A ‘Fear Factor’ Rating Adds Spice to the YA Horror Halloween Season, a guest post by Tony Jones

Halloween is the ideal time about to purr about fear and the joys of being scared. When I was writing The YA Horror 400: an almanac of 400 teen horror novel reviews published between 2008-2024, I felt it was important to give all the featured novels a ‘Fear Factor’ (1 to 10) grade. I intended this guideline to be used by librarians, parents and readers, either seeking out particularly scary books, or extra information about the contents of a particular title.
Whether you agree with my Fear Factor grade for any book is a matter of opinion and this will differ from reader to reader, depending on what triggers them personally. What gives me the shivers might be completely different to the next person to pick up the same book. I might have given a book 5/10 on the Fear Factor, but clowns, spiders or enclosed spaces might give you the shivers. Violence and gore are a different beast from fear itself and I love books which are scary without being graphic. When I imagine fear I shudder at isolation, paranoia, panic, being trapped or stalked, the loss of control, betrayal, nightmares, the disappearance of reality, or a heady mix of any of these elements. Violence might not feature at all, which is perfect for school librarians concerned about giving books to children who might be too young, or risk complaints from parents.
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Below are a small selection of twenty books which score 8/10 or higher on my personal Fear Factor grading used in The YA Horror 400 which is top loaded with over fifty further examples. Expect boogiemen, creepy dolls, vengeful ghosts, deadly shadows, cannibalistic monsters, vicious aliens, changelings, demon possessions, exorcisms, vampires, social media terrors, witches, curses, zombies and much more. There is nothing better than a book gets under the skin of a reader, and these titles have been selected to do exactly that. I love it when a child returns a library book announcing that they found one of my recommendations terrifying. I view this is a job well done, as teens who love being scared are quick to return for further recommendations.
The twenty books below are both featured in The YA Horror 400 and are tried and tested top tips from my school library.

Richard Farren Barber – Closer Still (2019, republished 2024)
Fifteen-year-old Rachel is bullied by a group of girls who were once her best friends, with the tormenting often occurring at school. Much of this powerful novella takes place in Rachel’s bedroom where she sees the ghost of her dead ex-best friend Katie. The ghost is not exactly unpleasant, more unnerving, with the dead girl having her own agenda, which is revealed as the story unfolds.
Lindsey Barraclough – Long Lankin (2011)
A terrifying tale of a house cursed by an ancient evil, inspired by a haunting folk song about murder, witchcraft, and revenge. Two children are sent to live with their elderly aunt in the isolated village of Bryers Guerdon and receive a less than warm welcome. Instead, their arrival reawakens an evil that has lain dormant for years and they find themselves in the threatening orbit of Long Lankin. If your nerves can stand it, the companion novel The Mark of Cain (2014) will finish you off totally.
Alex Bell – Frozen Charlotte (2014)
Dark and unsettling tale, set on a windswept Scottish island, of tiny but deadly porcelain dolls loaded with tension and threatening atmosphere. This is an outstanding page-turner with the evil creatures whispering from behind locked cabinets. Even more dangerous, the dolls can control and influence others to do their bidding, sneaking around a vast haunted house, sowing horrible plans and turning the teenagers against each other. Prequel Charlotte Says (2017) delivers a brilliant origins story.
R.L. Boyle – The Book of the Baku (2021)
After the death of his troubled mother Sean is sent to live with a relative he does not know. Soon he discovers his grandfather once wrote a collection of short stories about a mythical creature, the ‘Baku’, which feeds on the dreams of the young. As Sean reads the terrifying collection, he loses touch with reality, and the stories from the book blend into his everyday world. A powerful and moving novel which also puts a character with a serious disability front and centre.
Rin Chupeco – The Girl from the Well (2014)
The ghost Okiku, who was killed when thrown down a well, takes her revenge by brutally killing child murderers and rapists. The ghost is also attracted to a teenage boy whom she can sense the aura of death around, although realises he is not a killer, but is certainly troubled. As the boy can also see the ghost, the story switches from America to Japan and hurtles into the realms of demon possession, revenge and exorcisms in a complex narrative which also has a memorable sequel, The Suffering (2015).
Darcy Coates – Where He Can’t Find You (2023)
The boogieman creature ‘The Stitcher’ dominates this novel from the shadows and has a clever mythology built around him. Rarely have I seen ‘smalltown horror’ done so effectively, whenever a murder is anticipated, technology fails and red thread is often discovered close to the victims, dissected and sewn back together with the pieces of other bodies. Soon a group of school friends are caught up in the latest wave of disappearances and a game of deadly cat and mouse begins. Coates is a distinguished adult horror writer and this was a triumphant arrival into the world of YA horror.






