Engrossing Non-Scary Books With Ghosts As Main Characters

Supernatural books or novels that have paranormal themes often tend to be extremely intriguing. Many of these books have tense storylines and a mystery that are real page-turners. It is one of the main reasons why books with ghosts have such a huge fan following.

However, the moment we think of a book featuring ghosts, we think of horror, spooky paranormal mysteries or at least something eerie, not for the faint-hearted.

The reality is there are many books with ghosts in them that are not scary at all. They all have engrossing plotlines and read like any other good paranormal fantasy. These books have equal number of fans who want to enjoy the paranormal but do not want the usual scare, blood and gore.

So here are a few books that are not scary but have ghosts as either their main characters or they are central to the plot of the novel.

1) A Skinful of Shadows by Frances Hardinge

Author Frances Hardinge followed up her Costa Book of the Year 2015 Award with A Skinful of Shadows published in October 2017.

With considerable pressure after the incredible success and critical acclaim for The Lie Tree, Frances Hardinge managed to once again mesmerize readers with her unique and imaginative style of storytelling with her latest book A Skinful of Shadows.

The book deals with a young teen named Makepeace and the overall idea that spirits are able to hide inside other living human souls for temporary refuge. Obviously being possessed is not exactly ideal and young Makepeace can not only see these ghosts but has overtime learned to defend herself from them.

However, it only takes one fateful night for her to let her guard down and end up with an unknown spirit inside of her.

The book is set during the times of English Civil War and is considered a historical fantasy. While the above-mentioned summary may not sound that unique, the overall story without doubt is a must-read. There are secrets to unfold, life-changing decisions to be made and a mystery to be solved making the book a real page-turner.

2) The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

One of the best books ever written when it comes to non-scary books about ghosts. At least according to me and the legions of fans of Neil Gaiman and his absolute classic The Graveyard Book.

When a little toddler’s family is killed one night by a mysterious man named Jack, he is adopted and cared for by ghosts at the nearby Graveyard. This book apart from dealing with the mystery of why his parents and sister were murdered, is also very much a coming of age story of the protagonist.

Being brought up in a graveyard with no contact with the outside world and only ghosts as his caretakers, teachers and friends, it is fascinating to read the journey of Bod, the boy who grew up in a Graveyard.

This is one of the best feel-good books you will ever read and is highly recommended to all fans of books with ghosts.

3) Remember Me by Christopher Pike

The first two books mentioned above in this list deals with ghosts as characters but the main protagonists are very much living human beings.

In Remember Me by author Christopher Pike, the central character of the book Shari Cooper is herself a ghost. Although initially she has to come to terms with her new condition considering she just woke up one day and realized things were not quite right.

This is a really interesting book with Shari understanding that she had been murdered. Now she has to investigate and solve her own murder while uncovering other mysteries surrounding her circumstances.

4) First Grave on the Right (Charley Davidson Series) by Darynda Jones

For Paranormal Romance fans who love a good ghost story, there is First Grave on the Right by author Darynda Jones.

The book and the overall series is about an investigator slash grim reaper named Charley Davidson.

Charley can not only talk to the dead but it is also her job to convince them to go over to the other side – to the light – after their death.

However, things always don’t turn out that way and it is tough to convince a spirit to move on once they have been murdered or their death are a complete mystery.

The Charley Davidson series combines excellent detective work with engrossing paranormal romance. Definitely one of the best books in the ghosts as central characters genre.

5) Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire

Rose Marshall was killed in 1952 by a man who sold his soul to live forever. Rose’s death was suppose to be the price for his immortality.

However, sixty years on, Rose still a sixteen-year-old is running from her mysterious killer and takes refuge at various places across the country that has given rise to other urban legends.

This is quite an intriguing book and another one of those real page-turners. Sparrow Hill Road by author Seanan McGuire deals with various facets of being a ghost that too on the run. Some call it a coming of age story, some love the myths and lore that follow a ghost. The characters are quite fascinating and the overall world created by the author is a big bonus of this book.

6) Everlost – The Skinjacker Trilogy by Neal Shusterman

Everlost by author Neal Shusterman is part of a thrilling trilogy named The Skinjacker Trilogy.

The first book is about Nick and Allie. They lose their lives in a car accident but instead of moving on to the next world, they are stuck somewhere in between in limbo.

This place in the middle is full of new magic and mystery but at the same time there is evil lurking around every corner. Nick and Allie do not see eye to eye on their roles in this new world and must reconcile to the fact that they may want different things from the deaths.

The intriguing and imaginative world of Everlost explores the middle-realm of afterlife and is filled with captivating characters, plotlines and adventure.

7) Haunted by Kelley Armstrong

The final book in our list, Haunted by author Kelly Armstrong deals with a dead woman who is also a half-demon and a witch named Eve Levine.

Things are going quite well for Eve since her death. There is nothing to complain and all she now wants is to be able to communicate with her daughter once again.

However, fate intervenes when Eve is called upon to capture an evil spirit named Nix who has just escaped from hell.

Now Eve must stop Nix who has been able to drive all her previous hunters insane and is also capable of doing a lot of damage herself.

Haunted is a fast-paced thriller and not exactly a goody-goody book. The protagonist herself is a demon and not your typical hero.

Although Haunted is the fifth book in the overall series, you can read it on its own considering each book has a standalone story.