We’ve all seen movies like Invasions of the Body Snatchers and read countless novels about mind control and stolen memories. In essence, human beings have always been and will likely always be fearful of losing control of their own bodies. Having someone else holding the reins to one’s most intimate self is both unappealing and terrifying. That’s why stories about spiritual possessions always catch the attention of the masses so strongly. They’re freaky… and fascinating.
Here are 6 scarily entertaining novels about ghostly possessions.
1) A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay
This first scary possession is presented in a novel (narrated in an interview from the future) about a New England family with a 14 y/o daughter named Marjorie who requires hospitalization for schizophrenic episodes. But it’s way more than that… Desperate for help, Marjorie’s parents turn to a priest and learns that their daughter is most likely possessed by a malevolent spirit. It seems that after this, after the financially struggling family becomes stars of a spontaneous and new TV show for the money, that the house starts changing for the worse.
2) HELL: The Possession and Exorcism of Cassie Stevens by Tom Lewis
Cassie Stevens is a teenager who has survived a near fatal car crash and is now haunted by supernatural occurrences, to strange too explain. Avoided because of the constant dark aura that envelops her, Cassie feels something sinister with her all the time. Especially in the dead of night when she’s supposed to be sleeping. In her bedroom, she feels there’s something she can’t see or hear. And it’s not only with her, it’s stirring inside.
3) The Perfect Possession (Randolph Casey Horror Thrillers, #2) by Rockwell Scott
Randolph “Rand” Casey, paranormal investigator and demonologist, has, unfortunately, been claimed as the target of the powerful demon, Shindael, angry at Rand for his consistent success at keeping evil at bay. Shindael’s promise? To haunt Rand for the rest of his life. Now mentally and physically fatigued, Rand hurries to small-town Finnick, Louisiana to seek solace in God. However, perturbed by the suspiciously miraculous pastor, Deckard Arcan, Rand does what he does best—investigates—and soon discovers a truly demonic plot is underway.
4) The Possessions by Sara Flannery Murphy
In a city where giving up one’s body for phantasmal spirits to possess and speak to living loved ones is a profession allowed by the Elysian Society, Edie, a “body” for five years, finds herself in a scary situation. While on a job channeling a charismatic widower’s wife, a deceased woman named Sylvia, Edie becomes infatuated with the lavish couple. Or, more accurately, infatuated with Patrick, the widower. Unsure, now, whether she is herself or if Sylvia remains in her body, Edie grows fearful. Sylvia and Patrick are mysterious, yet she wants more… and then a murder sends the Elysian Society adrift.
5) Possessions (Possessions, #1) by Nancy Holder
Lindsay is a new student at the prestigious Marlwood Academy for Girls in Northern California and she quickly finds that she doesn’t fit in. And by the way the popular girls walk around as a tight clique, sneaking off to secluded locations to perform chanted rituals that turn their eyes black, Lindsay understands that something here is terribly amiss. There is swirling white fog, dense woods, and a rumor of a drowned girl in the lake behind campus. Lindsay is aware of all this creepiness and doesn’t like any of it, but she isn’t aware of the most important thing: Girls at school are becoming possessed by spirits who want her dead.
6) Bad Girls Don’t Die by Katie Alender
This last scary possession is a book that couldn’t possibly miss this list. Alexis is a rebellious teenage girl with a turbulent life caused by her parents’ constant arguing and crumbling marriage. A bit strange herself, Alexis, recently starting at a new high school where she thinks she’ll hate everyone, is suddenly hyperaware of her strange little sister, Kasey—who has begun acting so much stranger. Blue-eyed, kind, and obsessed with pretty dolls, Kasey’s demeanor changes and her eyes sometimes turn a startling green just around the time she becomes inexplicably attached to a green-eyed antique doll. As her house becomes a hotbed for supernatural activity, Alexis must fight to save her family from whatever has changed her little sister.
Curious enough, now, that your initial ‘freaked out’ feeling has turned into ‘excitement’? The novels in this list are bound to keep you up reading through the whole night—for more reasons than one.
Choose a book and take up the challenge!
