Darcy Coates Books in Order: Gravekeeper, Black Winter, Haunted Houses, and More

Darcy Coates is an Australian horror and suspense author known for haunted houses, ghosts, isolated settings, survival horror, and stories in which ordinary characters find themselves trapped in increasingly dangerous situations. Her bibliography includes both interconnected series and a large collection of standalone novels, so there is no single required order for reading everything she has written.

The easiest way to approach her books is to read each series in publication order and treat the standalone novels independently. This is particularly useful for Black Winter and Gravekeeper, where later books continue an ongoing story, while books such as The Haunting of Ashburn House and From Below can be picked up without prior knowledge of another novel.

Darcy Coates Books by Series

Coates’s official website currently highlights House of Shadows, Black Winter, and Gravekeeper among her series. Current bibliography sources also identify the five-book Cymic Parasite Breach sequence and a number of recurring haunted-house titles.

Ghosts and Shadows Books in Order

The Ghosts and Shadows series is a two-book gothic horror story centered on supernatural secrets, a mysterious mansion, and the dark history of the family connected to it. Both books should be read in order.

1. House of Shadows

Published: 2015

House of Shadows follows Sophie, whose family’s financial problems leave her with few options. When the wealthy Mr. Argenton offers marriage, she sees a way to save her family, but moving into his isolated mansion introduces a far more disturbing set of problems.

The house appears to have a life of its own. Strange noises, unsettling figures, and unexplained events gradually reveal that the mansion’s history is deeply connected to the family living inside it. The novel combines gothic romance, haunted-house horror, and family secrets.

2. House of Secrets

Published: 2016

The second book continues the supernatural story established in House of Shadows. The mystery surrounding the mansion and the Argenton family deepens as buried secrets come to the surface.

Readers who enjoy the first book should continue directly into House of Secrets rather than treating it as an unrelated haunted-house story. Current series listings place the two novels together as the complete Ghosts and Shadows sequence.

Black Winter Books in Order

The Black Winter series is Darcy Coates’s post-apocalyptic survival-horror sequence. Unlike her standalone haunted-house novels, these four books form one continuous story and should be read from beginning to end.

1. Voices in the Snow

Published: 2019

Clare wakes after a devastating accident with only fragments of memory and finds herself in a world consumed by an unnatural, deadly winter. The roads are abandoned, the cold is relentless, and strange creatures are hunting through the snow.

Her survival depends on accepting help from Dorran, a mysterious survivor who knows more about the frozen world than he initially reveals. Together they search for safety while trying to understand what happened to civilization.

Voices in the Snow establishes the bleak atmosphere, supernatural threat, and central relationship that drive the rest of the series.

2. Secrets in the Dark

Published: 2020

Clare and Dorran attempt to make their temporary refuge safe, but the winter remains brutally dangerous. The creatures outside are not the only threat, and survival becomes increasingly difficult as the pair learns more about the forces transforming their world.

The second installment expands the mystery behind the catastrophe while pushing Clare and Dorran deeper into the frozen landscape.

3. Whispers in the Mist

Published: 2020

The danger changes as Clare and Dorran encounter a world increasingly dominated by mist, darkness, and monstrous creatures. Dorran’s health also becomes a serious concern, making their struggle for survival even more urgent.

The book continues the escalating journey established in the first two installments and moves the characters closer to understanding what has happened to their world.

4. Silence in the Shadows

Published: 2020

The final Black Winter novel brings Clare and Dorran’s journey toward its conclusion. Their frozen world continues to deteriorate, but they finally have reason to believe that survival and a return home may still be possible.

Because the four books tell one continuous story, Silence in the Shadows should not be read as a standalone.

Gravekeeper Books in Order

The Gravekeeper series is one of Darcy Coates’s most recognizable ongoing supernatural series. It follows Keira, a woman who takes refuge near an old cemetery and discovers that she can see the dead. The official Darcy Coates website identifies The Whispering Dead as Gravekeeper Book One and currently lists five books in the series.

1. The Whispering Dead

Published: 2021

Keira is homeless, hunted, and desperate to escape a bitter storm when she takes refuge in an abandoned groundskeeper’s cottage beside a neglected cemetery.

The cemetery is not as quiet as it appears. Keira begins seeing spectral figures and realizes that she can communicate with the dead. When one particular ghost refuses to leave her alone, Keira becomes involved in uncovering the woman’s history of deception, love, and murder.

