Goosebumps
horror
Series · horror
Fear Street
The Fear Street series by R. L. Stine has 49 books and is best read in publication order, starting with The New Girl (1989).
- Books
- 49 books
- First published
- 1989
- Status
- completed
- Last checked
Start here: The New Girl (1989) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The New Girl
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The New Girl - Book 2:
The Surprise Party
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Surprise Party - Book 3:
The Overnight
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Overnight - Book 4:
Missing
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Missing - Book 5:
The Wrong Number
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Wrong Number - Book 6:
The Sleepwalker
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Sleepwalker - Book 7:
Haunted
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Haunted - Book 8:
Halloween Party
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Halloween Party - Book 9:
The Stepsister
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Stepsister - Book 10:
Ski Weekend
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Ski Weekend - Book 11:
The Fire Game
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Fire Game - Book 12:
Lights Out
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Lights Out - Book 13:
The Secret Bedroom
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Secret Bedroom - Book 14:
The Knife
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Knife - Book 15:
The Prom Queen
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Prom Queen - Book 16:
First Date
Alternative text for cover: Cover of First Date - Book 17:
The Best Friend
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Best Friend - Book 18:
The Cheater
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Cheater - Book 19:
Sunburn
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Sunburn - Book 20:
The New Boy
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The New Boy - Book 21:
The Dare
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Dare - Book 22:
Bad Dreams
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Bad Dreams - Book 23:
Double Date
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Double Date - Book 24:
The Thrill Club
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Thrill Club - Book 25:
One Evil Summer
Alternative text for cover: Cover of One Evil Summer - Book 26:
The Mind Reader
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Mind Reader - Book 27:
Wrong Number 2
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Wrong Number 2 - Book 28:
Truth or Dare
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Truth or Dare - Book 29:
Dead End
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Dead End - Book 30:
Final Grade
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Final Grade - Book 31:
Switched
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Switched - Book 32:
College Weekend
Alternative text for cover: Cover of College Weekend - Book 33:
The Stepsister 2
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Stepsister 2 - Book 34:
What Holly Heard
Alternative text for cover: Cover of What Holly Heard - Book 35:
The Face
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Face - Book 36:
Secret Admirer
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Secret Admirer - Book 37:
The Perfect Date
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Perfect Date - Book 38:
The Confession
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Confession - Book 39:
The Boy Next Door
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Boy Next Door - Book 40:
Night Games
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Night Games - Book 41:
Runaway
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Runaway - Book 42:
Killer's Kiss
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Killer's Kiss - Book 43:
All-Night Party
Alternative text for cover: Cover of All-Night Party - Book 44:
The Rich Girl
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Rich Girl - Book 45:
Cat
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Cat - Book 46:
Who Killed the Homecoming Queen?
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Who Killed the Homecoming Queen? - Book 47:
Into the Dark
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Into the Dark - Book 48:
Best Friend 2
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Best Friend 2 - Book 49:
Trapped
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Trapped
About the Fear Street series
Shadyside is a small town with a body count -- and Fear Street, the road running through it, is where the bodies pile up. R.L. Stine's teen horror line traded Goosebumps' younger, gentler scares for real stakes: characters in Fear Street actually die, romances turn homicidal, and the killer is as often the popular girl next door as any supernatural force. Every book is a fresh cast of Shadyside teenagers -- cheerleaders, prom queens, campers, babysitters -- caught in a slasher-movie plot with a twist ending Stine builds the whole book toward.
Launched in 1989 with The New Girl, the original run became the best-selling YA horror series of all time, moving over 80 million copies and defining the genre for a generation of readers who'd outgrown Goosebumps but weren't ready for adult horror. Stine mixed pure slasher plotting (masked killers, body counts, whodunit structure) with genuine supernatural horror (curses, ghosts, witchcraft) depending on the book, unified by the same relentless cliffhanger pacing that made his other series addictive.
Fear Street exploded back into pop culture with Netflix's 2021 film trilogy, introducing the Shadyside curse to a new generation and sending readers back to the source material -- a sprawling, interconnected universe of standalone terror that this entry begins tracking with the original 49-book run.
How to read this series
Almost every Fear Street book is a fully standalone story with a new cast, so you can start anywhere -- publication order (used here) is the traditional way in, beginning with The New Girl (1989). A handful of books are direct numbered sequels (The Wrong Number / Wrong Number 2, The Stepsister / The Stepsister 2, The Best Friend / Best Friend 2); read those pairs in order, but nothing else requires sequence.
This entry covers the original numbered Fear Street series only (1989-1997, 49 books). Stine's Fear Street universe is much larger than this: Fear Street Super Chillers (longer standalone specials), Fear Street Sagas (a historical prequel line following the cursed Fear family through the centuries), Fear Street Cheerleaders, Fear Street Seniors, and the 1998-99 relaunch known as "New Fear Street" all exist as separate, currently untracked sub-series -- start with the numbered original run here before branching into those.
Frequently asked questions
How many books are in the original Fear Street series?
49 books, published from The New Girl (1989) through Trapped (1997).
What order should I read Fear Street in?
Any order -- nearly every book is a standalone story with a new cast. The exceptions are a few direct sequels (Wrong Number 2, The Stepsister 2, Best Friend 2), which are best read after their originals.
Is Fear Street connected to the Netflix movies?
Yes -- Netflix's 2021 Fear Street trilogy is set in Shadyside and draws on the book series' premise of a town cursed across centuries, though the films tell their own original story rather than adapting a specific book.
Is the original Fear Street series finished?
Yes, the original 49-book run concluded in 1997. R.L. Stine continued the Fear Street brand afterward across several spin-off lines, including a 1998-99 relaunch and the historical Fear Street Sagas.
How is Fear Street different from Goosebumps?
Fear Street is aimed at teens rather than middle-grade readers, with real character deaths, slasher-style plotting, and higher stakes than the younger, gentler scares of Goosebumps -- both are by R.L. Stine but are separate series.
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