The best books with terrifying female villains

I first read Philip Pullman’s incredible world-hopping trilogy when I was working in a bookshop, and when I realised the ambition of what he was attempting in what is, ostensibly, a children’s book, I shouted out loud in front of the book-buying public.

Northern Lights, and the other two books, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass feature a truly terrifying female villain in the double form of Mrs Coulter and her golden monkey dæmon.

At school, the teacher who took care of me when I was sent away from home was also called Mrs. Coulter. Though my Mrs. Coulter was kind and loving, it added to my fascination with, and terror of, this appalling but appealing narcissist.

In my school, a dog-eared copy of the completely messed-up and horrifying Flowers In The Attic was passed around as contraband. We were not allowed to read it, which, of course, added to the appeal.

Many people find the character of “the grandmother” of the kids locked up in the attic pretty terrifying. But for me, Corinne, their weak and stupid mother, is the true villain of the story.

The slow betrayal she indulges in, as her children lose out to her desire for social acceptance and the high life is utterly heartbreaking.

If you like a very sick story about how the sins of one generation get visited upon the next, you will love Flowers in the Attic.

Many of us know Misery’s story from the excellent film adaptation starring Kathy Bates, but the book is even better, drawing out writer Paul Sheldon’s withdrawal from the world, in excruciating interiority. His tormentor, Annie Wilkes, his “biggest fan” is an amazing creation.

For me, it’s her blankness, the way she sometimes just zones out and separates from reality, along with her incredible neediness, that makes her not just an amazing metaphor for addiction and the process of creation, but the kind of character who'll haunt your nightmares.

Annie Wilkes just beat another King creation, Carrie’s mother, Margaret White, for a spot in this top five.

I worried about including this one, because there are two female villains, Adora Crellin, and her fourteen-year-old daughter Amma, both of them are terrible humans and great villains, and I didn’t want to include any spoilers.

So, I’m not going to say who’s the worst. I read this next to the pool after I submitted to my agent and she had compared my own first book to it, and I was massively relieved to discover that I loved it.

I hadn’t read Gone Girl and still haven’t because I’m scared I’ll be disappointed after enjoying Sharp Objects as much as I did. If you guess the end you’re a cleverer reader than me.

As an erstwhile comedy writer, I had to include one comic novel, and this is the best of all time.

If you don’t think Mrs. Bennett is a truly horrifying, you’ve never been embarrassed by your mother! This book is perfectly put together, the plot is a structure masterclass and Mrs. Bennett: hysterical, gossipy, nosy, and a massive hypochondriac is one of the funniest characters ever put to paper.

On the page, it’s even better than Colin Firth in a wet shirt.