By Tony Jones 
Top YA Killer Thrillers: Must-Read Halloween Books for Halloween 2025: There’s a Killer on the Loose
This Halloween Young Blood heads deep into serial killer territory with a selection of teen novels which (mostly) feature killers of one kind or another. Horror and thrillers have always been very close bedfellows and this list contains both supernatural killers and those of the humankind. The books are arranged alphabetically and have all previously been reviewed in YA roundups over the last decade.
Kalynn Bayron – You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight (2023)
Publisher : Bloomsbury YA
Kalynn Bayron always features great diversity and LGBTQIA+ representation, which continues in You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight with a Black, gay, teenage girl being the main character. In the acknowledgements Bayron notes that this novel is a tribute to all her favourite slasher films of the eighties and she has great fun playing around with the final girl trope.
Younger readers might not notice many of the nuances or film references, but it remains a fun and enjoyable read and even thought it has some f-bombs any young teen will be sucked into a page-turner which moves through the gears in the second half, with the first setting the scene.
Main character Charity Curtis loves her summer job playing a final girl at Camp Mirror Lake, where paying customers have the crap scared out of them in a location made famous by an old slasher horror film, ‘Curse of Camp Mirror Lake’. The game is incredibly realistic, full contact, and Charity is exceptionally good at it, getting a kick out of scaring people.
The first half of the novel builds the tension, Charity’s girlfriend Bezi is another major character and after weird things happen they realise the camp is not what it seems, with a history significantly older than the slasher movie they pay homage to. With real killers on the prowl, Charity’s final girl role becomes all too real and she has to fight for survival, with her camp role being well and truly reversed. Like the horror films which inspired it, You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight is not an especially deep read, but when there is a vicious killer on the loose it does not have to be! AGE RANGE 13+
Darcy Coates – Where He Can’t Find You (2023)
Publisher : Sourcebooks Fire
Adult fans of Darcy should not be put off by Where He Can’t Find You’s YA tag, there is more than enough horror and creepiness in this tale to keep you happy, mainly because the boogieman creature ‘The Stitcher’ dominating the novel from the shadows. I loved the fact the narrative pretty much tells us who The Stitcher is very early on; you might think that would ruin suspense, but far from it, instead it adds to the intensity.
Rarely have I seen ‘smalltown horror’ done as effectively as it is here, where the activities of The Stitcher serial killer dominate every waking moment of the inhabitants of the town Doubtful. When a murder is anticipated, technology fails and red thread is often discovered close to the victims, often dissected and sewn back together with the pieces of other bodies.
Instead of trying to solve these horrible crimes the police force takes bets on who the next victim might be! Abby and Hope Ward live with their ill mother and have a solid group of friends (the Jackrabbits) around them. They follow a mantra to keep themselves safe from The Stitcher, including do not walk alone or stay out late and remain in regular text contact.
The story revolves around the arrival of a new police officer with a daughter the same age as the Jackrabbits, who joins their friendship group but does not believe in the monster. This novel had outstanding pace, and when it morphed into a creature feature in the second half, was hard to put down as the group (these kids were brave!) came face to face with an outstanding supernatural killer. AGE RANGE 13/14+
Kathryn Foxfield – Getting Away with Murder (2023)
Publisher : Scholastic
Getting Away With Murder is an edgy spin on the high-tech escape room featuring a killer of a different kind. I am surprised anybody ever attempts these, as they never seem to go well. The plot is a split chapter-by chapter narrative with two teen sisters whose relationship is at rock bottom; their feud has spilled out into school and onto social media. The story is seen from both ‘Saffron’s’ and ‘Georgia’s’ perspectives and it was fun seeing alternative versions of the same events.
When the story starts, both girls are on work experience, with Saffron based at a gaming company about to launch a new escape room, whilst Georgia is at a local newspaper. Sensing a story, Georgia’s boss wants to ger her invited to the big premier launch of the game, where things go horribly wrong.