Juno Dawson – Say Her Name (2014)
Say Her Name takes place at a girls boarding school on the cliffs of a small town outside Oxsley, England and has a lot of fun playing around with an urban myth style dare which becomes frighteningly real after a group of bored teens utter ‘Bloody Mary’ five times in front of a mirror. This fast paced treat is top loaded with jump scares, mystery, a nail-biting five-day countdown and even manages to, cleverly, humanise the monster. Known in the UK as ‘The Queen of Teen’ Dawson has an impressive range of YA fantasy, horror and teen dramas to explore.
Gabriel Dylan – Whiteout (2019)
A huge snowstorm is brewing for a group of British school pupils on a ski trip in the remote Austria mountain range. A girl screams after discovering a pool of blood, things worsen when something nasty lurking outside grabs a ski instructor, who is viciously ripped out of the door. The teens find themselves under sustained attack with no adults to turn to for help. A rollercoaster battle to survive follows, with the storm raging and no prospect of help. They find themselves completely isolated, helpless, and being stalked in this seriously intense creature feature.
Kat Ellis – Harrow Lake (2020)
When Lola’s father, director of famous horror film ‘Nightjar’, is hospitalized after a serious knife attack, she is sent to live with her grandmother in the isolated town of Harrow Lake, where ‘Nightjar’ was shot years earlier. Along the way there are numerous film references as Lola tries to make sense of her life, her missing mother (whose presence haunts her) and the strange parallels which connect with ‘Nightjar’. Teens will lose themselves in this gripping narrative, especially when memorable creation and local legend ‘Mr Jitters’ makes his first appearance and dances around the edges of a gripping plot. Wicked Little Deeds (Burden Falls in the USA) by the same author is also recommended.
Tiffany D. Jackson – The Weight of Blood (2022)
I was blown away by this intense riff on Stephen King’sCarrie, with a clever racial social commentary and catchy podcast style narrative. What Jackson does with the original is nothing short of inspirational, adding a whole new layer regarding the legacy of racism in a small Georgian town, beautifully blended into a story of an isolated and tormented teenage girl, who hides the fact she is bi-racial, whilst developing telekinetic powers when the bullying escalates. White Smoke (2021) is another edgy horror thriller favourite from this great author.
Dawn Kurtagich – The Creeper Man AKA And the Trees Crept In (2016)
Two sisters escape London and their violent father to live with an aunt in a remote country house in the middle of a looming forest. The aunt strangely shuns the girls, locking herself in the attic, whilst the intimidating dense and surrounding forest comes alive and threatens their sanity. For much of this multi-layered beauty you are never certain whether it is supernatural or psychological, as the girls have complex personal issues clouding their judgement. The Creeper Man of the title is an outstanding creation, as he and the imposing forest edge closer to the girls, with the sanity of the elder sister disintegrating. Kurtagich has an impressive collection of YA horror novels and has recently moved into adult fiction.
Amy Lukavics – The Ravenous (2017)
The Ravenous has complex family issues beating at its dark heart, much more than twitching goes on beyond the curtains in this broken household. Tragedy strikes early when the drunken mother of five female siblings causes an argument and the youngest falls into the deep basement, instantly breaking her neck. In her madness, the mother claims she can “bring Rose back” and disappears with her dead daughter only to return a few days later. Rose is alive once more, but changed somewhat, with very different tastes. Loaded with brutal savagery all the way until the unsettling bleak end. Between 2015-18 Lukavics wrote four brilliant YA horror novels.






