Find your next favorite spooky read in this list of the best spooky middle grade books for tweens, teens, and adults.
Disclosure: This blog contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, Keri Houchin earns a commission from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
I love a scary story any time of year, but there’s something about fall and Halloween time that puts me in the mood to read spooky books. If you’re looking for books to share with your child, this list is a great place to start!
First, a little definition. Middle grade books are generally recommended for ages 8 to 12 according to their publishers. Your child might be ready to read them at a younger age. They’ll almost certainly still enjoy them into their teen years.
While teens and adults have books in the horror genre, books for younger kids are not nearly as scary most of the time. Of course, scary is subjective, so it’s a good idea to know what is in a book and what scares your child before handing it over.
Below I’ve rounded up some of the best spooky middle grade books full of ghosts, monsters, and mysterious adventures. I’ve read many of them, but also included some that are on my reading list!
Scary and spooky middle grade books
Dust and Grim
Dust and Grim is written by Chuck Wendig. You may recognize the author from his adult horror, Wanderers.
Synopsis:
Molly and Dustin are siblings but haven’t seen each other in years. When they’re orphaned (each lived with one parent) they inherit the family business. The twist is that it’s a mortuary… for supernatural creatures. The pair have to get to know each other, get to like each other, and learn how to run the business.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
The Dollhouse Murders
The Dollhouse Murders, by Betty Ren Wright, is a classic suspense from the 1980s.
Synopsis:
Amy is 12 and tired of being a caretaker for her sister, so she goes to stay with her aunt. She finds a dollhouse replica in the attic with tiny family members who seem to move around. Digging into family secrets, Amy discovers her grandparents were murdered and grows closer with her sister as they solve the mystery together.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
A Tale Dark and Grimm
A Tale Dark and Grimm, by Adam Gidwitz, is inspired by the classic Grimm fairytales.
Synopsis:
Hanzel and Gretel walk out of their own misadventures into a world of fairytales, fighting monsters, running for their lives, and learning the lessons of each one. As they progress through each short story, they take the place of the original main characters and become more clever and independent.
Review:
My family listened to this audiobook on a long drive and adored it. The narrator is similar to Lemony Snicket, warning you that bad things are coming and laughing about disasters. These fairytales, although for kids as young as 8, are more faithful to the gruesome and sometimes graphic originals than the modern Disney fairytales.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Goosebumps
Goosebumps by RL Stine is a series of dozens of books. There are a few series, but most are standalone stories. Here I’m focusing on a few of the classic ones, which I loved as a kid as much as watching The Twilight Zone.
Original Goosebumps stories:
- Night of the Living Dummy – A ventriloquist dummy comes to life to terrorize people.
- Be Careful What You Wish For – A girl is given 3 wishes, but each is granted in the worst way possible.
- The Scarecrow Walks At Midnight – Two kids stay on their grandparents’ farm for the summer and discover something terrifying in the cornfields.
- It Came from Beneath the Sink – Two kids move into a new house that seems perfect until weird things start happening.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Bunnicula
Bunnicula by James Howe is the first book in a series but makes a fun standalone read too.
Synopsis:
The Monroe family has just adopted a new pet: an adorable white bunny with unusual black markings who loves to drain the juice out of vegetables. Harold the dog and Chester the cat try to investigate and protect their humans from danger.
Review:
This is a cute and not-really-scary story. The second and third books in this series kicked off my lifelong love of dachshunds. If your child loves talking animals and spooky hijinks, they’ll adore these pets.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Paola Santiago and the River of Tears
Paola Santiago and the River of Tears is written by Tehlor Kay Mejia. It’s part of the Rick Riordan Presents imprint series, which includes books based on the mythology of diverse cultures.
Synopsis:
12-year-old Pao and her friends have been told to stay away from the river ever since a girl drowned a year ago. She’s obsessed with science and embarrassed that her mom practices folk magic and believes in La Llorona, a ghost who kidnaps children to drown them. When Pao’s friend Emma is kidnapped, she and her friend Diego quickly discover that magic and monsters are real as they travel to rescue Emma.
Review:
I love this book because it deals with such a wide range of fears. It’s filled with horrifying ghosts and creatures lurking in the dark. At the same time, Pao also has to deal with the realistic fears of family conflict, outgrowing friendships, and the feeling that maybe she’s a monster too.
There’s a common theme in middle grade books where the kids can’t rely on the adults and have to solve problems on their own. The characters in this book definitely can’t rely on all adults (racist police refuse to believe them), but they also discover that there are some who they should listen to.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Ghost Squad
Ghost Squad is by Claribel A Ortega.
Synopsis:
Lucely lives in Florida and can see ghosts. Her best friend Syd is the granddaughter of a witch. Just before Halloween, they accidentally unleash a horde of angry ghosts on their town and must fight to capture them all with the help of a powerful witch and her amazing cat. Meanwhile, Lucely’s dad is struggling with his ghost tour business and they risk losing their home.
