Fellow bookworms, help me find a gothic ghost story for 14yo DS

[Whatdoyawannado]

Well, it doesn't have to be gothic exactly but definitely a bit atmospheric and spooky. He's suddenly become interested in this genre - he picked up 'The whispering Muse' from the library but I decided it probably wasn't suitable after looking into it. I don't want anything too evil spirit-y and nothing to do with the devil. No gore either. I haven't read this genre at all so could do with some recommendations for him. He as an avid reader with a reading level well beyond his age. Thank you!

Breathe: a ghost story,
Miss Perigrines Home for Peculiar children- and the sequels,
Asylum, Sanctum and Catacomb,
The woman in black

Thank you for your reply - good ideas. He studied the woman in black at school and was lucky enough to go and watch a theatre production of it in London,not absolutely captured his imagination and sparked off the interest I think!

*it absolutely

The Mortal Instruments , a series of six young adult fantasy novels , Cassandra Clare.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mortal_Instruments

Look for collections by MRJames, EF Benson and Edith Nesbit.

Also Jonathan Stroud’s Lockwood & Co series; the first is The Screaming Staircase. The adaptation now on Netflix is super too.

I've never heard of 'The Whispering Muse' but would have thought that by 14 he's capable of deciding for himself whether it's suitable or not, including gore or the devil.

Maybe try Michelle Paver - she's done two ghost stories, but they're not gothic.

The Ghost Hunter Chronicles by Yvette Fielding are for YA (11+ readers)

Book one is House in the Woods, book 2 is The Ripper of Whitechapel

Gormenghast. Not a ghost story but as gothic as it gets.

Has he read the other Laura Purcell books. Silent Companions & The Corset are really good.

Has he read Dracula?

I read it aged 12 and I didn't find it scary at all.

Other classics:
Dracula
Frankenstein
The Monk
Wuthering Heights
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters
The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter

I was reading all of those by about 14 but was fairly obsessed with Gormenghast and still love it.

What about skulduggery pleasant? The first book is may be a bit young but I'd say the series as a whole isn't and I enjoyed it as an adult. Not a classic but a fun read

I would steer clear of the bloody chamber at 14 (love it as I do!).

The Turn of the Screw? Yellow Wallpaper? The Wasp Factory (bit more gore, bit less classical gothic). Rebecca?

Definitely try the MR James Ghost Stories of an Antiquary collections (you’ll see where my user name comes from). They are a little old fashioned but great stories.

At his age I was reading the Pan Book of Horror Story collections, which included a wide range of authors.

Oscar Wilde's the Canterbury ghost is the first that comes to mind.

How about the Darkside books by Tom Becker? Quality writing and very engaging.
Anthony Horowitz has written some great YA fiction too that might appeal. Absolute master of plot and excitement!

John Bellairs series?

To be fair I haven't read The Bloody Chamber recently so perhaps it's less appropriate for that age than I recall!

The Whispering Muse is pretty tame, I don't think it's unsuitable for a 14 year old.
Do you vet everything he reads?

The British Library publish a whole series of ghostly or gothic books with all sorts of themes - insects, plants, Cornish - which might suit.

Here's a link to one: shop.bl.uk/collections/published-by-us/products/our-haunted-shores-tales-from-the-coasts-of-the-british-isles

They're available through sites like Hive.co.uk, amazon, and I expect your local bookshop will supply them too, not just the BL site.

Northanger Abbey. It's Jane Austen's take on the gothic horror novels that were very popular at the time. She mentions a couple Mrs Radcliffe books in it.

It's really not a ghost story though, and I'd say is unlikely to appeal to 14 year old boys much.

What about some James Herbert?

Secret of Crickley Hall
Ghosts of Sleath (Ash series in general)

When I was that age I read all things Edgar Allen Poe. Challenging but definitely spooky!