This is balanced against not only the dangers of AI technology, but the fact that those who are invited to the launch all know each other from the online game ‘Soul Survivor’ which the escape room mirrors in some clever ways. After the first death the group realise the game is very real and there is no escape or pause button. This book is equally great for both those who love and hate technology, with a killer who is neither human nor supernatural. AGE RANGE 12+
Gregory Hughes – Summertime of the Dead (2012)
Publisher : Quercus Children’s Books
Although Summertime of the Dead is more thriller than horror, it is so unrelentingly dark it
puts many more traditional novels to shame, doubling up as an outstanding revenge story featuring a killer unlike any other in this article. Yukio is a fourteen-year-old living in Tokyo with his distant grandmother, who sets out to avenge the death of his two best friends, who committed suicide after sustained and horrific blackmail by the local Yakuza gang. Unsheathing his grandfather’s Samurai sword for payback, one of the most vicious Kill Bill style thrillers stylishly builds momentum, as Yukio quickly notches his first kill.
Often devoid of emotion and written in short, sparce, Manga style sentences, this novel is particularly tricky to classify as the boy seems to be living by the ancient Samurai code of several hundred years ago, lacking a modern moral compass. Much of the brilliance of Summertime of the Dead lies in the portrayal of Yukio, who is totally relentless in his desire for revenge, getting more unhinged and psychopathic as the novel progresses. If you are looking for forgiveness or for Yukio to seek redemption then forget it, this book remains bleak until its troubling but brilliant ending. AGE RANGE 12+
Savita Kalhan – The Long Weekend (2008)
Publisher : Andersen
The Long Weekend is an outstanding horror thriller in which two pre-teens, who are in the early stages of their friendship, are effectively tricked and kidnapped, ending up in a vast remote house, which would be the perfect location for any slasher film. The two boys are wildly different; Sam is new to the area and has regularly moved schools coming from a poorer background. His new friend Lloyd is the opposite, outgoing, confident and from a wealthy family, but through the course of the kidnapping their roles reverse, and Sam takes the lead in their ordeal to escape.
Without being explicit, physical abuse to one of the boys is strongly implied, and this rollercoaster, 180-page short read pulls no punches in making it abundantly clear what the kidnapper intends to do to the boys. The interaction between the children is riveting; one holds it together while the other collapses under stress in what quickly evolves into a gripping read, as it is so scarily believable.
The Long Weekend is brutally realistic, perhaps too much so for some readers, but kidnappings like this do happen and this grimy intense novel should be read by all kids, as it surely has more impact than a hundred school ‘stranger danger’ talks or warnings from visiting policemen. And if you are a parent this book is even scarier and contains more triggers than a thousand horror films. AGE RANGE 12+
Matthew Kirby – A Taste for Monsters (2016)
Publisher : Scholastic Pr
This historical fiction novel which blends horror with mystery is a real one-off, skilfully fusing history with horror. It is surely the only teen novel which features both Jack the Ripper and John Merrick, better known as the Elephant Man. Set in London, 1888, this wonderfully gritty and atmospheric tale has a superb main character, Evelyn Fallows, a young woman horribly disfigured by a sulphur accident in a match factory. To hide herself away, Evelyn gets a job working in a hospital, a job nobody else wants, becoming the nurse to the Elephant Man who has been horribly deformed since birth.
Much of this intelligent novel concerns the friendship which develops between Evelyn and Merrick. Evelyn loves her job and hopes never to return to the streets where she was once shunned, however, a second supernatural strand to the story add a level of mystery which sends her back to the places she hoped never to return to.
The Elephant Man is haunted by apparitions, ghosts, whom he thinks are the victims of Jack the Ripper. With every murder, Merrick becomes weaker, but Evelyn will do anything to help him and the stories merge. With the descriptions of the London streets so vivid you can smell them, coupled with a highly original plot, A Taste for Monsters is a winner all the way bringing to life one of the most famous killers of them all. AGE RANGE 13+
Barry Lyga – I Hunt Killers (2012)
Publisher : Corgi
Any older teenager with a passing interest in horror will have heard of the infamous Hannibal Lecter, for those not old enough to read Thomas Harris’s monstrous creation Barry Lyga’s I Hunt Killersis the next best thing lurking in the world of YA. The main character is teenager Jazz Dent, who, for the most part, is a likable kid but is avoided by many because he is the son of America’s most notorious serial killer.
Billy Dent was responsible for the death of over one hundred people, many whilst Jazz was growing up, possibly including Jazz’s mother who vanished when the killer was active. The novel opens with Billy in prison, serving multiple life sentences, and Jazz trying to rebuild his life in the same small town he grew up in. Not surprisingly, Jazz has a host of personal and emotional problems connected to his damaged upbringing.
