Terrifying Horror Novels

[leatherface58]

I read Dracula as a 10 year old. BIIIG mistake lol. I recently read Stephen King's cell and have started reading Salem's Lot. Can someone recommend me some good creepy novels? If they cross over into apocalyptic fiction, nothing like it. Thanks!

 

[truthseer]

Twilight, you'll never be the same person again

 

[Mohsin]

Still havent read Dracula, madness i know!

Would it still be creepy to a 20/21 year old lol?

 

[leatherface58]

Still havent read Dracula, madness i know!

Would it still be creepy to a 20/21 year old lol?

I guess. It's the atmosphere the novel built. It was always uneasy. Plus there was the air that anybody could die. Give it a try. I guess you won't be disappointed.

 

[_FooL_]

^ I read that when i was 23. Hella scary. Highly recommend.

Btw, hi I'm new here. From India.

 

[BaaliSoda]

Few of my favt horror novels as follows,

Fun House by Dean Koontz (Novella to be correct, written after the release of Fun House)

Needful Things by Stephen King (IMO, Not an out and out horror novel but it does have one of the most suave n benign looking yet with menacing interior supernatural villain from SK universe)

Rose Madder by Stephen King (Under-rated domestic violence based novel, has one sick SOB as the main antagonist)

The Shining by SK

Almost all of SK's short story collections (Monkey shining, Dreamscapes and Nightmares etc)

 

[leatherface58]

Twilight, you'll never be the same person again

) my cousin sister emotionally blackmailed me into taking her for new moon.

As revenge I made her watch Texas Chainsaw Massacre

 

[Justcrazy]

Most Stephen King novels are scary , he is best in this genre.

 

[Black Zero]

i read "moouut ka manzar" when i was 8 years old...

 

[Robert]

I read Dracula as a 10 year old. BIIIG mistake lol.

Yow. I read it at 18 and got seriously creeped out even then.

The Silence of the Lambs is magnificent.

 

[Animal]

i read "moouut ka manzar" when i was 8 years old...

I read "Lambu Motu Aur Dracula" - a comic book, when I was a little older than that. It scared the s!!t out of me because it showed a baby infant turning into a blood sucking vampire. I have long been a connoisseur of all things horror, but haven't seen such a remarkable motif since.

On topic, Stephen King's vampire stuff is pretty scary. Salem's Lot and the short story The Night Flier in particular. The thing about the vampires in King's universe is they are not your suave tux wearing ballroom dancing variety. They are as real as your average Joe, and hence more visceral.

But when it comes to the king (pun intended) of terrifying novels, there is none to match:

 

[Animal]

Can someone recommend me some good creepy novels? If they cross over into apocalyptic fiction, nothing like it. Thanks!

You like apocalyptic fiction? mate if we ever meet I must buy you a beer. Off the top of my head, my top three apocalyptic novels would be:

On the Beach by Nevil Shute
Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven (a big-a$$ and detailed account of survivors of a giant comet impact)
Stephen King's The Stand

 

[leatherface58]

You like apocalyptic fiction? mate if we ever meet I must buy you a beer. Off the top of my head, my top three apocalyptic novels would be:

On the Beach by Nevil Shute
Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven (a big-a$$ and detailed account of survivors of a giant comet impact)
Stephen King's The Stand

hmm the novels sound interesting. even cell was mostly apocalyptic fiction. terrific read. though it got depressing which goes with the territory.

i have heard good things about cormac mccarthy's the road as well.

 

[leatherface58]

Yow. I read it at 18 and got seriously creeped out even then.

The Silence of the Lambs is magnificent.

) yeah and worst part is I read it at night. was constantly looking outside my window. creepy as hell.

 

[truthseer]

It isn't that scary. Granted, I read it when I was 13 but still

 

[Animal]

hmm the novels sound interesting. even cell was mostly apocalyptic fiction. terrific read. though it got depressing which goes with the territory.

i have heard good things about cormac mccarthy's the road as well.

I haven't read the road but I have seen the film and was very impressed. So, going by the thumb rule in the genre, the book must be even better. By the way, before it hits the cinemas as a Brad Pitt blockbuster, you must read (if you haven't already) World War Z. Its quite remarkable in that it is structured like a non-fiction document (by a fictional UN-appointed commission) of a worldwide zombie outbreak. Quite brilliant IMO.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Bram Stoker's Dracula is one of the creepiest books I've read. But not gory at all by today's standard, all done through atmosphere and tension. Loved the old style it was written in.

 

[leatherface58]

I haven't read the road but I have seen the film and was very impressed. So, going by the thumb rule in the genre, the book must be even better. By the way, before it hits the cinemas as a Brad Pitt blockbuster, you must read (if you haven't already) World War Z. Its quite remarkable in that it is structured like a non-fiction document (by a fictional UN-appointed commission) of a worldwide zombie outbreak. Quite brilliant IMO.

i have read its sort of precursor. zombie outbreak manual written by same author max(son of mel!!!) brooks. terrific read. funny but ultimately creepy despite being just a manual.

