my opinion. There is so much drama going on the story. And the ending was quiet unexpected.
Overall, this is a page turning unpredictable novel that will keep you up all night–worth five stars.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC and making me a part of the blog tour. The review is based on my honest opinion.
Author Bio:
Emily Shiner always dreamed of becoming an author. After spending years devouring stacks of thrillers, she decided to try her hand at writing them herself. Now she gets to live out her dream of writing novels and sharing her stories with people around the world. She lives in the Appalachian Mountains and loves hiking with her husband, daughter, and their two dogs.
Tropical Girl Reads 