The first book establishes Keira’s supernatural ability and the cemetery that becomes the center of the series.

2. The Ravenous Dead

Published: 2022

Keira’s unusual ability to communicate with the dead becomes increasingly useful as she becomes involved in another disturbing mystery. What begins as an attempt to help the spirits around the cemetery develops into a dangerous investigation.

The book expands the supernatural world introduced in The Whispering Dead while continuing Keira’s personal story.

3. The Twisted Dead

Published: 2023

The supernatural dangers surrounding Keira and the cemetery become more complicated in the third installment. The series continues to combine individual ghost mysteries with the larger questions surrounding Keira’s own circumstances.

By this point, the books function much more clearly as an ongoing paranormal mystery rather than five completely separate ghost stories.

4. The Hollow Dead

Published: 2024

Keira’s supernatural responsibilities continue while the threats surrounding her become increasingly difficult to ignore. The cemetery remains a central location, but the series continues expanding the world and its mythology.

5. The Vengeful Dead

Published: 2025

The fifth Gravekeeper novel continues Keira’s supernatural investigations and the larger story that has developed across the series. It is currently the latest published installment of Gravekeeper.

Cymic Parasite Breach Books in Order

The Cymic Parasite Breach books are an earlier science-fiction horror sequence that is sometimes missing from newer Darcy Coates series lists. Current bibliography sources identify five short novels or novellas built around the numbered stations.

1. Station 331

Published: 2016

The sequence begins with a mysterious station and an increasingly disturbing threat. It combines science fiction with the claustrophobic atmosphere and survival elements found throughout Coates’s horror writing.

2. Station 332

Published: 2016

The second station continues the larger parasite-related threat and expands the strange world established by the first installment.

3. Station 333

Published: 2016

The story moves to another stage of the unfolding crisis as the horror surrounding the stations becomes clearer.

4. Station 334

Published: 2016

The fourth installment continues the science-fiction horror sequence and builds toward the conclusion.

5. Station 335

Published: 2016

The final numbered station completes the five-book Cymic Parasite Breach sequence.

These books are worth including in a complete Darcy Coates bibliography even though current versions of her official website emphasize her newer series instead.

Darcy Coates Standalone Horror Books in Order

Most of Darcy Coates’s bibliography consists of standalone horror and suspense novels. They can be read independently, so the dates below are useful for readers who want to follow her development as an author rather than a mandatory reading sequence.

Ghost Camera

Published: 2014

Ghost Camera is an early supernatural horror story built around an apparently ordinary Polaroid camera with a disturbing ability. The photographs reveal things that should not be visible, drawing the characters toward a supernatural danger they do not understand.

It is generally identified as the starting point of Coates’s published bibliography.

The Haunting of Gillespie House

Published: 2015

A caretaker accepts a job at an isolated property only to discover that the house contains far more than old furniture and neglected rooms. The story uses the classic haunted-house setup while gradually revealing the history behind the supernatural activity.

Dead Lake

Published: 2015

Dead Lake moves away from the traditional mansion setting and into isolated wilderness. A group seeking an escape from everyday life discovers that their remote surroundings may contain a far more serious threat.

The Haunting of Blackwood House

Published: 2015

Blackwood House has a reputation for being haunted, but the people who enter it soon discover that the rumors may be considerably less frightening than the reality.

The book is often grouped with Coates’s other “Haunting” novels, but these stories are generally standalone rather than one continuous storyline.

The Haunting of Ashburn House

Published: 2016

One of Coates’s best-known haunted-house novels, The Haunting of Ashburn House follows Adrienne, who unexpectedly inherits a huge, isolated estate from a relative she barely knew.

There is one unusual condition attached to the inheritance: Adrienne is warned never to enter certain rooms. The house’s secrets, strange sounds, and apparent supernatural inhabitants turn what initially looks like an unexpected opportunity into a fight for survival.

Parasite

Published: 2016

Parasite moves Coates into science-fiction horror, focusing on a terrifying biological threat rather than a traditional ghost or haunted mansion.

The novel explores the fear of losing control over the human body while maintaining the tense, survival-focused style that appears throughout her work.

The Folcroft Ghosts

Published: 2017

Siblings arrive at their grandparents’ isolated home and gradually discover that the property contains disturbing secrets. The supernatural atmosphere grows as the family history of the house begins to emerge.

The House Next Door

Published: 2017

Sometimes the scariest place is the house you can see from your own window. The House Next Door focuses on an unsettling property and the growing realization that something is wrong with the home and the people connected to it.

