2025 is shaping up to be a great year forhorrorreaders, with a number of exciting new releases hitting shelves over the next year.There are enough of them to keep the scares coming all 12 months, and they span a wide range of story types and tropes. There’s truly a horror novel for every type of reader, with a good mix of debut authors and big names adding to the lineup.
Stephen King is releasing a new novel in 2025, as are horror icons like Ronald Malfi, Stephen Graham Jones, and Grady Hendrix. Joe Hill is also returning with his first novel in nine years, ensuring 2025 leaves readers with a lot to look forward to. There’s no shortage of great horror to dive into, from the truly bizarre to the socially relevant. There are a lot of new books to keep up with, but the biggest can’t be missed.
15Witchcraft For Wayward Girls By Grady Hendrix
Release Date: August 10, 2025
Two years after releasingHow to Sell a Haunted House,Grady Hendrix is back withWitchcraft for Wayward Girlsin 2025. The author’s latestbook blends horror with fantasy, following a group of young unwed mothers who discover witchcraft during their stay at Wellwood Home. They’re sent there to hide their pregnancies until they can give up their babies, and their lives are strictly managed. Their newfound magic can help them reclaim their autonomy, but it comes at a cost. Hendrix’s latest sounds more relevant than ever, with its feminist themes and dark magic proving huge selling points.
14At Dark, I Become Loathsome By Eric LaRocca
Release Date: August 09, 2025
Acclaimed horror author Eric LaRocca is releasingAt Dark, I Become Loathsomein 2025, and it sounds like it could be one of the year’s darkest additions to the genre.At Dark, I Become Loathsomefollows the grieving Ashley as he performs a ritual for those contemplating whether they want to live or die. Ashley’s services lead him to a man named Jinx, who sends him spiraling down a darker path. Judging by earlyGoodreadsreviews, LaRocca’s latest is as disturbing and chilling as it claims. It’s one to check trigger warnings for, but extreme horror fans won’t want to miss it.
13Listen To Your Sister By Neena Viel
Release Date: June 27, 2025
Listen to Your Sisteris Neena Viel’s debut novel, and the 2025 release is being pitched for fans of Jordan Peele andStranger Things— comparisons sure to put it on readers' radars. The novel follows Calla and her brothers as they’re forced to go on the run after the youngest gets in trouble at a protest. Their time staying in a remote cabin proves that Calla’s recurring nightmare about her brothers dying could be more than just a dream. Promising to tackle relevant social subjects and difficult family dynamics,Listen to Your Sisteris a horror debut to watch out for.
12They Bloom At Night By Trang Thanh Tran
Release Date: July 27, 2025
One of the most exciting young adult horror releases of 2025, Trang Thanh Tran’sThey Bloom at Nightis getting rave reviews onGoodreadsmonths ahead of its release. Set in a Louisiana plagued by red algae and mutated monsters after a terrible hurricane, this queer horror book follows Noon as she’s tasked with locating a creature that’s killing people. Noon’s journey forces her to ask difficult questions about monsters and herself, promising body horror along the way. Poised to tackle climate change and trauma,They Bloom at Nightsounds powerful and incredibly relevant.
11The Buffalo Hunter Hunter By Stephen Graham Jones
Release Date: August 14, 2025
Stephen Graham Jones wrote two of thebest horror books of 2024, andthe author is returning withThe Buffalo Hunter Hunterin 2025.The Buffalo Hunter Hunteris a historical “American Indian revenge story,” set in the western U.S. in 1912. The novel combines a vampire narrative with the real horrors Indigenous people faced, as the events of the book stem from the massacre of 217 Blackfeet.The Buffalo Hunter Hunteris poised to unpack hard truths about American history, making it an important and powerful addition to 2025’s lineup.
10Blood On Her Tongue By Johanna van Veen
Release Date: June 09, 2025
Johanna van Veen made a splash in 2024 withMy Darling Dreadful Thing,andthe author is following her debut withBlood on Her Tongue. Set in The Netherlands in 1887,Blood on Her Tonguefollows Lucy as she attempts to figure out why her sister, Sarah, is acting odd — enough so that she could wind up institutionalized. When Sarah becomes hungry, things get truly twisted. This vampire tale has sisterhood at its core, but it promises a dark and atmospheric narrative on par with the author’s previous release. Needless to say, it’s not one to miss in 2025.
9Senseless By Ronald Malfi
Release Date: June 20, 2025
Ronald Malfi has built a reputation as a must-read horror author, and his 2025 book sounds like a thrilling and ambitious addition to his lineup.Senselessweaves together two murder cases and multiple narratives, all of which point to something unnatural occurring in Los Angeles. The vampire novel combines a more straightforward police thriller with a supernatural horror plot, giving readers the best of both worlds. EarlyGoodreadsreviews suggest it’s gory and wild, delivering everything readers expect from an icon like Malfi.
8When The Wolf Comes Home By Nat Cassidy
Release Date: August 22, 2025
With early reviews giving it a 4.74Goodreadsrating,When the Wolf Comes Homecould be Nat Cassidy’s best horror book yet. Its positive reception makes it one of the genre’s biggest releases of 2025. Cassidy’s latest follows an actress named Jess, who goes on the run with a young boy hiding outside her apartment. The boy’s father is after them, and he leaves a bloody mess in his wake — one that could have scarier implications than it seems. This gripping premise setsWhen the Wolf Comes Homeup for success, vowing to take readers on a heart-pounding thrill ride.
7The Staircase In The Woods By Chuck Wendig
Release Date: Aug 01, 2025
Chuck Wendig’sThe Staircase in the Woodsdebuts in April,and it will see Wendig defying genres once again, just as he did when heblended sci-fi and horrorinThe Book of Accidents.His latest promises to combine horror with the fantastical, as it follows five friends who happen upon a “staircase to nowhere” in the woods. One ventures up it and is never seen again, prompting the others to search for him when the staircase reappears decades later. A tale with the potential to be as eerie as it is whimsical,The Staircase in the Woodssounds like a must-read.
6Never Flinch By Stephen King
Release Date: June 02, 2025
A new Stephen King book is always great news for horror fans, andNever Flinchwill return readersto the world of Holly Gibney. King’s latest will follow Detective Izzy Jaynes and Holly as they investigate a killer whose threat against “thirteen innocents and one guilty” proves alarmingly sincere. It also sees Holly serving as a bodyguard for a women’s rights activist, with its two narratives promising a murder mystery and relevant social commentary. King’s latest has a high bar after 2024’sYou Like It Darker,but knowing the “King of Horror,“Never Flinchwill reach it.
