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Avid readers seeking hair-raising experiences often find themselves drawn to the best horror books, filled with spine-chilling tales and terrifying worlds. With numerous authors mastering the art of fear, delving into the best horror books of all time offers spine-chilling adventures that captivate the imagination and leave an indelible mark on readers' minds. From supernatural hauntings to psychological nightmares, these literary masterpieces capture the essence of horror in its most primal form.
The best horror books of all time are intricately woven narratives, combining haunting tales with excellent writing that evokes feelings of terror in readers. By delving into these frightening tales, readers are immersed in the best horror books of all time, each offering unique experiences that push the boundaries of the genre. Hauntingly memorable and undeniably chilling, these novels provide a thrilling exploration into the darkest corners of human nature and the unknown.
For instance, The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty stands as an excellent horror novel, presenting a harrowing tale of demonic possession that has left generations of readers shaken to their core. Stephen King's It weaves the terrifying story of a malevolent entity preying on the small town of Derry, Maine, showcasing the author's ability to create enduring nightmares from seemingly ordinary settings. Another prime example is King's Salem's Lot, an engrossing tale of vampires and the unraveling of a once-thriving community, cementing its reputation as one of the scariest books of all time. These chilling stories represent just a fraction of the horrors awaiting readers who dare to explore this spine-tingling collection.
The scariest horror books offer a rich tapestry of haunting stories, diverse styles, and enduring themes. Each tale contributes to the ever-evolving landscape of horror literature, pushing the boundaries and challenging perceptions of fear in uniquely gripping ways. By examining these acclaimed works, one gains a deeper understanding and appreciation for the novels that have solidified their place as the best horror books of all time.
Most divisive: The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon: A Novel
Over 7.9K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The 100+ Best Horror Novels Of All Time, Ranked
- 1The Exorcist is a 1971 novel by American writer William Peter Blatty. The book details the demonic possession of twelve-year-old Regan MacNeil, the daughter of a famous actress, and the Jesuit psychiatrist priest who attempts to exorcise the demon. Published by Harper & Row, the novel was the basis of a highly successful film adaption released two years later, whose screenplay was also written by Blatty. The novel was inspired by a 1949 case of demonic possession and exorcism that Blatty heard about while he was a student in the class of 1950 at Georgetown University. As a result, the novel takes place in Washington D.C. near the campus of Georgetown University. In September 2011, the novel was reprinted by Harper Collins to celebrate its fortieth anniversary, with slight revisions made by Blatty as well as interior title artwork by Jeremy Caniglia.
- First Published: 1971
- Subjects: Demonic possession, Exorcism
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction, Science Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 2It is a 1986 horror novel by American author Stephen King. The story follows the exploits of seven children as they are terrorized by the eponymous being, which exploits the fears and phobias of its victims in order to disguise itself while hunting its prey. "It" primarily appears in the form of a clown in order to attract its preferred prey of young children. The novel is told through narratives alternating between two time periods, and is largely told in the third-person omniscient mode. It deals with themes that eventually became King staples: the power of memory, childhood trauma, and the ugliness lurking behind a façade of traditional small-town values. The novel won the British Fantasy Award in 1987, and received nominations for the Locus and World Fantasy Awards that same year. Publishers Weekly listed It as the best-selling book in the United States in 1986.
- First Published: 1986-09-15
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 3'Salem's Lot is a 1975 horror fiction novel written by the American author Stephen King. It was his second published novel. The story involves a writer named Ben Mears who returns to the town where he lived as a boy between the ages of 9 through 13 in Maine to discover that the residents are all becoming vampires. The town would be a location that would be revisited in the short stories "Jerusalem's Lot" and "One for the Road", both from King's 1978 short story collection Night Shift. The novel was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1976. In 1987, it was nominated for the Locus Award as the All-Time Best Fantasy Novel. The title King originally chose for his book was Second Coming, but he later decided on Jerusalem's Lot. King stated the reason being that his wife, novelist Tabitha King, thought the original title sounded too much like a "bad sex story". King's publishers then shortened it to the current title, thinking the author's choice sounded too religious. 'Salem's Lot has been adapted into a television mini-series twice, first in 1979 and then in 2004. It was also adapted by the BBC as a seven part radio play in 1995.
- First Published: 1975-09-05
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Gothic fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 4Pet Sematary is a 1983 horror novel by Stephen King, nominated for a World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1984, and adapted into a 1989 film of the same name. In November 2013, PS Publishing released Pet Sematary in a limited 30th Anniversary Edition.
- First Published: 1983-11-14
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 5The Silence of the Lambs is a novel by Thomas Harris. First published in 1988, it is the sequel to Harris' 1981 novel Red Dragon. Both novels feature the cannibalistic serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter, this time pitted against FBI Special Agent Clarice Starling. The film adaptation of same name by Jonathan Demme was released in 1991.
- First Published: 1988
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Mystery, Thriller
- Original Language: English Language
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- 6The Shining is a horror novel by American author Stephen King. Published in 1977, it is King's third published novel and first hardback bestseller, and the success of the book firmly established King as a preeminent author in the horror genre. The setting and characters are influenced by King's personal experiences, including both his visit to The Stanley Hotel in 1974 and his recovery from alcoholism. The novel was followed by a sequel, Doctor Sleep, published in 2013. The Shining centers on the life of Jack Torrance, an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic who accepts a position as the off-season caretaker of the historic Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rockies. His family accompanies him on this job, including his young son Danny, who possesses "the shining," an array of psychic abilities that allow Danny to see the hotel's horrific past. Soon, after a winter storm leaves them snowbound, the supernatural forces inhabiting the hotel influence Jack's sanity, leaving his wife and son in incredible danger.
- First Published: 1977-01
- Subjects: Adventure, Family
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction, Gothic fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 7The Haunting of Hill House is a 1959 novel by author Shirley Jackson. Finalist for the National Book Award and considered one of the best literary ghost stories published during the twentieth century, it has been made into two feature films and a play. Jackson's novel relies on terror rather than horror to elicit emotion by the reader, utilizing complex relationships between the mysterious events in the house and the characters’ psyches.
- First Published: 1959
- Subjects: Literary, Ghost, Horror Film, Haunted house, Gothic fiction
- Genres (Book): Horror Film, Fiction, Gothic fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 8Misery is a psychological horror novel by Stephen King. The novel was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1988, and was later made into a Hollywood film and an off-Broadway play of the same name. When King was writing Misery in 1985 he planned the book to be released under the pseudonym Richard Bachman but the identity of the pseudonym was discovered before the release of the book. The novel focuses on Paul Sheldon, a writer famous for Victorian-era romance novels involving the character of Misery Chastain. One day he is rescued from a car crash by crazed fan Annie Wilkes, who transports him to her home and, once finding out what he has done to Misery in his latest book, forces him to write a new book modifying the story - no matter what it takes.