The Haunting of Rookward House

Published: 2017

A renovation project at Rookward House becomes a supernatural nightmare as the property’s past refuses to remain buried. The novel uses the familiar haunted-estate premise while adding the practical dangers of restoring a place that clearly does not want new occupants.

Craven Manor

Published: 2017

A desperate man accepts a caretaker position at a mysterious estate because he badly needs the money. The job initially seems almost too good to be true, but the manor contains secrets that make staying there increasingly dangerous.

Craven Manor is particularly suited to readers who enjoy isolated gothic houses, supernatural mysteries, and protagonists slowly discovering that their new home is not safe.

The Carrow Haunt

Published: 2018

A group of people enters a supposedly haunted house with the intention of proving whether its reputation is deserved. Instead, they discover that the supernatural activity is much more serious than expected.

The story turns the haunted-house investigation into a survival situation as the characters become trapped with whatever is inside.

Hunted

Published: 2018

Hunted shifts from ghosts and haunted mansions toward wilderness survival horror. A trip into remote country becomes a fight for survival when the characters realize they are not alone.

The isolated setting and pursuit-driven plot make it a useful starting point for readers who prefer creature and survival horror over traditional ghost stories.

The Haunting of Leigh Harker

Published: 2021

Leigh Harker lives alone and initially believes the strange events in her home can be explained away. But as the disturbances become increasingly personal, she realizes that something supernatural may be deliberately targeting her.

The novel has a more psychological feel than some of Coates’s earlier haunted-house stories, focusing heavily on uncertainty and the experience of being watched or followed inside one’s own home.

From Below

Published: 2022

From Below takes Coates’s horror into the deep sea. A research and diving expedition descends toward a mysterious wreck, but the deeper the team goes, the more disturbing the discoveries become.

The extreme environment creates much of the novel’s tension. There is nowhere easy to escape, communication is limited, and the ocean itself becomes part of the horror.

For readers who enjoy claustrophobic horror, underwater mysteries, and stories involving unexplained discoveries, From Below is one of the clearest examples of Coates’s ability to move beyond haunted houses.

Gallows Hill

Published: 2022

Gallows Hill combines a historical curse, an old property, and supernatural horror. The story gradually reveals how the past remains connected to the present as the characters investigate a disturbing family history.

The book retains Coates’s familiar atmospheric approach while giving the horror a strong historical component.

Dead of Winter

Published: 2023

A violent winter storm leaves Christa trapped with eight strangers in an isolated mountain setting. As the temperature falls and the survivors begin disappearing one by one, Christa realizes that the danger may not be the storm.

Dead of Winter combines survival horror with a murder mystery, forcing the characters to determine whom they can trust before everyone is gone.

Where He Can’t Find You

Published: 2023

This novel takes Coates into a darker young-adult horror direction. A small town has been terrorized by a mysterious killer known as the Stitcher, and young people have learned to live with the fear that they could become the next target.

The story combines supernatural and psychological horror with a coming-of-age perspective. It was also recognized in award coverage as a young-adult horror title.

Mistral Bed and Breakfast

Published: 2024

Mistral Bed and Breakfast is a shorter work rather than one of Coates’s major full-length novels. It belongs with her short stories and novellas rather than the main standalone-novel bibliography.

The story uses an unsettling lodging setting to deliver the kind of contained supernatural atmosphere that appears throughout Coates’s work. Current bibliography sources place it in 2024.

How Bad Things Can Get

Published: August 26, 2025

How Bad Things Can Get is currently Darcy Coates’s latest published novel. The story takes place on Prosperity Island, where an online influencer has invited hundreds of followers to a week of games, parties, and entertainment.

Among the guests is Ruth, the sole survivor of an infamous cult who has spent years trying to hide her past. When people begin disappearing and the island’s history becomes impossible to ignore, the vacation turns into a deadly fight for survival.

The novel combines isolated-island horror, deadly games, psychological suspense, and a character trying to escape a traumatic past. The publisher describes it as a horror thriller with a mysterious island and deadly-game elements.

A Note About Uninhabited and How Bad Things Can Get

Readers searching for Darcy Coates books may encounter Uninhabited listed as a separate 2025 title.

It should not be counted as a separate Darcy Coates novel in this guide. Publisher and bibliographic records connect the title Uninhabited with the same 2025 book that was published as How Bad Things Can Get. The available records show Uninhabited alongside editions of How Bad Things Can Get, while the current official Darcy Coates website identifies How Bad Things Can Get as the latest release.

