RACHEL HARRISON has a degree in Writing for Film & Television from Emerson College, where she spent her time writing horror screenplays, learning to read Tarot, and befriending the ghost in her best friend's Beacon Hill apartment. She worked in publishing for a year after graduating, but now works at a bank, which isn't as scary as it sounds. She lives in Brooklyn, and The Return is her debut novel.
This Cursed House (2024) Del Sandeen "An absolute marvel of a debut from a prodigious talent. This Cursed House is a richly atmospheric, utterly chilling ghost story, an enthralling puzzle box of family scandals and secrets-that's also an unflinching examination of the insidiousness of racism, the horrors of colorism, and how the toxicity of hate is a curse that traps us all with the worst of ourselves. A spellbinding Southern gothic."
American Rapture (2024) CJ Leede "A riveting, sprawling, staggeringly brilliant novel about the horrors of shame and repression and sexual violence and moral panics. American Rapture is a riotous scream and an emotional ode to anyone who has ever hidden their true self under their mattress. Blood-soaked, heart-wrenching, grim and glorious. Leede is a singular talent."
Dearest (2024) Jacquie Walters "A fast-paced and frightening debut that explores the nightmares of new motherhood, with plenty of twists and scares."
An Academy for Liars (2024) Alexis Henderson "An utterly enchanting dark academia stunner infused with Henderson's signature style - it's lush, atmospheric, imaginative, and impossible to put down."
House of Bone and Rain (2024) Gabino Iglesias "A pulse-pounding, blood-spattered revenge tale about the bonds of friendship and the devastation of violence, about ruthless gods and restless ghosts, about love and loss and righteous anger. With breathless pacing, knockout prose, and dynamic characters to follow into the dark, House of Bone and Rain is part crime thriller, part supernatural horror, and completely brilliant."
The Dissonance (2024) Shaun Hamill "Pure magic. A novel that sparks with wonder, heartbreak, and hope. Wildly endearing and compulsively readable, with an immersive, richly drawn world and vibrant characters you'll never forget. The truths within--about friendship, about pain, about growing up and making mistakes-- are beautiful and absolute. A masterpiece."
Bury Your Gays (2024) Chuck Tingle "Brilliantly bloody, wildly fun, and extremely scary, Bury Your Gays brings a sledgehammer down on tired tropes and makes a masterpiece of their guts. A profoundly smart and emotionally resonant novel that is sprinkled with cinema magic and a brutal Hollywood reckoning."
youthjuice (2024) E K Sathue "Staggeringly brilliant and bitingly honest, youthjuice is as beautiful as it is brutal, dancing between razor-sharp commentary on beauty culture and the visceral pain of existing as a girl in this world. The sublime prose will have you gasping in awe while the terrifying twists will keep you squirming and feverishly turning the pages. E.K. Sathue skillfully peels back the pretty pink veneer of youth, friendship, and beauty to insecurity, betrayal, and violence. This novel is a blood-smeared mirror. What truth will it reflect back to you?"
Horror Movie (2024) Paul Tremblay "A profound, heart-wrenching, terrifyingly honest novel that's also a cinematic page-turner. Horror Movie zooms in on creation and consumption, integrity and ego, admiration and obsession, and how the desperate search for connection through art can be beautiful, or disastrous. This book is a gift and a curse."
Bless Your Heart (2024) (Bless Your Heart, book 1) Lindy Ryan "A gloriously gruesome, compulsively readable debut that is as grizzly as it is clever and heartfelt, offering an inventive, poignant, and thoroughly entertaining exploration of legacy. Absolutely brilliant."
Forgotten Sisters (2024) Cynthia Pelayo "A gritty murder mystery about a house that drips with haunted histories and a river that carries dark secrets and dead bodies in its current, Forgotten Sisters is a mesmerizing, propulsive read that doesn't just bend genre, it transcends it."
Your Shadow Half Remains (2024) Sunny Moraine "Intense, atmospheric, unnerving, absolutely oozing with dread. As profoundly moving as it is terrifying, and oh hell is it terrifying."
This Wretched Valley (2024) Jenny Kiefer "This propulsive, hair-raising read will have you jumping at shadows and second-guessing your next trek into the woods. With nimble pacing, scream-worthy scares, and an ever-present sense of dread, a trip to This Wretched Valley is one you'll never forget. A standout debut."
Good Girls Don't Die (2023) Christina Henry "A thriller so deliciously original you'll want to devour it whole. Breakneck pacing, compelling characters, and clever meta threads elevate the tension and pull toward a stunning conclusion. An electrifying read."
