Best horror books to read in 2024

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The best horror books to read this spooky season

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Powerful stories that make great gifts

The essential Halloween reading list in 10 books 

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10 terrifying classic tales to read

The Woman in Black

'Heartstoppingly chilling' Daily Express 
 
Arthur Kipps, a junior solicitor, is summoned to attend the funeral of Mrs Alice Drablow, the sole inhabitant of Eel Marsh House. 
 
The house stands at the end of a causeway, wreathed in fog and mystery, but it is not until he glimpses a wasted young woman, dressed all in black, at the funeral, that a creeping sense of unease begins to take hold, a feeling deepened by the reluctance of the locals to talk of the woman in black - and her terrible purpose. 
 
'No one chills the heart like Susan Hill' Daily Telegraph 
 
**If you love The Woman in Black, try The Various Haunts of Men, the first book in Susan Hill's Simon Serrailler series**

Haunting its readers for more than 40 years… Once read, it’s hard to forget the utter strangeness of The Woman in Black… For all its magnificent period detail, and its ability to immerse us in the dark, dank place it creates, it goes beyond its own story. It acts as a portal… Read it

SUSAN HILL has been a professional writer for over fifty years. Her books have won awards and prizes including the Whitbread, the John Llewellyn Rhys and a Somerset Maugham, and have been shortlisted for the Booker. Her novels include Strange Meeting, I'm the King of the Castle, In the Springtime of the Year and The Mist in the Mirror. She has also published autobiographical works and collections of short stories as well as the Simon Serrailler series of crime novels. The play of her ghost story The Woman in Black is one of the longest running in the history of London's West End. In 2020 she was awarded a damehood (DBE) for services to literature. She has two adult daughters and lives in North Norfolk.

'Heartstoppingly chilling' Daily Express 
 
Read the truly terrifying classic English ghost story behind the play. 
 
Arthur Kipps, a junior solicitor, is summoned to attend the funeral of Mrs Alice Drablow, the sole inhabitant of Eel Marsh House. The house stands at the end of a causeway, wreathed in fog and mystery, but it is not until he glimpses a wasted young woman, dressed all in black, at the funeral, that a creeping sense of unease begins to take hold, a feeling deepened by the reluctance of the locals to talk of the woman in black - and her terrible purpose. 
 
'No one chills the heart like Susan Hill' Daily Telegraph 
 
**If you love The Woman in Black, try The Various Haunts of Men, the first book in Susan Hill's Simon Serrailler series**

Discover book 4 in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series

The Vows of Silence

I stayed up gone two in the morning and by the end there were tears in my eyes

Eagerly awaited by all aficionados of crime fiction

Susan Hill's crime novels are getting better and better... The main plot is straightforward enough - who is the killer and will he be caught? - but the narrative is so streamlined and effective that it races beautifully along until it smacks against the buffers of an unexpected but entirely convincing ending

Delicious agony...The suspense-building techniques of Alfred Hitchcock have long been locked into Susan Hill's literary apparatus and they are given full rein here

As always, Hill creates a marvellous cast of characters with absorbing contemporary concerns

A triumph: cunningly plotted, shrewdly characterised. Hill has an understanding of evil that is both acute and disconcerting

The psychology and pace of the whole - and the quality of the writing - are utterly absorbing

Masterly story telling from an accomplished writer

It's a wonder it hasn't been snapped up for telly

Full marks to Susan Hill for her ability to face the unfaceable

'Serrailler, Hill's brilliant detective, is the central character in the great writer's crime fiction novels' CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL 
 
A gunman is terrorising young women. 
 
 What links these seemingly random murders? Is the marksman with a rifle the same person as the killer with a handgun? Or do the police have two snipers on their hands? 
 
 Detective Chief Superintendent Simon Serrailler is in charge of the case, but is struggling to cope with a tragedy at the heart of his family. 
 
 The pressure is mounting... 
 
'A captivating read' Observer 
 
Discover the bestselling crime series that over ONE MILLION readers have devoured.

Discover book 7 in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series

A Question of Identity

Not all great novelists can write crime fiction but when one like Susan Hill does the result is stunning

The real joy of the Serrailler series is Serrailler himself…rich in incident and intrigue

Arguably one of the UK’s best crime fiction writers

Hill is, as ever, a true writer and a true storyteller… Her writing, never fancy or over-elaborate, is sweet and and clear and true, lifting the story above mass-market mass-killer lit

This is a crime series that specialises in side-stepping conventions, always to exhilarating effect.. The books succeed in harnessing all the genre's addictive power while maintaining a complexity and fascination all their own

The crime part of the novel…is very good. But as in all these books, we are also engaged in the continuing story of the Serrailler family… All this gives the novel a much richer texture than is usual in crime fiction…(Susan Hill) writes as an honest and disturbing witness to our times

Hill has a keen eye for description, an accurate ear for conversation and an innate 
understanding of relationships

'Serrailler, Hill's brilliant detective, is the central character in the great writer's crime fiction novels' CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL 
 
How do you catch a killer who doesn't exist? 
 
