Disgusting, gruesome, and fearsome, the best horror audiobooks will give you a mix of emotions and keep you anticipating what will happen next.
Meant to keep you awake at night or even make you scream while listening, these horror stories aren’t just about horrific creatures, monsters, and demons. Deep-rooted secrets and mysterious circumstances will unfold as you continuously listen to the stories.
10 Best Horror Audiobooks
Here’s a quick overview of 10 well-written and narrated horror audiobooks you wouldn’t want to miss out on and start adding to your list.
1. The Stand: The Complete and Uncut Edition by Stephen King
A post-apocalyptic story written by an acclaimed author for the horror genre, The Stand is a timely read after we all experienced the effects of the pandemic. With fears of human extinction, hunger, and other real-world problems, this audiobook will bring you to a horrific world you never want to be part of, even in your dreams.
The Plot
A top-secret, North Carolina-based U.S. Department of Defense (DND) laboratory manufactures and tests an influenza virus strain they intend to use as a biological weapon. With the accidental release of the virus, residents of a town in Texas get exposed.
Failing to isolate the town, the disease they call the superflu or Captain Trips spreads throughout the country. Worst, it spreads to other countries. It turns into a pandemic and kills the majority of the human population. The military collapses, and the immune are left to fend for themselves.
This is when the few remaining survivors get divided into two factions. One group is led by 108-year-old Mother Abagail, who prefers peaceful restoration. The second, headed by Randall Flagg, also known as Dark Man, chooses violence and chaos.
2. The House Next Door by Darcy Coates
A spooky story with lots of twists and turns, The House Next Door is the audiobook for those who love ghost stories and haunted houses. It’s not as scary as some horror books; it mixes comedy, jump scare, and psychological thriller. However, it will make you afraid of walking around your house while the lights are out!
The Plot
The Marwick residence is a property in the neighborhood people try to avoid. No animal even wants to be near it. Its gothic, horror-like, dangerous aura tends to infiltrate the emotions and thoughts of those near the house.
Jo, a woman who lives next door, sees tenants and families move in and out of the house after occupying it for a few days. They flee crying and screaming their lungs out, leaving behind all their things and never coming back for them. Without any occupants, she notices strange occurrences, concluding that it’s a haunted house.
When the second character, Anna, moves into the Marwick house, she builds an unexpected friendship with Jo. Soon enough, they start to have encounters with the other occupant.
3. The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher
This Kingfisher cosmic horror novel will give you the creeps since it’s both out of the ordinary and peculiarly realistic. With well-portrayed characters and perfectly sequenced events, boredom is a word you’ll never describe when you listen to this audiobook.
The Plot
The death of Mouse’s grandma leads her to an isolated house situated in the woods with unusually looking deer roaming around at night.
Tasked to clean out the house full of rubbish, she finds her late step-grandfather’s diary. It details the events that led to his madness: his relationship with his wife and obsession with something called “The Green Book.”
While walking around the woods, she and her dog Bongo find themselves in a different domain where the twisted ones live and encounter the unimaginable. Being able to survive with intact sanity, she needs to go back to save her dog and everyone else who is still trapped in the realm.
4. The Dark by Jeremy Robinson
A novel filled with a compelling mystery and mind-bending actions with a bit of humor, this sci-fi horror story will take you to unthinkable places. It’s perfect for those who are into prophecies but with unpredictable outcomes due to several twists and turns.
The Plot
The centuries-old religious Three Days of Darkness prophecy is finally happening in a New Hampshire community. Miah, the main character, his family, friends, and the rest of the neighborhood lock themselves in their homes with all windows covered. Doing so prevents them from being lured outside and dragged brutally to the unknown by dark or horrific creatures.
Not wanting just to sit around and wait for where fate takes them, survivors decide to flee the neighborhood while trying to find a way to save those who were already taken. This decision leads them on a more dangerous journey.
They not only need to survive the evil elements lurking but also need to fight the evil awakening inside their minds. They must practice great control to ensure they all survive.
5. The Creepypasta Collection by Multiple Authors
This selection is a binge-worthy collection of short stories. It’s perfect for those who can’t get enough of listening to frightful stories or want to listen to a new story each day. It’s even a great gift for teens who love scary stories.
The Plots
Here are the different horror books included in this collection and a quick overview of each:
- Picture This: A depressed but very talented artist’s obsession with his online bashers or trolls takes on a new hobby—serial killing!
- Creeping Crimson: A blob-like fearsome creature slowly kills people in a dingy hotel.
- Teeny Tiny: With a primary focus on eating disorders like bulimia and anorexia, the story is about a young girl who will do anything to lose weight.
- The Horror From the Vault: The monster that was able to escape from an archaeological crypt finds its way to neighboring towns. It abducts every living creature it comes across.
- Perfume: This narrative follows the story of a young woman confronting her past and a poltergeist.
- A Dark Stretch of Road: The story of a lesbian couple haunted by a monster while driving down a deserted road.
- A Trick of Perspective: Based on his experience, the main character claims and tries to prove that creatures with abilities to twist their limbs co-exist with humans.
- Down in the Library Basement: Both comical and scary, it follows the journey of a young woman’s curiosity about her needing to go to the basement and read a particular book aloud before the library’s closing time.
- Voices in the Spirit Box: Orphaned siblings try to contact their parents using a spirit box and a Ouija board.
