20 Must Read Ghost Novels

Ghost stories have an enduring grip on our imagination, weaving together fear, mystery, and the unknown. They tap into our deepest anxieties—about what lingers beyond death, about unfinished business, about spirits that refuse to rest. These novels are more than just chilling tales; they explore the fine line between the seen and unseen, the rational and the supernatural. From haunted houses to restless spirits seeking justice, each book in this collection invites readers into a world where the past refuses to be forgotten. Suspenseful, atmospheric, and unforgettable, these stories prove that some ghosts never fade—they only grow stronger with time. This collection includes the true classics of the genre: The Turn of the Screw (Henry James) The Castle of Otranto (Horace Walpole) The Phantom of the Opera (Gaston Leroux) Wandering Ghosts (Francis Marion Crawford) Wuthering Heights (Emily Brontë) The Mysteries of Udolpho (Ann Ward Radcliffe) The Phantom Ship: The Legend of the Flying Dutchman (Frederick Marryat) The Case of Charles Dexter Ward (H. P. Lovecraft) Austin and His Friends (Frederic Henry Balfour) The Haunted Homestead (Emma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte Southworth) When Ghost Meets Ghost (William De Morgan) The Lost Stradivarius (John Meade Falkner) Moonfleet: The Story of Blackbeard's Ghost (John Meade Falkner) The Haunted Hotel: A Mystery of Modern Venice (Wilkie Collins) The Ghost of Guir House (Charles Willing Beale) The Haunted Chamber (Duchess) The Ghost Breaker (Paul Dickey, Charles Goddard) The Castle of Wolfenbach (Eliza Parsons) Tom Ossington's Ghost (Richard Marsh) The House on the Borderland (William Hope Hodgson)