Mindy McGinnis – Be Not Far from Me (2019)
Be Not Far from Me is a unique survival thriller which avoids all the cliches you might expect to find in such a story. There is no being stalked by bears, hunger is a powerful reality, and how often would you expect to see a teenage girl bash the brains of a possum then eat it raw? Or worse even, be forced to chop off part of an infected foot? I winced. You will too. This exceptional book refuses to play by the rules and relies more on characterisation, regret and the need to survive than action. This was a beautifully melancholic reading experience from a former librarian with an impressive back-catalogue featuring horror, thrillers and dystopian fiction.
Graham McNamee – Beyond (2012)
Jane is not your typical teenage girl as she has a nail lodged inside her brain which many suspect was caused by a suicide attempt. Jane also narrates the story and is being stalked by a powerful dark force which will not relent until she is dead. The terrified teenager suspects it manifests itself as her shadow, so she and her best friend Lexi are on guard 24/7 in case the entity makes further attempts on her life. The downbeat but hopeful voice of Jane was a real standout feature of a very accessible horror novel, perfect for reluctant readers. Bonechiller (2008) is another favourite from a talented author who has been quiet for too long.
Lou Morgan – Sleepless (2014)
Sleepless has an unsettling quality, with a clever story, sympathetic characters, being set in a busy London school. One of its major strengths is a plot edgy enough to be convincing to a teen readership, who will immediately identify with the real pressures faced by the characters. If you were offered a pill which might improve your concentration levels and ultimately your exam grades, surely there would be no harm in making the most of this extra edge if offered? Izzy and her friends stupidly take this dodgy study drug and are soon suffering from hallucinations, nightmares and possible psychosis. The only way to survive is to stay awake, which is tough with crucial exams approaching, balanced with the paranoia of what awaits when sleep arrives.
Peadar Ó Guilín – The Call (2016) & The Call 2: Invasion (2018)
The Call isone of the finest horror, Irish mythology, and teenage fantasy mashups I have read in years. Set in a skewered version of Ireland, the country has been sealed off from the rest of the world by a supernatural barrier triggered by an ancient curse. Adolescents can be ‘Called’ at any time during their teenage years, this means they are magically transported to another realm where they are hunted by the Aes Sidhe, the ancient rulers of Ireland. The character Nessa is an absolute star, she has a leg disability and is not expected to survive her ‘Call’. How wrong they are. She is a character for the ages and her return in The Call 2: Invasion had me cheering from the rooftops.
Stephanie Perkins – The Woods Are Always Watching (2020)
If this were an adult novel it would undoubtedly fit into the ‘Hillbilly Horror’ subgenre, which is rarely found in YA. The Woods Are Always Watching features only two major characters, Neema and Josie, who are starting an arduous three-day hike deep into the Pisgah National Forest, in the Appalachian mountains. When things go wrong the horror ramps up wildly in the second half, which includes some truly bone-crunching scenes, real menace, gore and horrible villains. Some of the more threatening sequences would not have been out of place in an eighties backwater horror movie. This is a million miles away from Anna and the French Kiss (2010), written by the same author.
Amy Plum – Dreamfall (2017)
Seven teenagers with crippling sleep disorders are the test cases for a new technology called ‘Dreamfall’, in which the participants are induced into a deep sleep with the tech supposedly eradicating their nightmares over the next few hours. However, something goes wrong and all seven teens, who spend virtually the entire novel asleep, start experiencing each other’s nightmares. The story is told from the point of view of a couple of the teens and an intern helping with the experiment from the lab. This was a riveting read, with all manner of monsters, nightmares and Nightmare on Elm Street unpleasantness being thrown at the reader. If you feel brave enough, more bad dreams are guaranteed in the sequel Neverwake (2018).
Jeremy de Quidt – The Wrong Train (2016)
The Wrong Train is a clever series of inter-connected seriously scary supernatural stories sneakily lynch-pinned together by a little boy stuck with a creepy old man at a deserted train station. Many of the tales play on the insecurities of everyday life, especially those irrational fears that put children on edge, from the outdoor light which randomly flashes on and off, to the smelly old photo album, not forgetting the strangeness of a new house or even the invisible friend who becomes a tad too real. Single author horror collections are relatively rare at Middle Grade and YA level, along with Dave Shelton’s Thirteen Chairs (2014), this is my absolute top pick, both rely entirely on atmosphere rather than gore or violence for scares.
Teri Terry – Scare Me (2023)
Scare Me is perfect for teens looking for a good fright, with a strong plot and convincing characters told through a neat split narrative. Set predominately in the Brighton area of south England, fifteen-year-old Liz talks to the ghost of her dead twin, who died at birth, and has spent her entire life keeping this secret from her mother. Liv meets a boy called Echo, who is the second part of the split narrative, and is investigating the death of his mother, who drove her car off a cliff the previous year, almost killing him in the process. Deliciously, the narratives slowly begin to knit together and the dead are never far away. This is Teri Terry’s first YA horror novel after a successful career writing dystopian thrillers, with Slated (2012) being a top recommendation.









