Novels like Calling the Dead
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Calling the Dead, best match first.
- 101 Ghost Stories of the Southwest 西南鬼事 This is a collection of ghost stories from southwest China, made up of a series of medium-length tales. Some may be part of your childhood, some may be stories you've told yourself, and others may be stories you've never heard. Today, let Xiao An tell you these strange and wondrous tales, one by one. 101Reads—Score—Shelves
- 102 Welcome Back to the Nightmare's Beginning 欢迎回到噩梦起点 (Infinite survival, puzzle-solving, mild horror) Late at night, Shao Jie stumbled sleepily toward the bathroom. The instant he opened the door, the whole world spun upside down! When he came to, he found himself in a gloomy, terrifying otherworld. There, he was forced to take part in a horrifying survival game: eerie footsteps sounded outside the door during the midnight room inspections, villagers mysteriously vanished from a remote village every night, and worst of all... the woman who had onc 15.8kReads7.8Score1.7kShelves
- 103 The Cursed Coffin 阴棺抬煞 Deep in Bai Street stands a yin-yang coffin shop that never makes coffins and never receives customers. Chen Ye grew up accompanying his grandfather on spirit-walking rites and coffin-bearing, learning all manner of evil spirits. He thought he would spend his life in the peaceful funeral trade, taking payment to guide souls onward and living in safety. Then, in a single night, three coffins arrived at the Ding family’s home, and one bizarre incident after another erupted throughout the househol 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 104 My Years in the Funeral Business 我干殡葬的那些年 People light candles, ghosts blow out the lamps. The dead return at midnight, corpses rise in funeral halls, and ancient relics lie buried for thousands of years. In my years working in the funeral business, I’ve encountered plenty of strange and uncanny things. The living walk the roads of the living world, and the dead walk the roads of the underworld. But sometimes, not everyone on the underworld’s roads is a ghost, and not everyone on the living world’s roads is human… 51.2kReads9.2Score5.1kShelves
- 105 Crown of Frost and Ash 霜与烬之冠 At her engagement ceremony, the man she loved pushed her into an abyss. Three years later, she returned wearing a silver-frost mask. This time, she would crown his empire with her own hands, then stain that crown red with his blood. 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 106 Tales of the Supernatural in Xiangnan 湘南鬼事录 My family is truly from southern Hunan, with ancestral expertise in feng shui and geomancy, spirit-summoning and calming, demon-subduing and exorcism, funeral music, and rites to guide the dead onward. Let me begin with my great-grandfather’s generation. My great-grandfather and his brother were born in the early Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty. By the late Guangxu and Xuantong eras, they had raised five cousins in all, including my grandfather. They all knew our family’s inherited arts. My gran 142Reads—Score—Shelves
- 107 Horrifying Hauntings: Ghost Stories 恐怖灵异诡:鬼故事 Do you really think stories are just stories? In fact, behind every story lies a real event! In this book, I wrote a story about the last bus on Route 24. To experience what it would really feel like, I set myself a goal: for seven days straight, I'd ride the last Route 24 bus from its starting point to its final stop, then ride it all the way back. And that's where the story begins...! 337Reads—Score—Shelves
- 108 Breaking Hell: The Celestial Master Returns 破狱:天师归来 After ten years in prison, the day he gets out, he discovers he’s completely out of step with the world. There are no bustling streets or lights in every window. The streets lie abandoned, the cities are dead, and the air reeks of rot and blood. Monsters that are neither human nor ghost roam everywhere: stiff bodies, fangs and claws, and a thirst for blood. The military can’t defeat them, the police can’t hold them back, and human civilization is on the brink of collapse. Even more absurdly, peo 6Reads—Score—Shelves
