Music is a key component of my writing process, and I love finding songs that fit the mood and vibes of my books. While drafting and editing SHE HAUNTS ME STILL, my upcoming dark academia novel about three university theatre students tied together by a curse dating back to the New England vampire panic, I surrounded myself with songs that encompass drama, yearning, and dangerous love. Here’s six songs that are on my personal playlist for SHE HAUNTS ME STILL, along with key lyrics for each.
“Verona” by Lydia von Hof
https://open.spotify.com/track/63D6TFRnoRAv4P5HhpuBIL
Because SHE HAUNTS ME STILL is set against the backdrop of a university theatre production of Romeo and Juliet, “Verona” by Lydia von Hof is the perfect song to listen to while diving into the pages. Not only is it completely catchy, but the opening verse feels like it’s meant to introduce readers to the world of Shore College and our protagonist, a haunted actress named Mallory Webb.
Key Lyrics:
Well, listen up real good /
Won't you come along with me /
Through a lover's tale and fair Verona's where we lay our scene, and it's not /
The one you've heard /
A million different times /
It's a story that is never told, or at least it's not told twice
“Lucifer” by Elle Lexxa
https://open.spotify.com/track/10eU31j2GRhBHogARC0YT2
Next up, we have this iconic gem by Elle Lexxa. This song perfectly sets the tone for the passionate, dangerous, and mercurial relationship you’ll find between Mallory and Ezra, the mysterious theatre director who is perhaps a bit too interested in his leading lady’s ghosts. I listened to this song on repeat while editing some of their scenes, and it truly captures their dynamic down to the eeriest details.
Key Lyrics:
You, you’re a constellation /
Overdramatic, impatient /
You, you’re an amalgamation /
Of my mind, a radioactive wavelength /
Are you my DNA coded antidote? /
Custom made or just some sick joke? /
Long coats, eye rolls /
I should know better but I don’t
“Night at the Opera” by Emei
https://open.spotify.com/track/4ikhbKiw9pKYkWitSR7M7u
When I first heard this song, I might have dramatically gasped aloud because of how on point it is for SHE HAUNTS ME STILL. In many ways, it feels like Mallory’s anthem. It’s so “final girl” coded, but with a theatrical, dramatic vibe, and I definitely suggest listening to it while reading the third act of this book.
Key Lyrics:
Am I cursed? /
Like a lead in the opera tragically doomed from birth /
Or a girl in the thriller everybody knows is gonna die first, what's worse? /
I can see you in the balcony, thinkin' it's a comedy, sure /
Well, I hope my suffering will sell some tickets in the mezzanine
“The Point of No Return” from The Phantom of the Opera
https://open.spotify.com/track/6PfbADg1FLCf9ySlRo3JCX
I had to include at least one musical theatre song on here (for a bonus, I’d also suggest “Meant to Be Yours” from Heathers). There are several scenes in SHE HAUNTS ME STILL that feel very Phantom-coded, and one chapter in particular toward the end of the novel that could easily be set against this song.
Key Lyrics:
Past the point of no return /
The final threshold /
The bridge is crossed /
So stand and watch it burn /
We've passed the point of no return
“Sleep to Dream” by Fiona Apple
https://open.spotify.com/track/51HiIbv8gO0HvwpmAxXAFe
SHE HAUNTS ME STILL is set in 1999, and Mallory’s favorite singer is canonically Fiona Apple. With that, there has to be a Fiona Apple song on this list! This one in particular feels very Mal, and I can easily imagine her blasting it in her dorm room.
Key Lyrics:
I got my feet on the ground and I don't go to sleep to dream /
You got your head in the clouds, you're not at all what you seem /
This mind, this body, and this voice cannot be stifled by your deviant ways /
So don't forget what I told you don't come around /
I got my own hell to raise
“we fell in love in october” by girl in red
https://open.spotify.com/track/6IPwKM3fUUzlElbvKw2sKl
There’s a (star-crossed) love triangle to be found in SHE HAUNTS ME STILL, and this song fully encompasses the romance you’ll find between Mallory and Saskia, the enigmatic actress understudying the role of Juliet. The autumnal vibes and the yearning are the perfect equation for their dynamic.
Key Lyrics:
You look so pretty and I love this view /
Don't bother looking down, we're not going that way /
At least I know, I am here to stay /
We fell in love in October /
That's why I love fall /
Looking at the stars /
Admiring from afar
These violent delights have violent ends.
After surviving a shadowed childhood, Mallory Webb is ready to start fresh as a theater major at her mother’s alma mater, a sanitarium turned liberal arts university in Rhode Island. Landing the lead role in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet feels like a dream—until the blood-soaked wraith that caused her mother’s death resurfaces after years of quiet. With nothing to go on but cryptic symbols in an old college notebook, Mallory hopes the reason behind her mother’s haunting lies somewhere on campus, and resolves to find answers before she meets the same fate.
She’s surprised to make an unexpected ally in Ezra Pierce, the magnetic fourth year directing the play, and takes solace in their undeniable chemistry. But Ezra is a master secret-keeper, and it’s clear he knows more than he’s letting on about Saskia Garin, Mallory’s elusive understudy whose past eerily mirrors her own.
When an ancient, bloodthirsty evil calls to collect on a bargain that dates back to the New England vampire panic, Mallory, Ezra, and Saskia will have to untangle the tragic ways in which their histories are linked—and face the devastating consequences of their own star-crossed love story.
Horror | Fantasy Dark [ Dutton, On Sale: August 11, 2026, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9798217046522 / eISBN: 9798217046539 ]
De Elizabeth writes haunting, romantic books. She is passionate about telling emotionally resonant, dark stories that feature messy main characters and bisexual representation. She is also a journalist specializing in pop culture, mental health, and LGBTQ+ issues. Her young adult novel, This Raging Sea, was published in fall 2025.
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