From secluded mental institutions to eerie sanatoriums, these haunting novels are perfect for keeping you up at night this Halloween season. Whether you’re a fan of gothic horror or psychological thrillers, this chilling read promises to send shivers down your spine. So, grab your favorite blanket, dim the lights, and prepare to lose yourself in these spine-tingling tales that will make you question what really goes on behind asylum walls.

The Institute by Stephen King

A chilling nightmare awaits Luke Ellis. Kidnapped from his home, he wakes up at The Institute, a sinister institution for children with extraordinary abilities. Run by a ruthless director, the Institute extracts these powers through brutal experiments. As Luke and his fellow captives fight for survival, they discover the horrifying truth behind the Institute’s walls.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Patient by Jasper DeWitt

A young psychiatrist, Parker H., chronicles his terrifying experience at a New England mental hospital. The hospital’s most dangerous patient, a mysterious man with a decades-long history of insanity, becomes the focus of Parker’s obsession. As Parker delves deeper into the patient’s mind, he realizes the true horror lurking within the hospital’s walls. A mind-bending descent into madness awaits.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas

Inside the secluded, secretive 90s institution of Catherine House, Ines, a troubled teen, seeks refuge and a future of power. The school’s strict rules and bizarre rituals isolate students, forcing them to abandon their pasts. As Ines delves deeper into this enigmatic world, she uncovers a sinister truth hidden beneath the facade of academic excellence.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse

Half-hidden in the Swiss Alps, the once-sinister Le Sommet sanatorium now masquerades as a luxurious hotel. Detective Elin Warner, reluctantly drawn to a family gathering, senses unease. A storm isolates the guests. As a series of disappearances unfold, Elin must confront her own fears and unravel the hotel’s dark secrets to save herself and those around her.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon

In 1929, newlywed Ethel Monroe desperately hopes for a baby, so her husband takes her to a modern Vermont hotel featuring a spring rumored to grant wishes. Unbeknownst to her, the spring demands a price. Fast forward to present day — social worker Jax learns her estranged sister Lexie drowned in their grandmother’s pool. As Jax uncovers Lexie’s research into their family’s ties to an old asylum, dark secrets from the past emerge.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Foundling by Ann Leary

Eighteen-year-old Mary Engle lands a job as a secretary at the picturesque Nettleton State Village for Feebleminded Women. There, she begins to work for the brilliant Dr. Agnes Vogel, who advocates fiercely for her vulnerable patients. But when Mary discovers her childhood friend Lillian is among the inmates and pleading for escape, she faces a tough choice. Trusting Lillian could unleash a whirlwind of secrets and dangers hidden within the asylum’s walls.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Alicia Berenson, a renowned painter, inexplicably shoots her husband and descends into silence. Confined to a mental institution, she becomes the obsession of a determined psychotherapist, Theo Faber. As he delves into her past, a twisted tale of secrets unfolds, blurring the lines between patient and therapist, truth and delusion.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher

When retired soldier Alex Easton learns their friend Madeline Usher is dying, they rush to the remote Usher estate, finding a horror of fungi, possessed wildlife, and a pulsing lake. With Madeline sleepwalking and her brother Roderick ill, Alex, aided by a British mycologist and an American doctor, must uncover the estate’s deadly secrets.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Asylum Confessions by Jack Steen

Jack Steen, the night nurse at the Asylum for the Criminally Insane, is known to many of his serial killers and mass murderer patients as the Angel of Death. He offers a grim deal to those dying — confess their darkest secrets in exchange for a less painful demise. As he delves into these twisted tales, he invites the reader to confront the darkest corners of the human psyche.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn

In 1940, three unlikely women answered the call to Bletchley Park, the secretive estate where Britain’s brightest break Nazi codes. Osla, a debutante with brains beyond her ball gowns; Mab, a savvy East-Ender on the hunt for stability; and shy, brilliant Beth—a puzzle whiz hiding a secret talent. But secrecy has a price, and the friendship they build crumbles under the weight of betrayal, leaving Beth confined to an asylum. Fast forward to 1947: as Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s royal wedding fever sweeps the country, an encrypted letter brings the estranged trio back together. Yet each discovery brings them closer to danger—and to face the mystery that tore them apart.

Buy the book now: Bookshop.org | Amazon | Barnes & Noble