Splasher: A haunted swimming pool slasher novel, perfect for Summerween. - Softcover

Host, Billie

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1804998389 ISBN 13: 9781804998380

Publisher: Penguin, 2026

Synopsis

'Nothing but a good time.' - Stephen Graham Jones, NYT bestselling author of My Heart is a Chainsaw and I Was a Teenage Slasher

'The perfect balance of campy fun, eerie dread, and chlorine-drenched mayhem.' - Marcus Kliewer, NYT bestselling author of The Caretaker

🏊 Come on in, the water’s fine! 🏊

Autumn 2006. Low-rise jeans are in, grunge is out, and all Spencer Ward should be worrying about is his new job as Assistant Swim Coach at Richardson University. It’s been a decade since tragedy struck during his own college years, but Spencer is determined to sink his skeletons and focus on a winning season for his team.

Until, that is, two students are found dead in the pool on the first day of training. While everyone assumes it was a horrible accident, Spencer is overcome with an ominous sense of déjà vu.

There’s blood in the water, and not just because competition season has started. As increasingly severe freak accidents plague the students, and twisted shadows are seen by the poolside, Spencer and his swim team must work out what is hunting them before it’s too late. The pool echoes with the ghosts of the past, and they won’t rest until they are finally heard.

'Point Horror meets It Follows in this dread-soaked supernatural slasher, which brings new meaning to the term 'bloodbath'. Obsessed.' – Josh Winning, author of Heads Will Roll

'There's no lifeguard on duty to save readers from this chlorinated gorefest. Splasher is a cursed whirlpool of horror and heart, some still bleeding, swirling about the page in brilliant arterial character arcs and pathos. ' – Clay McLeod Chapman, author of Wake Up and Open Your Eyes

What Readers Are Saying

⭐ 'I couldn’t put this down and read it in one night! Such a nostalgic vibe and a fun read.'

⭐ 'Splasher had me hooked from the very beginning... it was such a fun, addictive read.'

⭐ 'If you're looking for a book to read during Summerween, this should be right up your alley and a perfect novel for a spooky summer!'

⭐ 'This book was SO MUCH FUN. It played out like a brilliant B-movie/ slasher romp in my mind from start to finish. It was tacky, it was nostalgic, and it was gloriously queer - all of my favourite things'

⭐ 'I had such a good time with this book, I honestly picked it up for the cover (it is stunning), but stayed for the absolute vibes.'

About this title

About the Author

Billie Host is the pseudonym for Morag Hannah and Erin Hardee, two geeky women living and writing together in Scotland. With backgrounds ranging from museum interpretation to web design, and from science communication to ghost tours, they are devoted to storytelling in almost every aspect of their lives and work. When they are not telling stories they can be found singing in choirs, foraging for fungi, and working on their 1880s fixer-upper. They also write historical speculative fiction as MK Hardy.

Edition details

• Publisher: Penguin
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1804998389
• ISBN 13: 9781804998380
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 336