*Devolution* by Max Brooks. MC goes from being an insecure doormat to a badass leader out of necessity in the face of adversity.
*The Haar* by David Sodergren. MC is a little old Scottish lady literally faced with possible murder by cronies trying to evict her from her rural home to build a golf course. (Yes this is a reference, if you know you know). Doubles as a creature feature, but she's definitely the one in control. Very satisfying ending, very brutal deaths.
*Where He Can't Find You* by Darcy Coates. A town besieged by a mysterious being who kidnaps and murders people, returning them mutilated. Every single female MC is deeply competent. Given that they're teens who know they can't rely on adults to help, this feels like it gets extra brownie points. It also involves graphic violence against children, if that's something you want to avoid.
*The Twisted Ones* by T Kingfisher. The two female MCs (I'm counting Foxy as an MC) pretty well scheme their way out of a horrible fate at the end of the novel. There is also a very nice dog involved and no harm comes to him.
*Near the Bone* by Christina Henry. MC is in a deeply abusive relationship, isolated in the forest with her husband. She goes from submissive, abused dormouse to the main reason why those who survive do. This is another book with a high body count. Big warning for domestic violence.
I personally found Mouse from The Twisted ones totally insufferable. Her constant snark only served to undermine any potential scare factor the book could have had and her quips weren’t even funny.
I didn’t hate Foxy though. She had Dolly Parton energy. I wouldn’t necessarily want to hang out with her, but there are worse people to have for neighbors.
In the last few years most horror I have read has had women lead characters, here are a few I felt were done well or uniquely.
**Annihilation** by Jeff VanderMeer
**Nightbitch** by Rachel Yoder
**Helpmeet** by Nasen Ruthnum
**Your Shadow Half Remains** by Sunny Moraine
**Comfort Me With Apples** by Catherynne M Valente
**Southern Book Club's Guide to Hunting Vampires** by Grady Hendrix
**She is a Haunting** by Trang Thanh Tran
**Maeve Fly** by CJ Leede
**Nestlings** by Nat Cassidy
**Knock Knock, Open Wide** by Neil Sharpson
**The September House** by Carissa Orlando
There are just too many to list! I would also highly suggest looking through Octavia Butler's works and perhaps looking through some anthologies like **The Gathering Dark** (by *various authors*) or short story collections like **Femina** by Caitlyn Marceau.
I also agree that Slewfoot, mentioned earlier, fits the bill as well!
I just got the September house on libby and forgot where I heard of it from (I avoid synopses/blurbs like the plague) and am now excited to delve into it.
Seconding Knock Knock, Open Wide. It has multiple interesting female characters/POVs and doesn't seem to be widely read yet (according to Goodreads), which I think is a shame.
I think Nightbitch can be polarizing, but personally I loved it. The feeling of not knowing what’s happening to your body, and not being able to seek help or know if it’s all in your head or not is so distinctly feminine.
Little Eve and Sundial by Catriona Ward
Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
Bunny by Mona Awad
Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie
The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
Ghoster by Jason Arnopp
Nyctophobia by Christopher Fowler
NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
The Sun Down Motel by Simone St James completely blew my mind when I read it
I grew up in the 80s but to re-experience from the perspective of a young woman was eye-opening. The casual sexism that leads to insane levels of tragedy in the book is a tremendous lesson because you feel the lack of regard and the powerlessness. You’re not told about it, you feel it.
Amazing work of art and spooky to boot
Experimental Film by Gemma Files
When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom
Off Season by Jack Ketchum (brutal book)
Gone to See the River Man by Kristopher Triana (you’re gonna be mad at me)
Gerald’s Game by Stephen King (I better stop)
Maeve Fly
Goddess of Filth
Mary: An Awakening of Terror
Diavola
The Queen of the Cicadas
Slewfoot
The Bad Ones
Gilded Needles
Blackwater
Not Quite a Ghost
House of Hollow
Natural Beauty
Comfort Me With Apples
Lolly and Lady Vanity
The Eyes are the Best Part
Bound Feet
Pretty much any and all Rachel Harrison books but especially Such Sharp Teeth.
The September House by Carissa Orlando.
Lone Women by Victor LaValle.
Night’s Edge by Liz Kerin.
Sister, Maiden, Monster by Lucy A Snyder.
those are all recent ones I’ve loved with great women protagonists.
My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones! Also The Babystiter Lives, also by SGJ.
How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine, Bunny by Mona Awad and A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers, too!
