We at Five Books consider the shortlists for the annual Bram Stoker Awards an excellent source of horror novel recommendations. Every year, the members of the Horror Writers Association—an international collective of authors and publishing professionals—nominate new work for consideration in a number of different literary forms, from screenplays and anthologies to short stories and even poetry. Here, we will be focus on the 2026 shortlist of the best new novels, but we do recommend horror fans take the time to peruse the full list of nominees and category winners, available here.

• The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
• Witchcraft for Wayward Girls: A Novel by Grady Hendrix
• King Sorrow by Joe Hill
• The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
• Girl in the Creek by Wendy N. Wagner