This is an important distinction for a complete books-in-order article because counting both titles would artificially inflate the number of novels in her bibliography.

Darcy Coates Short Stories and Novellas

Coates has also published shorter works that are separate from her full-length novels.

Once Returned

Published: 2013

An early supernatural work and one of the earliest entries in Coates’s bibliography.

Sub Basement

Published: 2014

A short horror story centered on an unsettling location beneath an ordinary building.

Crawlspace

Published: 2015

A claustrophobic horror story involving a hidden space that should not exist.

The Mannequin

Published: 2015

A supernatural short story built around an object that becomes increasingly disturbing.

Lights Out

Published: 2015

A compact horror story that uses darkness and uncertainty to create its central tension.

Whose Woods These Are

Published: 2015

A wilderness-set horror story that plays with the fear of being alone in an environment that may not be empty.

Crypt

Published: 2015

Another short supernatural horror story from Coates’s early bibliography.

Bellamy

Published: 2023

A later short work that expands Coates’s collection of shorter horror fiction.

Mistral Bed and Breakfast

Published: 2024

A later short work associated with the eerie lodging setting that appears in Coates’s shorter fiction. Current bibliography sources place it after Bellamy.

These works are not necessary for readers who simply want Coates’s major novels, but they are useful to include in a comprehensive bibliography.

Darcy Coates Short Story Collections

Quarter to Midnight

Published: 2015

Quarter to Midnight is a collection of shorter horror stories. It is best treated as a collection rather than another standalone novel.

Small Horrors

Published: 2016

Small Horrors is another collection of shorter pieces and provides an alternative way to explore Coates’s early horror writing. Current bibliography sources list the two collections separately from her novels.

Darcy Coates Books in Publication Order

For readers who want to see the major bibliography in chronological order, the following list combines her primary novels and series books. Short stories, collections, and anthologies are separated below.

The exact number shown in online bibliographies can vary because some sources count short stories, collections, anthologies, alternate editions, and older self-published works differently.

Do You Need to Read Darcy Coates Books in Order?

No, not as one giant bibliography.

Most Darcy Coates novels are standalone stories. You can read From Below, The Haunting of Ashburn House, Dead of Winter, or How Bad Things Can Get without reading her earlier novels.

However, you should read the books in order within a connected series:

• Ghosts and Shadows: House of Shadows → House of Secrets
• Black Winter: Voices in the Snow → Secrets in the Dark → Whispers in the Mist → Silence in the Shadows
• Gravekeeper: The Whispering Dead → The Ravenous Dead → The Twisted Dead → The Hollow Dead → The Vengeful Dead
• Cymic Parasite Breach: Station 331 → Station 332 → Station 333 → Station 334 → Station 335

The Black Winter sequence is particularly important to read in order because it follows one continuous survival story.

Where Should You Start with Darcy Coates?

Start with The Haunting of Ashburn House for classic haunted-house horror

If you want the type of atmospheric supernatural horror most closely associated with Coates’s reputation, The Haunting of Ashburn House is an obvious entry point. It has the isolated mansion, unexplained activity, family secrets, and escalating danger that readers often associate with her haunted-house books.

Start with From Below for deep-sea horror

From Below is the better choice if you prefer claustrophobic horror over haunted mansions. The underwater setting gives the story a very different kind of isolation.

Start with Black Winter for survival horror

If you prefer monsters, extreme weather, post-apocalyptic settings, and a continuous story, begin with Voices in the Snow and read all four books in order.

Start with Gravekeeper for paranormal mystery

The Whispering Dead is the starting point for readers who want ghosts, supernatural investigations, recurring characters, and a longer paranormal story arc.

Start with Dead of Winter for a snowy thriller

Dead of Winter combines a winter survival setting with a murder mystery. It is a standalone, so you can read it without knowing any of Coates’s other books.

Start with How Bad Things Can Get for her latest horror

If you want Coates’s newest published novel, How Bad Things Can Get is the current starting point. It moves away from the traditional haunted-house setting and into an isolated tropical island filled with dangerous games, disappearances, and a sinister history.

What Is Darcy Coates’s Latest Book?

As of September 24, 2026, Darcy Coates’s latest published novel is How Bad Things Can Get. It was published by Sourcebooks/Poisoned Pen Press on August 26, 2025.