- 109 The Ghost Way, Midway Through Life 半路鬼道 Smart male lead + one heroine On the night of the Ghost Festival, the living send off the dead, burn incense, make offerings, and burn joss paper. But that night, I heard a ghost calling for a soul… The gong sounds, the night grows dark, and the road to the Yellow Springs is hard to travel… With talismans to guide the way and the departed to show the path, summon the gods and command the ghosts: only then can one master the Ghost Path between Yin and Yang! 6.6kReads8.9Score486Shelves
- 110 Strange Tales of the Impostors 伪人诡录 [Uncanny Horror + Lovecraftian Terror + Impostors + A Ghost Wife to Raise + Madness + Exorcism Through Materialism. No cultivation, no System. One heroine, but female supporting characters too. Read with caution if that's not your thing.] Think carefully about everyone you saw today. Can you be sure that “they” were all human? Don't panic. There's no need to answer too quickly. First, take a deep breath and try to recall the unnatural details. For example, someone repeatedly greeting you with th 4.8kReads8.9Score396Shelves
- 111 The Immortal’s Path of a Funeral Garment Shop Owner 寿衣店老板的修仙路 An Accidental Ghost Cultivator Begins His Path to Immortality Luo Ze is an art teacher at an art training school. After 30 years of teaching, he has become a renowned teacher with students all over the place. After a car accident, he unexpectedly transmigrates 20 years into the past, only to find himself possessing the body of a 19-year-old who runs a funeral clothing shop. While providing someone with a complete funeral service, he unexpectedly acquires an ancient bronze mirror of unknown origi 21Reads—Score—Shelves
- 112 The Underworld Calls Me Little Sir 地府叫我小先生 [Supernatural + mystery + power progression] Getting hit by a basketball and falling into a lake was bad enough. Even worse, I got killed by a basketball!! The Black and White Impermanence told me I still had seventy years left to live. To make it up to me, they offered me a job in the underworld. So I became an HR officer on the underworld’s permanent staff and even got a ghost recruitment System! As long as I help the underworld recruit talented ghosts, I can earn all kinds of abilities: talis 401Reads—Score—Shelves
- 113 I Moved into Dorm 404 and Uncovered a Deadly Campus Mystery 住进404宿舍,我看破校园凶局 Feng shui, the supernatural, campus life, society: everything you're looking for is here! A story is just a story. Even if someone has experienced something similar in real life, I hope you'll still treat this as just a story! Don't get too caught up in it! Finally, may you, dear reader, stay safe and well! 33Reads—Score104Shelves
- 114 Stealing a Corpse to Borrow a Life 偷尸借命 The year I was born, strange signs appeared in the sky. That day, many people saw hundreds of ragged prisoners in shackles carrying a huge black coffin toward the forbidden ground behind the mountain. Ten years later, a fortune-telling monk came to our village. He said I had been dead for ten years, and that I was borrowing my life from a corpse. He said I wouldn't live much longer. But before I could die, he suddenly dropped dead. The next day, however, his body, already buried, mysteriously ap 7.5kReads7.8Score915Shelves
- 115 EN Amerihorror: Defeat Terror with Terror 美恐:用恐怖打败恐怖 Demons, evil spirits, curses, ghosts, clowns, serial killers, ghost nuns, freaks... The people of North America are living through a nightmare. Li Dan transmigrates into the American Horror Story universe with a deck of Ghost Cards. The Ghost Cards can contain and control the serial killers, evil spirits, and monsters of American Horror Story... Only horror can defeat horror. And so the world of American Horror Story starts to get strange. You might see: A mutant cannibal fighting the Texas Chai 13.4kReads8.0Score954Shelves
- 116 I Was a Detective in the Republic of China 我在民国当侦探 [Republican-era investigations + Anthology stories + Male leads + Strong leads + Folk customs] Gao Ren has been having an awful run of luck lately. He accidentally offended a rich young master and nearly got thrown in jail! Luckily, while making his escape, he ran into a gullible little Taoist priest. The little priest wasn’t just good-looking, he was also willing to be Gao Ren’s money tree! He could perform rituals and solve baffling cold cases, too! Gao Ren stuck close to the little priest, se 242Reads8.9Score—Shelves