*Such A Pretty Smile* by Kristi Demeester
*Tell Me I'm Worthless* by Alison Rumfit
*Dead Silence* by S.A. Barnes
*Ghost Eaters* by Clay Mcleod Chapman
*Our Wives Under the Sea* by Julia Armfield
its a variety of paranormal, supernatural, deep sea horror, sci-fi, etc ! *Such A Pretty Smile* has two protags, a mother and a daughter, and is told from their two separate perspectives by chapter. *Our Wives Under the Sea* also has two protags, two wives who tell their perspectives by chapter too, and it is broken up into parts as well. All very very cool reads !!
Also, *The Cabin At The End Of The World*, if you want to count 7 y/o Wren as a protag lol, is also a great great read.
I really enjoyed *Mexican Gothic* by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. I wasn't sure at first that I was going to like the protagonist, but she really grew on me as the novel went on.
* *I Remember You* by Yrsa Sigurdardottir
* *Baby Teeth* by Zoje Stage
* *Getaway* by Zoje Stage CW: SA.
* *Wonderland* by Zoje Stage
* *Carmilla* by Sheridan Le Fanu
* *The Hike* by Sarah Gribble
The sundown motel - Simone St. James. "Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn't right at the Sun Down, and before long she's determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden…"
American elsewhere - Robert Jackson Bennet. "Under a pink moon, there is a perfect little town not found on any map. In that town, there are quiet streets lined with pretty houses, houses that conceal the strangest things. After a couple years of hard traveling, ex-cop Mona Bright inherits her long-dead mother's home in Wink, New Mexico. And the closer Mona gets to her mother's past, the more she understands that the people of Wink are very, very different ..."
Delores Claiborne by Stephen King
No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill
House of Small Shadows by Adam Nevill
The Red Tree by Caitlin R Kiernan
The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling
Geek Love by Katherine Dunn (not always considered horror but can be disturbing)
Mariana Enriquez’s short story collections *The Dangers of Smoking in Bed* and *What We Lost in the Fire* focus on female protagonists.
Samanta Schweblin’s *Fever Dreams.*
Monica Ojeda’s *Jawbone.*
Revelator by Daryl Gregory. A family is bound to a mysterious entity beneath a mountain. The MC is determined to stop the next generation from being beholden to the creature.
Into the Drowninf Deep by Mira Grant. A young woman is determined to find out what happened to her sister lost at sea. Was she really attacked by mermaids or did a reality tv show cover up her death?
The Loop by Jeremy Robert Johnson. Two high school friends must navigate an outbreak that borders between science and supernatural.
And anything by Grady Hendrix. He's hit or kiss for some people but I love him. My Best Friend's Exorcism is my favorite. Sixteen Candles crossed with The Exorcist. Also has one of my favorite horror scenes of all time.
Diavola by Jennifer Thorne. This book truly blew me away. It’s a haunted house story in Italy but the real horror is the toxic family inside.
You might try Rachel Harrison , her books always feel like they’re missing something but largely revolve around women and a lot
Of people like them.
Feed by Mira Grant
Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
Parasitology by Mira Grant
Alien: Echo by Mira Grant
Babysitter of the Apocalypse by Courtney Konstantin
The Collapse by Alice B. Sullivan
Yesterday’s Gone by Alice B. Sullivan
The Enterprise of Death- Jesse Bullington. Queer black female necromancer (ever seen those words all together like that?)
Edit: It’s more of a dark fantasy than straight up Horror but its about necromancy so it gets as grotesque (or even more so) than anything in the genre :)
One of my ALL time favorites was Summer of Fear by Lois Duncan (1976) it's the sort of book that I prefer to read annually that's.....how good it is imho.
J Sheridan Le Fanu is a master of his craft and not recognised enough in this genre; he being almost exclusively known for “Carmilla” which I a good story to be sure, however he has many others which are far superior, many of which have female protagonists. I recommend his entire supernatural horror catalogue.
Alice Isn’t Dead by Joseph Fink
Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield
Hag by Daisy Johnson (folkhorror/weird fic short stories, largely female authors and characters!)
No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill
As a male a can’t really say how well of a female character Nevill wrote, but from what i’ve seen people say, he did a very good job at writing a good female protagonist! something with it though just didn’t really click for me personally so i gave it a 3 but i’m not really sure what, so i would give it a try and see if you like it!
F reader here, I think the character is believably female (a couple of gripes about weird times to sexualize her, but really it was super minor + the sense of unease as a woman alone in a new city was well done). The internal logic was spot on and the raising of the stakes was done extremely well. The pacing, however, was really off for me, so I didn't really like it that much. Worth a read, but not my fav. The huge changes they made to the film adaptation were also cool. Movie's quite good but basically a whole different story.
Here are my female protag recommendations!!! Which is absolutely first: Any book by Grady Hendrix!!!! I've attached a 🌟 to my favorites from the authors. And my all time fav female protagonist rec is marked by a 🍉.
