Bookish Halloween Costumes Trending on Pinterest and TikTok

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This year, the hottest Halloween costumes are coming straight off the bookshelf. Scroll through BookTok or a Pinterest costume board, and you’ll find hockey-romance jerseys, Greek goddesses in linen, fae courtiers in starlit gowns, and at least one person dressed as a dungeon-crawling man in his boxers.

The numbers back up what your feed is telling you. When HalloweenCostumes.com surveyed shoppers for its 2026 trend report, recent movies and TV led costume inspiration at 39 percent, and nearly half of respondents said they wear costumes outside Halloween, mostly for cosplay. That matters for readers because many of this year’s biggest screen moments started as books: Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, Prime Video’s Off Campus, the latest Hunger Games, and a fresh wave of romance adaptations.

Spending is up too. The National Retail Federation projects Americans will spend $13.5 billion on Halloween in 2026, with $4.4 billion of that on costumes. And with Halloween falling on a Saturday this year, there’s a whole weekend of parties to dress for.

So whether you want a look that the whole room recognizes or one that only your book club will get, here are the bookish costumes trending right now, plus a few classics and tips for pulling off any of them.

The Bookish Costumes Trending Right Now

1. Homer’s Heroes and Gods from The Odyssey [buy]

Nolan’s epic has turned a 2,700-year-old poem into this year’s most-searched literary costume. Agamemnon landed at No. 4 on Google’s list of top trending costumes for 2026, and Spirit Halloween reports strong demand for Greek-inspired armor, cloaks, and adventurer looks. The easiest version is Athena: an off-white hooded linen robe and nothing else.

What you need: a bronze breastplate or tunic and a cloak for Odysseus or Agamemnon; draped linen and an owl pin for Athena. Carry a paperback of the Fagles or Emily Wilson translation, and you’ve got a conversation starter.

2. Hockey Romance: Off Campus [buy] and Heated Rivalry [buy]

If you see a lot of jerseys this weekend, blame the hockey-romance boom. Spirit Halloween names Prime Video’s Off Campus among its top costume trends this year, and two Off Campus pairings, including Hannah and Garrett from Elle Kennedy’s The Deal [buy], made Google’s top duo costumes. Meanwhile, Heated Rivalry‘s Shane and Ilya missed Halloween last year because the series premiered too late, so fans are making up for lost time.

What you need: two team jerseys, a hockey stick, and some smudged eye black. For a dressier take, She Reads suggests Allie’s party look from the show’s Shakespeare scene.

3. Carl and Princess Donut from Dungeon Crawler Carl [buy]

Matt Dinniman’s LitRPG series has gone from cult hit to mainstream, and Carl hit No. 8 on Google’s trending costume list. Even better, his prize-winning cat, Princess Donut, ranked No. 5 among trending pet costumes. If you have a cat with attitude, this is your year.

What you need: boxer shorts over leggings (it’s cold out there), a beat-up jacket and a tiara for your feline co-star.

4. Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games [buy]

With Sunrise on the Reaping bringing Panem back to theaters, Katniss is trending again. She’s also one of the most recognizable heroines in modern fiction, and most of the look is probably already in your closet.

What you need: a side braid, a dark jacket, boots, a quiver, and a mockingjay pin.

5. Feyre’s Starfall Gown from A Court of Thorns and Roses [buy]

ACOTAR remains a BookTok staple, and Feyre’s starlit Starfall gown is a favorite Pinterest look. For something edgier, try her Court of Nightmares outfit instead.

What you need: a midnight-blue or black gown with silver star detailing, a silver circlet and a little shimmer on your shoulders.

6. Romantasy Royalty: Xaden, Bryce, Darcy and Juliette

BookTok creators are churning out costume roundups for romantasy fans, with Xaden Riorson from Fourth Wing [buy], Bryce Quinlan from Crescent City [buy], and Darcy Vega from Zodiac Academy [buy] turning up again and again. One creator crowned Juliette Ferrars from Shatter Me the easiest bookish costume of all [buy].

What you need: black flight leathers and a dagger for Xaden; a white top, gloves, and a fierce stare for Juliette. When in doubt, add wings.

7. Cathy from Wuthering Heights [buy]

Emerald Fennell’s adaptation made the Brontë moors fashionable again earlier this year, and Cathy’s windswept romanticism is all over Pinterest. As She Reads points out, many of the pieces can be worn long after Halloween.

What you need: a flowing white or ivory dress, a dark shawl, wild hair and the look of someone who has just shouted into a storm.

8. Rom-Com Heroines: Poppy and Olive

Two Emily Henry and Ali Hazelwood heroines are trending thanks to their adaptations. Poppy Wright’s blue wig and sparkly New Orleans outfit from People We Meet on Vacation is a party favorite [buy], while Olive’s look from the cover of The Love Hypothesis is perfect for science-minded readers [buy].