- 117 Give Me Back My Soul 把老子的魂魄还给我 My name is Lin Zhou, and I'm a security guard. After I lost my job, my childhood friend Erwa found me a high-paying security job at a hotel. I soon discovered that everything about the place was strange. There wasn't a soul around during the day, but at night it was bustling, sending chills down my spine. I tried desperately to escape the hotel, but no matter how far I ran, I couldn't get away... 101Reads6.5Score—Shelves
- 118 Spirit-Seeking Case Files 3: The Grudge of the Wronged 访灵笔录3:冤亲赋 [Mystery] [Supernatural] [Strong Duo] [Lighthearted] [Episodic Stories] [Ghostly Tales] [Ensemble Ghost-Hunting] "Love gives rise to sorrow; love gives rise to fear." "An evil spirit lives inside my body. I don't know when it will devour me." A naked woman's corpse is discovered in an underground parking garage, her chest stuffed with weeds and her organs missing. A string of murders throws the entire city into panic! Quan Ning accidentally gets caught up in this bizarre case. As clues gradually 38Reads7.9Score—Shelves
- 119 Horror Academy: Dormitory 404 恐怖学院:404凶舍 A sensational incident once occurred at the academy. It was later completely covered up. Five years later, the academy opened its doors again. 2kReads—Score182Shelves
- 120 Paranormal Detective: I Harvest Fear by Filming Real Horror Movies 诡探:我靠拍真实恐怖片搜刮恐惧 [Winning people over with “reason” + mockumentary + urban legends + mildly scary power fantasy + no romance] After narrowly surviving a bizarre fire, Chu Han discovered a “Paranormal Investigator” app on his computer. Completing missions to investigate paranormal phenomena earned him items. And gathering fear directed at specific targets could strengthen those items. Chu Han: If I film my paranormal missions as horror movies, wouldn’t I be able to harvest fear from the whole world? And so, a hor 36.5kReads8.2Score5.8kShelves
- 121 Please Don’t Be Afraid 请不要害怕 [Subverting Tropes + Infinite Flow + No Female Lead + Mild Horror] “Captain Wang, I clearly buried her, but… but I saw her in the backyard again!” “How did she die?” “It had nothing to do with me. She… she killed herself!” “She… she just didn’t want to be cremated…” “Then… what is that thing in the backyard?” “I… I don’t know.” “Can she see us? Can she hear our voices?” “And is she dangerous?” … “As for ghosts, I have only one piece of advice for everyone…” “If you happen to run into one, pleas 31.2kReads8.5Score1.4kShelves
- 122 Spirit-Seeking Case Files 1: The Road to the Yellow Springs 访灵笔录1:黄泉路 [Mystery] [Supernatural] [A Powerful Duo] [Lighthearted] [Episodic Stories] [Ghostly Tales] [Ensemble Cast Hunting Ghosts] "The road to the Yellow Springs stretches for thousands of miles. The living and the dead are separated, with only fate to reunite them in another life." Quan Ning got into a car accident on a mountain road. As he lay on the brink of death, a man claiming to be a ghost judge from the underworld offered him a chance to live. "I'll lend you ten years. Interest is three percent 83Reads8.6Score—Shelves
- 123 Paranormal Tales from the Northeast Countryside 东北农村灵异小故事 Spooky Little Stories from the Northeastern Countryside 12Reads—Score—Shelves
- 124 Record of the Spirit Seekers 2: Farewell to the Mortal World 访灵笔录2:入世辞 [Mystery + supernatural + powerful partners + lively humor + episodic stories + ghostly tales + an ensemble cast hunting ghosts] “Nothing brings greater joy than meeting a new friend; nothing brings greater sorrow than parting from a loved one.” A chance encounter with a beauty on Ghost Wasteland Mountain turns out to be a deadly ghost's attempt to claim a soul! Karmic ties from a past life and entanglements in this one: whose mistake is it, and whose fate? Quan Ning and Yin Cangyi are accidenta 45Reads8.6Score—Shelves
- 125 The Loop 循环 From losing everything to striking it rich overnight, Wang Hao wins at the gambling table for five days straight. But there are no free lunches, and in the end, his greed will make him pay a terrible price! In a single night, Wang Hao vanishes without a trace. Awei, Wang Hao's friend, reports him missing to the police, then secretly investigates his whereabouts. Unexpectedly, one eerie incident after another follows! Someone who died more than twenty years ago reappears! As he digs deeper, he di 246Reads8.3Score—Shelves
