The nights are getting cold and dark. It’s the perfect time of year to stay in with a few good books and a cup of tea or two. But what to read? To help take the guesswork out, we’ve put together a list of our top 10 gothic books that compliment the frosty season.
1. ‘The Haunting Season’ by Bridget Collins, Natasha Pulley and others
This wintry short story collection is perfect to read by the soft glow of a candle. Eight bestselling authors have ghostly stories featured in the collection. From Kiran Milwood Hargrave to Jess Kidd, these are masterful writers of gothic fiction. Escape to the frosty moors of Yorkshire. Or explore a London mansion wherein a girl lies frozen in death. ‘The Haunting Season’ is the perfect companion for the long winter evenings ahead.
2. ‘The Canterville Ghost’ by Oscar Wilde
You’ll devour this delightful ghost story in one sitting. In true Oscar Wilde style, this novella is a sharp parody. An American minister moves his family into an English mansion that is known to be haunted. But the family refuses to be scared to death and it’s the Canterville Ghost who is spooked, having now to rethink his devilish plans…
3. ‘Melmoth the Wanderer’ by Charles Maturin
This darkly humorous novel, written in 1820, is the story of Melmoth, who has sold his soul in exchange for immortality in a satanic bargain. Now, Melmoth preys on the vulnerable in their darkest moments, and offers to ease their suffering if they’ll swap places with him so that he’s released him from his centuries of tortured wanderings. Melmoth the Wanderer is a fascinating gothic novel that has inspired Sarah Perry’s modern day ‘Melmoth’. You can read both ‘Melmoth the Wanderer’ and Perry’s modern inspiration as part of our doppelgangers book bundle.
4. ‘Wuthering Heights’ by Emily Brontë
Whether you’ve read it before or you’ve only ever heard of Emily Brontë’s famous gothic novel, ‘Wuthering Heights’ pairs perfectly with frosty winter nights. The wild desolate moors of Yorkshire sets a chilling backdrop to the tragic relationship between Cathy and Heathcliff. Brimming with violent passion, this gothic classic won’t disappoint around the holidays.
5. ‘The Silent Companions’ by Laura Purcell
A perfect winter read, ‘The Silent Companions’ is an unsettling Victorian ghost story. Elsie marries Rupert Bainbridge, a handsome young heir. But scarcely a few days after their wedding, he dies. And soon, she finds that the life of luxury she had expected as Mrs Bainbridge is not to be. Her late-husband’s country estate (where she sees out the remainder of her pregnancy) is crumbling. And on top of everything else, the villagers and her new servants don’t want her around. Talk about a string of bad luck. But Elsie soon finds a locked door with a painted wooden figure– a silent companion that looks uncannily like herself. Unnerving in the best way, you won’t be able to put this gothic gem one down.
6. ‘The Confessions of Frannie Langton’ by Sara Collins
Yes, we have recommended this gothic romance before– but it’s just so good. Set in 19th century London, Frannie Langton is on trial for murder. Though she can’t remember the events of the horrible night, it seems unthinkable to Frannie that she could kill the woman she so dearly loved. In her prison cell, she begins to piece together events that led to the tragic mystery. We follow Frannie's journey from a Jamaican plantation all the way to the Mayfair mansion of the celebrated scientist George Benham and his beautiful wife, Madame Marguerite Benham (whom she allegedly murdered).
7. ‘Jane Eyre’ by Charlotte Brontë
Another dark, twisty gothic from a Brontë– this time Charlotte. Jane, an orphan with a challenging past, is the new governess of Thornfield Hall– Mr Rochester’s sprawling estate. As she begins to fall for the broody anti-hero, his dark secret begins to unravel. The classic madwoman in the attic story, ‘Jane Eyre’ is certainly worth a revisit over the frosty winter months.
8. ‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve likely heard of Mary Shelley’s gothic novella, ‘Frankenstein’. Whether you’ve already read the novella or just never got around to it, the story of Frankenstein creating a ‘monster’ from human cadavers is actually a perfect winter read. The violent seas and frosty, desolate landscape of the Arctic, are incredibly atmospheric as Frankenstein desperately searches for his creation. If you’re interested in learning how the story was written, there’s a fictionalized account in Jeanette Winterson’s ‘Frankissstein’.
9. ‘When We Were Birds’ by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo
Though this masterful debut is not strictly gothic (it innovatively blends different genres together), ‘When We Were Birds’ has a wonderful gothic flavour to it. Two outsiders are brought together through their connection with death. Darwin is a Rastafarian gravedigger. Yejide’s mother is dying and Yejide must take on her legacy of shepherding souls to the afterlife. Yejide and Darwin meet at the gates of an ancient cemetery and an unlikely love story unfolds. An absolutely beautiful and atmospheric book, ‘When We Were Birds’ is a must read.
10. ‘The Madwomen’s Ball’ by Victoria Mas
Set in a Parisien asylum in 1885, ‘The Madwomen’s Ball’ is utterly captivating. Once a year, a grand ball is held at the hospital and all of Paris’s elite turn up for the social event of the season. But this ball is different from the others when Genevieve, a senior nurse with a troubled past, meets Eugenie who has a dark secret of her own. A chilling unforgettable story of sisterhood inspired by the old asylum.
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