Tor UK gobbles up Max Doty's 'claustrophobic spiral of a horror novel' The House That Eats the Dead

Tor UK has bought “a superbly fun take on the haunted house trope” The House That Eats the Dead by American games author Max Doty.  

Sophie Robinson, editorial director at the Pan Macmillan imprint, acquired world English-language rights in a two-book deal from Maria Brannan at Greyhound Literary Agency. Tor UK will publish The House That Eats the Dead on 20th August 2026. 

The synopsis reads: “The new house is meant to be a fresh start for Claire and her family, a move away from the grim threats of declining San Francisco and towards a safe, affluent suburban life.

“But even as they unpack boxes and hang pictures, Claire begins to realise that something is wrong. The house is hungry—and it gradually dawns on Claire that it’s eating anything that was once alive: fresh cut flowers, wooden furniture, her daughter’s favourite toy.  

“As she comes to understand the extent of the house’s power Claire persuades Tom to put it on the market. But they soon discover that the house calls to the worst kind of people: those who will feed it what it most hungers for—human flesh.

“Unwilling to let it fall into such hands, Claire forms an uneasy alliance with her home. She feeds it cow hearts, hires a decorator to fix it up, and starts to learn its secrets. But when she wakes one night to find a body dumped through the basement window, slowly being devoured, Claire begins to wonder why she and her family were drawn to the house in the first place.” 

Robinson said: “The House that Eats the Dead is the freshest, most original and superbly fun take on the haunted house trope I have ever come across. Bold, with full throttle pacing, sharp black humour and expert dread, readers are in for a brilliantly wild ride. I can’t wait to publish in summer 2026.” 

Doty said: “Once, when I brought up the subject of selling our house, my wife shushed me, warning that it would hear me... The idea of a house with emotions took root from there. What if a house had desires?

“I hope that The House That Eats the Dead provides some interesting answers. I’m so thankful that the book has found an ideal home in Tor Nightfire, and I’m incredibly grateful to have found a publisher who loves the house as much as I do.”

Brannan says: “Max has crafted such a compulsive story with a brilliantly dark thread of hunger that tugged me through the pages alongside Claire and her family.

“I’m delighted that Sophie and the Tor team will be bringing The House that Eats the Dead to life and I can’t wait for readers to step through the door of the house and find themselves immersed in this deeply unnerving, claustrophobic spiral of a horror novel.”

Doty is games writer based in the US who worked on “Choices: Stories You Play and Surviving High School” for which he also wrote two spin-off novels. His screenplay “Almost Kings” won Netflix’s inaugural Find Your Voice award and was made into a feature film. He regularly contributes to reddit’s NoSleep forum as scarymaxx. This deal follows hot on the heels of Simon & Schuster UK buying the horror series How to Survive Camping by software developer Bonnie Quinn, who also contributes to the same Reddit thread.