- 126 I Hear Snakes Speak and Walk Between Yin and Yang 听蛇语,行阴阳 Supernatural + feng shui + ghost-hunting + Bureau 749 + magic arts + demon-hunting + raising Gu + no System. My father's fate was that of a White Tiger Devouring Its Child. Of my mother's twelve pregnancies, eleven ended in miscarriage when the babies were five or six months along. Only one child was born alive, but that child didn't live to see the age of three. To ensure the Bai family had an heir, my grandfather had no choice but to seek out the White Python Embracing an Egg, a site of three 14.7kReads9.0Score1.8kShelves
- 127 I Came From the Underworld to Subdue Demons and Ghosts in the Mortal World 我自冥界来,于世间镇妖鬼 A live-action, high-definition animated series of the same name is now available on Hongguo and Tomato Novel. Search to watch. Witchcraft ☞ Taoist arts ☞ Feng Shui secrets ☞ Mountain spirits and ghosts ☞ Scary enough to make you scream ☞ Funny enough to make you laugh ☞ No harem Mei Wuji was possessed by the Netherworld Emperor. He died and came back to life, defying Heaven’s will. Mei Tianlang mastered Meishan witchcraft and Feng Shui geomancy, understood fate, and divined that his grandson Mei 27.2kReads9.0Score1.8kShelves
- 128 I Created Chinese-Style Horror and Ushered in the Age of the Supernatural 独创中式恐怖,我引领了诡异时代 [Chinese-Style Horror] [Horror Designer] [Eerie Revival] A curtain of blood covered the globe, and the highly anticipated horror show Horror Designer went on air. The production team put out a call for horror works across the internet. Anyone whose submission was accepted could become a Level 1 Horror Designer and gain the power to fight the eerie entities of the Black Fog. And if you were lucky enough to make it through round after round and win the ultimate Fear Prize, you could become a god i 6.7kReads7.4Score550Shelves
- 129 The Amulet Shop 佛牌专事店 [No female lead + two male leads] My name is Zhou Yi. I’m a broke loser who just graduated from college and can’t even find a decent job. Then a shop owner called and asked me to interview for a sales clerk position. At last, I found a job that could keep food on the table. But the things sold in this shop were nothing like ordinary merchandise. They even seemed a little sinister. Still, I needed to make a living, so I gritted my teeth and stuck with it. I never imagined that this job would plun 11.3kReads9.0Score1.5kShelves
- 130 Underworld Agent 地府经纪人 I was hit by a basketball at school and fell into a lake, but I survived and became an official employee of the Underworld. I also gained a Ghost Hunter System that helps the Underworld recruit talented ghosts, setting me on the path to turning my life around. 49Reads6.8Score—Shelves
- 131 Out of Control 失控者 [Anthology stories + supernatural horror + folk customs + feng shui and mysticism + subtle scares + jaw-dropping twists] Open a paper box sealed away for many years, and one terrifying incident after another begins to surface. The massacre that wiped out an entire family in Nanhua Estate, and the deaths of everyone connected to the case! A bride in a red qipao appearing by your side in the dead of night! Strange legends circulate through a dilapidated high-rise, where hands reach out of the dark 35Reads—Score—Shelves
- 132 The Haunted Grave 诡坟 I think I've been possessed! Right before the college entrance exam, I suddenly came down with a high fever that wouldn't break. I missed the exam and had to spend half a year recovering at home. During those six months, I found a job as a cemetery groundskeeper. My coworker, Old Zhang, saw how frail I was and how weak my yang energy seemed, and insisted on finding me someone to protect me. But he didn't tell me that my protector would be a female ghost!! Not only does she want to marry me, she 101Reads7.4Score—Shelves