- First Published: 1987-06-08
- Subjects: Suspense
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Psychological thriller, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 9
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- 10Carrie is an American epistolary novel and author Stephen King's first published novel, released on April 5, 1974, with an approximate first print-run of 30,000 copies. Set in the then-future year of 1979, it revolves around the eponymous Carrietta N. "Carrie" White, a misfit and bullied high school girl who uses her newly discovered telekinetic powers to exact revenge on those who torment her, while in the process causing one of the worst local disasters in American history. King has commented that he finds the work to be "raw" and "with a surprising power to hurt and horrify." It is one of the most frequently banned books in United States schools. Much of the book is written in an epistolary structure, using newspaper clippings, magazine articles, letters, and excerpts from books to tell how Carrie destroyed the fictional town of Chamberlain, Maine while exacting revenge on her sadistic classmates. Several adaptations of Carrie have been released, including a 1976 feature film, a 1988 Broadway musical, a 1999 feature film sequel, a 2002 television movie, and a 2013 feature film remake.
- First Published: 1974-04-05
- Subjects: Classics
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Mystery, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 11The Stand is a post-apocalyptic horror/fantasy novel by American author Stephen King. It expands upon the scenario of his earlier short story, "Night Surf". The novel was originally published in 1978 and was later re-released in 1990 as The Stand: The Complete & Uncut Edition; King restored some text originally cut for brevity, added and revised sections, changed the setting of the story from 1980 to 1990, and updated a few pop culture references accordingly. The Stand was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1979, and was adapted into both a television miniseries for ABC and a graphic novel published by Marvel Comics. It marks the first appearance of Randall Flagg, King's recurring antagonist, whom King would bring back many times in his later writings. King dedicated the book to his wife, Tabitha: "For Tabby: This dark chest of wonders."
- First Published: 1978
- Subjects: Research
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 12
The complete works of Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan PoePurchase
- 13Rosemary's Baby is a 1967 best-selling horror novel by Ira Levin, his second published book. It sold over 4 million copies "making it the top bestselling horror novel of the 1960s."
- First Published: 1967-03-12
- Subjects: Deal with the Devil
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 14Night Shift is the first collection of short stories by Stephen King, first published in 1978. In 1980, Night Shift received the Balrog Award for Best Collection, and in 1979 it was nominated as best collection for the Locus Award and the World Fantasy Award. Many of King's most famous short stories were included in this collection.
- First Published: 1978-02
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 15Dracula is an 1897 Gothic horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to move from Transylvania to England so he may find new blood and spread the undead curse, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor Abraham Van Helsing. Dracula has been assigned to many literary genres including vampire literature, horror fiction, the gothic novel and invasion literature. The novel touches on themes such as the role of women in Victorian culture, sexual conventions, immigration, colonialism, and post-colonialism. Although Stoker did not invent the vampire, he defined its modern form, and the novel has spawned numerous theatrical, film and television interpretations.
- First Published: 1897-05-27
- Subjects: Literary, Ghost, 19th century, Vampire, British Cuisine
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Mystery, Fiction, Epistolary novel
- Original Language: English Language
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- 16The Call of Cthulhu and Other Weird Stories is Penguin Classics' first omnibus edition of works by seminal 20th-century American author H. P. Lovecraft. It was released in October 1999 and is still in print. The volume is named for the Lovecraft short story, "The Call of Cthulhu". This edition, the first new paperback publication of Lovecraft's works since the Del-Rey editions, contains a new introduction and explanatory notes on individual stories by noted Lovecraft scholar S. T. Joshi. The texts of the stories are, for the most part, the same corrected versions found in the earlier Arkham House editions of Lovecraft's works, also edited by Joshi, with a few further errors corrected for the present editions. Its companion volumes from Penguin Classics are The Thing on the Doorstep and Other Weird Stories, and The Dreams in the Witch House and Other Weird Stories.
- First Published: 1999-10-01
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Short story, Science Fiction, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 17Psycho is a suspense novel by Robert Bloch, inspired by a bizarre murder case in Wisconsin, though not directly based on it. The story was adapted into Alfred Hitchcock's seminal 1960 film of the same name. Bloch later wrote two sequels, which are unrelated to any of the film-sequels.
- First Published: 1959
- Subjects: Popular literature, Horror Film
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Thriller, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 18
The tell-tale heart and other writings
Edgar Allan PoePurchase
- 19Something Wicked This Way Comes is a 1962 fantasy novel by Ray Bradbury. It is about 13-year-old best friends, Jim Nightshade and William Halloway, and their nightmarish experience with a traveling carnival that comes to their Midwestern town on one October. The carnival's leader is the mysterious "Mr. Dark" who seemingly wields the power to grant the citizenry's secret desires. In reality, Dark is a malevolent being who lures these individuals into binding themselves in servitude to him. He is revealed to possess a tattoo bearing the likeness of each person he has thus tricked. Mr. Dark's presence is countered by that of Will's father, Charles Halloway, who harbors his own secret desire to regain his youth because he feels as though he is too old for Will. The novel combines elements of fantasy and horror, analyzing the conflicting natures of good and evil which exist within all individuals. Unlike many of Bradbury's other novel-length works, such as Dandelion Wine and The Martian Chronicles, which are fix-ups, Something Wicked This Way Comes is a single full-length narrative.
- First Published: 1962
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Soft science fiction, Horror Film, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 20"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story by American author Washington Irving, contained in his collection of 34 essays and short stories entitled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. Written while Irving was living abroad in Birmingham, England, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" was first published in 1820. Along with Irving's companion piece "Rip Van Winkle", "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is among the earliest examples of American fiction with enduring popularity, especially during the Halloween season.
- First Published: 1820
- Subjects: Old Dutch Burying Ground
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 21Hell House is a novel by American novelist Richard Matheson, published in 1971.
- First Published: 1971
- Subjects: Classics
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 22The Amityville Horror: A True Story is a book by Jay Anson, published in September 1977. It is also the basis of a series of films released between 1979 and 2013. The book is claimed to be based on the paranormal experiences of the Lutz family, but has led to controversy and lawsuits over its truthfulness.
- First Published: 1977-09-13
- Subjects: Philosophy, Hauntings, New Age, Ghost, Amityville
- Genres (Book): Suspense, Horror Film, Mystery, Fiction, Inspirational
- Original Language: English Language
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- 23The Dunwich Horror and Others is a collection of fantasy, horror and Science fiction short stories by American author H. P. Lovecraft. It was originally published in 1963 by Arkham House in an edition of 3,133 copies. The true first edition is not bound with head- and tailbands, and the true first-state dustjacket carries a p[rice of $5.00.. The collection was revised in 1985 by S.T. Joshi, replacing the introduction by August Derleth for one by Joshi and another by Robert Bloch. This edition, designated a corrected Sixth Printing', was published in an edition of 4,124 copies.