What you need: a blue wig and a sequin top for Poppy; a white lab coat, pink tee, and jeans for Olive.

9. Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice [buy]

With a new Netflix series on the way this winter, Regency dresses are back. Elizabeth is a classic that never fails at a bookish party.

What you need: an empire-waist dress, elbow-length gloves, pearl hairpins, and a well-thumbed novel.

10. Gothic Storybook Characters

Cosplay retailers report a shift toward surreal, gothic takes on storybook icons like the Mad Hatter and the White Rabbit, complete with velvet waistcoats, tailcoats and oversized top hats. This fits nicely with Google’s finding that searches for Gothic horror movies are trending this year.

What you need: a thrifted tailcoat, a pocket watch, a teacup, and a copy of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland tucked in your pocket [buy].

Classic Literary Costumes That Never Go Out of Style

Trends come and go, but these literary looks work every single October, and fellow readers will spot them instantly.

Edgar Allan Poe. A black frock coat, a cravat, a mustache, and a raven on your shoulder. Bonus points if you mutter “Nevermore” all night. [buy]
Mary Shelley or Frankenstein’s creature. Go as the author in a dark Regency gown with a copy of her 1818 novel, or as her creation with stitches and a lab coat. Even better, do both with a friend. [buy]
Miss Havisham from Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. You need a yellowed wedding dress, one shoe, and a stopped clock. Thrift stores are full of vintage bridal gowns this time of year. [buy]
Scout Finch’s ham costume. Harper Lee gave us literature’s most famous Halloween costume in To Kill a Mockingbird. A brown cardboard ham shell makes for a funny, instantly recognizable tribute. [buy]
The Weird Sisters from Macbeth. Three cloaks, a cauldron, and plenty of eyeliner make an easy trio for a book club. [buy]
Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman. Washington Irving’s legend is a perfect pair: a lanky schoolmaster and a rider with a jack-o’-lantern under his arm. [“Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” buy]
Lady Macbeth. A regal gown, a crown, and red-stained hands are all part of the costume. She simply cannot wash her hands clean.
Sherlock Holmes. A deerstalker hat, a magnifying glass, and a pipe will never let you down. [buy]

Couples, Groups and Book-Club Costumes

Duo costumes are huge on TikTok this year, and bookish pairs give you a built-in story. Try one of these.

For two:

Hannah and Garrett from The Deal, or Shane and Ilya from Heated Rivalry
Athena and Odysseus from The Odyssey
Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy (yes, practice the hand flex)
Poppy and Alex from People We Meet on Vacation
Anastasia and Nate from Hannah Grace’s Icebreaker, a BookTok favorite: one figure skater, one hockey player
Feyre and Rhysand from A Court of Thorns and Roses
Mary Shelley and her creature

For groups:

The March sisters from Little Women: four dresses and four very different personalities
The Weird Sisters, plus a Macbeth who looks deeply worried
Odysseus and his crew, with one friend dressed as the Cyclops
The suspects from an Agatha Christie mystery, with a Poirot to solve it before the night ends
A banned-books lineup, where each member dresses as a character from a frequently challenged title

For pets: Princess Donut is the obvious choice, but a black cat as Poe’s “The Black Cat” or a dog as the Hound of the Baskervilles works beautifully too.

How to Make Any Book Costume Recognizable

The hardest part of a literary costume is making sure people know who you are. A few tricks help.

Lead with one signature item. Katniss has her braid, Poe has his raven, and Havisham has her ruined wedding dress. Build around the detail readers remember most.
Carry the book. It’s the simplest prop, and it starts conversations. A battered library copy reads better than a pristine one.
Recreate the cover. For newer novels, the cover art is often the most recognizable image. Olive’s look from The Love Hypothesis works for exactly this reason.
Shop your closet and the thrift store first. According to the National Retail Federation, about a third of shoppers plan to look for Halloween items they can reuse or repurpose. Regency gowns, tailcoats, and cloaks can come back for book festivals, Renaissance faires, and themed book-club nights.
Think beyond October. Nearly half of people now wear costumes outside Halloween, so a well-made literary costume is an investment in future cosplay.
Stay warm and comfortable. If you’ll be trick-or-treating with kids, layer leggings and a coat under that fae gown or Carl’s boxers.
Pin it before you post it. Save inspiration to a Pinterest board as you go, then share your finished look on TikTok or Instagram with #bookishcosplay or #booktok so other readers can find you.

The Best Costume Is the One You’ve Read

The beauty of a bookish costume is that it’s never really about the outfit. It’s a way of telling the world what stories live in your head. Whether you go as a Greek god, a hockey hero, or a Victorian bride who never left the house, you’re carrying a book into the street, and that is a very fine way to spend Halloween.

What are you dressing up as this year? Tell us in the comments, and if your costume came from a book, tell us which one.