Review:
This is a cute story that has some surprisingly scary bits. It reminds me of Hocus Pocus – accidentally releasing some ghosts on Halloween, then having to stop them by midnight. I loved how much Dominican culture and Spanish language this story had. There’s also the realistic struggle of Lucely’s mom having left, her dad being sad, and the fear of losing her family home. This packs in a lot of depth in a short number of pages.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
The Boy Who Cried Werewolf
The Boy Who Cried Werewolf, by JH Reynolds, is the first in the MonsterStreet series.
Synopsis:
Max has just turned 12 and is spending the summer off-grid on his grandparents’ farm. He’s never met them but hopes they can tell him about his father, who died when Max was a baby. He’s told to stay out of the woods because there is a monster. When he befriends the girl next door they risk danger to find out what’s really going on.
Review:
This is such a suspenseful mystery that even as an adult, I enjoyed it. It’s a short book with a quick pace (I read it in about 2 hours) and every chapter is a cliffhanger. Max is brave and the author does a good job of addressing serious issues (Max’s father was murdered) while keeping the story light and often humorous.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Coraline
Coraline is written by Neil Gaiman and has been made into a film.
Synopsis:
A little girl named Coraline moves into a new home and while exploring she finds a door that won’t open. One day she finds it open and on the other side is an identical house, only better, including her parents. Slowly she discovers that something is wrong and she must face her fears and battle obstacles to save her real parents, along with the other children trapped in the parallel world.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase
Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase is by Jonathan Stroud and the first book in a series of 5.
Synopsis:
In a world where spirits have suddenly appeared everywhere, haunting houses and wreaking havoc (and actually able to kill people), only children can fight them. Lucy can see ghosts and joins Lockwood and Co., a ghost-hunting agency made up of two boys – Lockwood and George, who each have their own abilities. The trio must learn to work together, solve a murder, and survive the night in the most haunted house in London.
Review:
This book is properly scary – ghosts, blood, murderers, and danger for unsupervised teens. I read it as an adult and it’s how I imagine The Haunting of Hill House would go if written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The author is British and the writing is relatively formal (for middle grade). Although the story takes place in modern times it took me several chapters to realize it wasn’t Victorian-era.
I really enjoyed the story, including the Holmes-style big reveal at the end. The one thing I didn’t enjoy is that Lucy as the narrator takes every opportunity to describe George as fat, messy, and not someone she likes. While that’s not unbelievable behavior for 14-year-olds, it really didn’t need to be constant.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
City of Ghosts
City of Ghosts, by VE Schwab, is the first in a trilogy.
Synopsis:
Cassidy’s parents host a cheesy ghost-hunting television show and after a near-death experience, Cass can see them for real. In fact, her best friend Jacob is a ghost and her constant companion as they tag along for filming in Edinburgh, Scotland. When Cass meets another girl who can see ghosts, she learns that in-betweeners exist to help ghosts move on. But there are darker forces at work and Cass must find out who to trust before she ends up on the wrong side.
Thoughts:
As an adult, I enjoyed this book as much as I do all of VE Schwab’s writing. It’s fairly simple and a quick read.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
More notable middle-grade books
The Circus of Stolen Dreams
The Circus of Stolen Dreams is by Lorelei Savaryn. Andrea’s brother has disappeared. When she discovers a magical dream world, the cost of admission is to give up one memory. Once inside, Andrea’s adventures turn to nightmares as she learns that the Sandman hasn’t created a dream world but a trap.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
A Small Zombie Problem
A Small Zombie Problem is by K. G. Campbell and described as A Series of Unfortunate Events meets Tim Burton. August lives a sheltered life with his aunt until one day he discovers a family he never knew he had. His adventures accidentally attract a zombie and he ends up with more than he bargained for.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Thirteens
Thirteens is by Kate Alice Marshall. A small town has a terrible secret – every year on Halloween 3 13-year-olds are sacrificed to a mysterious figure in exchange for the town’s unending good fortune. This year the trio discovers their fate and races to break the curse before midnight.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
The Graveyard Book
The Graveyard Book is written by Neil Gaiman. An orphan boy wanders into a graveyard and grows up raised by ghosts, vampires, witches, and werewolves – all while trying to avoid the murderers lurking outside.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Naomi Teitelbaum Ends the World
Naomi Teitelbaum Ends the World is by Samara Shanker. When Naomi receives a tiny clay Golem for her bat mitzvah, it helps her but also attracts darker things. She and her friends must face ghosts and creatures from Jewish folklore to resolve the chaos she has created.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
No Place for Monsters
No Place for Monsters is written and illustrated by Kory Merritt. Two kids discover that children are disappearing in their tidy hometown – but adults don’t notice. As something evil takes over the town, they must fight back and save everyone.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Don’t Turn Out the Lights
Don’t Turn Out the Lights is a collection of 35 short stories edited by Jonathan Maberry. Inspired by Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, it includes a mix of horror from haunted houses and monsters to terrible toys and nightmares you can only imagine.
Order this book: Amazon.com | Bookshop.org | Barnes & Noble
Add a few of the spooky middle grade books to your reading list this season! Be sure to save this post so you can come back to it any time you’re looking for a scary story for yourself or your kids.
Check out some other fun and creative ideas on One Mama’s Daily Drama:
Leave a Reply