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction, Short story, Science Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 24Skeleton Crew is the second collection of short fiction by Stephen King, published by Putnam in June 1985. A limited edition of a thousand copies was published by Scream/Press in October 1985, illustrated by J. K. Potter, containing an additional short story, "The Revelations of 'Becka Paulson," which had originally appeared in Rolling Stone magazine, and was later incorporated into King's 1987 novel The Tommyknockers. The original title of this book was Night Moves.
- First Published: 1985-06-21
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction, Short story
- Original Language: English Language
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- 25Red Dragon is a novel by Thomas Harris, first published in 1981. It introduced the character Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer. The novel was adapted as a film, Manhunter, in 1986 which featured Brian Cox as Lecter. Directed by Michael Mann, the film was critically well received but fared poorly at the box office. It has since developed a cult following. After Harris wrote a sequel to the novel, The Silence of the Lambs, in 1988, Red Dragon found a new readership. A second sequel, Hannibal, was published in 1999 and adapted into a film in 2001. Both film sequels featured Anthony Hopkins in the role of Hannibal Lecter, for which he won an Oscar for Best Actor in 1991. Due to the success of the second and third films, Red Dragon was remade as a film directed by Brett Ratner in 2002, this time bearing the title of the original novel and with Hopkins playing Lecter. The title refers to the figure from The Great Red Dragon Paintings by William Blake. Though Harris refers to one of these, The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun, he actually describes another, The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed in Sun.
- First Published: 1981-10
- Subjects: Adventure, United States of America
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Crime Fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Mystery
- Original Language: English Language
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- 26Needful Things is a 1991 horror novel by American author Stephen King. It is the first novel King wrote after his rehabilitation from drugs and alcohol. According to the cover, it is "The Last Castle Rock Story". However, the town later serves as the setting for the short story "It Grows on You", published in King's 1993 collection Nightmares & Dreamscapes which, according to King, serves as an epilogue to Needful Things. It was made into a film of the same name in 1993 which was directed by Fraser C. Heston.
- First Published: 1991-10
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 27The Mist is a horror novella by the American author Stephen King, in which the small town of Bridgton, Maine is suddenly enveloped in an unnatural mist that conceals otherworldly monsters. It was first published as the first and longest story of the horror anthology Dark Forces 1980. A slightly edited version was included in King's collection Skeleton Crew. The story is the longest entry in Skeleton Crew and occupies the first 134 pages. To coincide with the theatrical release of the film based on the novella, The Mist was republished as a stand-alone paperback book by Signet on October 2, 2007.
- Genres (Book): Novella
- Original Language: English Language
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- 28Helter Skelter is a true crime book by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry. Bugliosi had served as the prosecutor in the 1970 trial of Charles Manson. The book presents his firsthand account of the cases of Manson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel, and other members of the self-described Manson Family.
- First Published: 1974
- Subjects: Serial killer, Espionage, California, Charles Manson, Murder
- Genres (Book): Crime Fiction, Mathematics, Science, True crime
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- 29Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, is a novel written by English author Mary Shelley about the young student of science Victor Frankenstein, who creates a grotesque but sentient creature in an unorthodox scientific experiment. Shelley started writing the story when she was eighteen, and the novel was published when she was twenty. The first edition was published anonymously in London in 1818. Shelley's name appears on the second edition, published in France in 1823. Shelley had travelled through Europe in 1814, journeying along the river Rhine in Germany with a stop in Gernsheim which is just 17 km away from Frankenstein Castle, where two centuries before an alchemist was engaged in experiments. Later, she travelled in the region of Geneva —where much of the story takes place—and the topics of galvanism and other similar occult ideas were themes of conversation among her companions, particularly her lover and future husband, Percy Shelley. Mary, Percy, Lord Byron, and John Polidori decided to have a competition to see who could write the best horror story.
- First Published: 1818-01-01
- Subjects: Science, Love
- Genres (Book): Romance novel, Speculative fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Romanticism
- Original Language: English Language
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- 30Jaws is a 1974 novel by Peter Benchley. It tells the story of a great white shark that preys upon a small resort town and the voyage of three men trying to kill it. The novel grows out of Benchley's interest in shark attacks after he learned about the exploits of shark fisherman Frank Mundus in 1964. Doubleday commissioned him to write the novel in 1971, a period where Benchley struggled as a freelance journalist. Through a marketing campaign orchestrated by Doubleday and paperback publisher Bantam, Jaws was incorporated into many book sales clubs catalogues and attracted media interest. After first publication in February 1974, the novel was a great success, with the hardback staying on the bestseller list for some 44 weeks and the subsequent paperback selling millions of copies in the following year. Reviews were mixed, with many literary critics finding the prose and characterization lacking despite the novel's effective suspense. Film producers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown read the novel before its publication and bought the film rights, selecting Steven Spielberg to direct the film adaptation.
- Subjects: Great white shark
- Genres (Book): Novel
- Original Language: English Language
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- 31At the Mountains of Madness is a novella by horror writer H. P. Lovecraft, written in February/March 1931 and rejected that year by Weird Tales editor Farnsworth Wright on the grounds of its length. It was originally serialized in the February, March and April 1936 issues of Astounding Stories. It has been reproduced in numerous collections. The story details the events of a disastrous expedition to the Antarctic continent in September of 1930 and what was found there by the explorers, which the narrator describes in the hope of deterring another planned expedition to return to the continent. The story has inadvertently popularized the concept of ancient astronauts, as well as Antarctica’s place in the “ancient astronaut mythology”.
- First Published: 1936
- Subjects: Supernatural, Antarctica
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Lost World, Horror Film, Mystery, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 32Books of Blood are a series of horror fiction collections written by the British author Clive Barker. There are six books in total, each simply subtitled Volume 1 through to Volume 6, and were subsequently re-published in two omnibus editions containing three volumes each. Each volume contains four or five stories. The volume 1–3 omnibus was published with a foreword by Barker's fellow Liverpudlian horror writer Ramsey Campbell. They were published between 1984 and 1985. With the publication of the first volume, Barker became an overnight sensation and was hailed by Stephen King as "the future of horror". The book won both the British and World Fantasy Awards. Although undoubtedly horror stories, like most of Barker's work they mix fantasy themes in as well. The unrelentingly bleak tales invariably take place in a contemporary setting, usually featuring everyday people who become embroiled in terrifying or mysterious events. Barker has stated in Faces of Fear that an inspiration for the Books of Blood was when he read Dark Forces in the early 1980s and realised that a horror story collection need not have any narrow themes, consistent tone or restrictions.