 

[RexRex]

Dean Koontz - Lightning

 

[hokie]

If you like Dracula you should read The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. It's not really a horror novel, but it is quite eerie and is brilliantly done. I bought it for a friend who was getting ready to go on a business trip to Romania and it creeped her out so much that she had to wait until she got back to finish reading it. It's one of her favorite books now.

Needful Things by Stephen King (IMO, Not an out and out horror novel but it does have one of the most suave n benign looking yet with menacing interior supernatural villain from SK universe)

This was the very first Stephen King book I read and it took me 6 months to get through it. I don't know why but I just had the hardest time reading this book and did not enjoy it at all. I liked the film version much better than the novel. Luckily, I didn't let that stop me from reading other works by SK. The Shining is my favorite.

 

[hokie]

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill is one of my favorite horror novels. It's really good if you like a good old fashioned ghost story.

 

[Arsal_AK]

"The Silence of the Lambs". It is a mix of horror,thrill and suspense. In short a brilliant read.You would be thinking about it for days.

 

[LongHorn]

"And then there were none"; one adaptation of Ten Little Indians

 

[Indiafan]

Pet Cemetary by Stephen King. Very under-rated but scariest of his books

 

[raheelbs]

I Used to watch Nightmare movies but also had nightmares of the same movie..!!!

 

[TM Riddle]

) yeah and worst part is I read it at night. was constantly looking outside my window. creepy as hell.

I read its Hindi translation when I was 12 ..a friend brought the copy in school and I borrowed it from him
one should try the Hindi version its so creepy ) ) and those 3 witches

 

[Justcrazy]

"And then there were none"; one adaptation of Ten Little Indians

Its by Agatha Christie. Brilliant piece of work ......... Adapted by many serials.

 

[Justcrazy]

Pet Cemetary by Stephen King. Very under-rated but scariest of his books

I agree ........ gem of a story.

The idea of not original , but the treatment was awesome.

 

[Justcrazy]

The Tommy Knockers ( Stephen King )


Another brilliant piece of work. Keeps the reader involved till last page.

 

[Robert]

Read Dracula at 19 and it seriously creeped me out.

Read Hannibal a decade ago and it made me feel bad for weeks. That ending is so disturbing.

Let the Right One In is very creepy too, and you end up feeling sorry for the vampire.

 

[SwingNSeam]

Nos4a2.. Written by Stephen king's son. Not scary per say (at least to me) .. But pretty good.

 

[LongHorn]

Its by Agatha Christie. Brilliant piece of work ......... Adapted by many serials.

and by a movie; Identity

 

[Indiafan]

The Tommy Knockers ( Stephen King )


Another brilliant piece of work. Keeps the reader involved till last page.

It rambles off a bit to be honest, though the first half is very good. Interesting fact is that King was going through his substance abuse period during that time and was high on alcohol and drugs while writing it. He later said he does not even writing most of it. The novel kind of reflects this in some part

 

[Justcrazy]

and by a movie; Identity

Yes , many movies have been inspired also.

 

[shaz619]

To name a few novels I have read The Shining and Carrie both were enjoyable, especially The Shining.

Beyond that, have been mostly reading some Horror Short Story Collections here are some stand out ones:

The Boogeyman - Terrifying and a twist I did not see coming. (Stephen King)

Night Surf - There are other King novels I understand which have been referenced for it sharing a similarity to covid and the pandemic but I actually think this story is a lot more relevant.

Night Shift - Read this if you don’t like Rats

There were some from Clive Barker who is our very own British Stephen King:

The Forbidden - This you would know was adapted as The Candyman movie and contrary to popular opinion, I enjoyed the short story more, for one because it was set in England and conveyed how grim council estates can be in Liverpool, it was the perfect setting for to tell a horrifying story.

Revelations - Modern ghost story about two unhappy couples: one alive and the other less tangible. The preacher and his long-suffering wife, and the philanderer and his less forgiving wife.

Some from M.R James which at first gave me a little bit of a shock given his unique technique and also taking into account when they were written to during the 18th century and early 19th, he still manages to keep you incredibly invested and you learn a bit to about the period in which he put ink on paper:

Oh Whistle and I”ll come to you my lad - A classic, loved the southeast setting and how tension was built around the lead’s scepticism surrounding paranormal activities.

Count Magnus - This wasn’t what I expected it to be and the story does leave a little for your imagination, but I enjoyed this a great given the tension created via the atmosphere, a slow burning psychological horror which delivered

I plan to read Dracula at some point but happy going through these collections

 

[mazkhan]

The shining is a masterpiece both book and the film

 

[shaz619]

The shining is a masterpiece both book and the film

That’s something I would totally agree with although they were two completely distinct stories at their core

 

[irfan]

Although not a horror novel per se, 'Turn Of The Screw' by Henry James is a very disturbing read.