Mushrooms have a strange and fascinating history. They can appear colorful and enchanting while carrying deadly poisons within. Some of them are hallucinogenic, capable of inducing wild illusions that will make you question the very nature of reality. In myths and folktales, stepping inside a circle of mushrooms (often called a “fairy ring”) can transport the unsuspecting person to another dimension. Then there are bioluminescent fungi that glow in the dark, like will-o-wisps or jack-o-lanterns. Certain fungal parasites can create “zombies” of its victims, like the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis that takes over the brain of the carpenter ant, consuming its innards and reproducing via a stalk through the poor creature’s head. Some studies even claim that a complex underground network of fungi, roots and bacteria can help facilitate communication and exchange of vital nutrients among trees—similar to the internet and dubbed as the “wood wide web”!
Thus, when it comes to fungi, we’re just scratching the spores on the surface. Their mysterious and unsettling behavior in the natural world have inspired countless speculative authors to come up with stories where sentient shrooms take over other lifeforms, spread terror and disease, and proliferate as per their own secret agendas. So, if you’re up for some freaky fungal reads, our list of books is a good place to start!
Mexican Gothic
Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s widely acclaimed novel, Mexican Gothic is often pitched as a lush Gothic fantasy with clear post-colonial underpinnings, as you may have already inferred from the title. But there’s so much more to it than that—with a creepy fungal mystery at the heart of the narrative. The tale follows Noemí Taboada who travels to a mansion in the countryside to investigate her newly-married cousin’s sickness, and discovers a world of rich decadence, old money and dangerous family secrets struggling to stay buried. Alluring, unnerving and quite entertaining, Mexican Gothic is a must-read for lovers of dark fantasy and self-consciously Gothic works.
What Moves the Dead
Those looking for a shorter and grimmer version of Mexican Gothic's fungal adventure should definitely check out T. Kingfisher’s novella What Moves the Dead. The story is a queer retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” tale. If Poe’s Gothic horror short story left you with several unanswered questions, Kingfisher’s narrative posits some answers while also deepening the worldbuilding. It unfolds the story of Alex Easton, a non-binary soldier who travels to the decaying ancestral home of the Ushers when they receive word that their childhood friend is dying, only to uncover a sprawling fungal infestation that has its spores everywhere.
Tress of the Emerald Sea
Although it’s set in the author’s wider Cosmere universe, Tress of the Emerald Sea is an entertaining and light-hearted standalone read that combines The Princess Bride with some dashing pirates and a magic system composed entirely of spores and their mysterious properties. Just like the mushrooms in our world, the spores in the novel can be quite deadly—and yet can also be harnessed as weapons, as edibles and put to other uses. The story follows the charming Tress—a girl who loves collecting cups and has never ventured beyond the confines of her little island until she hears that her beloved is imprisoned by a Sorceress, and she sets sail to rescue him. Whether you’re inching to dive deeper into the Cosmere or craving a sweet whimsy fairytale, Tress of the Emerald Sea has something in it for everyone.
The Marigold
Andrew F. Sullivan’s The Marigold brilliantly blends near-future sci-fi and dystopian horror to expose the (fungal) rot at the heart of urban metropolises, driven by unfettered capitalism and corporate greed. Told from multiple point-of-views, the narrative follows a cast of characters in a near-future Toronto where half-constructed condo towers cast a dark shadow over the city’s poor gig economy workers, even as a mysterious mire called the “Wet” spreads underground, claiming hapless victims and crumbling the city from within. Engaging and episodic, The Marigold is a surreal and unforgettable read.
Fruiting Bodies and Other Fungi
If you’re hungry for more fungal nightmares, you can try the short story collection Fruiting Bodies and Other Fungi by Brian Lumley, the author of the Necroscope series. The titular award-winning story “Fruiting Bodies” presents a fascinating take on fungal horror, while the other tales blend Lovecraftian horror and weird fiction into deliciously disturbing results—truly a terrifying acid trip of a book!
City of Saints and Madmen: A Novel (The Ambergris Trilogy Book 1)
The Ambergris series, sold singly or collected in a single volume, is a must-have for all the devotees of the New Weird. The first book City of Saints and Madmen is a collection of short stories, novellas, dream diary entries and other fragments that utterly reinvents the architecture of the fantastical, bringing to life the strange and surreal city of Ambergris. The second book, Shriek: An Afterword is an atmospheric deep-dive into the lives of select Ambergris residents, through the long decades, while Finch follows the titular character on an impossible murder case. If you’re looking for prose that’s experimental, evocative and wildly imaginative with plenty of fungal weirdness, these books won’t disappoint.
The Girl With All the Gifts
Remember the fungus Ophiocordyceps unilateralis that is responsible for zombie ants? Well, M.R. Carey’s book takes inspiration from it and imagines a world where humans too are infected by this fungus, leading to the collapse of civilization. Meshing fungal horror, post-apocalyptic zombie fiction and coming-of-age themes, The Girl with All the Gifts is a thrilling and gripping read with well-written characters that will particularly appeal to lovers of zombie stories.
Rosewater
Finally, if you adore alien invasions and all things sci-fi, you may like Tade Thompson’s The Wormwood trilogy. The first book, Rosewater is set in a Nigerian community that has formed around a strange alien biodome. It exudes a fungus called “xenoforms” that can rewrite the human nervous system, although a select few can use these xenoforms to access the information network known as the “xenosphere." A deep dive into international power structures and community solidarity, Rosewater is a fascinating read where fungal networks seem to mirror humanity’s need for connection, be it via friendship or kinship groups.
Featured image: Jesse Bauer / Unsplash