- Genres (Book): Horror, Speculative fiction, Short story
- Original Language: English Language
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- 33The War of the Worlds is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells. It first appeared in serialized form in 1897, published simultaneously in Pearson's Magazine in the UK and Cosmopolitan magazine in the US. The first appearance in book form was published by William Heinemann of London in 1898. It is the first-person narrative of an unnamed protagonist in Surrey and that of his younger brother in London as Earth is invaded by Martians. Written between 1895 and 1897, it is one of the earliest stories that detail a conflict between mankind and an extraterrestrial race. The novel is one of the most commented-on works in the science fiction canon. The War of the Worlds has two parts, Book One: The Coming of the Martians and Book Two: The Earth under the Martians. The unnamed narrator, a philosophically inclined author, struggles to return to his wife while seeing the Martians lay waste to the southern country outside London. Book One also imparts the experience of his brother, also unnamed, who describes events as they deteriorate in the capital, forcing him to escape the Martian onslaught by boarding a paddle steamer near Tillingham, on the Essex coast.
- First Published: 1898
- Subjects: Literary, Education, Motorcycles, Performing arts, Adult
- Genres (Book): Children's literature, Fiction, Scientific romance, Science Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 34I Am Legend is a 1954 horror fiction novel by American writer Richard Matheson. It was influential in the development of the zombie genre and in popularizing the concept of a worldwide apocalypse due to disease. The novel was a success and was adapted to film as The Last Man on Earth in 1964, as The Omega Man in 1971, and as I Am Legend in 2007, along with a direct-to-video 2007 production capitalizing on that film, I Am Omega. The novel was also the inspiration behind the 1968 film Night of the Living Dead.
- First Published: 1954
- Subjects: Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, Horror tales, American, Horror Film, Vampire
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, Dystopia, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 35Christine is a horror novel by Stephen King, published in 1983. It tells the story of a vintage automobile apparently possessed by supernatural forces. Later that same year, a film adaptation, directed by John Carpenter and starring Keith Gordon, John Stockwell, Alexandra Paul, and Harry Dean Stanton, was released. In April 2013, PS Publishing released Christine in a limited 30th Anniversary Edition.
- First Published: 1983-04-29
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 36Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is the original title of a novella written by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson that was first published in 1886. The work is commonly known today as The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, or simply Jekyll & Hyde. It is about a London lawyer named Gabriel John Utterson who investigates strange occurrences between his old friend, Dr. Henry Jekyll, and the evil Edward Hyde. The work is commonly associated with the rare mental condition often called "split personality", referred to in psychiatry as dissociative identity disorder, where within the same body there exists more than one distinct personality. In this case, there are two personalities within Dr. Jekyll, one apparently good and the other evil. The novella's impact is such that it has become a part of the language, with the very phrase "Jekyll and Hyde" coming to mean a person who is vastly different in moral character from one situation to the next.
- First Published: 1886-01-05
- Subjects: Medical, Literary, Supernatural, Education, Literature
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Drama, Children's literature, Horror Film, Thriller
- Original Language: English Language
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- 37Nightmares & Dreamscapes is a short story collection by Stephen King published in 1993.
- First Published: 1993-09-29
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Science Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 38Ghost Story is a horror novel written by Peter Straub. It was published on January 1, 1979 by Coward, McCann and Geoghegan. The book was adapted into a film by the same name in 1981. The novel was a watershed in Straub's career. Though his earlier books had achieved a limited amount of critical and commercial success, Ghost Story became a national bestseller and cemented the author's reputation.
- Subjects: Erotica
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
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- 39Lord of the Flies is a 1954 dystopian novel by Nobel Prize-winning English author William Golding about a group of British boys stuck on an uninhabited island who try to govern themselves with disastrous results. Its stances on the already controversial subjects of human nature and individual welfare versus the common good earned it position 68 on the American Library Association’s list of the 100 most frequently challenged books of 1990–1999. The novel is a reaction to the youth novel The Coral Island by R. M. Ballantyne. Published in 1954, Lord of the Flies was Golding’s first novel. Although it was not a great success at the time—selling fewer than 3,000 copies in the United States during 1955 before going out of print—it soon went on to become a best-seller. It has been adapted to film twice in English, in 1963 by Peter Brook and 1990 by Harry Hook, and once in Filipino. In 2005 the novel was chosen by TIME magazine as one of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005. It was awarded a place on both lists of Modern Library 100 Best Novels, reaching number 41 on the editor's list, and 25 on the reader's list.
- First Published: 1954
- Subjects: Monarch, Ethics, Literature, Young adult, Classics
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Allegory, Fiction, Young adult literature, Novel
- Original Language: English Language
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- 40Watchers is a 1987 suspense novel by American author, Dean Koontz. Along with Strangers, Lightning, and Midnight, Watchers is credited with cementing Koontz's status as a best-selling author.
- First Published: 1987-02
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 41
The Fog
James HerbertThe Fog is a horror novel by English writer James Herbert, published in 1975. It is about a deadly fog that drives its victims insane when they come into contact with it. Herbert's second book, it is completely unrelated to the 1980 film of the same name by John Carpenter.- First Published: 1975
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Novel
- Original Language: English Language
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- 42
The Hellbound Heart
Clive BarkerThe Hellbound Heart is a horror novella by Clive Barker, first published in November 1986 by Dark Harvest in the third volume of their Night Visions anthology series, and notable for becoming the basis for the 1987 movie Hellraiser and its franchise. It was re-released as a stand-alone title by HarperCollins in 1988, after the success of the movie, along with an audiobook recorded by Clive Barker and published by Simon & Schuster Audioworks. It retains the gory, visceral style that Barker introduced in his series of collected short stories The Books of Blood. The story focuses on a mystical puzzle box and the horror it wreaks on a family that is unfortunate enough to come across it.- First Published: 1986-11
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 43
Shutter Island
Dennis LehaneShutter Island is a best-selling novel by Dennis Lehane, published by Harper Collins in April 2003. A film adaptation was released in February 2010. Lehane has said he sought to write a novel that would be a homage to Gothic settings, B movies, and pulp. He described the novel as a hybrid of the works of the Brontë sisters and the 1956 film Invasion of the Body Snatchers. His intent was to write the main characters in a position where they would lack 20th century resources such as radio communications. He also structured the book to be more taut than his previous book, Mystic River. Lehane was inspired by the hospital and grounds on Long Island in Boston Harbor for the model of the hospital and island. Lehane had visited it in the Blizzard of 1978 as a child with his uncle and family.- First Published: 2003-04-15
- Subjects: Horror, Island, FBI, Psychopath, Asylum
- Genres (Book): Novel
- Original Language: English Language
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- The Lottery and Other Stories is a 1949 short story collection by American author Shirley Jackson. Published by Farrar, Straus, it includes "The Lottery" and 24 other stories. This was the only collection of her stories to appear during her lifetime. Her later posthumous collections were Come Along with Me, edited by Stanley Edgar Hyman, and Just an Ordinary Day, edited by her children Laurence Jackson Hyman and Sarah Hyman Stewart. Jackson's original title for this collection was The Lottery or, The Adventures of James Harris. Characters named James Harris appear in the stories "The Daemon Lover," "Like Mother Used to Make," "Elizabeth" and "Of Course." Other characters with the surname Harris appear or are referenced in "The Villager," "The Renegade," "Flower Garden," "A Fine Old Firm" and "Seven Types of Ambiguity." The collection also contains a short excerpt from the traditional ballad "The Daemon Lover," in which the title character's name is James Harris.
