Chill-ing summer beach reads from the Durham Tech Library
Sun, sand, and something sinister.
Whether you're lounging by the pool or hiding from the heat, crack open a spine-tingling tale that'll chill you to the bone...even in 90+-degree weather.
A glamorous socialite is summoned to a crumbling mansion in the Mexican countryside, where her cousin’s cryptic letters scream danger. But the rot in the house isn’t just structural—it's deeply, disturbingly alive. Think haunted house meets creeping colonial horror with mushrooms and madness. Come for the Gothic vibes, stay for the unraveling.
The family drama gets bloodier in this dark and delicious continuation of Liu and Takeda’s graphic horror saga. The twins are still reeling from the truth about their terrifyingly badass mom—and now things are unraveling fast. Old secrets claw their way out of the grave, dragging demons both literal and personal into the light. Gorgeously illustrated and haunting in tone, it’s domestic horror with bite.
Alex Stern is back from hell—literally—and she’s bringing the dead with her. Yale’s secret societies are hiding dark magic, and Alex must crack open the gates of the underworld again, whether it kills her or not. Expect demons, trauma, ghosts, and secrets soaked in Ivy League privilege. Smart, violent, and viciously addictive. The second book in Leigh Bardugo's adult horror fantasy series that began with The Ninth House.
What starts as a reality dating show on a remote island quickly devolves into bloody chaos when contestants meet a cryptid with a big heart—and even bigger hunger. Satirical, queer, and delightfully unhinged, it’s a wild ride where no one gets out unscathed. Imagine The Bachelor-meets-Sasquatch slasher. You will laugh, scream, and maybe even root for the monster.
A woman goes searching for answers about her aunt’s mysterious disappearance in the 1980s—and winds up working the same night shift at a haunted motel. Time seems to loop and ghosts linger in the rooms, refusing to rest. Two timelines, one creepy-ass location, and more than a few spirits with unfinished business. Unnerving in the best way, this one drips with atmosphere. Check out Simone St. James's other titles if you want a mystery where the ghost is not a person in disguise (no Scooby Doo-ing here). Yes, it is in fact a ghost, but what does it want?
The classic split-personality horror that defined “inner demons” before Freud was even a thing. Dr. Jekyll’s dark alter ego is no mere metaphor—-he’s real, and he's deadly. Also includes eerie tales that dabble in the supernatural and psychological. Old-school horror that still hits hard.
When a grieving mother cuts out a piece of her dead son’s lung and hides it away, it grows into something monstrous—yet heartbreakingly human. Love and horror twist together in this bizarre, beautiful, and deeply unsettling debut. It’s about grief, identity, and what it means to raise a child who isn’t quite… natural. A queer monster tale that claws at your soul.
Before Hawkins, Indiana went to hell, there was Dr. Brenner’s lab and a girl named Terry Ives. This prequel digs into the origins of Eleven’s mother, the MKUltra experiments, and the shadowy horror beneath it all. Government secrets, psychic powers, and creeping paranoia—it’s Stranger Things with a retro sci-fi kick. Read it with the lights on.
An anthology packed with skin-crawling short stories designed to ruin your sleep schedule. Classic chills, modern frights, and a few “oh HELL no” moments make this a perfect campfire companion. No filler-—just nightmare fuel. Read one… then dare yourself to read another.
Each illustrated story is a blood-soaked fairy tale gone wrong. Carroll’s artwork oozes menace, while the stories drip dread like melting wax. Think gothic campfire stories told with a dreamy, deadly aesthetic. You won’t forget the feeling—even after you close the book.
A family moves into a beautiful Long Island home with a tragic past... and gets way more than they bargained for. Allegedly based on true events, this is the book that kicked off decades of haunted house lore. Whether you believe it or not, it’s a creepy classic. You’ll start questioning every creak in your house.
King shows off his short game with 14 eerie stories that range from quietly unsettling to flat-out horrifying. There’s a haunted hotel room, a button with deadly consequences, and a man who learns the hard way that telemarketing can be hell. Each tale is a bite-sized nightmare. Easy to read, hard to forget.
In a sleepy Japanese town, spirals begin to infect everything—snails, smoke, hair, minds. It sounds ridiculous... until it gets under your skin, literally and metaphorically. Ito turns an innocuous shape into a slow-building cosmic horror masterpiece. It’s gorgeous, grotesque, and spiraling toward madness.
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