True Tales to Haunt Your Nights
Some stories don't need ghosts or monsters to send a shiver down your spine, sometimes reality is far scarier than fiction. True accounts of strange events, eerie histories, and unexplained phenomena can be just as chilling and often more unsettling than anything imagined. If you're ready to explore the darker side of reality, we've found some books that will haunt you, long after you turn the last page.
True Crime
Dive into the minds of criminals, unsolved murders, and infamous cases that shocked the world. These books often blend investigation, psychology, and suspense, revealing the dark complexities of human nature. If you’ve ever wondered what drives someone to commit a heinous act, true crime books provide both the answers and more questions than you might be comfortable with.
Inside the mind of Rose West by Tanya Farber
Rose West was, on the face of it, a typical mother living with her husband, Fred, and their children in a three-storeyed terraced house in Gloucester. But behind the building’s modest facade, 25 Cromwell Street was the scene of truly terrible crimes, an authentic House of Horror.
Inside the family home, the many young female victims lured there and the couple’s own children were subjected to horrific violence and torture. It would take decades before the West’s dark secrets were finally discovered, but do we know the whole story of their depravity yet?
The Devil Behind The Badge by Rick Jervis
Twelve days was all it took to for Juan David Ortiz, a ten-year veteran of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to murder four women. He carried a badge and was entrusted to protect the community in which he eventually killed. This is the fast-paced and gripping story of the four murders that shook the small border town of Laredo, and the quest to unmask a cold, calculated killer who was hiding in plain sight.The Devil Behind the Badge is also a deeply human portrait of the four lives lost and an attempt to uncover what motivated Ortiz’s descent into darkness.
Hell Put to Shame by Earl Swift
In 1921, eleven Black farmhands were found bound and weighted in rivers in rural Georgia, victims of a lingering system of debt slavery called peonage. The investigation and trial drew the attention of NAACP (The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) figures like James Weldon Johnson and Walter F. White, whose advocacy brought national focus to the case. Their efforts led to the rare conviction of plantation owner John S. Williams for racial violence.
Paranormal & Supernatural
For a fear that's eerie and inexplicable, look to the paranormal. Haunted houses, ghost sightings, psychic phenomena, and even historical curses make for spine-tingling reading. These accounts blend folklore with eyewitness reports, letting you step into a world where the boudaries between reality and the supernatural blur.
Real Ghost Stories by Jamie King
Filled with terrifying tales of ghosts and ghouls, poltergeists and other unexplained encounters, this bone-chilling compendium of paranormal phenomena is sure to haunt you long after you have turned the final page. Did you hear about the ghost who solved her own murder? Or the story of the killer ghost of kentucky? Discover infamous accounts of the eerie and the unexplained - as well as lesser-known strange, contemporary stories. These are not for faint-hearted. So be aware, you might be too scared to close your eyes.
The Haunting of Borley Rectory by Sean O'Connor
Borley Rectory, a lonely Essex house, became notorious in 1928 when a human skull was discovered in a cupboard. Strange noises, ghostly figures and violent poltergeist activity soon drove out its residents. The most infamous chapter came with Reverend Lionel Foyster and his wife Marianne, who was at the centre of rumours of faked hauntings, scandal and even murder. The press revelled in the drama, and physic investigator Harry Price declared it proof of life after death. The Borley Rectory remains today as England's most haunted house.
In Search of Demons by Richard Estep
Stories about demons have surfaced throughout history, with chilling accounts of their manifestations passed down across generations. Consulting with various experts, paranormal investigator Richard Estep scrutinizes the history of demonology and infamous instances of possession, including the case that inspired The Exorcist. He also visits sites of alleged demonic infestations, such as the Monroe House and the site of the 1928 Earling, Iowa exorcism. With all the facts at your fingertips, you can decide the truth for yourself.
Psychological & Creepy Realities
Stories of stalking, obsession, manipulative relationships, cults, and conspiracies explore the eerie and unsettling aspects of human behaviour. These books reveal that sometimes the most frightening horrors are the ones that hit closest to home.
One of Dynasty's biggest stars lays bare a secretive organisation that is holding her daughter hostage and details her mission to save her in this powerful depiction of a mother's love and determination. Oxenberg recounts how her daughter India was pulled into the sinister cult NXIVM, led by a charismatic leader disguised behind the promise of self-improvement. She shares her fight to save her daughter while exposing the manipulative tactivs the group used to control it's members.
Catch and Kill - Lies, Spies, and a conspiracy to protect predators by Ronan Farrow
Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators is a 2019 book by the American journalist Ronan Farrow. He recounts the challenges he faced chasing the stories of Harvey Weinstein's decades of rape, sexual assault, and sexual abuse of women and the case against him.
Journalist Nicole Madigan was stalked for over three years. The relentless and debilitating experience wreaked havoc in her personal and professional life, leaving her trapped in a constant state of fear and anxiety. She examines the psychology behind stalking behaviours and their impact on victim-surviours mental, social, and financial wellbeing. At its worst, it can lead to physical violence, even death. She analyses society's attitude towards stalking and highlights the failings of the legal system in protecting victims.
True Stories of Survival and Terror
The edge of death is where some of the scariest stories begin. These gripping accounts of people who faced disaster and violence remind us how thin the line is between life and death.
Extreme Survivors: 60 Epic Stories of Human Endurance by Richard Happer
This book recounts 60 of the world's greatest survival stories. Find out how Joe Simpson crawled to safety in the South American Andean mountains and how Anthony Farrar-Hockley evaded capture after the Battle of Imjin River in the Korean War. This book also includes how Naheeda Bi Survived 10 years in captivity after her notorious tribal kidnapping in Pakistan and more!
Catch Ghosts of the Tsunami: Deaath and Life in Japan's Disaster Zone by Richard Lloyd Parry
On 11 March 2011, a massive earthquake sent a 120-foot-high tsunami smashing into the coast of north-east Japan. It was Japan's greatest single loss of life since the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. Richard Lloyd Parry, a foreign correspondent, lived through the earthquake in Tokyo, and spent six years reporting from the epicentre. Learning about the lives of those affected through their own personal accounts, he paints a rich picture of the impact the tsunami had on day to day Japanese life.
SAS great escapes four: daring escape stories executed by Second World War heroes by Damien Lewis
Five daring escapes reveal the courage and grit of the SAS in WWII - from desert campaigns to perilous treks across Europe, prison breaks, and death-deying journeys home. Drawn from wartime diaries, letters, and mission reports, these true stories capture the terrifying yet awe-inspiring spirit of survival against impossible odds.