Twenty horror novels with a ‘Fear Factor’ of 8/10, 9/10 or 10/10 are guaranteed to deliver the Halloween chills and these YA novels are broadly aimed at children aged thirteen or older. If teen horror ‘fiends’ tackle one every two weeks they will be tapping into The YA Horror 400 for further recommendations long before Halloween 2025 comes along!
My near monthly YA and Middle Grade horror reviews and features can be found at the Ginger Nuts of Horror website here, listed in the Young Blood section of the site:
https://gnofhorror.com/category/the-young-blood-library
Meet the author

Tony Jones is a Scotsman who left his homeland for London in 1994, for a career in school libraries in England and Italy. Thirty years later he still works in school libraries and his passion remains connecting young people with their perfect (sometimes horror) novel. A lifelong reader, for the last decade, Tony’s hobby has been reviewing horror novels, both for adults and children. His ‘Young Blood’ section of the Ginger Nuts of Horror website focuses purely on YA horror novels and is widely used by school librarians, educationalists and those who have an interest in teen fiction. Much of the adult fiction Tony reviews is hosted by the Horror DNA website.
Tony’s almanac The YA Horror 400: an almanac of 400 teen horror novel reviews published between 2008-2024, was published to great acclaim and has attracted many positive reviews and comments from within the horror, education and library worlds. This is his first new release in a decade, previously co-authoring the history book Emanuel School the War: the Greatest Scrum That Ever Was in 2014.
Leading horror website ‘This is Horror’ (Kev Harrison) commented –
“Tony Jones is one of the great examples of a professional, critical reviewer in the horror genre. Critical in the sense of his deep analysis of what he’s reading. His reviews – and by way of this approach, his interviews and other articles – always take a multi-faceted approach, expertly providing a full sense of the reading experience, while still managing to eschew spoilers.
While this talent extends to all horror and genre work, it’s in the YA field where Jones has blazed a trail, with his work on the ‘Young Blood Library’ at the Ginger Nuts of Horror in particular lifting up horror for younger readers long before it achieved mainstream appeal and when, arguably, it was looked down upon by writers in the adult horror sphere.”
Today, he has reached a point where it is hard to think of a greater authority in this area, and it is to be hoped that he will continue to fly the flag for those providing a gateway to the genre for years to come.”
About The YA Horror 400: an almanac of 400 teen horror novel reviews published between 2008-2024
The YA Horror 400 is an authoritative guide, with extensive reviews of 400 of the best Young Adult and Middle Grade horror novels written between 2008 and 2024. They are recommended by Tony Jones, a librarian who has worked in schools for thirty years, is a lifelong horror fan and passionate about getting teenagers reading.
In addition to each individual review, which range from 150 to 450 words, the following supplementary information is provided on each of the 400 books:
- Buzzwords: brief keywords which describe the book at a glance.
- Why Read It: a short opening comment on why Tony rates it.
- Notes: comment on the author, other publications or points of note.
- Age Suitability: ranging from 8/9 to 15+. Identifies the target audience.
- Fear Factor: from 1 to 10. Just how scary is each book? Also identifies triggers.
- If You Like This Try: every book has 6 or 7 alternative titles to investigate.
The almanac is bolstered with an extensive range of support information in which YA horror is explored from multiple angles. Including:
- 90 original author contributions from those featured in the book: 90 of the world’s best YA horror authors support Tony’s review of their work with their own short piece.
- 25 interview excerpts with authors featured in the almanac: Snippets of full interviews, which also include distinguished adult horror authors.
- 40+ subgenre top tip recommendation lists: each section has an informative opening commentary, Tony’s top three tips and a full list of recommendations for every section.
The YA Horror 400 is supported by an extensive range of appendices aimed at librarians, horror fans, those interested in expanding their interest in YA horror, or parents looking for tips for their children.
Publisher : Independently published (June 24, 2024)
ISBN-13 : 979-8326570284
Reading age : 12 – 18 years
Filed under: Guest Post

About Amanda MacGregor
Amanda MacGregor works in an elementary library, loves dogs, and can be found on Twitter @CiteSomething.
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Great stuff, sir!