Nestlings (2023) Nat Cassidy "Like The Shining meets The Changeling. And whew, is it scary. . . . I think people are going to lose their minds over this book. Like Mary, it has all the makings of a classic."
A Light Most Hateful (2023) Hailey Piper "Thrillingly original. Piper deftly stitches threads of vulnerability, existential anxiety, and complex friendship power dynamics into a feverish, nail-biting, writhing-in-your-seat nightmare. A juicy horror tale you'll want to sink your teeth into, before it sinks its teeth into you."
Bloom (2023) Delilah S Dawson "A cottagecore dream turned nightmare, astonishing in its beauty and violence. Every page drips with delicious dread. This bite-sized tale is perfectly wicked."
What Kind of Mother (2023) Clay McLeod Chapman "Another stunner . . . one of horror's modern masters. Beautifully written, deftly plotted, and completely engrossing, What Kind of Mother will get under your skin and take your breath away and break your heart and chill you to the bone. A profound exploration of parental love and loss, of regret and sacrifice."
The September House (2023) Carissa Orlando "A rich and wholly satisfying haunted house novel about dark family secrets and patterns of destruction. It will charm you and terrify you and break your heart, often within the same sentence. An exhilarating debut."
Playing the Witch Card (2023) KJ Dell'Antonia "A delightfully sweet, heartfelt novel about letting go of our fears to make room for magic, and the power of choosing our own fate. Utterly charming."
Delicate Condition (2023) Danielle Valentine "A frightening, propulsive read brimming with brutal truths about motherhood, autonomy, and the everyday horror of not being believed. This twisty horror thriller will have you guessing until the staggering end."
Graveyard of Lost Children (2023) Katrina Monroe "A haunting, unflinching portrait of new motherhood infused with bone-chilling terror and staggering empathy. With nimble pacing, genuine scares, and a riveting central mystery, Graveyard of Lost Children is a bonafide page-tuner that will have your heart racing and breaking, that will linger long after the final chapter. Magnificent."
Sisters of the Lost Nation (2023) Nick Medina "A pulse-pounding horror thriller with a riveting central mystery, Medina's debut is a masterclass in suspense. It's also a moving portrayal of the painful rift between past and present, and an urgent reminder of the profound importance of storytelling, of being heard, seen, and remembered."
The Insatiable Volt Sisters (2023) Rachel Eve Moulton "A wistful, viscerally eerie modern fable about sisterhood, family secrets, and the horrors we inherit. Every page drips with beauty and dread. Masterfully written and absolutely mesmerizing."
A House With Good Bones (2023) T Kingfisher "Wickedly witty and intensely scary, A House With Good Bones is a thoroughly modern take on the Southern Gothic, about thorny family secrets that refuse to stay buried. You'll be feverishly turning the pages, so engrossed you won't notice the vultures circling overhead."
Sign Here (2022) Claudia Lux "A clever premise executed with flair, Sign Here is an electrifying page-turner that balances the thrilling and grim with an astute exploration of morality, family ties, and the burden of secrets. A striking debut."
Suburban Hell (2022) Maureen Kilmer "A savvy, wildly relatable horror-comedy about suburban angst and the bonds of friendship, that serves chilling scares and genuine laughs. Massively entertaining and fun as hell!"
Just Like Mother (2022) Anne Heltzel "A fierce, frightening novel that examines autonomy, motherhood, and the dark side of feminine power with savage precision. Just Like Mother is a total thrill ride. Buckle up and be warned -- there's no calling for Mommy."
The Hacienda (2022) Isabel Cañas "A stunning, spellbinding debut. The Hacienda is bone-chilling and gloriously gothic. Absolutely unmissable."
The Girl Who Outgrew the World (2022) Zoje Stage "A strikingly beautiful novella about girlhood, teeming with fairy tale whimsy and heart-wrenching truth. Stage has created an entrancing, bittersweet adventure for the ages."
Beneath the Stairs (2022) Jennifer Fawcett "A poignant haunted house tale about guilt, grief, and the nightmares of adolescence that follow us into adulthood. Fawcett delivers genuine scares in this chilling, mesmerizing debut."
The Final Girl Support Group (2021) Grady Hendrix "With The Final Girl Support Group Grady Hendrix transforms a horror trope into something bloody original. An incisive examination of society's obsession with violence against women that simultaneously honors and roasts the slasher genre with equal prowess. Wildly entertaining and clever as hell."
