Ghost Stories

This is a list of ghost stories.  If I read it, and it has a ghost, you'll find it here (well, as long as it is actually worth reading.  I didn't include books I didn't like.)  Most of these books can be found on one or more of the other genre lists, because some are meant to be mysteries, some are set in historical time periods, some are funny, and some are full of action and adventure.  Of course, there are plenty that fall into the Horror or Thriller/Suspense categories that we usually think of when mentioning ghost stories.  With such a range, everyone should be able to find something here that they like.

Books that have a review or mini-review on this blog can be clicked on to go to that post.  Be sure to see my note at the bottom of the list about reading and age appropriate levels.


A Skinful of Shadows by Frances Hardinge
(5.9) (MG) (family secrets, ghosts, England, war, 1600’s)

Absent by Katie Williams
(4.3) (UG) (ghosts, hauntings & possessions, mystery)

A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb
5.0) (UG) (ghosts, romance, mystery)

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake (series)
(4.6) (UG) (horror, ghosts, ghost hunters, love)

Beating Heart: A Ghost Story by A. M. Jenkins
(4.6) (UG) (ghosts, mystery, relationships)

Behold the Bones by Natalie C. Parker
(/) (UG) (friendship, mystery, family secrets, magic, ghosts)

Between by Jessica Warman 
(4.0) (UG) (ghosts, mystery, anorexia, relationships)

Breathe: A Ghost Story by Cliff McNish
(4.8) (MG) (ghosts, secrets, special abilities)

Cold in Summer by Tracy Barrett
(4.7) (MG-) (ghosts, mystery)

Cryer’s Cross by Lisa McMann 
(3.9) (UG) (OCD, mystery, secrets, ghosts, disappearances)

Dead Connection by Charlie Price
(4.7) (MG) (clairvoyance, ghosts, murder mystery)

Deathwatch by Ari Berk (series)
(6.3) (UG) (family, secrets, ghosts)

Doll Bones by Holly Black
(5.4) (MG-) (friendship, mysteries, magic)

Everlost by Neal Shusterman  (series) *
(5.6/5.9/6.4) (MG) (ghosts, friendship, alternate reality) 

Ghostlight by Sonia Gensler
(4.6) (MG) (ghosts, family secrets)

How to Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather
(MG+) (Salem, family secrets, magic, romance, ghosts)

Insanity by Susan Vaught
(5.3) (MG+) (asylums, hauntings, paranormal abilities)

Into the Grey by Celine Kiernan *

(MG+) (brothers, twins, ghosts, WWI, family relationships)

Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough  (series)
(5.4) (UG) (family, death, secrets, evil ghosts)

Picture the Dead by Adele Griffin
(5.2) (MG+) (Civil War, mystery)

Restless by Rich Wallace
(4.4) (UG) (ghosts, brothers)

Ruined by Paula Morris 
(6.0) (UG) (mystery, ghosts, New Orleans)


Shadowlands by Kate Bryan
(4.7) (UG) (serial killers, mystery, family, ghosts)

Shutter by Courtney Alameda
(MG+) (ghosts, ghost hunting, paranormal abilities, fathers & daughters)

The Archived by Victoria Schwab (series)
(4.7/5.2) (UG) (death, ghosts, family, friendship/love)

The Crossroads by Chris Grabenstein (series)
(3.7/4.0) (MG) (ghosts, mystery, family relationships)

The Dark Between by Sonia Gensler
(5.4) (UG) (ghosts, Victorian era, murder, romance)

The Girl Behind the Glass by Jane Kelley *
(3.3) (MG) (ghosts, mystery, twins) 

The Girl from the Well by Rin Cupeco 
(6.3) (UG) (ghosts, revenge, mystery)


The Girl in Between by Sarah Carroll

(4.0) (MG+) (mothers & daughters, homelessness, ghosts, regret)

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman *
(5.1) (MG) (orphans, vampires, family, ghosts, mystery) 

The Great Blue Yonder by Alex Shearer 
(5.1) (MG-) (death, ghosts, humor)


The Haunting of Sunshine Girl by Paige McKenzie
(5.2) (MG+) (ghosts, possession, mothers & daughters)


The job of the Wasp by Colin Winnette

(MG+) (orphans, mystery, murder, ghosts)

The Poisoned House by Michael Ford
(4.9) (MG+) (family secrets, hauntings, Victorian era)

The Presence by Eve Bunting
(4.0) (UG) (ghosts, death, mystery)

The Seer of Shadows by Avi 
(5.2) (MG) (1800’s, photography, ghosts)

The Unresolved by T. K. Welsh 
(4.5) (MG+) (death, ghosts, early 1900’s, racial discrimination)

Through Her Eyes by Jennifer Archer
(4.7) (MG+) (ghosts, secrets, photography)


Note:  Lists are arranged with Title, Author, Reading Level, Age Appropriate Level, and Descriptive Tags.
(Age appropriate level denotes the youngest readers that the book is appropriate for.  That doesn't mean that older readers will not enjoy the book!)

* =  books that I thought were GREAT

UG = upper grades  (contain sex, drugs, and/or very graphic violence; deal with mature subject matter such as rape, prostitution, child abuse, etc. )
MG+ = junior high  (may contain some profanity or sexual references; may deal with subject matter too mature for younger audiences)
MG = 4th through 6th grades (nothing inappropriate for children, but may not keep the interest of younger readers)
MG- = all ages (perfect for bedtime stories or read-alouds, or for precocious readers in the lower grades)

* = LGBTQ themes - characters, situations, or references to same-sex couples

Books included in this list are all ones that I have read myself and given a rating of at least 3 out of 5 Stars (why would I recommend anything less?)  When a book is part of a series, only the first title is listed, but the reading level for all books in the series is shown.  Lists will be updated periodically as I read new books.

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