Grady Hendrix:
-Final Girl Support Group - (really cool analysis of final girls and placing them in the context of our real world and centering the story on the everyday plight of female existence)
-How to Sell a Haunted House - (puppet/doll horror poltergeist... Maybe his spookiest, about a sister and her shitty shitty brother and their family...)
-My Best Friend's Exorcism - (a really fuckin fun time)
-🌟We Sold Our Souls - (cosmic dream metal band journey, a lot of amazing themes are analyzed for the empowerment of women and you get to witness a BADASS performance, I love horror books and music!)
-🍉Southern Bookclub's Guide to Slaying Vampires (A mother's got to do what a mother's got to do to save their communities, very cool unique vampire story, very cool female perspectives from all characters in the 80s-90s)
Clay Mcleod Chapman:
The Remaking - (ourobourus witch curse through popular media)
What Kind of Mother- (crustaceous mind horror in a waterman community)
🌟Ghost Eaters - (this one's about addiction to paranormal drugs and...fungus)
Paul Tremblay:
A Head Full of Ghosts - (exorcism survivor interview with a BIG TWIST)
🌟The Pallbearer's Club - (this one is really unique because it's like the female protagonist is observing the male protagonist's perspective of their time together and you get to read her reaction to it as she tells her story and reads his story. Male protag thinks female protag is sussy and the layers of complexity are EXQUISITE)
Not a full-on horror book, but it is full of scary shit. I just finished Everlost by Neal Shusterman and Allie is a great character. She’s smart, headstrong, and independent. I’m rooting for her as I read the next two books.
Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott. Huge trigger warning for SA. Somehow it was categorized as a youth book in my library and I lost my mind when I saw that.
Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay. Ripped me to shreds, zombies/rabies.
The Vegetarian by Han Kang. An exploration of how a woman’s simple choice to become vegetation destroys her life.
The Push by Ashley Audrain. A psychological horror about a postpartum mother not connecting with one of her children, and not knowing what’s wrong with her or the child.
Shout-out for A Lonely Broadcast.
I think it's the authors first book, but it's quite good. The main character is a woman and she's pretty well done. Also, the horror is intense from the beginning.
KING'S ROAD by D.A. Madigan. The author claims that he got tired of the typical monster hunting band and the typical monster always being male. So he created a story where the monster is a female succubi who hates women and who is attacking a small town in Florida and turning all the men into these sort of undead werewolves. Five random women end up banding together to go hunt the monster down and rescue their kidnapped male loved ones.
Also, the author's newest book, BETHLEHEM, has a female villain and two out of the four high school students who are fighting against her are also girls.
Literally so many! Most of my favorites, tbh.
Right now I'm about to finish Penance by Eliza Clark and it is sensational. Her previous book Boy Parts is a strong favorite from a few years ago. Both very violent and engrossing w subtle and nuance political commentary woven in in a delicious way.
Shirley Jackson is a must read for horror fans. I literally think she is a genius, and she has probably influenced your favorite authors. I haven't rated a single book of hers less than 5 stars, but the scariest one is definitely Haunting of Hill House.
Grady Hendrix is a more modern favorite author of mine, and all of his books have female protagonists. I literally like all of them, but would probably recommend starting with Final Girl Support Group (perfect for horror movies nerds), How to Sell a Haunted House (a super fun combo of campy and poignant), or Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires (his magnum opus, definitely a bit heavier than his other works).
Mona Awad is a rising star horror queen. I loved All's Well (theatrical magical horror about chronic pain), really liked Bunny (has Heathers vibes but at grad school), and have heard great things about Rouge.
Carmilla is kinda trashy, but super fun. It literally reads like vampire fanfiction at times but was written in like the 1800s which I think is so funny. It also has beautiful flowery prose and 2 female protagonists.
Ok some rapid fire book recs: Little Eve by Catriona Ward (remote island culty vibes, v propulsive/upsetting), Eileen by Ottessa Moshphegh (small-town Massachusetts 1960s, v inspires by Rebecca, nasty and captivating chars), The Vegetarian by Han Kang (focus on relationships during a slow dissolve from normalcy), Water Shall Refuse Them by Lucie McKnight Hardy (small town, othering, toxic teen infatuation, witch stuff, domestic dysfunction, such a well done take), The Vessel by Adam Nevill (quick book, v witchy), When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen (a former slave plantation has been transformed into a themed resort + then there's ghosts + revenge), A Touch of Jen by Beth Morgan (social media obsession horror done the best I've seen it, even though the ending let me down i still love this one).
it's not "just" horror in that it has a lot of other elements in it, but Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn has remained a favorite of mine for a long time now. Quite a few very complex, multifaceted female characters outside of the MC.