- 133 I Transmigrated into the World of the Taoist Priest of Zombie 穿越僵尸道长世界 I, Li Zhizhou, transmigrated and became a junior disciple under Uncle Jiu. After awakening the Daoist Cultivation System, I carried all of Maoshan to greatness. Grand Martial Uncle Shi Jian, Martial Uncle Qianhe, and Martial Uncle Simu look at me as if they're about to steal me away as their disciple! Complete all kinds of missions, and you can learn supreme Daoist arts. There are also divine-grade pills, top-tier magic artifacts, and the finest talismans. And so, I became the most gifted discip 1.3kReads—Score110Shelves
- 134 Horrifying! The Eighth One 惊悚!第八个 Horrifying! The Eighth One 40Reads—Score—Shelves
- 135 Taboo of the Living 2 活人禁忌2 Heaven Official's Blessing, no taboos under heaven. The second installment of Living People’s Taboos! 8.1kReads9.1Score1.3kShelves
- 136 Crime Psychology: Ten Unsolved Cases 心理罪:十宗悬案 A woman drowns in her own toilet... A black cat embarks on a quest to claim lives... A hidden evil lurks in a fog-shrouded town... A madman dreams of becoming an immortal... A beloved pet dog kills out of jealousy... 4.9kReads8.9Score785Shelves
- 137 Eerie Revival: I Tamed the Nightmare Ghost 诡异复苏:我驾驭了噩梦鬼 [Eerie Revival]+ [Nightmare Ghosts]+ [No Female Lead]+ [Slow Pace] Three laws govern the ghosts. First, ghosts cannot be killed. Second, every ghost has a pattern to its killings. Find the pattern, and even an ordinary person can survive. Third, only ghosts can fight ghosts! The [Nightmare Ghost] makes people drowsy, trapping them forever in a domain of black mist. The [Fifth Person] taps shoulders in a four-corner game played in both directions. The life-threatening [Night Watchman Ghost] clan 11.1kReads8.3Score949Shelves
- 138 Tales of the Haunted Mountain Village 山村诡事录 Where the woods are dense, ghosts abound; where the mountains are high, monsters are sure to lurk. After getting drunk, Chen Jianjun of Kaoshan Village encounters a beautiful woman in the mountains. Alone together, the pair spend several days in an intimate embrace. When he returns home, he goes mad for a day and then dies. On the day of his burial, Chen Jianjun suddenly comes back to life... To save his family, Chen Xiaojun becomes the apprentice of Yi, a lame man who was once sent to a work ca 4.5kReads9.1Score428Shelves
- 139 I Live in Fengmen Village 我住在封门村 My hometown shares its name with the legendary number-one haunted village in China: Fengmen Village. What’s more, our village also has a grandmaster’s chair. Whoever sits in it is doomed to die! It was 1997, and I had been accepted into the high school in town. Once summer vacation was over, I would finally be able to leave the place where I’d spent sixteen years. But what I never expected was for one terrifying incident after another to strike the village! Rats that ate human flesh, five-colore 712Reads6.1Score—Shelves
- 140 It's All the Haunted House's Fault 都是凶宅惹的祸 I'm a mystery writer. In search of inspiration, I moved into a house rumored to be haunted. Every night, a horribly disfigured face appeared in the window, and outside, the rotten corpse of a woman hung from a tree. I realized then that this really was a haunted house! Gradually, my family began acting strangely, and we even found a mummified corpse sealed inside the wall for years! As I investigated further, I came across something even more terrifying… 71Reads8.7Score—Shelves
- 141 Borrowing Yin Lifespan 借阴寿 Have you ever slept wearing burial clothes? Don’t try it. I did once, and that night... My name is Li Yiliang. I was born with a shortened lifespan, and my birth caused my mother to die in childbirth. But one night when I was eighteen, my mother came back and said she wanted to take me with her... My grandfather told me to sleep in burial clothes, then gave his own life to help me escape that fate. From then on, my life was never free of strange and uncanny things... 4.7kReads8.9Score411Shelves
- 142 The Ghost Marshal’s Yin-Yang Inn 鬼差之阴阳馆 By day, she transforms into a human; by night, she helps ghosts cross over. Come visit this unassuming little shop, run by a newly hired underworld makeup artist, and make an inquiry. 795Reads9.1Score115Shelves
