7 Terrifying Cosmic Horror Books You Need to Read ASAP

Cosmic horror (also called Lovecraftian horror) is a subgenre of horror fiction that uses the vastness of the universe and the insignificance of humanity as its fear factor. Instead of relying on violent monsters, serial killers, or gore, cosmic horror works its way under your skin using different elements: ancient, cosmic forces and entities that are beyond the limits of human comprehension.

One of the most famous authors of the genre was H. P. Lovecraft, whose stories and otherworldly characters are still present in today's pop culture and whose works have inspired many contemporary writers.

✅ Note: This blog post is spoiler-free. You can proceed safely. ✅

In this post, I'm focusing on more modern releases. There are some well-known titles, as well as a few more obscure ones. Also, for each of these books, you'll find the list of trigger warnings on this page here.

Here are 7 terrifying cosmic horror books I've read and enjoyed. There's also a bonus entry at the end, so that makes it 8 books. Make sure to add them to your TBR!

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1.) "The Fisherman" by John Langan (2016)

Page count: 266 pages

Link: Goodreads

Now, this one does feel like something out of the H. P. Lovecraft universe. In this story, we follow Abe and Dan, two grieving widowers, who embark on a fishing trip to Dutchman's Creek, but soon they find themselves entangled in a dark, ancient, occult mystery—the legend of Der Fischer—and they have no choice but to face what they have lost.

One of the main themes of the story is the unbearable grief one must endure when losing a loved one. Now, the other thing they need to face is even more terrifying and incomprehensible. There's something in the water.

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2.) "Annihilation" by Jeff VanderMeer (2014)

Page count: 195 pages

Links: Goodreads

Jeff VanderMeer is one of today's most popular authors of weird horror. Annihilation is the first and shortest entry of his Southern Reach tetralogy, which has been widely acclaimed and praised.

The story in a nutshell: A group of specialists embarks on an expedition to Area X, a place hidden by the government, where inexplicable natural phenomena and strange lifeforms have been discovered. Their mission is to map out the place and record observations, because most of the previous expeditions have ended in tragedy. Madness. Suicide. Murder. Stuff like that.

This book is weird and trippy. There's also a movie adaptation, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but it's like a different interpretation of the ideas presented by the book. Here's the trailer in case you're interested:

3.) "The Ballad of Black Tom" by Victor LaValle (2016)

Links: Goodreads

This one is also for the Lovecraft heads. LaValle starts out the book with the following dedication:

"For H. P. Lovecraft, with all my conflicted feelings" 

Charles Thomas Tester is a New York con artist who walks the streets with an empty guitar case, trying to make money any way he can. After he accepts one rather sketchy job, a door is opened—a door to something occult. Black magic. Ancient things were sleeping, but now they are waking up. You know how it is. 

It's trippy, atmospheric, dark, and fast-paced. If you're a fan of the Cthulhu mythos, don't miss out on this one.

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4.) "The Cabin at the End of the World" by Paul Tremblay (2018)

Links: Goodreads

I've already written about this book here (but beware: minor spoilers), so I don't want to take much time in this post. The story follows a cabin retreat of a family of three: Andrew, Eric, and their daughter, Wen. It starts out fun and relaxing, but then suddenly, from the woods, four strangers arrive at the cabin. Knock, knock. They want to come in because they have something crucially important to say: They need the family's help to save the world.

Though I had issues with the pacing, the characters were great and fleshed out, and the story was intriguing. If you like end-of-the-world scenarios, give it a shot.

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5.) "We Need to Do Something" by Max Booth III. (2020)

Links: Goodreads

I believe this one started out as an indie release, and then ended up getting a movie adaptation! Congrats, Max.

About the story: A toxic, dysfunctional family find themselves trapped in their own bathroom during a tornado warning. Now, possibly, instead of a tornado, there's something very f*cked up going on outside, and the situation inside the bathroom is no better either.

Read it if you like (possibly) post-apocalyptic scenarios, occult stuff, and shitty family dynamics—but honestly, who doesn't?

Here's the trailer for the movie adaptation if you're curious:

6.) "The Mist" by Stephen King (1980)

Links: Goodreads

This is the oldest entry in the list, and I don't think it needs much introduction. "The Mist" was initially released as part of King's Skeleton Crew collection, but now you can also buy it as a separate book.

The story: After a heavy thunderstorm that knocks off the power supply in the town, David, Billy (David's son), and Brent (their dickhead neighbour) go to a local supermarket to grab some stuff, but while they're in there, a thick mist descends on the town. Weird sounds are coming from the mist. Is it possible to leave the supermarket alive?

This one is a modern classic. I think all horror heads should give it a read at one point in their reading career.

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7.) "John Dies at the End" by Jason Pargin (aka David Wong) [2007]

Links: Goodreads

STOP. You should not have touched this flyer with your bare hands. NO, don't put it down. It's too late. They're watching you.

"John Dies at the End" is more like an offbeat horror-comedy book, but make no mistake: while funny, it is also scary and disgusting.

The plot: A drug called Soy Sauce gives its users the ability to look beyond their current reality and into another dimension. Turns out, there's a lethal cosmic threat in that other dimension, but we are lucky, because we have David and John to save us—or are we?

It's weird and funny and gory. You should check it out!

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+1.) "You Are What Eats You + Shadows Over Sanviero" by Chris Burton (2025)

Links: Goodreads and Amazon (also on Kindle Unlimited)

This is the bonus entry, a book containing two of my precious little cosmic horror novellas that I wanted to share with you.

In the first story, "You Are What Eats You", we follow our young gym rat through a series of diary entries as he descends into the unknown depths of insanity. After he decides to try a new experimental anabolic steroid from the black market, things start to roll downhill fast. Because, well, it's not just a regular anabolic steroid. Oh no.

In the second story, "Shadows Over Sanviero", we follow John and Pete, whose nice summer trip to Sanviero, Sicily, gradually turns into a surreal fever dream. Rude people, rotting sandwiches, decomposing oranges, boarded-up shops, and warning signs. Something is wrong with this town.

Sanviero is also where my latest trippy and weird horror novella, "The Driftwood Man", takes place. I've written about it here. That one also has cosmic horror-esque elements, and might be worth checking out!

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That's it for now. Once again, thank you for reading. More coming soon!

~Chris