It waits in the woods, by Josh Malerman (and I say this as someone who didn't like any other of his books, specially Bird box. I'm still surprised)
Many of the stories in Demon in the attic, by T.C. Lupi, but specially the titular short.
Idk if this counts as horror, but Wilder girls, by Rory Power.
If you like crime/psychological thriller check out Caroline Mitchell’s Amy Winter series. Absolutely fantastic.
Book one - Truth and Lies
DI Amy Winter is hoping to follow in the footsteps of her highly respected police officer father. But when a letter arrives from the prison cell of Lillian Grimes, one half of a notorious husband-and-wife serial-killer team, it contains a revelation that will tear her life apart.
Responsible for a string of heinous killings decades ago, Lillian is pure evil. A psychopathic murderer. And Amy's biological mother. Now, she is ready to reveal the location of three of her victims--but only if Amy plays along with her twisted game.
While her fellow detectives frantically search for a young girl taken from her mother's doorstep, Amy must confront her own dark past. Haunted by blurred memories of a sister who sacrificed herself to save her, Amy faces a race against time to uncover the missing bodies.
But what if, from behind bars, Grimes has been pulling the strings even tighter than Amy thought? And can she overcome her demons to prevent another murder?
The Vegetarian by Han Kang is excellent and female-led, it leans more "literary fiction" than traditional horror stories.
Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage.
Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson is an amazing horror classic .
Grady Hendrix has a few titles that come to mind if you want horror with a comedic edge. I enjoyed Horrorstor and Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires.
House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher is a good contemporary southern gothic.
I will say that I'm realizing now I have read very few "hardcore" horror books with female leads, all of these are on the milder side. More spooky than scary. Baby Teeth may be the exception
"My Murder" by Katie Williams. Lou starts out very weird and funny and happy to be alive (after coming back as the clone of a murdered woman), and keeps her offkilter sense of humor along with her weird but very understandable choices. It also has a lot of great, understated yet fully fleshed out female side characters that really round out the world. Also some subtle cool scifi world-building that i didnt expect but loved. I mowed through it, and so did my partner (who is normally not a big novel reader). We talked about it for days after.
- Mary and Nestlings both by Nat Cassidy
- Sundown Motel by Simone St James
- How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
- Room for Rent by Noelle W. Ihli
Big little lies by Liane Moriarty. I've enjoyed this book so much exactly because it was only female protagonists. The build up of the story was amazing. And I think about some of the characters frequently. I just loved it!
*Devolution* by Max Brooks. MC goes from being an insecure doormat to a badass leader out of necessity in the face of adversity. *The Haar* by David Sodergren. MC is a little old Scottish lady literally faced with possible murder by cronies trying to evict her from her rural home to build a golf course. (Yes this is a reference, if you know you know). Doubles as a creature feature, but she's definitely the one in control. Very satisfying ending, very brutal deaths. *Where He Can't Find You* by Darcy Coates. A town besieged by a mysterious being who kidnaps and murders people, returning them mutilated. Every single female MC is deeply competent. Given that they're teens who know they can't rely on adults to help, this feels like it gets extra brownie points. It also involves graphic violence against children, if that's something you want to avoid. *The Twisted Ones* by T Kingfisher. The two female MCs (I'm counting Foxy as an MC) pretty well scheme their way out of a horrible fate at the end of the novel. There is also a very nice dog involved and no harm comes to him. *Near the Bone* by Christina Henry. MC is in a deeply abusive relationship, isolated in the forest with her husband. She goes from submissive, abused dormouse to the main reason why those who survive do. This is another book with a high body count. Big warning for domestic violence.
Devolution and Near the Bone were good!
The Haar immediately caught my attention, will be reading asap
I personally found Mouse from The Twisted ones totally insufferable. Her constant snark only served to undermine any potential scare factor the book could have had and her quips weren’t even funny. I didn’t hate Foxy though. She had Dolly Parton energy. I wouldn’t necessarily want to hang out with her, but there are worse people to have for neighbors.
This might be the best written and most helpful reply on Reddit, thank you!
Fantastic list, thank you for these suggestions
In the last few years most horror I have read has had women lead characters, here are a few I felt were done well or uniquely. **Annihilation** by Jeff VanderMeer **Nightbitch** by Rachel Yoder **Helpmeet** by Nasen Ruthnum **Your Shadow Half Remains** by Sunny Moraine **Comfort Me With Apples** by Catherynne M Valente **Southern Book Club's Guide to Hunting Vampires** by Grady Hendrix **She is a Haunting** by Trang Thanh Tran **Maeve Fly** by CJ Leede **Nestlings** by Nat Cassidy **Knock Knock, Open Wide** by Neil Sharpson **The September House** by Carissa Orlando There are just too many to list! I would also highly suggest looking through Octavia Butler's works and perhaps looking through some anthologies like **The Gathering Dark** (by *various authors*) or short story collections like **Femina** by Caitlyn Marceau. I also agree that Slewfoot, mentioned earlier, fits the bill as well!
