Easter usually conjures up soft pastels, overflowing baskets of chocolate, and fuzzy bunnies hopping into spring. But beneath that cheery exterior lies a treasure trove of unsettling stories that warp the season’s themes of rebirth and renewal into something far more twisted. In fiction, Easter isn’t always sunshine and tulips … Nay-nay, dear reader, it can be a portal to the uncanny, the occult, and the bizarre — if you know where to look.
So, if you’re more into haunted hollows than Easter hunts, you’re in good company! Without further ado, let’s peel back the foil on those sugary symbols and sink our teeth into some delightfully dark springtime storytelling.
Fluffy, Feral, and Fanged: Rabbits That Haunt Us
Rabbits have become symbols of innocence and fertility, but in fiction, the bunny trope has taken on a deliciously disturbing twist.
Let’s start with Donnie Darko, a cult classic film featuring Frank, a towering, cryptic bunny that’s equal parts prophet, time traveler, and harbinger of doom. Frank isn’t handing out candy; he’s whispering apocalyptic countdowns and messing with the very fabric of reality. This is the Easter Bunny’s shadow self, and it’s a cult classic for a reason!
Then there’s Watership Down by Richard Adams. On the surface, it’s a story about a group of rabbits searching for a new warren. Burrow a bit deeper, however, and it’s a brutal allegory about war, fascism, and survival. These aren’t fluffy pets: they’re soldiers, refugees, and prophets navigating an indifferent world. If you ever doubted that rabbits could be horrifying, this novel will change your mind.
And let’s not forget Bunnicula, the vampire bunny from the children’s classic by Deborah and James Howe. He drains the juice from vegetables and sends the household pets into a spiral of paranoia. It’s playful, yes, but also a surprisingly smart nod to horror tropes — campy, clever, and just creepy enough to stick with you.
Pagan Rites, Spring Sacrifices, and Horror in Bloom
Easter’s roots lie in ancient fertility festivals — springtime rites, symbols of rebirth, and yes, eggs. But dark fiction loves to sink its claws into those same themes and turn them inside out.
Take The Wicker Man (1973). Though technically a film, it embodies everything weird and chilling about springtime cults. A devout police officer investigates a missing girl on a remote island, only to discover the community celebrates pagan traditions that involve far more than eggs and garlands. It’s cheerful on the surface, but it simmers with unease and culminates in a scene that redefines “burning man.”
Or consider Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery. Every spring, a small, seemingly wholesome village gathers for an annual ritual that ends in shocking violence. There’s no pastel palette here — just the horror of blind tradition and the tension of community complicity. It’s about sacrifice, sure, but not the kind the Easter Bunny would endorse.
Even in sci-fi and horror-adjacent fiction, eggs aren’t always symbols of new life. Sometimes, they’re vessels for something unholy (Alien, we see you). The egg becomes a metaphor for what lies dormant and unknown — gestating horrors that crack open at the worst possible moment.
More Spring Fiction, But Make It Haunted
If you’re building your own haunted spring reading list, these books offer the perfect blend of creepy and clever:
- Bunny by Mona Awad: Imagine an MFA writing program where the girls wear matching cardigans and casually create monstrous creatures out of thin air. It’s culty, twisted, and pastel-drenched in the best way.
- House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland: Gorgeous, eerie, and dripping with rot. Think lost girls, strange disappearances, and the kind of springtime horror that blooms like black mold under flower petals.
- The Ritual by Adam Nevill: A springtime hike gone horribly wrong, featuring a terrifying forest, pagan relics, and a god-thing you’ll never forget. It’s The Blair Witch Project meets Norse folklore.
The bottom line? Spring might be the season of sunshine and blossoms, but in fiction, it’s also when things start to hatch, and not everything that breaks free from its shell is cute.