- When Dusk Falls on Hadley Township: An ancient evil demonizes a whole town, ensuring no newcomers reside or stay in the area.
- They Die Nameless: A tragic story of an archeologist who loses his sanity and memory after discovering the mystic tombs of King Tut’s alleged nameless kids.
- The Nice Guy: Phil Kerbson is a nice guy who never says no to his boss and takes all the brunt without complaints until he starts to feel burnt out.
- The Yellow Raincoat: Imagine being stalked by a strange man wearing a yellow raincoat in your dreams. This is what the depressed main character experiences.
- Depression is a Demon: A story of a young child who lost his father through suicide.
- Licks From a Bear: Leaning toward medical/science fiction, the main character experiencing several mental health issues performs self-lobotomy in a desperate attempt to turn his life around.
- Psychosis: The main character’s isolation from the world leads to a condition known as cyber psychosis. He starts to believe every human has been taken over, and everything he sees is merely illusions.
- She Beneath the Tree: Moving to their grandparent’s home, a family gets haunted by a creepy, possessed tree.
- Smile.Montana: A sequel of the legendary Smile Dog, the story presents the main character’s journey to trying to end the chain-mail horror and deaths.
- Bedtime: This book will let you experience the difficulties of a man who confronts and tries to rid of a ghostly demon that has been tormenting him since he was a little boy.
- Jeff the Killer: Right on Time: A story of a series of killing by a nameless psychopath
6. The Outsider by Stephen King
From gruesome details of assault and murder to supernatural entities, this novel with a film adaptation is not for the faint of heart. As expected from the acclaimed author, you never know what to expect and will never be able to predict what comes next as the story unfolds.
The Plot
Residents of Flint City, Oklahoma, wake up to horrifying news of the rape, murder, and mutilation of an 11-year-old girl.
As Detective Ralph Anderson investigates, eyewitnesses all point to one person—little league coach and English teacher Terry Maitland. Although he has an alibi and own witnesses, the case against him strengthens because of forensic pieces of evidence, leading to his arrest.
As the investigation and hearing continue, everything becomes chaotic and dangerous, from families falling apart to public unrest and death threats. Worst, unknown individuals, either familiar-looking or not, start to meddle with the investigation.
7. The Extreme Horror Collection by Lee Mountford
This list won’t be complete without adding another collection of some of the best horror audiobooks, only this time, they are not short stories. This Lee Mountford masterpiece will give the chills like you are watching an acclaimed horror film.
The Plots
The perfectly written gore and horror of the three audiobooks in this collection will give you chills and make your stomach turn. Here’s a quick look at each of their plots:
- Horror in the Woods: Lost in the woods, a group of friends gets hunted by a family who tortures and eats anyone they capture.
- Tormented: The inmates of the Arlington Asylum become lab rats for a science experiment.
- The Netherwell Horror: Searching for her missing brother, a journalist discovers a cult’s plot to end the world.
8. While You Sleep by Stephanie Merritt
This ghost horror fiction mixes mystery, superstitions, and the supernatural. It will not only give out spine-chilling vibes but will get you hooked as every event builds up to the next one.
The Plot
The McBride house is the perfect getaway as it’s located on a remote island in Scotland. Zoe Adams stays in it after moving to the country to heal from her failed marriage.
She starts hearing creepy, unknown voices, experiences evening intrusions, and senses that she is being watched. She then learns from the residents that these are all the doings of the ghosts of the past.
A century-old incident wherein a mother and son occupied the house but mysteriously died. A recent one, wherein a local boy who entered the house disappeared without a trace. She tries to uncover the house’s secret before she becomes the next victim.
9. Intercepts: A Horror Novel by T.J. Payne
A sci-fi horror story that will make you wonder whether it’s real or fiction, Intercepts: A Horror Novel will give you an unsettling feeling. The twists and turns make it one of the most mind-boggling stories you will ever hear.
The Plot
The government strives to unlock the human mind’s hidden abilities to build an unstoppable team of soldiers. They conduct a top-secret science experiment in a facility where Joe works. The tortures, screams, and other horrible scenes begin to affect the quality of his life, haunting him even when he’s already home resting.
With the subjects extremely deprived of senses, they become violent and insane, but the government continues with the research and experiments. They then successfully achieve the results they want, only to find out it isn’t a scientific breakthrough.
10. The Haunting of Leigh Harker by Darcy Coates
Not your typical haunted house story, but it definitely is horror with heart as some of you might be able to relate to Leigh’s terror, anxiety, loneliness, and anger. This novel is a well-written, captivating gothic horror story with unpredictable turns of events.
The Plot
Leigh Harker is a middle-aged woman living alone in a five-bedroom home in a suburban area and works in a local natural history museum. This is the kind of life she chose as an introvert.
She enjoys a typical but peaceful life in her home for 15 years, but everything changes when she starts to have ghostly experiences. She sees shadows lurking around, objects moving on their own, and other visually and audibly terrifying phenomena.
She starts to feel unsafe in her own home, not wanting to sleep with the fear of being killed or taken by whatever is haunting her. As she tries to seek answers and uncover one secret after another, she finds herself in an even more terrifying situation.
Which Among These Horror Audiobooks Is Your Favorite?
What a good list of audiobooks that will give you a sense of dread at different levels! All these selections will definitely trigger your horror-meter sensor. Choose one or more of them to listen to, depending on how far and long you want to be scared. You may also listen to them one at a time. Let us know your favorite or favorites!