The novel follows hundreds of people attending an elaborate event on Prosperity Island. What begins as a tropical party gradually becomes a deadly struggle involving disappearances, a dark island history, and Ruth’s hidden connection to the island.

How Many Books Has Darcy Coates Written?

The answer depends on what is being counted.

Current bibliography sources list 32 major books in one catalogue, while other databases produce higher totals by including short stories, novellas, collections, anthologies, and other entries.

For a reader looking for the principal fiction, the most useful distinction is:

• Major series: Ghosts and Shadows, Black Winter, Gravekeeper, and Cymic Parasite Breach
• Standalone novels: haunted-house, supernatural, survival, science-fiction, and thriller stories
• Short fiction: individual stories and novellas
• Collections: Quarter to Midnight and Small Horrors
• Anthology appearances: stories included in multi-author collections

This avoids counting the same story or alternate edition as a separate novel.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the first Darcy Coates book?

Ghost Camera is generally identified as Darcy Coates’s first published book, dating to 2014. Some bibliography sources also list earlier short works separately, so the answer can vary depending on whether the question means first published work or first major novel.

Is Gravekeeper a series?

Yes. Gravekeeper is a five-book supernatural horror series beginning with The Whispering Dead and continuing through The Vengeful Dead. The official Darcy Coates site identifies The Whispering Dead as Book One.

How many Gravekeeper books are there?

There are currently five published Gravekeeper novels: The Whispering Dead, The Ravenous Dead, The Twisted Dead, The Hollow Dead, and The Vengeful Dead.

Is Black Winter a complete series?

Yes. Black Winter consists of four books: Voices in the Snow, Secrets in the Dark, Whispers in the Mist, and Silence in the Shadows. They form a continuous story and should be read in that order.

Are Darcy Coates’s haunted-house books connected?

Generally, no. Books such as The Haunting of Ashburn House, Craven Manor, The Carrow Haunt, and The Haunting of Leigh Harker are standalone stories. Some catalogue sites group several titles under a “Haunting” category, but that does not mean they share one continuous plot.

What is the scariest Darcy Coates book?

Rather than treating one book as objectively the scariest, the choice depends on the type of horror you enjoy. The Haunting of Ashburn House emphasizes haunted-house horror, From Below focuses on deep-sea claustrophobia, Black Winter uses survival and creature horror, and Dead of Winter combines a frozen setting with a killer mystery.

Is How Bad Things Can Get the same as Uninhabited?

Yes, readers may encounter Uninhabited in some 2025 catalogue records, but it should not be counted as a separate novel from How Bad Things Can Get. Bibliographic records connect the two titles, while Coates’s current official website identifies How Bad Things Can Get as her latest release.

Are Darcy Coates books standalone?

Many of them are. Her major standalone novels can be read independently, while Ghosts and Shadows, Black Winter, Gravekeeper, and Cymic Parasite Breach should be read in series order.

Does Darcy Coates write only ghost stories?

No. Ghosts and haunted houses are an important part of her bibliography, but she also writes survival horror, creature horror, science-fiction horror, deep-sea horror, psychological suspense, and post-apocalyptic horror. Her official website categorizes her books broadly under ghost stories, horror and suspense, short-story collections, and series.

Final Thoughts

Darcy Coates’s bibliography is much easier to explore once her books are divided into connected series and standalones. Readers looking for a continuous story can start with Black Winter or Gravekeeper, while those who prefer one-book horror stories can jump directly into The Haunting of Ashburn House, Craven Manor, From Below, Dead of Winter, or How Bad Things Can Get.

Her books also cover a surprisingly broad range of horror settings. Haunted mansions dominate the early bibliography, while later novels move into cemeteries, frozen wilderness, the deep ocean, isolated mountains, and dangerous tropical islands. That variety makes the publication history useful, but there is no reason to force every title into one reading sequence.

For most readers, the simplest rule is: read the series in order and choose the standalones by setting and type of horror.

Written by

Emon Anam

Hi, I’m Emon. I’m the voice and heart behind Whimsy Read. After nine years in the world of banking, I followed my passion for storytelling into the world of SEO and content strategy. Now, I blend that analytical eye with a deep love for literature to bring you book reviews that are thoughtful, honest, and always focused on the stories that stay with you. When I’m not reading or writing, you’ll find me enjoying joyful chaos with my wife and three kids, getting lost in a new series, or revisiting my old loves: theater, music, and gaming. At the end of the day, I believe great books are meant to be shared, and I’m so glad you’re here to share them with me.