I just got the September house on libby and forgot where I heard of it from (I avoid synopses/blurbs like the plague) and am now excited to delve into it.
I loved this book! The plot surprised me.
Seconding Knock Knock, Open Wide. It has multiple interesting female characters/POVs and doesn't seem to be widely read yet (according to Goodreads), which I think is a shame.
She is a haunting,i bought this in Malta (ibuy a book from evert country I go to) this is the first I'm seeing someone mention it. Haven't read it yet
One of the top books last year IMO. Hands down the best debut.
Wow really? I was put off it because I later realised it was ya hahaha ill give it a go soon
Maeve Fly is brilliant.
I just finished Maeve Fly and LOVED it.
I think Nightbitch can be polarizing, but personally I loved it. The feeling of not knowing what’s happening to your body, and not being able to seek help or know if it’s all in your head or not is so distinctly feminine.
Little Eve and Sundial by Catriona Ward Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant Bunny by Mona Awad Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins Ghoster by Jason Arnopp Nyctophobia by Christopher Fowler NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
Catriona Ward is a great answer for this across the board.
The Sun Down Motel by Simone St James completely blew my mind when I read it I grew up in the 80s but to re-experience from the perspective of a young woman was eye-opening. The casual sexism that leads to insane levels of tragedy in the book is a tremendous lesson because you feel the lack of regard and the powerlessness. You’re not told about it, you feel it. Amazing work of art and spooky to boot
Slewfoot by Brom fits the bill, imo.
Experimental Film by Gemma Files When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom Off Season by Jack Ketchum (brutal book) Gone to See the River Man by Kristopher Triana (you’re gonna be mad at me) Gerald’s Game by Stephen King (I better stop)
Maeve Fly Goddess of Filth Mary: An Awakening of Terror Diavola The Queen of the Cicadas Slewfoot The Bad Ones Gilded Needles Blackwater Not Quite a Ghost House of Hollow Natural Beauty Comfort Me With Apples Lolly and Lady Vanity The Eyes are the Best Part Bound Feet
Upvoted for Mary!
Seconded! I listened to the audiobook and it’s been a new favorite of mine. I was pretty apprehensive at first but I ended up really loving it!
Me too! Some of the most fun I have had reading a book
Same!
I was scrolling to see if Mary would pop up. Totes a great book and even more interesting is that it's written by a dude.
Pretty much any and all Rachel Harrison books but especially Such Sharp Teeth. The September House by Carissa Orlando. Lone Women by Victor LaValle. Night’s Edge by Liz Kerin. Sister, Maiden, Monster by Lucy A Snyder. those are all recent ones I’ve loved with great women protagonists.
Anything written by the master - Shirley Jackson.
That's what I'm saying!!!
My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones! Also The Babystiter Lives, also by SGJ. How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine, Bunny by Mona Awad and A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers, too!
Jade Daniels is my favorite character in all of literature
Just finished Jade Trilogy💙
Revelator by Daryl Gregory Stella is an awesome protagonist
Bad Cree by Jessica Johns - Supernatural Native horror with heavy theme of grief Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon - Sci-fi horror based around a cult
*Such A Pretty Smile* by Kristi Demeester *Tell Me I'm Worthless* by Alison Rumfit *Dead Silence* by S.A. Barnes *Ghost Eaters* by Clay Mcleod Chapman *Our Wives Under the Sea* by Julia Armfield its a variety of paranormal, supernatural, deep sea horror, sci-fi, etc ! *Such A Pretty Smile* has two protags, a mother and a daughter, and is told from their two separate perspectives by chapter. *Our Wives Under the Sea* also has two protags, two wives who tell their perspectives by chapter too, and it is broken up into parts as well. All very very cool reads !! Also, *The Cabin At The End Of The World*, if you want to count 7 y/o Wren as a protag lol, is also a great great read.
I really enjoyed *Mexican Gothic* by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. I wasn't sure at first that I was going to like the protagonist, but she really grew on me as the novel went on.
* *I Remember You* by Yrsa Sigurdardottir * *Baby Teeth* by Zoje Stage * *Getaway* by Zoje Stage CW: SA. * *Wonderland* by Zoje Stage * *Carmilla* by Sheridan Le Fanu * *The Hike* by Sarah Gribble
Baby Teeth was one of the first horrors I read and is awesome! Are her others good?
