Erica Ezeifedi, Associate Editor, is a transplant from Nashville, TN that has settled in the North East. In addition to being a writer, she has worked as a victim advocate and in public libraries, where she has focused on creating safe spaces for queer teens, mentorship, and providing test prep instruction free to students. Outside of work, much of her free time is spent looking for her next great read and planning her next snack.
Find her on Twitter at @Erica_Eze_.
In many ways, horror as a genre seems especially well-suited to BIPOC and gender minorities. The genre is for everyone, of course, but it can have a special way of creating just enough distance between real-world issues and the readers to allow for new understanding and empathy. Horror written by BIPOC authors homes in on the nitty-gritty of marginalized experiences and immerses the reader into the real-life terror felt by many. And for those who already live on the margins, horror can be cathartic.
The books below are all by authors who write horror from the margins—there are ghost stories from South Korea, female rage in Nigeria, cursed historical fiction, and more.
The Midnight Timetable: A Novel in Ghost Stories by Bora Chung, Translated by Anton Hur
Bora Chung’s first book published in English, Cursed Bunny, was a genre-defying collection that pulled from horror, science fiction, and fantasy with a powerful feminist and anti-capitalist lens. Her new novel-in-ghost-stories, Midnight Timetable, builds on its beloved and award-winning predecessor in fascinating and eerily delightful ways. Set in a research institute for cursed objects, the novel follows a new employee as they learn about the items stored in the mysterious facility and the encounters other employees have had while working there. The stories are stalked by cursed sheep, a haunted handkerchief, and a cat you won’t soon forget, but are linked by Chung’s sharp critiques of societal abuses of power toward vulnerable communities, including stories about conversion therapy, animal testing, domestic abuse, and more. And yet again, acclaimed translator Anton Hur thoughtfully captures all of the book’s intense beauty and power with the artistry he’s known for. You’ll find yourself thinking of these hallways long after you’ve finished the book. In fact, you might not be able to find your way out. Just remember to never look back. — Pierce Alquist
Futility by Nuzo Onoh
I don’t know how many Nigeria-set books you’ve read, but either way, this one is bound to be unique. Let’s start with Chia, who runs a restaurant in Abuja and is seen as an all-around ideal woman by men. Her beauty is one of a kind, and so is her delicious hot pepper soup…because of a secret ingredient. Then there’s 50-year-old Claire. She lives in the capital with her young Nigerian boyfriend and his pretty female cousin. Well, one night at Chia’s restaurant leads to Claire’s life descending into chaos. Both Chia’s and Claire’s rage leads them to be propositioned by a trickster spirit who offers revenge against everyone who ever did them dirty. And the offer is kind of hard to resist.
Fiend by Alma Katsu
You might know Alma Katsu for her historical horror novels, but this time, the author has set her story in contemporary times. The Berisha family has always been told they are “blessed.” The wealthy family runs one of the largest import-export companies in the world, and while their rivals suffer tragedies, nothing ever seems to touch the Berishas. But what happens with the blessing turns out to be a curse, and the family’s carefully structured system begins to fall apart? —Emily Martin
But Not Too Bold by Hache Pueyo
Is there room for love in the life of a monster? You’ll find out in this Gothic romantasy novella! Dália works as the keeper for Anatema, a humanoid spider who enjoys laudanum and eating beautiful women. Dália must help Anatema keep her memories by caring for the locked drawers where they are stored and trying not to show any fear, even though Anatema ate Dália’s predecessor. Will they become entangled in a good way, or will Dália eventually be lunch? —Liberty Hardy
All access members continue below for new BIPOC horror
Erica Ezeifedi, Associate Editor, is a transplant from Nashville, TN that has settled in the North East. In addition to being a writer, she has worked as a victim advocate and in public libraries, where she has focused on creating safe spaces for queer teens, mentorship, and providing test prep instruction free to students. Outside of work, much of her free time is spent looking for her next great read and planning her next snack.
Find her on Twitter at @Erica_Eze_.
The Mean Ones by Tatiana Schlote-Bonne
Here’s a new horror novel that will give you serious Midsommar vibes. Sadie might seem like your average 29-year-old. But 17 years ago, she was known as Sabrina, and she witnessed her best friend get brutally murdered. Ever since then, she’s had strange visions and hears a man’s voice in her head. Her therapist tells her these are just symptoms of her PTSD, but when Sadie takes a trip to a cabin in the woods with her boyfriend, the visions and the voices get louder and harder to ignore. — Emily Martin
The Hunger We Pass Down by Jen Sookfong Lee
I am so very excited for this one. It follows Alice Chow, who is barely hanging onto life. Her cloth diaper business is going well—it’s more her family that is giving her grief. Her mother is rough-tempered, her daughter resents her, and her son seems to keep his head in front of a screen at all times. On top of all that, there never seems to be enough time in the day for Alice to do everything she needs to do. But then she wakes up one day to find all of the usual, unfinished chores done, and no one is taking credit for it. She should question it, but the extra time it gives her is too precious—and soon she’s connecting more with her family. That’s when her mother starts to tell her of her great-grandmother, who was a comfort woman during WWII. All this bonding and sharing is great, but there are demons following the women in Alice’s family that will have to be confronted sooner or later.
The Salvage by Anbara Salam
With comparisons to Emma Donoghue, Sarah Waters, and Julia Armfield’s Our Wives Under the Sea, how could this not be one of my most anticipated historical thrillers this fall? A marine archaeologist called in to a remote Scottish island to explore a newly uncovered Victorian shipwreck discovers much more than she bargained for when she’s stranded in Cairnroch for the winter. — Rachel Brittain
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