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- 45The Picture of Dorian Gray is an 1891 philosophical novel by writer and playwright Oscar Wilde. First published as a complete story in the July 1890 issue of Lippincott's Monthly Magazine, the editors feared the story was indecent, and without Wilde's knowledge, deleted five hundred words before publication. Despite that censorship, The Picture of Dorian Gray offended the moral sensibilities of British book reviewers, some of whom said that Oscar Wilde merited prosecution for violating the laws guarding the public morality. In response, Wilde aggressively defended his novel and art in correspondence with the British press. Wilde revised and expanded the magazine edition of The Picture of Dorian Gray for publication as a novel; the book edition featured an aphoristic preface — an apologia about the art of the novel and the reader. The content, style, and presentation of the preface made it famous in its own literary right, as social and cultural criticism. In April 1891, the editorial house Ward, Lock and Company published the revised version of The Picture of Dorian Gray.
- First Published: 1890
- Subjects: Music, Popular literature, Supernatural, Literature, Classics
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Fiction, Gothic fiction, Philosophical fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 46Swan Song is a 1987 horror novel by American novelist Robert R. McCammon. It is a work of post-apocalyptic fiction describing the aftermath of a nuclear war that provokes an evolution in humankind.
- First Published: 1987
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, Dystopia, Horror Film, Novel
- Original Language: English Language
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- 47
The Bachman Books
Stephen KingThe Bachman Books is a collection of short novels by Stephen King published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman between 1977 and 1982. It was a The New York Times Best Seller List when it was released in 1985.- First Published: 1985-10-04
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 48Interview with the Vampire is a debut gothic horror and vampire novel by American author Anne Rice, published in 1976. Based on a short story Rice wrote around 1968, the novel centers on vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac, who tells the story of his life to a reporter. Rice composed the novel shortly after the death of her young daughter Michelle, who served as an inspiration for the child-vampire character Claudia. Though initially the subject of mixed critical reception, the book was followed by a large number of widely popular sequels, collectively known as The Vampire Chronicles. A film adaptation was released in 1994, starring Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise, and the novel has been adapted as a comic three times.
- First Published: 1976-04-12
- Subjects: Ghost, Vampire
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction, Gothic fiction, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 49
A Stir of Echoes
Richard MathesonA Stir of Echoes is a 1958 novel by Richard Matheson that served as the inspiration for the 1999 film, Stir of Echoes.- First Published: 1958
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 50
Phantoms
Dean KoontzPhantoms is a novel written by best-selling author Dean Koontz, first published in 1983. The story is a version of the now-debunked urban legend involving a village mysteriously vanishing at Angikuni Lake.- First Published: 1983-03
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Children's literature, Horror Film, Mystery
- Original Language: English Language
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- 51The Island of Doctor Moreau is an 1896 science fiction novel by H. G. Wells, who called it "an exercise in youthful blasphemy". The text of the novel is the narration of Edward Prendick, a shipwrecked man rescued by a passing boat who is left on the island home of Doctor Moreau, who creates human-like beings from animals via vivisection. The novel deals with a number of philosophical themes, including pain and cruelty, moral responsibility, human identity, and human interference with nature. At the time of the novel's publication in 1896, there was growing discussion in Europe regarding degeneration and animal vivisection. Two years later, several interest groups were formed to address the issue, such as the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection.
- First Published: 1896
- Subjects: Vivisection
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Fiction, Scientific romance, Science Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 52A Clockwork Orange is a dystopian novella by Anthony Burgess published in 1962. Set in a near future English society that has a subculture of extreme youth violence, the novella has a teenage protagonist, Alex, who narrates his violent exploits and his experiences with state authorities intent on reforming him. When the state undertakes to reform Alex—to "redeem" him—the novella asks, "At what cost?". The book is partially written in a Russian-influenced argot called "Nadsat". According to Burgess it was a jeu d'esprit written in just three weeks. In 2005, A Clockwork Orange was included on Time magazine's list of the 100 best English-language novels written since 1923, and it was named by Modern Library and its readers as one of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. The original manuscript of the book has been located at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada since the institution purchased the documents in 1971.
- First Published: 1962
- Subjects: Brainwashing, Classics
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Utopian and dystopian fiction, Satire, Dystopia, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 53The Turn of the Screw, originally published in 1898, is a gothic ghost story novella written by Henry James. Due to its original content, the novella became a favourite text of academics who subscribe to New Criticism. The novella has had differing interpretations, often mutually exclusive. Many critics have tried to determine the exact nature of the evil hinted at by the story. However, others have argued that the true brilliance of the novella comes with its ability to create an intimate confusion and suspense for the reader.
- First Published: 1898
- Subjects: Ghost, England
- Genres (Book): Horror Film, Fiction, Novella
- Original Language: English Language
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- 54The Dark Half is a horror novel by Stephen King, published in 1989. Publishers Weekly listed The Dark Half as the second best-selling book of 1989 behind Tom Clancy's Clear and Present Danger. It was adapted into a feature film of the same name in 1993. Stephen King wrote several books under a pseudonym, Richard Bachman, during the Seventies and Eighties. Most of the Bachman novels were darker and more cynical in nature, featuring a far more visceral sense of horror than the psychological, gothic style common to many of King's most famous works. When King was discovered to be Bachman, he wrote The Dark Half in response to his outing.
- First Published: 1989-11-01
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 55Everything's Eventual is a collection of 14 short stories written by Stephen King and published in 2002.
- First Published: 2002
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Short story, Science Fiction, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 56Jurassic Park is a science fiction novel written by Michael Crichton, divided into seven sections. Often considered a cautionary tale on unconsidered biological tinkering in the same spirit as Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, it uses the metaphor of the collapse of an amusement park showcasing genetically recreated dinosaurs to illustrate the mathematical concept of chaos theory and its philosophical implications. A sequel titled The Lost World, also written by Crichton, was published in 1995. In 1997, both novels were re-published as a single book titled Michael Crichton's Jurassic World, unrelated to the film of the same name. In 1993, Steven Spielberg adapted the book into the blockbuster film Jurassic Park. The book's sequel, The Lost World, was also adapted by Spielberg into a film in 1997. A third film directed by Joe Johnston and released in 2001 drew several elements, themes and scenes from both books that were ultimately not utilized in either of the previous films, such as the aviary and boat scenes. A fourth entry directed by Colin Trevorrow is set for theatrical release on June 12, 2015.
