
2025 has come to an end, so that means it’s time to break down our standout reads of the year. I am joined by my friend, fellow podcaster and reviewer, Anna Dupre of the Anna Rose Reads Podcast. This was a year full of cannibalism, sweeping historicals, and weird little horny books, so a great year!
Books Mentioned:
Short Story Collections/ Anthologies
- Teenage Girls Can Be Demons by Hailey Piper
- Mystery Lights by Lena Valencia
- You Glow in the Dark by Liliana Colanzi (translated by Chris Andrews)
- The Poorly Made and Other Things by Sam Rebelein
- Oddbody by Rose Keating
- PUNK goes HORROR: A Mixtape Anthology edited by William Sterling
- It’s the End of the World As We Know It: New Tales from Stephen King’s Stand edited by Brian Keene and Christopher Golden
Graphic Novels
- A Guest in the House by E.M. Carroll
- Saint Catherine by Anna Meyer
- Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees by Patrick Hogarth
Young Adult Horror
- Showstopper by Lily Anderson
- Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
- The Overnight (#3) by RL Stine
Middle Grade Horror
- Ride or Die by Delilah S. Dawson
- Mystery James Digs Her Own Grave by Ally Russell
- Another by Paul Tremblay
- Broken Dolls by Ally Malinenko
Non-Fiction
- Sick Houses: Haunted Homes and the Architecture of Dread by Layla Taylor
- There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension by Hanif Abdurraqib
- Scream With Me: Horror Films and the Rise of American Feminism by Eleanor Johnson
- The Midcentury Kitchen: America’s Favorite Room, from Workspace to Dreamscape, 1940s-1970s by Sarah Archer
Non-Horror
- Blob : A Love Story by Maggies Su
- The Favorites by Layne Fargo
- The Wedding People by Allison Espach
- Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O’Nan
Horror Novella
- Spread Me by Sarah Gailley
- The Film You Are About to See by Hailey Newlin
Horror Debut
- Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker
- The Lamb by Lucy Rose
- House of Beth by Kerry Cullen
- Good Boy by Neil McRobert
Horror Novel
- Blood On Her Tongue by Johanna Van Veen
- Immaculate Conception by LIng Ling Huang
- When the Wolf Comes Home by Nat Cassidy
- Lucky Day by Chuck Tingle
- Play Nice by Rachel Harrison
- Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
- Of Flesh and Blood: The Untold Story of the Cajun Cannibal by NL Lavin and Hunter Burke
- Such a Pretty Smile by Kristi Demeester
- What Hunger by Catherine Dang
- Itch! By Gemma Amor
- The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
- King Sorrow by Joe Hill
Final Girl Song
Check out the final girl songs here!
Support Books in the Freezer on Patreon to get access to the series, The House at the End of Fear Street, early episodes, polls and more
