To understand why I write macabre stories, you could ask my therapist if I had one. I’ve had this bent since my mother read me Dr. Seuss’ What Was I Scared Of? (A title that inspired the title of my TV series Are You Afraid of the Dark?) Blame it on her. My reading was dominated by the short stories I mentioned and magazines like Eerie and Creepy. I also consumed a steady diet of Twilight Zone and Saturday matinee horror movies. Why? I believe it’s because these stories offer imaginative conflicts that are far removed from reality yet told through the perspective of common experience. And they’re always wrapped in a compelling mystery.
I feel that this is Stephen King at his best. His strength lies in his depiction of relatable characters and situations that intersect with something uncanny and frightening. One of the attractions of his type of horror is that there is always an element of mystery.
For most of this book, I wasn’t entirely sure if The Overlook Hotel was actually haunted or if it was all a manifestation of Jack Torrance’s imagination as he slowly descended into insanity. I had to know! The atmosphere, the scares, the personal conflicts, the surprises, and the ever-growing tension are all compelling.
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Before Doctor Sleep, there was The Shining, a classic of modern American horror from the undisputed master, Stephen King.
Jack Torrance’s new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. As the off-season caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, he’ll have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote . . . and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around…
Like Stephen King, Clive Barker has an impressive list of horror-themed novels for all tastes, ranging from fantasy to deeply disturbing and graphic horror tales like Books of Blood. This book skews more toward fantasy but still has its share of scares and disturbing imagery.
A young boy is sent on a whimsical and horrifying imaginative adventure. It’s like a modern-day Grimm fairy tale, right up my alley.
This is more of a general recommendation for the myriad of terrific horror-themed short stories that I’ve been reading since I was young. The Most Dangerous Game, The Birds, The Upper Berth, anything by Poe, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The Specialty of the House, the list goes on. And on.
These types of short stories always have a disturbing premise that makes you shudder; they are paced so that you can’t turn the pages fast enough and often end with a stunning twist. I picked this book since I feel it is a quintessential example of this genre and because I have a personal bias since I used it as the basis for the pilot episode of my TV series.
Outside, the night is cold and wet. Inside, the White family sits and waits. Where is their visitor? There is a knock at the door. A man is standing outside in the dark. Their visitor has arrived. The visitor waits. He has been in India for many years. What has he got? He has brought the hand of a small, dead animal - a monkey's paw. Outside, in the dark, the visitor smiles and waits for the door to open.
My mother’s favorite horror story. (She called them “Ooo-yeah!” stories) It’s a ghost story where the principal characters are as haunted as the mysterious house they’re investigating. It's a terrific character study with lots of subtle hints that the ghosts are real. Or are they?
One lasting memory is the scene where Eleanor and Theodora are in bed and terrified by growing sounds that imply something other-worldly is closing in on them. One asks the other to stop squeezing her hand so tight, to which the other replies. “I’m not holding your hand.” Yikes.
Part of a new six-volume series of the best in classic horror, selected by Academy Award-winning director of The Shape of Water Guillermo del Toro
Filmmaker and longtime horror literature fan Guillermo del Toro serves as the curator for the Penguin Horror series, a new collection of classic tales and poems by masters of the genre. Included here are some of del Toro's favorites, from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Ray Russell's short story "Sardonicus," considered by Stephen King to be "perhaps the finest example of the modern Gothic ever written," to Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House and stories…
Along with ghosts, vampires are solidly in the pantheon of go-to horror staples. What makes this one unique is that the story is told from the perspective of the vampires, humanizing them, so to speak. It treats their hunting and feeding as natural and necessary functions.
I was particularly fascinated with the evolution of Rice’s characters as they deal with the reality and challenges of being immortal and the interpersonal conflicts that they create. It’s particularly compelling when it comes to the character of Claudia, who matures intellectually while forever trapped in a child’s body.
The sultry nature of Louisiana and its dark gothic mansions drifts from every page, which makes it an odd book to read while lying on a sunny tropical beach during a holiday. I was so immersed that every time I put it down, I had to take a few minutes to shake it off and come back to reality.
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Anne Rice, this sensuously written spellbinding classic remains 'the most successful vampire story since Bram Stoker's Dracula' (The Times)
In a darkened room a young man sits telling the macabre and eerie story of his life - the story of a vampire, gifted with eternal life, cursed with an exquisite craving for human blood.
When Interview with the Vampire was published the Washington Post said it was a 'thrilling, strikingly original work of the imagination . . . sometimes horrible, sometimes beautiful, always unforgettable'. Now, more than forty years since its release, Anne…
Seven strange tales from the creator of Are You Afraid of the Dark? I am also the author of the bestselling book series Pendragon-Journal of an Adventure Through Time and Space. These yarns follow individuals trapped in unusual dilemmas that range from eerie to impossible to deadly.
Influence Island– A desperate author struggles with writer's block. The Blood Code– The quest for immortality pushes a doctor to deadly extremes. Freshly Squeezed– A strange odyssey through a haunted town. Time Trials, Unlimited– A man gets a second chance at life, and death.The Scout (Redux)– Lost in the desert, a boy flees from a relentless killer. The Weeper– A chilling legend may be real. The Paper Trail (Vera)– A stranger’s arrival triggers terrifying events.
As a child, I lived in a small valley sheltered from the night city lights. I could see the stars, and from that time, that is where my imagination dwelled. As a teenager, I read several of the books I have listed here, and from that point, I was inspired to read more and also to write myself. I sincerely believe that despite our current problems, humanity will outlive its troubled childhood and reach for the stars. We are destined for the stars, and only in the works of science fiction writers is that future explored. The books below helped me to become a successful author in my own right.
An alien starship appears in the Solar System! Humanity faces a glorious future, or total extinction, and only Joe Falcon can make the choice. Never would Joe have imagined it would fall to him to make the decision that would alter the destiny of two worlds, launching humanity towards a glorious future, or to extinction.
Falcon's Call is an action packed dive into the unknown, written in the style of the great, classic, science-fiction stories. If you like surprising plot twists, compelling characters and a hero who actually cares, you must read this new novel by Mike Waller.
Reader's Favorite Gold Medal winner 2019 B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree 2019 Chill With A Book Premier Award 2019
In a heart-pounding battle for humanity's survival, one man holds the key to a glorious future or utter extinction.
In a race against time, Earth and Mars race to claim a derelict alien ship as it enters the Solar System, both aware that whichever planet succeeds might in so doing achieve technological advantage over the other. But who should they send? Joe Falcon, an unlikely candidate, never saw himself as the "right" person. Accompanied by a crew of misfits, each fleeing their own…