- First Published: 1990-11
- Subjects: Espionage, Dinosaur, Cloning, Adventure, Dinosaurs
- Genres (Book): Romance novel, Speculative fiction, Techno-thriller, Children's literature, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 57
Whispers
Dean KoontzWhispers is a novel by American suspense author Dean Koontz, originally published in 1980. It was the first of Koontz's novels to appear on the New York Times Bestsellers List, and is widely credited with launching his career as a best-selling author. The novel was also adapted for a 1990 film by the same name.- First Published: 1980-04
- Subjects: Women
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Thriller, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 58The Tommyknockers is a 1987 science fiction novel by Stephen King. While maintaining a horror style, the novel is more of an excursion into the realm of science fiction for King, as the residents of the Maine town of Haven gradually fall under the influence of a mysterious object buried in the woods. King would later look back on the novel unfavorably, describing it as "an awful book."
- First Published: 1987-11-10
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction, Science Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 59
The Ruins
Scott SmithThe Ruins is the second novel by American author Scott Smith, whose first novel was A Simple Plan. The Ruins is a horror story set on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. It was released on July 18, 2006. A film adaptation of the novel was released in the United States and Canada on April 4, 2008.- First Published: 2006-07-18
- Subjects: Suspense, Horror Film
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Mystery, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 60Midnight is a novel by the best-selling author Dean Koontz. It was published in 1989. The book is a cross-genre novel. It includes aspects of suspense, science fiction, love story, and horror.
- First Published: 1989
- Subjects: California
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 61
Twilight Eyes
Dean KoontzTwilight Eyes is a novel by the best-selling author Dean Koontz, released in 1985 and 1987. Twilight Eyes begins with a character with the self-appointed name, "Slim MacKenzie". Slim mainly uses his psychic powers to hunt Goblins, a kind of monster that seems to have the ability to mimic human beings. Throughout the book, Slim wages war on the monsters with his girlfriend and later his wife, Rya Raines.- First Published: 1987
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Children's literature, Horror Film, Mystery
- Original Language: English Language
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- 62Heart-Shaped Box is the debut horror novel of author Joe Hill. The book was published on February 13, 2007 by William Morrow.
- First Published: 2007-02-13
- Subjects: Ghost
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 63Doctor Sleep is a novel by Stephen King, a sequel to King's novel The Shining, released in September 2013. King first mentioned the idea in November 2009. The author's official website confirmed the project on September 26, 2011. The audiobook edition of Stephen King's 2012 novel The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole, released on April 24, 2012, contains the novel's prologue read by the author. The e-book publication of In the Tall Grass, a novella written by King and his son Joe Hill, contains the text of this excerpt. Describing the novel on his official site, King stated that it is "a return to balls-to-the-wall, keep-the-lights-on horror". Doctor Sleep reached the first position on The New York Times Best Seller lists for print and ebook fiction, hardcover fiction, and ebook fiction. Doctor Sleep won the 2013 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel.
- First Published: 2013
- Original Language: English Language
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- 64
Strangers
Dean KoontzStrangers is a novel written by Dean Koontz, released in 1986.- First Published: 1986
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 65
They Thirst
Robert R. McCammonThey Thirst is a horror novel by Robert R. McCammon, first published in 1981 and republished in 1991 in hardback. The book details the relentless possession of Los Angeles by vampires, who quickly transform the city into a necropolis with the intent to conquer the entire world. Plans to create a TV movie were announced in 1992, but attempts to make the film were unsuccessful.- Genres (Book): Horror Film
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- 66
The Outsider
Stephen King- First Published: 2018-05-22
- Genres (Book): Crime Fiction, Horror
- Original Language: English
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- 67World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War is an apocalyptic horror novel by Max Brooks. The novel is a collection of individual accounts narrated by an agent of the United Nations Postwar Commission, following the devastating global conflict against the zombie plague. Other passages record a decade-long desperate struggle, as experienced by people of various nationalities. The personal accounts also describe the resulting social, political, religious, and environmental changes. World War Z is a follow-up to Brooks' "survival manual" The Zombie Survival Guide, but its tone is much more serious. It was inspired by The Good War: An Oral History of World War Two by Studs Terkel, and by the zombie films of George A. Romero. Brooks used World War Z to comment on government ineptitude and American isolationism, while also examining survivalism and uncertainty. The novel was a commercial hit and was praised by most critics. Its audiobook version, performed by a full cast including Alan Alda, Mark Hamill, and John Turturro, won an Audie Award in 2007. A film inspired by the novel, starring Brad Pitt, was released in 2013.
- First Published: 2006-09-12
- Subjects: Zombie apocalypse, Suspense, Adventure, Horror Film, Military
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, War novel, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, Humour, Satire
- Original Language: English Language
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- 68House of Leaves is the debut novel by American author Mark Z. Danielewski, published in March 2000 by Pantheon Books. A bestseller, it has been translated into a number of languages, and is followed by a companion piece, The Whalestoe Letters. The format and structure of House of Leaves is unconventional, with unusual page layout and style, making it a prime example of ergodic literature. It contains copious footnotes, many of which contain footnotes themselves, including references to fictional books, films or articles. Some pages contain only a few words or lines of text, arranged in strange ways to mirror the events in the story, often creating both an agoraphobic and a claustrophobic effect. The novel is also distinctive for its multiple narrators, who interact with each other in elaborate and disorienting ways. While some have attempted to describe the book as a horror story, many readers, as well as the author, define the book as a love story. Danielewski expands on this point in an interview: "I had one woman come up to me in a bookstore and say, 'You know, everyone told me it was a horror book, but when I finished it, I realized that it was a love story.'
- First Published: 2000-03-07
- Subjects: Literary, Supernatural, Fear
- Genres (Book): Romance novel, Ergodic literature, Speculative fiction, Chivalric romance, Satire
- Original Language: English Language
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- 69
Cabal
Clive BarkerCabal is a 1988 horror novel by the British author Clive Barker. It was originally published in the United States as part of a collection comprising a novel and several short stories from Barker's sixth and final volume of the Books of Blood. The book was adapted into the film Nightbreed in 1990, written and directed by Barker himself, starring Craig Sheffer and David Cronenberg.- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 70
We Have Always Lived in the Castle
Shirley JacksonWe Have Always Lived in the Castle is the final novel by Shirley Jackson, published in 1962, three years before her death in 1965.- Subjects: Gothic fiction
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Fiction
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- 71
The Damnation Game
Clive BarkerThe Damnation Game is the first novel by best-selling horror and fantasy author Clive Barker, published in 1985. It was written just after finishing the first trilogy of Books of Blood, and tells a Faustian story that touches on topics such as incest, cannibalism, and self-mutilation in a frank and detailed manner.- First Published: 1985
- Subjects: Music
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Fantasy
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- 72
Carrion Comfort
Dan SimmonsDan Simmons' 1989 horror novel.- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 73Summer of Night is a horror novel by American writer Dan Simmons, published in 1991 by Warner Aspect. It was nominated for a British Fantasy Award in 1992.