One snowy night in the cathedral city of Lafferton, an old woman is dragged from her bed and strangled with a length of flex. 
 
DCS Simon Serrailler and his team search desperately for clues to her murderer. All they know is that the killer will strike again, and will once more leave the same tell-tale signature. 
 
Then they track down a name: Alan Keyes. But Alan Keyes has no birth certificate, no address, no job, no family, no passport, no dental records. Nothing. 
 
Their killer does not exist. 
 
'As addictive as Rankin' Scotsman

Discover book 3 in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series

The Risk of Darkness

THE VARIOUS HAUNTS OF MEN 
1. 'I loved this book. Masterly and satisfying. The result is stunning' Ruth Rendell 
2. 'This book must be judged as a potential successor to the great sequence of detective writing by P.D. James and Ruth Rendall ... excellent' Daily Telegraph 
4. 'Gripping ... and subtle' Daily Mail

Fans of Hill's earlier work like The Woman in Black will appreciate that she can still weave a jolly good story... Minor characters acquire an extra dimension in Hill's experienced hands... Crime fans on the look out for intelligent examples of the genre will enjoy The Risk of Darkness

The Risk of Darkness is an almost flawless novel

Hill has a genius for tackling controversial issues head on while paying tribute to the quotidian detail of ordinary people's lives. This series has become indispensable for lovers of quality crime fiction

This is a crime series that specialises in sidestepping conventions, always to exhilarating effect...These books succeed in harnessing all the genre's addictive power while maintaining a complexity and fascination entirely their own. The Risk of Darkness reminds us that the other side of darkness is light, and that risk-taking, in fiction as in life, sometimes pays off brilliantly

A writer of the calibre of Susan Hill is never going to produce a mere whodunit... this is a complex novel, weaving themes of loss, family, the vulnerability of women and what happens when people choose isolation over intimacy with others

They can stand on their own...this is a really good novel regardless of fiction genre

'Serrailler, Hill's brilliant detective, is the central character in the great writer's crime fiction novels' CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL 
 
Children are vanishing. 
 
 The village of Lafferton is shattered. 
 
 There are no witnesses and no leads - just a kidnapper at large. 
 
 Then Detective Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler receives a call: a child has been snatched in Yorkshire. Has the abductor struck again? And will they find this child alive? 
 
 'Not all great novelists can write crime fiction but when one like Susan Hill does the result is stunning' Ruth Rendell 
 
 Discover the third edge-of-your seat novel in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series that over ONE MILLION readers have devoured.

Discover book 2 in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series

The Pure in Heart

'Serrailler, Hill's brilliant detective, is the central character in the great writer's crime fiction novels' CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL 
 
A little boy is snatched at the gate of his home while he waits for his lift to school. 
 
An ex-con struggling to go straight finds himself drawn back into a criminal ring. 
 
A young woman hovers between life and death. 
 
Detective Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler is called in to investigate. But with dead ends mounting up and time running out, has he taken on a case so complex it threatens to defeat him? 
 
'All the ingredients for the perfect English crime novel' Daily Mail 
 
Discover the second edge-of-your seat novel in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series that over ONE MILLION readers have devoured

All the ingredients for the perfect English crime novel are here

For the first time in years, P.D. James has serious competition

'Serrailler, Hill's brilliant detective, is the central character in the great writer's crime fiction novels' CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL 
 
A little boy is snatched at the gate of his home while he waits for his lift to school. 
 
 An ex-con struggling to go straight finds himself drawn back into a criminal ring. 
 
 A young woman hovers between life and death. 
 
 Detective Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler is called in to investigate. But with dead ends mounting up and time running out, has he taken on a case so complex it threatens to defeat him? 
 
 'All the ingredients for the perfect English crime novel' Daily Mail 
 
Discover the second edge-of-your seat novel in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series that over ONE MILLION readers have devoured

Discover book 1 in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series

The Various Haunts of Men

'Serrailler, Hill's brilliant detective, is the central character in the great writer's crime fiction novels' CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL 
 
 
PEOPLE ARE GOING MISSING. ONLY ONE THING LINKS THEIR CASES. 
 
THEY ALL DISAPPEAR ON THE HILL. 
 
A woman vanishes in the fog up on the Hill in Lafferton. The police have one lead - a pair of expensive cuff-links found in her flat, with a mysterious note attached to them. 
 
Then a young girl, an old man and even a dog disappear in quick succession in exactly the same place. 
 
Young policewoman Freya Graffham and Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler are given the task of unravelling the mystery. But can they find the Hill killer before he strikes again? 
 
'A gripping whodunnit and a subtle study of the mind of a psychopath' Daily Mail 
 
Discover the first edge-of-your seat novel in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series that over ONE MILLION readers have devoured.

A gripping whodunnit and a subtle study of the mind of a psychopath

I loved this book. Masterly and satisfying

This book must be judged as a potential successor to the great sequences of detective writing by PD James and Ruth Rendell...excellent

She has the priceless ability to construct a solidly-researched narrative that keeps the reader turning the pages

Hill's first crime novel has a grip of steel

For the first time in years, P D James has serious competition

'Serrailler, Hill's brilliant detective, is the central character in the great writer's crime fiction novels' CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL 
 
 
PEOPLE ARE GOING MISSING. ONLY ONE THING LINKS THEIR CASES. 
 
 THEY ALL DISAPPEAR ON THE HILL. 
 
 A woman vanishes in the fog up on the Hill in Lafferton. The police have one lead - a pair of expensive cuff-links found in her flat, with a mysterious note attached to them. 
 
 Then a young girl, an old man and even a dog disappear in quick succession in exactly the same place. 
 
 Young policewoman Freya Graffham and Chief Inspector Simon Serrailler are given the task of unravelling the mystery. But can they find the Hill killer before he strikes again? 
 
 'A gripping whodunnit and a subtle study of the mind of a psychopath' Daily Mail 
 
Discover the first edge-of-your seat novel in the bestselling Simon Serrailler series that over ONE MILLION readers have devoured.

Susan Hill

Sian Philips

Judi Dench

Peggy Ashcroft

Stephanie Cole

Martin Jarvis

Ian Richardson

Patricia Gallimore

June Brown

Full Cast

Patricia Hayes

David Timson

14 Full-Cast Dramas

An extensive collection of full-cast dramatisations and long-lost original radio plays by Dame Susan Hill 
 
Award-winning author Dame Susan Hill is best known for her hit ghost story The Woman in Black and her popular ‘Simon Serailler’ detective series, but she has also written extensively for radio. This audio anthology includes full-cast adaptations of two of her early novels, plus an additional 12 BBC Radio plays, many of them available for the very first time since their original broadcasts. 
 
Gentlemen and Ladies tells of the friendship and loneliness of a family living in a small Midland village, while Strange Meeting explores the relationship between two young subalterns in the First World War. These moving dramatisations star Patricia Hayes, Stephanie Cole, Martin Jarvis and David Timson. 
 
Themes of interdependence and isolation run through all Hill’s radio plays, which she describes as dealing with ‘human beings in confrontation’. In Taking Leave, a nephew visits the family he barely knows; in Lizard in the Grass, an orphan living in a clifftop convent is persecuted by one of the nuns, in The Cold Country, tempers fray when four explorers become snowbound in Antarctica and in Consider the Lilies, an ageing bachelor who sees angels finds himself drawn to a dying girl. Richard Hurndall, Helen Worth, Terry Scully, John Rollason and Tony Britton are among the star casts. 
 
A Window on the World focuses on students Nell (Patricia Gallimore) and Jess (Julie Hallam), who are mere observers of life – until one of them acts to alter the situation. Strip Jack Naked finds sick recluse James (Ian Richardson) shaken out of his austere existence by a visit from his estranged wife, but in The Sound that Time Makes, wife and mother Fay (Patricia Gallimore) is obsessively haunted by her schooldays. And with her wedding approaching, Helena (Carole Hayman) struggles to let go of her childhood in Here Comes the Bride. 
 
Chances features two interlinked monologues, read by Dames Judi Dench and Peggy Ashcroft, in which an Irish maid at a seaside hotel ponders her life, and a guest remembers better days and higher standards. A dying Frenchwoman summons her estranged daughter in Out in the Cold, starring Pauline Letts and Fiona Walker. Finally, Winter and Autumn focus on two couples, one elderly and resident in an old folks’ home, the other middle-aged and attempting to escape the past by moving house. Doreen Mantle, Cyril Luckham, June Brown and Bernard Hepton star as the spouses searching for meaning and connection. 
 
Copyright © Susan Hill 1968 (Gentlemen and Ladies), 1971 (Strange Meeting, Taking Leave, Lizard in the Grass), 1972 (The Cold Country), 1973 (Consider the Lilies), 1975 (A Window on the World, Strip Jack Naked), 1980 (The Sound that Time Makes, Here Comes the Bride), 1981 (Chances), 1982 (Out in the Cold), 1985 (Winter), 1986 (Autumn) 
 
Contents: 
Gentlemen and Ladies 
Strange Meeting 
Taking Leave 
Lizard in the Grass 
The Cold Country 
Consider the Lilies 
A Window on the World 
Strip Jack Naked 
The Sound that Time Makes 
Here Comes the Bride 
Chances 
Out in the Cold 
Winter 
Autumn 
 
Copyright © 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Susan Hill

Books by Susan Hill

Series by Susan Hill

Simon Serrailler

Articles featuring Susan Hill

The best horror books to read this spooky season

Powerful stories that make great gifts

10 terrifying classic tales to read

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