Happy Halloween, book lovers! 🎃👻

We've rounded up some of our favorite reads that we think are perfect for spooky season! Whether you prefer cozy fantasy or scary thrillers, we got all the picks for you. Keep scrolling to see which books the Fierce Reads team thinks are the best for this Halloween season

FOR FANS OF THE PARANORMAL

Blackwater by Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham Riverdale meets Stranger Things in this debut queer YA graphic novel, developed from a hit webcomic. Set in the haunted town of Blackwater, Maine, two boys fall for each other as they dig for clues to a paranormal mystery. Tony Price is a popular high school track star and occasional delinquent aching for his dad’s attention and approval. Eli Hirsch is a quiet boy with a chronic autoimmune disorder that has ravaged his health and social life. What happens when these two become unlikely friends (and a whole lot more . . .) in the spooky town of Blackwater, Maine? Werewolf curses, unsavory interactions with the quarterback of the football team, a ghostly fisherman haunting the harbor, and tons of high school drama. Co-illustrated by Jeannette Arroyo and Ren Graham, who alternate drawing chapters in their own unique and dynamic styles, Blackwater combines the spookiness of Anya's Ghost with the irreverent humor of Nimona.

FOR FANS OF A GOOD MURDER MYSTERY

Blood and Moonlight by Erin Beaty In Erin Beaty's fantasy mystery-thriller, Blood and Moonlight, an orphan with a secret, magical sight gets caught between a mysterious genius and the serial killer he’s hunting. Rising above the city of Collis is the holy Sanctum. And watching over its spires is Catrin, an orphan girl with unique skills—for she alone can spot the building’s flaws in construction before they turn deadly. But when Catrin witnesses a murderer escaping the scene of his crime, she’s pulled into a dangerous chain of events where the only certainty is that the killer will strike again. Assigned to investigate is the mysterious and brilliant Simon, whose insights into the mind of a predator are frighteningly accurate. As the grisly crimes continue, Catrin finds herself caught between killer and detective while hiding her own secret—a supernatural sight granted by the moon, destined to make her an outcast, and the only thing that might save her and those she loves from becoming the next victims...

FOR FANS OF GOTHIC ROMANCE

Forestfall by Lyndall Clipstone At the lake's edge, I made my promise. In the forest, I will fall. The curse that haunted Lakesedge Estate has been broken, but at great cost. Violeta Graceling has sacrificed herself to end the Corruption. To escape death, Leta makes a desperate bargain with the Lord Under, one that sees her living at his side in the land of the dead. And though he claims to have given her all he promised, Leta knows this world of souls and mists hides many secrets. When she discovers she is still bound to Rowan, Leta goes to drastic lengths to reforge their connection. But her search for answers, and a path back home, will see her drawn into even more dangerous bargains, and struggling to resist the allure of a new, dark, power in Forestfall by Lyndall Clipstone.

FOR FANS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER

Into the Sublime by Kate A. Boorman A new YA psychological thriller from Kate A. Boorman, author of What We Buried, about four teenage girls who descend into a dangerous underground cave system in search of a lake of local legend, said to reveal your deepest fears. When the cops arrive, only a few things are clear: - Four girls entered a dangerous cave. - Three of them came out alive. - Two of them were rushed to the hospital. - And one is soaked in blood and ready to talk. Amelie Desmarais' story begins believably enough: Four girls from a now-defunct thrill-seeking group planned an epic adventure to find a lake that Colorado locals call "The Sublime." Legend has it that the lake has the power to change things for those who risk—and survive—its cavernous depths. They each had their reasons for going. For Amelie, it was a promise kept to her beloved cousin, who recently suffered a tragic accident during one of the group’s dares. But as her account unwinds, and the girls’ personalities and motives are drawn, things get complicated. Amelie is hardly the thrill-seeking type, and it appears she’s not the only one with the ability to deceive. Worse yet, Amelie is covered in someone's blood, but whose exactly? And where's the fourth girl? Is Amelie spinning a tale to cover her guilt? Or was something inexplicable waiting for the girls down there? Amelie's the only one with answers, and she's insisting on an explanation that is more horror-fantasy than reality. Maybe the truth lies somewhere in between? After all, strange things inhabit dark places. And sometimes we bring the dark with us.

FOR FANS OF CAMPY TRUE-CRIME

Lord of the Fly Fest by Goldy Moldavsky Rafi Francisco needs a splashy case to put her true-crime podcast on the map. Her plan? Land an interview with Fly Fest headliner River Stone, who rocketed to stardom after his girlfriend's mysterious disappearance—and expose him as the killer she's sure he is. But when Rafi—and the hordes of influencers—arrive at Fly Fest, the dreamy Caribbean getaway they were promised turns out to be a nightmare. Soon, Rafi is fighting for her life against power-hungry beauty gurus and spotty WiFi. And, as she gets closer to River, she discovers that his secrets might have even bigger consequences than she suspected.

