There's a very specific joy in being handed a book and being told, "if you loved that one, you'll love this one." It's like someone reaching into your brain, seeing exactly what you loved about a story, and pulling out its perfect match.
So that's what we're doing today. These recommendations are based on vibes, not science, but I stand by every single one.
If you've read the left side, the right side is your next read.
But wait, before you jump into those recs I talk with Caleb Stephens this week and I’m still thinking about his origin story.
"Once you get the bug to write, it's like an addiction. It's hard not to go a day without it."
- Caleb Stephens
Caleb is the award winning and Colorado Book Award finalist author of The Girls in the Cabin, If You Lie, and You'll Never Know. His thrillers are full of very human monsters, usually family members, which is how he earned the nickname "the dad thriller guy."
We go back to the five year novel he wrote while raising twins and working full time. It was rough enough that his wife's uncle, who wrote the original screenplay for Jumanji, had to tell him the main character wasn't really a protagonist. Caleb walks me through the two year agent rollercoaster that finally landed The Girls in the Cabin with Joffe, the UK's largest indie publisher, and how BookTok turned it into a surprise hit. He also opens up about rewriting that book seven times, writing If You Lie through a sciatica flare up, and building the twist in You'll Never Know as a tribute to Gone Girl.
Plus, he gives us a first look at Don't Hesitate, his January 2027 release about a father and son hunting trip in South Texas that turns into a fight for survival.
So grab your copy of You’ll Never Know, and check out the episode on on Youtube, or listen on Spotify or Apple Music.
Okay, now for If You Like This Book, Read This Book.
If you liked…
How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix read William by Mason Coile
There are creepy toys in both of these books, and I am here for that. If you want that unsettling "the inanimate thing is not okay" energy, this pairing delivers it twice over.
Nestlings by Nat Cassidy read Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
These books take place in a very similar setting and have very similar vibes. Both have that "you should not be here, and now you can't leave" feeling that I simply do not get enough of.
Don't Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews read Lost Girls of Hollow Lake by Rebekah Faubion
Both are young adult horror mysteries with queer representation and bad plants. "Bad plants" yes, you heard me. If that sentence speaks to you, read both of these immediately.
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia read Blood on Her Tongue by Johanna van Veen
These are both gothic horror novels with women who have been called to save another woman... if that tracks. It tracks for me, and it will track for you. Beautiful, lush, kinda sexy. Highly recommend.
The Broken Girls by Simone St. James read The Silenced by Diana Rodriguez Wallach
Both of these deal with the dark history of all-girls boarding schools, and both of these are excellent. There's something so specifically creepy about a boarding school’s secrets, and these two nail it.
Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill read The Book of Accidents by Chuck Wendig
These are both spectacularly original horror books with writing, pacing, and storytelling that are in an elite class of their own. Two authors who refuse to write anything you've read before. And I loved them both!
There's my board of vibe-matches. Now I want yours: if you had to pair two books that just feel alike, what would they be?
Rachel xo
Host of Talking Horror Podcast