Jazz might be likable, but he is also troubled with an unhealthy interest in death, crime scenes and is friends with the local sheriff, who took him under his wing after his father was incarcerated. Early in the novel a body is found, Billy is convinced this is a copycat paying tribute to his father, who he has not seen since his sentencing.
Becoming a suspect, he fights to clear his name, but other bodies appear and he decides to visit his infamous father. Like Hannibal Lecter before him, the killer Billy Dent is a memorable creation, and when he makes his first appearance the novel genuinely lights up. AGE RANGE 13+
Gretchen McNeil – Ten (2013)
Publisher : HarperCollins
If you’re a seeking blend of thriller and trashy horror thriller, top heavy with loud, dumb, and scared teens then place Ten at the top of the pile. With shades of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None (1939) and Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why (2007), ten teenagers are invited to an exclusive island for a three day party, which they have been told to keep hush hush. It is a huge amount of fun, dancing gleefully into what resembles a slasher horror film as the body count mounts.
The story is told in the third person from Meg’s point of view, whose best friend Minnie is also excited to be attending, but after they discover a DVD with the sinister message ‘vengeance is mine’ they realise the gathering is dodgy. When one of the other party goers is found hanged, they realise they are in a fight for their lives. Ten becomes a beautifully crafted whodunnit rollercoaster of a novel, and you’ll struggle to figure out who the murderer is, with numerous clever red herrings. Sometimes YA novels do not have to be deep or emotional and instead there is nothing better than losing yourself an old-fashioned page-turner. AGE RANGE 13+
Bryce Moore – The Perfect Place to Die (2021)
Publisher : Sourcebooks Fire
The Perfect Place to Die is predominately set in Chicago during the 1890s, with a seventeen year-old girl travelling from Utah in search of her missing sister. During this historical period, there were massive population migrations from rural states to the big cities. The story has an outstanding sense of time and place and I was sucked into this dangerous but lively and bustling city.
The action is set during the World’s Columbian Exposition, bringing even more people to the city for jobs in hotels and visiting the event. Arriving from Utah, naive country girl Zuretta is concerned that her weekly letters from her nineteen-year-old sister abruptly stopped and finding the police unhelpful, begins her own investigation.
Considering she was a Mormon from a small backwater in Utah, Zuretta is street savvy for a seventeen-year-old girl after some early mishaps. She connects with a Pinkerton Detective and the story explores the situation of women in this period and their lack of opportunities. Zuretta is certain her sister worked in The Castle Hotel and ends up getting a job there, quickly finding out this is a challenging place to work.
Clearly, a significant amount of research went into this book, which is an entertaining blend of historical fiction, thriller and an earnest look at how tough it was for women to get ahead in this era. To keep things edgy, every chapter is introduced by a quote from the journal of the killer, who is based on an infamous real life murderer. AGE RANGE 13+
Stephanie Perkins – The Woods Are Always Watching (2020)
Publisher : Macmillan Children’s Books
The Woods are Always Watching is a non-supernatural story with a plot more akin to adult horror, rather than YA. If this were an adult novel it would undoubtedly fit into the ‘Hillbilly Horror’ subgenre, which is rarely found in YA. This was a book of two halves, the first intricately sets the scene with clever and convincing character development and the second half ramps up the horror, including some truly bone-crunching scenes, with real menace and gore. Some of the strongest sequences would not have been out of place in an eighties backwater horror movie.
The Woods Are Always Watching features only two major characters, Neema and Josie who are going on a three-day hike deep into the Pisgah National Forest, in the Appalachian mountains. The girls are inexperienced walkers, naive, and looking for an eventful trip to mark the end of high school. There is early tension as the pair struggle with the terrain and bicker with each other as stress levels increase.
The two halves truly were widely different, with the first harmless teen survival fun, but the second features the threat of rape, murder and deeply unpleasant killers. The girls’ fight for survival was unrelenting and incredibly realistic, and Perkins was perhaps too cruel on one of the characters. Riveting stuff, and teens who tackle this must surely be ready to whet their lips with adult horror, as the brutal The Woods are Always Watching has them knocking on the door. AGE RANGE 13/14+
Jeyn Roberts – When They Fade (2016)
Publisher : Alfred a Knopf Inc
When they Fade is a complex and gripping supernatural thriller story told through two convincing and distinct voices. Firstly, Tatum, who is having serious problems at school. Her ex-best friend Claudette is having an affair with a teacher, and having concerns for her friend Tatum reports it to their councillor. When confronted, Claudette and her boyfriend teacher turn the tables on Tatum and nobody believes her.
