Queer Fear: 13 Thrilling Queer Gothic Books

This novel, set in the 1820s, is a gothic thriller with a riveting crime narrative. Frannie Langton is awaiting trial in London’s Newgate prison (such an iconic location for historical fiction fans!). She is accused of murdering her master and mistress, but she doesn’t think she could have done it. So she goes back to the beginning and traces her full story, starting with her early life on a plantation in Jamaica. This is the gothic for fans of historical fiction that makes sharp commentary on racism, like The Underground Railroad and Washington Black.

Jane Eyre is both an incredible book and one full of all kinds of problems. I enjoy reading books that engage with this text and choose different angles to explore. This book — great on audio if you’re into that — spoils the major plot detail of Jane Eyre right in its title. Even knowing that, you will find Sir Kit, the Mr. Rochester analogue, charismatic at first. You’ll watch with fascination as the Jane stand-in, Deborah, falls in love with the titular character and the two exact vengeance. As a bonus, this book is set in the same universe as Rose Lerner’s other Lively St. Lemeson books.

Vampires are a staple of gothic literature, and this book has become a modern classic since its 1991 publication. Gilda is an enslaved girl who escapes, and is then consensually turned by a vampire. She makes her way in the world, taking what she needs to survive but also giving back as best she can. If you like the idea of a Black lesbian vampire finding a family and witnessing the changes that come with history, this book will glamour you just like a vampire.

I’m often singing the praises of this series, and here I am doing it again! This book has one of the most awesomely spooky haunted houses, and really amazing opera magic. The romance between a nonbinary singer named Mio and an immortal with the power of a bear spirit is action-packed, strange, and cathartic. The best gothic novels have truly villainous villains, and this book has some doozies.

This is a ghost story. It’s a vampire story. It’s got a small town that’s festering with evil. Good stuff, is what I’m saying. And if you’re looking for asexuality in your queer gothic books, it’s not a major plot point of this book. But its casual presence as part of the main character Elatsoe’s identity may be affirming for you. Ellie is a ghost wrangler who ends up in Willowbee investigating the death of her cousin. While that sounds serious, this book has ghost dinosaurs. It manages to be extremely fun while also commenting on colonialism and spotlighting Lipan Apache culture.

This book taps into a bunch of different gothic modes that you’re sure to appreciate. Not only queer gothic, but dark academia and Southern Gothic as well. In it, we meet Andrew and Eddie, who are the closest of friends. Eddie left for grad school in Nashville, and then died in an apparent suicide. Andrew inherits his house, which comes with a roommate he doesn’t know and more dark secrets than you can shake a stick at. 

This gothic horror has a richly detailed setting: a historic hotel in Chicago called the Sentinel Club. Gabe works there in the Rosebriar Room, their fine dining establishment. He’s trying to dig himself out of a hard time — a traumatic breakup and a suicide attempt. His dark past mirrors that of the hotel itself. It’s haunted by something sinister that has its eyes on Gabe. This is a story that delves into gothic metaphors for racism and generational trauma, and it’s the kind of book that pulls you in and doesn’t let go.

Daphne Du Maurier’s classic Rebecca helped usher in a wave of gothic romances in the mid 20th century that dwindled as historical romances and straight-up horror novels become popular. Most of those gothic romances featured straight couples, but Gaywyck aimed to use those beloved storytelling beats to tell a deliciously gay tale. Robert heads to clifftop mansion Gaywyck to catalog the library. There he meets Donough Gaylord, and you can guess how it goes. Side note: the Fated Mates podcast episode with author Vincent Virga is not to be missed!

Queer horror from a MacArthur genius? Yes, and a slim, Kafkaesque read at that. The story, translated from Spanish, follows an unnamed narrator, who claims to be male. When two women invade his house on a stormy night interrogating him about his gender, his failure to convince anyone about his maleness lands him in a sanitarium. It’s a little The Yellow Wallpaper, a little The Trial. Perfectly gothic and surreal.

Can you tell I love Jane Eyre? I will read just about any twist on it, and this one will keep you on your toes. In the original novel Jane is Adele’s governess. In this novel, Adele knows why Mr. Rochester — who might be her father? — is no good. She leaves home for finishing school in London and meets a charming thief named Nan. And then she becomes a vigilante, murdering men who commit violence against women. I’m pumping my fist triumphantly just writing that!

This book has a contemporary setting, starting on the Yorkshire Moors, one of the most gothic of landscapes. A population of people who literally eat books lives there. When Devon gives birth to a child who has a hunger for human minds, she tries to keep him safe by integrating into regular human society. This book definitely has body horror elements, if that’s your jam.

If you’ve read and enjoyed the gothic classic Dracula, this one’s for you. Dracula is a bunch of things: an epistolary novel, a gothic novel, but also a detective novel. Rin Chupeco continues in this vein with their vampire novel starring Remy, the son of a duke in the fictional kingdom of Aluria. He’s trying to find who’s unleashing mutant vampires on his city. But here’s the real clincher: this is your book if you wish more of the sexual tension in the novels you read resulted in polyamory.

While classic gothic settings include crumbling castles, estates, and monasteries, a school for girls is another perfect setting for tales of the macabre. Plain Bad Heroines is a Russian nesting doll of a book, telling multiple stories across time. Two girls in 1902 are obsessed with a scandalous memoir, but they end up mysteriously dead and the school closes up. Over 100 years later, a film is being made about the event. The stories interweave in delightful and twisty ways. Hint: if you listen to this in audio, check out a hard copy from your library if you want to see the illustrations.