- First Published: 1991-01
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 74
Suffer the Children
John SaulSuffer the Children is the debut novel by author John Saul, first published by Dell Publishing in 1977. The novel follows the story of a child abductor, who after murdering a young girl one hundred years earlier, returns and begins taking out more children one by one. Suffer the Children was initially published in paperback and has sold over a million copies since its release.- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
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- 75
The Cellar
Richard LaymonThe Cellar is a 1980 horror novel by American author Richard Laymon. It was Laymon's first published novel, and together with sequels The Beast House, The Midnight Tour, and the novella Friday Night in Beast House, forms the series known by fans of Laymon as "The Beast House Chronicles."- First Published: 1980
- Subjects: Occult
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 76
Shadowland
Peter StraubShadowland is a novel by Peter Straub, first published in 1980 by Coward, McCann and Geohegen. It is a horror novel that has strong elements of fantasy. It was the first book Straub wrote following his highly successful Ghost Story.- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
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- 77The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is a psychological horror novel by Stephen King. In 2004, a pop-up book adaptation was released, designed by Kees Moerbeek and illustrated by Alan Dingman.
- First Published: 1999-04-06
- Subjects: Survival skills, Literary, Espionage, Adventure, Divorce
- Genres (Book): Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 78
The Dark
James HerbertPurchase
- 79
The Traveling Vampire Show
Richard LaymonThe Traveling Vampire Show is a 2000 horror novel by American author Richard Laymon.- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Bildungsroman, Horror Film, Fiction, Vampire literature
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- 80
The Great and Secret Show
Clive BarkerThe Great and Secret Show is a novel by British author Clive Barker. It was released in 1989 and it is the first "Book of the Art" in a trilogy, known as The Art Trilogy by fans. The novel is about the conflict between two highly evolved men – Randolph Jaffe and Richard Fletcher – over the mystical dream sea called Quiddity. Jaffe hopes to tap into Quiddity's power while Fletcher wants to prevent it from being tainted. The conflict between the two men spills into the real world in a decades-long feud, distorting reality and affecting the entire human race. The novel contains a cameo appearance by supernatural investigator Harry D'Amour, who was first introduced by Barker in his short story 'The Last Illusion' from the Books of Blood volume 6. The second part of the "Art" trilogy, Everville, was released in 1994. Clive Barker has said in interviews that this novel was the hardest to write of all his books.- First Published: 1990-01
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 81
Stinger
Robert R. McCammon- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction
Purchase
- 82
The Wolf's Hour
Robert R. McCammonThe Wolf's Hour is a 1989 World War II adventure novel with a twist by Robert R. McCammon. A British secret agent goes behind German lines to stop a secret weapon from being launched against the Allies. The twist is that this agent is a werewolf. The book also includes some of the agent's history, namely how he became a werewolf.- First Published: 1989-10-12
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, War novel, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 83
Boy's Life
Robert R. McCammonBoy's Life is a 1991 novel by New York Times bestselling author Robert R. McCammon. It received the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1992. The story is set in the early 1960s and makes observations about changes in America at that time, with particular emphasis on the Civil Rights Movement. Several of the characters are connected to the Ku Klux Klan, and the segregation of the black community is dealt with in some detail.- First Published: 1991
- Subjects: Alabama, Ku Klux Klan, Murder
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Mystery
- Original Language: English Language
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- 84
The Manitou
Graham Masterton- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
Purchase
- 85
From the Corner of His Eye
Dean KoontzFrom the Corner of His Eye is a novel by the best-selling author Dean Koontz, released in 2000. It is the story of a boy named Barty Lampion, a ruthless killer named Junior Cain, and a girl named Angel, born by the result of a rape.- First Published: 2000
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Thriller, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 86
The Wayward Pines Trilogy
Blake Crouch- First Published: Aug 21 2012
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- 87
The Thief of Always
Clive BarkerThe Thief of Always is a novel by Clive Barker that was published in 1992. The book is a fable written for children, but intended to be read by adults as well. The book's cover was created by Barker and the book contains several black and white illustrations by the author.- First Published: 1992-11
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Dark fantasy, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 88American Gods is a Hugo and Nebula Award-winning novel by Neil Gaiman. The novel is a blend of Americana, fantasy, and various strands of ancient and modern mythology, all centering on the mysterious and taciturn Shadow. Several of the themes touched upon in the book were previously glimpsed in The Sandman graphic novels. The book was published in 2001 by Headline in the United Kingdom and by William Morrow in the United States. A special tenth anniversary edition, with the "author's preferred text" and including an additional 12,000 words, was published by William Morrow in June 2011. The text is identical to the signed and numbered limited edition that was released by Hill House Publishers in 2003. This version of the text has also been in print from Headline, Gaiman's publisher in the UK since 2005. The tenth anniversary edition marks the first time the author's preferred text has been available in wide release outside the UK. Gaiman also did a very extensive sold-out book tour celebrating the tenth anniversary and promoting this book in 2011.
- First Published: 2001
- Subjects: Literary, Comics
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Horror Film, Fiction, Novel
- Original Language: English Language
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- 89
Song of Kali
Dan SimmonsDan Simmons' horror novel, 1986 World Fantasy Award winner.- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
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- 90
Comes the Blind Fury
John Saul- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Fiction
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- 91Notre-Dame De Paris is written by Victor Hugo.
- First Published: 1831-01-14
- Subjects: Literary, Europe, Education, Literature, France
- Genres (Book): Children's literature, Romanticism, Fiction
- Original Language: French Language
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- 92Haunted is a 2005 novel by Chuck Palahniuk. The plot is a frame story for a series of 23 short stories, most preceded by a free verse poem. Each story is followed by a chapter of the main narrative, is told by a character in main narrative, and ties back into the main story in some way. Typical of Palahniuk's work, the dominant motifs in Haunted are sexual deviance, sexual identity, homosexuality, desperation, social distastefulness, disease, murder, death, and existentialism. The synopsis on the dustjacket describes Haunted as a satire of reality television, but according to Palahniuk, the novel is actually about "the battle for credibility" that has resulted from the ease with which one can publish through the use of modern technology. The cover of the 2006 U.S. trade paperback reprint features a glow-in-the-dark image.
- First Published: 2005-05-03
- Subjects: Literary
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Black comedy, Satire, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
Purchase
- 93
Koko
Peter StraubKoko is a mystery novel written by Peter Straub and first published in the United States in 1988 by EP Dutton, and in Great Britain by Viking. It was the winner of the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1989.- First Published: 1988
- Subjects: Adventure
- Genres (Book): Horror Film, Thriller, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
Purchase
- 94
Lost Souls
Poppy Z. BriteLost Souls is a 1992 horror novel, the first written by Poppy Z. Brite. It is the only novel-length adventure of Brite's 'Steve and Ghost' characters, popularized in numerous short stories. The novel is an extended version of the short story "The Seed of Lost Souls". Several characters introduced in the novel make appearances in Brite's second novel, Drawing Blood, though it is not a direct sequel.- First Published: 1992
- Subjects: Vampire
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Fiction, Novel
- Original Language: English Language
Purchase
- 95
Floating Dragon
Peter StraubFloating Dragon is the seventh novel by author Peter Straub, originally published by Underwood-Miller in November 1982 and G.P. Putnam's Sons in February 1983.- First Published: 1982
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
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- 96The Great God Pan is a novella written by Arthur Machen. A version of the story was published in the magazine The Whirlwind in 1890, and Machen revised and extended it for its book publication in 1894. On publication it was widely denounced by the press as degenerate and horrific because of its decadent style and sexual content, although it has since garnered a reputation as a classic of horror. Machen’s story was only one of many at the time to focus on the Greek God Pan as a useful symbol for the power of nature and paganism. The title was possibly inspired by the poem "A Musical Instrument" published in 1862 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, in which the first line of every stanza ends "... the great god Pan."