Her life becomes a misery as she is outed as a tattletale; much of this back story is told via flashback. The second character the narrative follows is Molly, who is a ghost, originally murdered in 1970 by a serial killer not long after the Woodstock Music Festival, and she repeatedly reappears as a hitchhiker on the stretch of road close to where she originally disappeared.
One evening, Tatum is out driving and she picks up Molly, and when their hands touch the ghost foresees a horrible death for the other girl and their lives connect. When They Fade is a superb fusion of painful and realistic high school bullying, ghost story, thriller, and even a believable romance as Tatum tries to confront her demons. The author does a memorable job of creating a gripping ghost story with convincing characters, both alive and dead. AGE RANGE 13+
Sara Walters – The Violent Season (2021)
Publisher : Sourcebooks Fire
The Violent Season is as bleak as YA can possibly get. Starting sinister, by the time the end is reached it is pitch-black, potentially too uncompromising for some teen readers. I often regard the Kevin Brooks masterpiece The Bunker Diary as nihilistic as it comes, but this runs it close. Set in the small town of Wolf Ridge, every November there are unexplained acts of horrific violence.
Is there something genuinely sinister or merely an urban myth which teens use as an excuse to kick off? The context in which this curse (or urge for violence) is framed was a real strength of the story, with Wyatt Green trying to come to terms with the unexplained and unsolved murder of her mother by connecting it to this weird phenomenon.
A year after the murder continues she continues to struggle and the action unfolds into a toxic teen drama and eventually an edgy romantic triangle. This was an explicit and demanding YA novel which includes drug use and characters who appear to be okay on the outside but are in turmoil inside. Social media can lead to horrors which are significantly nastier than the monster lurking under the bed and is there anything worse than having photos taken drunk (and naked) which are then shared online?
Overall, the book was a fascinating blend of teen drama, with an undiagnosed supernatural feeling lurking in the background, and a lot of pain. A very challenging, bleak, but ultimately rewarding read. And watch out for that ending. AGE RANGE 14/15+
Mark Wheaton – Who Haunts You (2023)
Publisher : Off Limits Press LLC
In Who Haunts You, high school senior Rebecca “Bex” Koeltl totally steals the show as an autistic, neurodivergent teenager who is trying to survive school without getting noticed. The convincing family dynamics play an important part of the story, with Bex’s mother and elder sister having pivotal roles in Bex managing her autism and being able to function at school, which is full-on, very social media savvy, and highly academic.
She also sees a psychologist and the book convincingly portrays a teen who struggles (but does try) to connect with others, explores and explains her coping mechanisms whilst she volunteers at the school library, listens to audiobooks on repeat, and takes early morning walks to avoid crowds and minimises human contact.
Bex’s neurodiversity plays a clever part in the story, as when basketball star Yunwen dies there is a huge outpouring of grief from the students of Claremont High about this apparent suicide. After further deaths, Bex suspects something is up but struggles to express this to anybody who might believe her.
She uses her computer skills to hack into their files and believes they were all having similar psychological problems brought on by hallucinations in which they were haunted by long dead relatives their own family swear never existed. I loved the way the book finishes, the shocking build up, and the fact that sometimes everything does not end up happily ever after, even in teen novels. AGE RANGE 13+
Sarah Wray – The Trap (2008)
Publisher : Faber & Faber
Fifteen-year-old English kid Luke Shelton wins the dream of a lifetime; the opportunity to spend his summer in America, at Camp Hope, which is popular with children who have sky high IQs. Upon arrival, the very excited Luke is dismayed to find out his summer home is also referred to as ‘Camp No Hope’ because of the unexplained disappearances of three teens a few years earlier. Surrounded by forests, a summer of archery, hiking, swimming and other cool activities quickly becomes sinister when Luke finds coded messages in his dorm room and senses a deeper meaning after one of his new friends is attacked and injured.
The Trap was a terrific combination of horror and thriller, a short punchy read with good twists which will have you pining for the slasher movie pomp of the eighties. Considering Luke was a bit of a nerd he even had two girls interested in him, which spiced up the dynamics.
