Netflix's new number one series will have you hiding behind the sofa

As the autumn slowly but surely makes it way upon us, a spooky offering has shot to the top of the Netflix charts in the UK.

Namely, Devil In Ohio, an eight-part thriller series which follows the life of a cult escapee in rural America, and it's sure to have you hiding behind your sofa.

The show's synopsis reads: "When hospital psychiatrist Dr. Suzanne Mathis [Emily Deschanel] shelters a mysterious cult escapee [Madeleine Arthur], her world is turned upside down as the strange girl's arrival threatens to tear her own family apart.

"Adapted from Daria Polatin's best-selling book inspired by true events, Devil In Ohio is a thrilling, shocking tale of demonic mayhem and mystery in the heart of small-town America."

The series dropped on 2 September, and since then, viewers have been taking to social media to share how freaked out they are.

Reacting to the series, one Twitter user wrote: "Devil in Ohio is scary asf this girl has me ANXIOUS [sic]."

"If you want to watch a scary show watch, the Devil in Ohio. I had to stop watching it. Only watch it in the day time not night [sic]," added a second. .

A third joked: "So this girl prays to the devil at dinner and not a single person takes that as a red flag."

"I'm sorry but a random girl with a pentagram carved on her back, praying to the devil at dinner would absolutely get dropped off at the nearest church away from me and my family [sic]," remarked a fourth viewer.

A fifth praised: "I am a sucker for a good cult show but [Devil in Ohio] is exactly what you want from it: confusing, a little scary, and full of pentagrams and upside-down crucifixes."

As with a lot of spooky watches that have people trembling, Devil in Ohio is inspired by true events.

It was first told in a book by showrunner Daria Polatin, who told the Columbus Dispatch: "When my producer Rachel Miller heard this true story, which took place in Ohio, she told it to me.

"I knew I had to tell it. I decided to start with a book."

While Polatin admitted that her retelling did utilise a degree of creative licence, she stressed: "The bones of the story are true and happened, and I wanted to take that as a jumping-off point.

"It's inspired by true events, but it's not a documentary. That's just a different kind of storytelling."

The author-turned-showrunner added: "For this, I felt that the best outlet would be to free it up creatively and fictionalise the details and let it take on a life of its own."