FOR FANS OF ENEMIES TO LOVERS

Princess of Souls by Alexandra Christo From Alexandra Christo, the author of To Kill a Kingdom, comes Princess of Souls, a Rapunzel-inspired YA fantasy romance about a teen witch groomed to steal souls for an immortal king and the reckless, rebellious boy to whom her fate is tied. For sixteen years, Selestra has been trapped in her tower on the Floating Mountain, preparing to take her mother’s place as the King's Witch, who foretells deaths in the Festival of Predictions. Outrunning your fate earns a wish and the chance to steal the King’s immortality. But die and your soul is forfeit. And though thousands have tried, nobody has ever beaten death. A soldier in the King's army, Nox is an unlikely candidate for the Festival, but, driven by revenge, he is determined to steal the King’s immortality and kill the entirety of his court, starting with Selestra. Yet when Selestra touches Nox in her very first prediction, their fates become entwined, and death seeks to take both their souls. Only by working together can they survive long enough to escape the dark fate and the immortal King that now hunts them.

FOR FANS OF PSYCHIC VISIONS

You Should Have Seen This Coming by Shani Michelle A teen girl who sees visions of the past must use her gift to save a kidnapped classmate in Shani Michelle's high-stakes YA thriller You Should Have Seen This Coming! Hayden sees the past. Just touching an object will occasionally give her flashes of the previous owner’s memories. And if that memory happens to be a deeply hidden secret, then she has no problem making you pay for your crime, in cash. Cassie sees the future, and it sucks. Her dreams are filled with disasters that she feels compelled to stop, and could she please stop watching her boyfriend fall in love with someone else?! But when Cassie tries to warn Hayden that her latest blackmailing scheme is a trap, she knows she’s really in trouble. Suddenly the upcoming kidnapping is all she can see, yet nothing she does stops it. And it’s all Hayden’s fault! Can Hayden’s gift help her find Cassie before it’s too late?

FOR FANS OF MONSTER SLAYING

Scout's Honor by Lily Anderson Prudence Perry is a third-generation Ladybird Scout who must battle literal (and figurative) monsters and the weight of her legacy in Scout's Honor by Lily Anderson, a YA paranormal perfect for fans of Stranger Things and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sixteen-year-old Prudence Perry is a legacy Ladybird Scout, born to a family of hunters sworn to protect humans from mulligrubs—interdimensional parasites who feast on human emotions like sadness and anger. Masquerading as a prim and proper ladies' social organization, the Ladybirds brew poisons masked as teas and use knitting needles as daggers, at least until they graduate to axes and swords. Three years ago, Prue’s best friend was killed during a hunt, so she kissed the Scouts goodbye, preferring the company of her punkish friends lovingly dubbed the Criminal Element much to her mother and Tía Lo’s disappointment. However, unable to move on from her guilt and trauma, Prue devises a risky plan to infiltrate the Ladybirds in order to swipe the Tea of Forgetting, a restricted tincture laced with a powerful amnesia spell. But old monster-slaying habits die hard and Prue finds herself falling back into the fold, growing close with the junior scouts that she trains to fight the creatures she can’t face. When her town is hit with a mysterious wave of demons, Prue knows it’s time to confront the most powerful monster of all: her past.

FOR FANS OF RETELLINGS

Gilded by Marissa Meyer In Gilded, #1 New York Times-bestselling author Marissa Meyer returns to the fairytale world with this haunting tale. Long ago cursed by the god of lies, a poor miller's daughter has developed a talent for spinning stories that are fantastical and spellbinding and entirely untrue. Or so everyone believes. When one of Serilda's outlandish tales draws the attention of the sinister Erlking and his undead hunters, she finds herself swept away into a grim world where ghouls and phantoms prowl the earth and hollow-eyed ravens track her every move. The king orders Serilda to complete the impossible task of spinning straw into gold, or be killed for telling falsehoods. In her desperation, Serilda unwittingly summons a mysterious boy to her aid. He agrees to help her… for a price. Love isn't meant to be part of the bargain. Soon Serilda realizes that there is more than one secret hidden in the castle walls, including an ancient curse that must be broken if she hopes to end the tyranny of the king and his wild hunt forever.

FOR FANS OF UNDYING LOVE

Afterlove  by Tanya Byrne  In this powerful, all-encompassing YA love story, a girl who becomes a grim reaper must figure out what the future holds—especially when it comes to the girlfriend she left behind. When Ashana Persaud meets Poppy Morgan on a school trip, she’s sure it’s too good to be true. Ash has never had much luck with girls, but Poppy proves different. Coffee dates turn to museum trips until, soon, the two girls can see a future together—one that’s seemingly snatched from them when a hit-and-run takes Ash’s life on New Year’s Eve. As the last person to die before midnight, Ash is bestowed the title of reaper, tasked with finding lost souls and helping them cross over. Only those close to death can perceive a reaper, so when Ash runs into Poppy one lonely night—and Poppy recognizes her—they can't be sure if it's the second chance they've so desperately wished for, or a tragedy lying in wait.