I enjoyed the way the narrative played around with character stereotypes you might find in a teen film, including the bully, sidekick, nerd, best friend, joker and both cute and mean girls. The story picks up momentum very quickly, with the camp counsellors remaining suspiciously tight-lipped, and Luke using his skills of logic and reasoning to solve a mystery littered with cool twists and as the title implies, traps.
Praise for the YA Horror 400 almanac, published in 2024:
“The YA Horror 400 is such a good and constructive push for YA horror.” JEREMY DE QUIDT (YA author of The Wrong Train & The Toymaker)
“An amazing teen horror guide, with fabulous features like fear factor ratings and ‘If You Like This Try” recs. Perfect for librarians, teachers, and anyone who wants to live their best YA horror life” ANN FRAISTAT (YA author of What We Harvest & A Place for Vanishing)
“A must have for anyone looking to help connect younger readers to the best genre in the world. Expertly compiled by Tony Jones” PHIL HICKES (Middle Grade author of the Aveline Jones and Shadowhall Academy series)
“So excited that my books have been featured here. Teachers and librarians – this is the PERFECT resource for you!” LORIEN LAWRENCE (Middle Grade author of The Stitchers series)
“If you’ve ever wished there were an easily accessible almanac of YA horror, I’ve got great news, Tony Jones, who has been reviewing and supporting my work since I first started and is one of my biggest professional cheerleaders has released his YA Horror 400 almanac! I was lucky enough to have had the opportunity to contribute to it, too. What a cool project! Go Tony!” AMY LUKAVICS (YA author of Daughters Unto Devils & The Ravenous)
“I want to alert English teachers and librarians to the most definitive resource I’ve ever seen highlighting the best YA horror novels since 2008. 400 of the best dark fiction for readers 9-15+ . Where do you go for advice yourself to know what to purchase? It’s all here. What do you give a middle-grade reader or teen with a taste for the darker side? This … and let them pick and choose their own! CLIFF McNish (YA author of Breathe & The Hunting Ground)
“Librarians! Bloggers! Readers! Educators! I am wildly pleased to see The Call on, and between, the covers of THE YA HORROR 400 by Tony Jones. Reviews of brilliant books, author interviews. Scares aplenty.” PEADAR Ó GUILÍN (YA horror/fantasy author of The Call duology)”
“Great news for teen horror fans! The YA Horror 400 is out! A massive horror almanac w/ fab features including fear factor ratings, articles, notes from authors and much more. Absolutely perfect for librarians, teachers and anyone who reads YA horror.” BRYONY PEARCE (YA author of Savage Island & Raising Hell)
“The YA Horror 400 is a fabulous resource for librarians, parents, and fans of horror kidlit.” Lora Senf (Bram Stoker Award winning author of The Blight Harbor series)
“I highly recommend the YA Horror 400: an almanac of 400 teen horror novel reviews published between 2008-2024 by Tony Jones, featuring reviews of the best YA and middle grade horror (including my own novel Channel Fear”. LISA RICHARDSON (YA author of Channel Fear)
“Teachers, librarians, readers… This brand new almanac from horror guru Tony Jones is all you need to navigate your way through YA spookiness, gore and thrills. SJ Wills (YA author of the Bite Risk series)
The Young Blood Library on Ginger Nuts of Horror
For fans of Young Adult (YA) Horror and Middle Grade (MG) Horror, the Young Blood section of book reviews on the Ginger Nuts of Horror website is a treasure trove worth exploring. This curated segment delves into the darker side of youthful literature, offering insights into the chilling narratives that have captivated young readers.
The beauty of YA and MG horror lies in its ability to tackle complex themes such as fear, identity, and resilience, all while maintaining an accessibility that appeals to younger audiences. Readers can expect reviews that highlight not only the spine-tingling plots but also the emotional depth and character development that are essential to these genres.
The Ginger Nuts of Horror Review Website showcases a diverse array of titles, from debut authors to established names, making it easy for fans to discover hidden gems and upcoming releases. The reviews are penned by passionate contributors who share a deep love for horror, ensuring that each piece is both informative and engaging.
By checking out this section, readers can stay ahead of the curve on the latest trends in YA and MG horror, enriching their reading experience and connecting with a community that shares their enthusiasm for all things eerie and unsettling. Whether you seek thrills or thoughtful narratives, Young Blood has something for everyone.
Jim Mcleod