Where Brooklyn Goes to Be Scared: Inside The Twisted Spine

Williamsburg has no shortage of indie bookstores, but one on Grand Street stands out for what's on its shelves. The Twisted Spine, at 306 Grand St., is New York City's first bookstore dedicated exclusively to horror and dark literature. It recently drew a spotlight on local TV, where the segment invited viewers to find their next obsession at the city's only horror bookshop.

The shop's story starts with a gap. Co-founder Lauren Komer went looking for a horror bookstore in New York and found none existed. She and her partner, Jason Mellow, launched The Twisted Spine as a pop-up in September 2024, appearing at the Brooklyn Book Festival and teaming up with the Brooklyn Horror Society and Nitehawk Cinema. The permanent store opened on September 6, 2025, and despite a downpour, a line formed outside the door.

Inside, the mood is part of the draw. Reviewers describe warm lighting, black brick walls and leather reading chairs, which makes the space feel like a goth reading nook. The inventory is broad, covering everything from comedy horror and slasher tales to "splatterpunk," the goriest and most extreme horror books. There's even a children's corner, so younger readers can get their first chills too.

It's also more than a bookstore. The cafe serves coffee by day and beer and wine in the evenings, and the event calendar includes author readings, book clubs, movie screenings and podcast recordings. Out back is a "graveyard patio," where guests can read among decorative tombstones. The store also plans to commission a horror short story each Halloween featuring the shop and New York City.

Komer's pitch is simple: with so much real-life horror, people could use a safe place to confront their fears. Her goal is to make the shop a home for horror in New York.

With Halloween days away and the shop nearly a year old, there's no better time to visit. The Twisted Spine isn't the only horror bookstore in North America, but for New Yorkers hunting for something to read in the dark, it's the one closest to home.