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The Forbidden Doors Books in Order

Part ofCortney Pearson Books in Order

See The Forbidden Doors series by Cortney Pearson in order, with quick summaries, reading order, eerie background, and help choosing where to start.

Last updated: July 13, 2026

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The Forbidden Doors books in publication order

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2 books

1

Intrinsic

by Cortney Pearson

2017

Working in an old bookstore, a girl becomes obsessed with a locked door, eerie crows, and her unsettling coworker, Nikolay. Magic books and buried secrets pull her into a mystery where curiosity could open the wrong door for good.

2

Phobic

by Cortney Pearson

2021

Piper Crenshaw has spent years living in a house that whispers, heals itself, and remembers too much. When she opens one forbidden door, old murders, ghostly visions, and a buried family scheme force her to face the secrets inside her home.

The Forbidden Doors books in chronological order

  1. Book cover for "Intrinsic"

    Intrinsic

    by Cortney Pearson

    2017The Forbidden Doors, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "Phobic"

    Phobic

    by Cortney Pearson

    2021The Forbidden Doors, Book 2

Series background & context

The Forbidden Doors books are paranormal romances tied together by uncanny places and the trouble that starts the minute somebody opens the wrong door. These are not giant world-building fantasies. They are tighter, moodier stories where buildings hold memories, the past leaks into the present, and curiosity is never a harmless thing.

In Phobic, that eerie setup centers on Piper Crenshaw. She lives in a house that has never needed repairs, reacts to what people say, and carries the stain of her mother's crime. Piper already knows the place is wrong. Then she opens a forbidden door and finds a staircase that seems to lead nowhere. From there, the house starts showing her pieces of an older story from the 1800s, including a doomed romance between two servants and secrets that may explain what her family has been pulled into.

These are stories about spaces that watch back.

Intrinsic keeps the same feeling but shifts the scenery. Instead of a haunted home, the second book uses an old bookstore filled with strange charm, magic books, and a door with no knob. The girl at the center of that story is also dealing with things she cannot quite explain, including crows that seem to follow her and a coworker, Nikolay, who feels as mysterious as the building itself. It works as a companion rather than a straight continuation, so the pleasure comes from seeing Pearson return to the same kind of eerie tension in a fresh place.

The buildings are the real stars here. Pearson uses them almost like characters. Rooms hide history. Doors divide one reality from another. Everyday teenage problems sit right next to ghostly visions, buried crimes, and old love stories that refuse to stay finished. That blend gives the series a nice push and pull. It is creepy, but it also stays interested in emotion, trust, and the people caught inside the haunting.

The mood is more shivery than gory.

If you are trying to figure out what to expect from The Forbidden Doors, think haunted architecture, mystery first, romance threaded through the suspense, and protagonists who have to decide whether the truth is worth the cost of finding it. These books are a good fit for readers who like paranormal stories with atmosphere, secrets, and just enough danger to make every locked room feel like a dare.

Edited by

Richard Reis

Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.

Anurag Ramdasan

Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.

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