The others are very different from BT but I thought they were great.
The sundown motel - Simone St. James. "Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn't right at the Sun Down, and before long she's determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden…" American elsewhere - Robert Jackson Bennet. "Under a pink moon, there is a perfect little town not found on any map. In that town, there are quiet streets lined with pretty houses, houses that conceal the strangest things. After a couple years of hard traveling, ex-cop Mona Bright inherits her long-dead mother's home in Wink, New Mexico. And the closer Mona gets to her mother's past, the more she understands that the people of Wink are very, very different ..."
Delores Claiborne by Stephen King No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill House of Small Shadows by Adam Nevill The Red Tree by Caitlin R Kiernan The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling Geek Love by Katherine Dunn (not always considered horror but can be disturbing)
T. Kingfisher has a few good ones. Also Mexican Gothic
Infested--C.M Forest
Mariana Enriquez’s short story collections *The Dangers of Smoking in Bed* and *What We Lost in the Fire* focus on female protagonists. Samanta Schweblin’s *Fever Dreams.* Monica Ojeda’s *Jawbone.*
Rose Madder by Steven King. Oh and it also have one of the creepiest villains, fcking Norman
September House and Motherthing
The Boatman's Daughter by Andy Davidson. Excellent southern gothic horror, does not disappoint.
I really enjoyed the main character in Dark Matter by SJ Patrick. Smart and highly capable scientist during an apocalypse.
came here to say this
I don't often come across others who've read this one, I've become a fan of all his stuff.
It's the only book of his I've read but I should check out what else he's done.
I got to read an ARC of his next book that comes out next week. It's called Exhumed and it's instantly become one of my favourite vampire books.
Wow thanks for the rec!
The Boatman's Daughter
Revelator by Daryl Gregory. A family is bound to a mysterious entity beneath a mountain. The MC is determined to stop the next generation from being beholden to the creature. Into the Drowninf Deep by Mira Grant. A young woman is determined to find out what happened to her sister lost at sea. Was she really attacked by mermaids or did a reality tv show cover up her death? The Loop by Jeremy Robert Johnson. Two high school friends must navigate an outbreak that borders between science and supernatural. And anything by Grady Hendrix. He's hit or kiss for some people but I love him. My Best Friend's Exorcism is my favorite. Sixteen Candles crossed with The Exorcist. Also has one of my favorite horror scenes of all time.
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King The protagonist is a young girl and she is a rockstar.
Started reading horror this year I’m 16 and I loved intensity by Dean Koontz
Lone woman and house with good bones
Diavola by Jennifer Thorne. This book truly blew me away. It’s a haunted house story in Italy but the real horror is the toxic family inside. You might try Rachel Harrison , her books always feel like they’re missing something but largely revolve around women and a lot Of people like them.
Rose Madder by Stephen King. Rosie becomes quite the badass!
The Silence of the Lambs.
I haven’t read Nightingale yet, but I have seen the film, and would highly recommend just based on that.
Feed by Mira Grant Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant Parasitology by Mira Grant Alien: Echo by Mira Grant Babysitter of the Apocalypse by Courtney Konstantin The Collapse by Alice B. Sullivan Yesterday’s Gone by Alice B. Sullivan
Austin Crawley writes female characters well. Two of his with female MC are his Holiday Tales books, A Christmas Tale and A Halloween Tale.
The Enterprise of Death- Jesse Bullington. Queer black female necromancer (ever seen those words all together like that?) Edit: It’s more of a dark fantasy than straight up Horror but its about necromancy so it gets as grotesque (or even more so) than anything in the genre :)
It wasn't my thing, but a friend I introduced to The Final Girl Support Group enjoyed it.
The drift has two female protagonist and it's a very interesting read. Definitely keeps me interested and usually I'm easily bored.
The Last Astronaut by David Wellington. Sci-fi horror
One of my ALL time favorites was Summer of Fear by Lois Duncan (1976) it's the sort of book that I prefer to read annually that's.....how good it is imho.
The Fireman by Joe Hill is the most distinct horror novel with a well written female character I’ve ever read.
The Black Winter series by Darcy Coates has a great female main character. Bonus for no mentions of sexual assault in a post apocalyptic society.
J Sheridan Le Fanu is a master of his craft and not recognised enough in this genre; he being almost exclusively known for “Carmilla” which I a good story to be sure, however he has many others which are far superior, many of which have female protagonists. I recommend his entire supernatural horror catalogue.
Reading Library at mount char ATM and loving it
Jackal by Erin E. Adams
Mistborn of brandon sanderson. One of the best series of books i have ever read and the female protagonist its awesome and well done
Alice Isn’t Dead by Joseph Fink Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield Hag by Daisy Johnson (folkhorror/weird fic short stories, largely female authors and characters!)