- First Published: 1890
- Subjects: Popular culture, Supernatural, Literature, Classics
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction, Novella, Fantasy
- Original Language: English Language
Purchase
- 97
The Lair of the White Worm
Bram StokerThe Lair of the White Worm is a horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. It is partly based on the legend of the Lambton Worm. The book was published in 1911 by Rider and Son in the UK, the year before Stoker's death, with color illustrations by Pamela Colman Smith. In 1925, it was republished in a highly abridged and rewritten form. Over a hundred pages were removed, the rewritten book having only twenty-eight chapters instead of the original forty. The final eleven chapters were cut down to only five, leading some critics to complain that the ending was abrupt and inconsistent. In 1988, it was adapted into a film by Ken Russell.- First Published: 1911
- Subjects: Literary, Literature, Classics, Vampire, Lambton Worm
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction, Science Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 98
Off Season
Jack KetchumOff Season is a horror novel written by Jack Ketchum and initially published by Ballantine Books in 1980. It was Ketchum's first novel and was partially based upon the legend of Sawney Bean, which also inspired Wes Craven's 1977 cult classic horror film The Hills Have Eyes. The novel was extremely controversial upon release, with many well-known publications attacking its depictions of extreme violence. Critical reaction to it was so strong, in fact, that Ballantine actually stepped back from supporting the novel. Despite initially strong sales the publisher decided to withdraw it from circulation after the first printings were sold out. In 1999 the novel was picked up for re-publication by Cemetery Dance and was released in an "unexpurgated edition" that featured some of the gore that Ballantine initially made Ketchum trim.- First Published: 1980
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction
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- 99Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is a 1985 literary historical cross-genre novel by German writer Patrick Süskind. The novel explores the sense of smell and its relationship with the emotional meaning that scents may carry. Above all it is a story of identity, communication and the morality of the human spirit. The novel was translated into English by John E. Woods and won the PEN Translation Prize in 1987. The story focuses on Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, a perfume apprentice in 18th-century France who, born with no body scent himself, begins to stalk and murder virgins in search of the "perfect scent", which he finds in a young woman named Laure, whom his acute sense of smell finds in a secluded private garden in Grasse. Some editions of Perfume, including the first, have as their cover image Antoine Watteau's painting Jupiter and Antiope, which depicts a sleeping woman.
- First Published: 1985
- Subjects: France
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Magic realism, Mystery, Historical novel
- Original Language: German Language
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- 100One Rainy Night is a 1991 novel by American horror author Richard Laymon. Following the murder of a black high school student by several of his classmates, a black rain begins to fall on the town of Bixby, causing anyone touched by it to instantly begin exhibiting violent, homicidal tendencies. The plot focuses on a handful of survivors trying to make it through the night.
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
Purchase
- 101
Usher's Passing
Robert R. McCammon- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction
Purchase
- 102
The Stake
Richard Laymon- Subjects: Occult
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
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- 103
Lightning
Dean KoontzLightning is a novel by the best-selling author Dean Koontz, released in 1988. A 2003 reprinting includes a new afterword by the author, discussing editorial politics.- Subjects: Espionage
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Mystery, Thriller, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 104The Passage is a book written by Justin Cronin.
- First Published: 2010-06-08
- Subjects: Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, Horror Film, Vampire, Virus
- Genres (Book): The New York Times Best Seller list, Epic Science Fiction and Fantasy, Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, Utopian and dystopian fiction, Dystopia
- Original Language: English Language
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- 105
The Woods Are Dark
Richard LaymonThe Woods Are Dark is a 1981 horror novel by American author Richard Laymon. It was one of his earliest published works, and one he credits with having all but destroyed his publishing career in the United States. An uncut version of the novel was released by Cemetery Dance Publications in July 2008. It includes fifty pages of material that was cut from the original Warner Books release, and was later found by Kelly Laymon among some of her father's old papers, along with the full original manuscript. This creative interference, together with the original publication's disastrous cover artwork, is what Laymon often credited with having ruined his at first promising U.S. publishing career.- First Published: 1981
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film
- Original Language: English Language
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- 106
Bite
Richard Laymon- Subjects: Suspense
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
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- 107
Island
Richard LaymonIsland is a horror novel by American author Richard Laymon, originally published in 1991 by Headline Features. It was reissued in 2002 by Leisure Publishing, with new cover artwork and a foreword by popular suspense novelist Dean Koontz.- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 108
Dark Rivers of the Heart
Dean KoontzDark Rivers of the Heart is a novel by Dean Koontz, published in 1994.- First Published: 1994
- Subjects: Espionage
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Thriller, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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109Midnight Mass
F. Paul Wilson- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction
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- 110
The Store
Bentley LittlePurchase
- 111
The Spear
James HerbertThe Spear is a 1978 novel by British author James Herbert dealing with Nazi occultism and the Holy Lance.Purchase
- 112
Blue World and Other Stories
Robert R. McCammon- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction
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- 113
Cinema of Shadows
Michael West- First Published: 2011
- Subjects: Ghosts, Demons, Ghost Hunting, Hauntings
- Genres (Book): Horror, Supernatural, Dark Fiction
- Original Language: English
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- 114
The Rising
Brian KeeneThe Rising is the first book in a series of zombie-themed horror novels written by author Brian Keene. This title won the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel in 2003. The Rising was optioned for both film and video game adaptation in 2004.- First Published: 2003-04
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Fiction
- Original Language: English Language
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- 115
The Magic Cottage
James Herbert- First Published: 1986
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Suspense, Horror Film, Mystery, Thriller
- Original Language: English Language
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- 116
Spook House
Michael West- First Published: 2012
- Subjects: Monsters, Halloween, Lovecraftian Horror
- Genres (Book): Horror, Dark Fantasy
- Original Language: English
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- 117
Incarnate
Ramsey Campbell- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction
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- 118
The Wide Game
Michael West- First Published: 2011
- Subjects: Murder, Ancient Evil, Lost Love
- Genres (Book): Horror, Mystery, Supernatural Thriller
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- 119
God Project, The
John Saul- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Horror Film, Mystery, Fiction
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- 120
The Hungry Moon
Ramsey CampbellThe Hungry Moon is a book by Ramsey Campbell.- First Published: 1986
- Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Fantasy
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