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Quick answer: If you loved The Thirteenth Tale, try Once Upon a River, Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, Rebecca, The Turn of the Screw and The Forgotten Garden. Each one offers an old house, a buried family secret or a gothic mood that keeps you turning pages.
Diane Setterfield's bestseller follows Margaret Lea, a shy biographer who is summoned by the famous, dying novelist Vida Winter. After a lifetime of lies, Winter finally wants to tell the truth about her childhood, her strange twin sisters and the burning of their home, Angelfield. Readers love its love of reading, its eerie atmosphere and its great twist. These books share its old houses, its buried secrets and its beautiful storytelling.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Setting | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Once Upon a River | Diane Setterfield | Thames | readers who want more Setterfield |
| Jane Eyre | Charlotte Brontë | Yorkshire | readers who love the book Margaret loves |
| Wuthering Heights | Emily Brontë | Yorkshire | readers who like wild family drama |
| Rebecca | Daphne du Maurier | Cornwall | readers who want the classic |
| The Turn of the Screw | Henry James | England | readers who like strange children |
| The Forgotten Garden | Kate Morton | Cornwall | readers who like multi-era mysteries |
| The Distant Hours | Kate Morton | Kent | readers who like eerie sisters |
| The Little Stranger | Sarah Waters | Warwickshire | readers who love a haunted house |
| Fingersmith | Sarah Waters | Victorian London | readers who like twists |
| We Have Always Lived in the Castle | Shirley Jackson | New England | readers who want a strange short read |
| The Woman in Black | Susan Hill | England | readers who want a classic ghost story |
| The Shadow of the Wind | Carlos Ruiz Zafón | Barcelona | readers who love books about books |
| Possession | A.S. Byatt | England | readers who love literary detectives |
| The Historian | Elizabeth Kostova | Europe | readers who like long, atmospheric hunts |
| The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo | Taylor Jenkins Reid | Hollywood | readers who like famous women telling all |
1. Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield
A drowned girl comes back to life at a riverside inn.
Best for: readers who want more Setterfield.
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
A plain governess falls for her employer, who is hiding a terrible secret.
Best for: readers who love the book Margaret loves.
3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
Heathcliff's passion for Catherine ruins two families.
Best for: readers who like wild family drama.
4. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
A young bride lives in the shadow of her husband's first wife at Manderley.
Best for: readers who want the classic.
5. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
A governess suspects that ghosts have a hold on her young charges.
Best for: readers who like strange children.
6. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
A woman traces why her grandmother was left on a ship as a child.
Best for: readers who like multi-era mysteries.
7. The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
A woman uncovers the secrets of three old sisters in a crumbling castle.
Best for: readers who like eerie sisters.
8. The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters
A doctor grows close to a struggling family in a decaying mansion.
Best for: readers who love a haunted house.
9. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
A pickpocket helps a con man rob an heiress, but nothing goes to plan.
Best for: readers who like twists.
10. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
Two sisters live apart from a village that hates them.
Best for: readers who want a strange short read.
11. The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
A young lawyer is haunted while settling an old woman's estate.
Best for: readers who want a classic ghost story.
12. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
A boy in Barcelona finds that someone is destroying a certain author's work.
Best for: readers who love books about books.
13. Possession by A.S. Byatt
Two scholars uncover a Victorian love affair through hidden letters.
Best for: readers who love literary detectives.
14. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
A girl follows old letters that may lead to the real Dracula.
Best for: readers who like long, atmospheric hunts.
15. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
An aging movie star finally reveals her true love.
Best for: readers who like famous women telling all.
How to Choose
Once Upon a River is the next read for Setterfield fans, as it has a similar storyteller's voice and a dreamlike setting. Jane Eyre is key to the novel, and if you have not read it, you will enjoy the many references. For gothic houses and family secrets, Kate Morton's The Forgotten Garden and The Distant Hours are satisfying and long, while We Have Always Lived in the Castle is short and unforgettable. If you want true chills, The Woman in Black and The Little Stranger will do the job. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is a more modern pick, with a famous woman finally revealing her story to a younger writer.
Related: The Handmaid’s Tale Book Club Discussion Questions (With Summary and Themes) · 15 Best Fairy Tale Retelling Books for Teens
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Thirteenth Tale about?
A shy biographer is hired to write the true life story of a dying novelist with a secret past.
Is The Thirteenth Tale a ghost story?
It has a ghostly mood and a haunted house, but its focus is family secrets.
Was there a TV version?
Yes. A BBC film starring Vanessa Redgrave and Olivia Colman was released in 2013.
Why is it called The Thirteenth Tale?
It refers to a story missing from a famous collection by Vida Winter, which has only twelve.
Is The Thirteenth Tale a standalone?
Yes. It is not part of a series.