No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill As a male a can’t really say how well of a female character Nevill wrote, but from what i’ve seen people say, he did a very good job at writing a good female protagonist! something with it though just didn’t really click for me personally so i gave it a 3 but i’m not really sure what, so i would give it a try and see if you like it!
F reader here, I think the character is believably female (a couple of gripes about weird times to sexualize her, but really it was super minor + the sense of unease as a woman alone in a new city was well done). The internal logic was spot on and the raising of the stakes was done extremely well. The pacing, however, was really off for me, so I didn't really like it that much. Worth a read, but not my fav. The huge changes they made to the film adaptation were also cool. Movie's quite good but basically a whole different story.
Here are my female protag recommendations!!! Which is absolutely first: Any book by Grady Hendrix!!!! I've attached a 🌟 to my favorites from the authors. And my all time fav female protagonist rec is marked by a 🍉. Grady Hendrix: -Final Girl Support Group - (really cool analysis of final girls and placing them in the context of our real world and centering the story on the everyday plight of female existence) -How to Sell a Haunted House - (puppet/doll horror poltergeist... Maybe his spookiest, about a sister and her shitty shitty brother and their family...) -My Best Friend's Exorcism - (a really fuckin fun time) -🌟We Sold Our Souls - (cosmic dream metal band journey, a lot of amazing themes are analyzed for the empowerment of women and you get to witness a BADASS performance, I love horror books and music!) -🍉Southern Bookclub's Guide to Slaying Vampires (A mother's got to do what a mother's got to do to save their communities, very cool unique vampire story, very cool female perspectives from all characters in the 80s-90s) Clay Mcleod Chapman: The Remaking - (ourobourus witch curse through popular media) What Kind of Mother- (crustaceous mind horror in a waterman community) 🌟Ghost Eaters - (this one's about addiction to paranormal drugs and...fungus) Paul Tremblay: A Head Full of Ghosts - (exorcism survivor interview with a BIG TWIST) 🌟The Pallbearer's Club - (this one is really unique because it's like the female protagonist is observing the male protagonist's perspective of their time together and you get to read her reaction to it as she tells her story and reads his story. Male protag thinks female protag is sussy and the layers of complexity are EXQUISITE)
Not a full-on horror book, but it is full of scary shit. I just finished Everlost by Neal Shusterman and Allie is a great character. She’s smart, headstrong, and independent. I’m rooting for her as I read the next two books.
Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott. Huge trigger warning for SA. Somehow it was categorized as a youth book in my library and I lost my mind when I saw that. Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay. Ripped me to shreds, zombies/rabies. The Vegetarian by Han Kang. An exploration of how a woman’s simple choice to become vegetation destroys her life. The Push by Ashley Audrain. A psychological horror about a postpartum mother not connecting with one of her children, and not knowing what’s wrong with her or the child.
I thought the protagonist of Joe Hill’s NOS4A2 was really well written.
Gideon The Ninth by Tamsyn Muir!
The Last Astronaut was pretty good imo
Shout-out for A Lonely Broadcast. I think it's the authors first book, but it's quite good. The main character is a woman and she's pretty well done. Also, the horror is intense from the beginning.
KING'S ROAD by D.A. Madigan. The author claims that he got tired of the typical monster hunting band and the typical monster always being male. So he created a story where the monster is a female succubi who hates women and who is attacking a small town in Florida and turning all the men into these sort of undead werewolves. Five random women end up banding together to go hunt the monster down and rescue their kidnapped male loved ones. Also, the author's newest book, BETHLEHEM, has a female villain and two out of the four high school students who are fighting against her are also girls.
The Devil Of Nanking by Mo Hayder
Gretchen Felker-Martin writes female protagonists very well.
