These Bodies Ain’t Broken, edited by Madeline Dyer
This horror anthology is dark, scary, and filled with many different short stories to love, all showcasing empowering and realistic characters with disabilities inspired by each author’s lived experience. It’s a collection encompassing genres such as sci-fi, dystopian, paranormal, folkloric, and gothic horror, with narratives set in places around the world. One of the stories with LGBTQIAP+ representation is Fin Leary’s “Kissed by Death,” a story driven by love and revenge. Luca’s beautiful best friend, Ilana, disappeared three years ago, and ever since then, they’ve been living in her absence. She’s always loved Ilana, and they visit her grave every year. One night, however, Ilana comes back from the dead as a newly turned vampire hellbent on getting revenge on the person who killed her. She needs Luca’s help, and together, they settle the score.
Written by a transgender author, Leary deftly explores trans identity, queerness, and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome in this vampire love story. Luca (she/they) is an agender protagonist, and it was great to see the intimate, romantic relationship they had with Ilana. As a vampire lover myself, I believe that vampirism can be a complex and versatile metaphor, and it intersects really well with all facets of identity in this story.
Summer’s Edge, written by Dana Mele
Emily Joiner died last year, burned to death in the lake house her and her friends went to every summer. But eventually, the house gets rebuilt, and on the anniversary of her death, Emily’s estranged group of friends return to honor her. Chelsea is troubled by guilt and visions, Chase is trying to mediate the tension, Ryan, Emily’s brother, is reopening past wounds, and Kennedy is hosting them all. Plagued by old betrayals and disturbing events in the new house, it starts to become clear to them that Emily’s death wasn’t an accident, that one of them was responsible, and that a killer among them is going to get even.
Summer’s Edge has an intoxicatingly toxic friend group and sapphic romance, as well as bisexual and pansexual representation. It’s marketed as a mix of The Haunting of Hill House and I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025), and I’m excited to read this thrilling and atmospheric combination.
The Taking of Jake Livingston, written by Ryan Douglass
Jake Livingston, the only Black eleventh grader at the predominantly white St. Clair Prep, can see dead people. While a lot of the ghosts he’s seen have been harmless, aimless, and isolated in Jake’s everyday experience, he suddenly meets a powerful, angry spirit named Sawyer, a teenage boy who took his own life after killing six kids at a local high school. But Sawyer’s still not done, and he’s going to use Jake to accomplish his plans. Haunted by this ghost and the trail of bodies it leaves behind, Jake has to stop Sawyer no matter what; his life and loved ones hang in the balance.
This story looks like a promising and terrifying YA paranormal horror story—one that’s likened to Get Out (2017). It also deals with a lot of heavy and relevant experiences, such as racism, school shootings, homophobia, abuse, and sexual assault, so it’s good to be aware of this beforehand. That being said, there’s a lovely relationship between the gay main character and his queer love interest in the story as well, which relates to Douglass’ own queer identity.
Not Even Bones, written by Rebecca Schaeffer
Nita works for the family business. Her mother murders supernatural beings, Nita dissects the bodies, and they sell the magical parts on the black market. Nita’s good at what she does, and even though she’s a supernatural being herself, she accepts the lifestyle—until one day, her mother brings her a live person to work with. Nita draws the line at dissecting a live subject and decides to try to save this new victim. But when she’s betrayed for this good deed, the tables turn, and she’s sold on the black market in his place. Finding herself on the other side of the bars, Nita resolves to do anything she can to escape the Death Market, including taking down anyone who stands in her way.
In an evil world of monsters and politics, Schaeffer’s story follows an entertaining cast of morally grey characters. But most importantly, the horror book is said to have an aromantic and asexual main character; so if you’re not in the mood for romance this Halloween and want a dark and bloody tale of depravity to keep you up at night, this is the perfect choice.
These recommendations are just a little taste of what the YA horror genre has regarding LGBTQIAP+ representation, since there are so many other great books out there written by and featuring this community! Some honorable mentions include Hazelthorn by CG Drews, a gothic thriller about a haunted estate with a dangerous garden (queer and autistic representation); She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran, a story about the ghosts of the past and a house with an appetite (Vietnamese American female bisexual main character); and Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White, a post-apocalyptic story about a trans boy running from the cult he grew up with (trans and queer identity representation). This is a jam-packed list, but before October ends, consider reading one of these books—they’re bound to be spooky!
Danielle Hartshorn, Pine Reads Review Writer and Editor