- 143 Horror Resurges: I Have a Ghost Bus 恐怖复苏,我有一辆鬼大巴 “My name is Jiang Yan. If you don’t want to die, get in my car.” On the way back to his village for a holiday, Jiang Yan successfully took control of a ghost bus and became a ghost-handler. What secrets lie hidden in the eerie village? What terror is sealed inside the pitch-black coffin? In a torrential downpour, ghosts roam the amusement park. Is this the beginning of everything, or the end? As a blood mist invades and the entire city is sealed off, despair closes in. Face death and fight t 6.8kReads7.5Score508Shelves
- 144 I Run a Paper Effigy Shop 我有一间扎纸店 I Have a Paper Effigy Shop tells the story of the protagonist, Liu Dabao, who runs a shop making paper effigies. One day, a guy named Li Xunhuan asked me to burn him a villa and gave me a jade pendant, saying someone would come to collect it later. That evening, a woman came to pick up the pendant and gave me a thousand yuan. But who could have guessed that the next day, the money vanished and turned into a pile of white paper! Was it ghost money for the dead? Were Li Xunhuan and that woman both 134Reads8.7Score—Shelves
- 145 Folk Tales: One Chapter, One Horror Story 民间怪谈一章一个恐怖故事 [Anthology of stories] [Folklore horror] [Supernatural horror] [Village legends] [Chinese-style horror] [Old-time storytelling] There is no overarching plot. Each chapter is a standalone horror story adapted from folk tales, with eerie, unsettling plots that grow more terrifying the more you think about them. Note: This story discourages superstition and encourages belief in science. It is entirely fictional, so just enjoy it as a bit of fun. 26.1kReads7.5Score1.2kShelves
- 146 There Are Ghosts in These Words 话里有诡 They say everyone has a few little secrets they can't bring themselves to talk about these days. But if you really want to hear something out of the ordinary, go find Old Bu. Old Bu runs a little tavern set inside an abandoned train carriage. From the day it opened, he laid down one rule: One interesting story in exchange for a night's worth of drinks. Sounds like a good deal, doesn't it? Too bad he doesn't give you much to drink, and the stories just keep getting stranger. An intelligent wristb 8Reads7.6Score—Shelves
- 147 Tales from the Northern Horsemen 北马见闻录 I’m a spirit medium. What do I need brains for? As long as I’m stubborn enough, those weasels can’t get the better of me. This is a story full of blood and heart, and the legend of a spirit medium’s life. Whether it’s life or human nature, the wise will eventually find the answers meant for them. A record of strange encounters, and half the history of the Ma family. Folk legends, chilling mysteries, and uncanny wonders, all within... 3.5kReads8.9Score287Shelves
- 148 Werewolf: The Guardian Turns the Tables on Four Wolves from the Start 狼人杀:开局守卫翻盘四狼 [No cheat powers + Logic-Heavy + Werewolf + Male Lead with No Romance + Original, High-Quality Classic Deduction Games] Shen Xing takes part in a mysterious, individual werewolf competition show called “Babel.” Legend has it that the winner who reaches the top of this mysterious arena can touch the Door of Miracles and have any wish granted! Competition formats with distinct styles, fellow players harboring their own agendas, eerie and fantastical Tarot codenames, and baffling bonus puzzles… In 27.2kReads9.5Score3.4kShelves
- 149 The Last Soul-Quelling Master 最后一个镇魂师 I grew up at my grandfather's house in the countryside. He was the most respected suona player in our village. One day, Li Dashan, a fellow villager, beat his pregnant wife to death and came to ask my grandfather for help. My grandfather tried everything he could, but still couldn't calm the resentment of Li Dashan's wife. In the end, he had no choice but to play a suona dirge to forcibly pacify her soul. On the night of the Lantern Festival, Li Dashan and his family turned into vengeful ghosts 117Reads8.5Score—Shelves
- 150 Ghostly Eyes 鬼灵瞳 A reclusive man known as Little Master, along with several strange people brought together by coincidence but united by their shared interests, gradually uncovers a history buried for many years: the five great clans of the ancient world and the Yin-Yang adepts who could do anything. It seems that fate has long been leading them into one thrilling fantasy adventure after another... 1kReads9.1Score103Shelves

















