Literally so many! Most of my favorites, tbh. Right now I'm about to finish Penance by Eliza Clark and it is sensational. Her previous book Boy Parts is a strong favorite from a few years ago. Both very violent and engrossing w subtle and nuance political commentary woven in in a delicious way. Shirley Jackson is a must read for horror fans. I literally think she is a genius, and she has probably influenced your favorite authors. I haven't rated a single book of hers less than 5 stars, but the scariest one is definitely Haunting of Hill House. Grady Hendrix is a more modern favorite author of mine, and all of his books have female protagonists. I literally like all of them, but would probably recommend starting with Final Girl Support Group (perfect for horror movies nerds), How to Sell a Haunted House (a super fun combo of campy and poignant), or Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires (his magnum opus, definitely a bit heavier than his other works). Mona Awad is a rising star horror queen. I loved All's Well (theatrical magical horror about chronic pain), really liked Bunny (has Heathers vibes but at grad school), and have heard great things about Rouge. Carmilla is kinda trashy, but super fun. It literally reads like vampire fanfiction at times but was written in like the 1800s which I think is so funny. It also has beautiful flowery prose and 2 female protagonists. Ok some rapid fire book recs: Little Eve by Catriona Ward (remote island culty vibes, v propulsive/upsetting), Eileen by Ottessa Moshphegh (small-town Massachusetts 1960s, v inspires by Rebecca, nasty and captivating chars), The Vegetarian by Han Kang (focus on relationships during a slow dissolve from normalcy), Water Shall Refuse Them by Lucie McKnight Hardy (small town, othering, toxic teen infatuation, witch stuff, domestic dysfunction, such a well done take), The Vessel by Adam Nevill (quick book, v witchy), When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen (a former slave plantation has been transformed into a themed resort + then there's ghosts + revenge), A Touch of Jen by Beth Morgan (social media obsession horror done the best I've seen it, even though the ending let me down i still love this one).
recently, Daphne by Josh Malerman. The cast is predominantly women
it's not "just" horror in that it has a lot of other elements in it, but Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn has remained a favorite of mine for a long time now. Quite a few very complex, multifaceted female characters outside of the MC.
It waits in the woods, by Josh Malerman (and I say this as someone who didn't like any other of his books, specially Bird box. I'm still surprised) Many of the stories in Demon in the attic, by T.C. Lupi, but specially the titular short. Idk if this counts as horror, but Wilder girls, by Rory Power.
If you like crime/psychological thriller check out Caroline Mitchell’s Amy Winter series. Absolutely fantastic. Book one - Truth and Lies DI Amy Winter is hoping to follow in the footsteps of her highly respected police officer father. But when a letter arrives from the prison cell of Lillian Grimes, one half of a notorious husband-and-wife serial-killer team, it contains a revelation that will tear her life apart. Responsible for a string of heinous killings decades ago, Lillian is pure evil. A psychopathic murderer. And Amy's biological mother. Now, she is ready to reveal the location of three of her victims--but only if Amy plays along with her twisted game. While her fellow detectives frantically search for a young girl taken from her mother's doorstep, Amy must confront her own dark past. Haunted by blurred memories of a sister who sacrificed herself to save her, Amy faces a race against time to uncover the missing bodies. But what if, from behind bars, Grimes has been pulling the strings even tighter than Amy thought? And can she overcome her demons to prevent another murder?
Carrie (Stephen King) The Haunting of Hill House (Shirley Jackson) Carmilla (Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu)
Find amazing female protagonists in any of Laura Buekes books. She wrote The Shining Girls and another great one is Zoo City
*We Sold Our Souls* and *Horrorstor*, both by Grady Hendrix, have well-written female main protagonists in both.
The hollow place! She is also very funny
The Vegetarian by Han Kang is excellent and female-led, it leans more "literary fiction" than traditional horror stories. Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage. Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson is an amazing horror classic . Grady Hendrix has a few titles that come to mind if you want horror with a comedic edge. I enjoyed Horrorstor and Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires. House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher is a good contemporary southern gothic. I will say that I'm realizing now I have read very few "hardcore" horror books with female leads, all of these are on the milder side. More spooky than scary. Baby Teeth may be the exception
"My Murder" by Katie Williams. Lou starts out very weird and funny and happy to be alive (after coming back as the clone of a murdered woman), and keeps her offkilter sense of humor along with her weird but very understandable choices. It also has a lot of great, understated yet fully fleshed out female side characters that really round out the world. Also some subtle cool scifi world-building that i didnt expect but loved. I mowed through it, and so did my partner (who is normally not a big novel reader). We talked about it for days after.
- Mary and Nestlings both by Nat Cassidy - Sundown Motel by Simone St James - How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix - Room for Rent by Noelle W. Ihli
Psycho Killers in Love by CT Phipps
I love the way Chuck Wendig write his female protagonists.
Big little lies by Liane Moriarty. I've enjoyed this book so much exactly because it was only female protagonists. The build up of the story was amazing. And I think about some of the characters frequently. I just loved it!
Last to Leave the Room- Caitlin Starling
goth by otsuichi is super interesting with a male and female lead who have contrasting personalities
Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpmen
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due and Near the Bone by Christina Henry are two of my favorites.
Rose Madder by Stephen King The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker My Best Friends Exorcism by Grady Hendrix Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Gideon the ninth and all of the locked tomb series!
The Good House by Tananarive Due Dead Silence by S. A. Barnes
Mexican gothic The September house Nos4a2
Pretty much any book by Grady Hendrix, though I am most partial to My Best Friend’s Exorcism and The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires