9 Gripping Aussie Reads to Curl Up With This Halloween
Not every Halloween thrill comes with a costume and a bucket of lollies.
Once the kids are in bed (and you’ve quietly raided their stash), there’s nothing better than a page turner that keeps you up way too late. We’ve rounded up nine spooky, twisty reads from Aussie authors. There’s crime, there’s dark humour, and there’s even a vampire who wants to be human again.
Best bit? Many of them are set right here at home, from Melbourne traffic to Sydney’s northern beaches.
Our Top Pick: Something He Did by SK Lynch
If you only grab one book this Halloween, make it this one.
It all starts with a road rage crash in gridlocked Melbourne. For one driver, it’s a weird stroke of luck that sends life soaring. For the other, it’s the start of a scary downward spiral.
Meanwhile, Detective Sergeant Claudia Russo is hunting for a missing 18 year old girl. Her powerful dad seems more worried about his own secrets coming out than getting his daughter home. And Claudia has plenty going on herself, from grief to a workplace romance that’s getting messy.
The story behind it is just as good. The author was in a real road rage moment during lockdown, and when she asked the other driver why he reacted the way he did, he told her it was “something to do”. Chills.
Reviewers are loving it too, with the Herald Sun calling it “hypnotically readable”.
Perfect for: the mum who loves a juicy thriller she can’t put down.
Shop Something He Did on Amazon
8 More Spooky Reads for Every Kind of Reader
Like, Follow, Die by Ashley Kalagian Blunt
A homicide detective knocks on a mum’s door, and she has to decide how much to share about what her son has done. This one will hit home for any parent who worries about what their teen is up to online.
Perfect for: the mum of teens who’s always checking screen time.
Shop Like, Follow, Die on Amazon
The Casino by Iain Ryan
Detective Lana Cohen races the clock to untangle a deadly web of lies at the glitzy Saturn Casino, where the killer is never far away. Think bright lights, big stakes and plenty of drama.
Perfect for: true crime fans who like it loud and flashy.
Kill Your Boomers by Fiona Wright
A darkly funny look at the property market mixed with a gripping millennial story. Picture Selling Sunset meets Dexter. If house prices already give you the shivers, this one’s for you.
Perfect for: anyone who’s ever cried over a rental listing.
Shop Kill Your Boomers on Amazon
Don’t Say His Name by Rachel Givney
A detective’s sister goes missing from a beachside town on the east coast, and the locals blame an urban legend called Tall Harry. He teams up with a nun who’s an expert in local folklore, and they soon find out his sister had a few secrets of her own.
Perfect for: your mate who loves a good conspiracy theory.
Shop Don’t Say His Name on Amazon
The Informant by Christine Gregory
A senior bikie club member is murdered, and it’s a race to stop an all out gang war. Fast paced and tense.
Perfect for: the friend who’s sure she’d make a brilliant detective.
Happy Woman by Abby Corson
When a family secret turns wife and mum Gwynne Hogg’s world upside down, she starts questioning everything she thought she knew about her life. A good one for mums who feel like they’ve lost a bit of themselves along the way.
Perfect for: anyone who needs a reminder that their life isn’t so bad after all.
De’Ath Takes a Holiday by Shaun Micallef
Yes, that Shaun Micallef. It’s the origin story of the very first vampire (sorry, Dracula), who’s over living forever and wants to be human again. Expect lots of laughs.
Perfect for: the friend who goes all out on her Halloween costume.
Shop De’Ath Takes a Holiday on Amazon
The Centre by Hannah Tunnicliffe
Two sisters on Sydney’s northern beaches. One is nursing a broken heart, the other is getting pulled deeper into a “personal excellence” group. Add a hot but slightly odd guy, a mysterious influencer and a body on a sunny beach, and you’ve got a cracker.
Perfect for: the friend who keeps getting messages about a “business opportunity”.
Happy Halloween, Mums!
So pour a cuppa (or a wine), grab a blanket and settle in. Which one are you reading first?
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