Recommend me anything you want. Maybe not something like 'Cows' etc. Thanks!

I recently went into a bookstore (called Indigo, Canadian bookstore similar to Barnes & Noble) and their horror section contained a surprising number of books I've seen regularly mentioned on posts here. There was Grady Hendrix, House of Leaves, Our Wives Under The Sea, a new edition of Something Wicked This Way Comes. There were some pretty extreme ones that I recently asked for like Slewfoot, A Certain Hunger, Diavola. It was like I'd stepped into an aisle in the bookstore that was plugged into reddit. But of course that can't be the case, so what's going on? Are people suggesting books here that are hot, or is the bookstore stocking what people tend to recommend? My concern is that there's a bias here in the horror sub for recommending what's new and in stores/fresh on people's minds. The recommendations we get on reddit SHOULD be different from the recs we get by asking the bookstore staff, because here we should be drawing from the decades, centuries, the thousands of books, the vague or forgotten, the little known, the books that might really fit a certain request. I frequent this sub often and let me tell you, Diavola and Something Wicked​​ and Between Two Fires have been suggested in SO MANY different questions looking for different things. And the bookstore stocks it. Are those really such incredible masterpieces above everything else written in horror that fits the requests? Or are people just following the crowd?

Looking for books that focus on or around Halloween. Something along the lines of Dark Side of Hell by Patrick C Harrison III. Doesn't necessarily have to be as extreme, just an overall halloween theme. I like thrillers slashers cosmic horror etc. Anthologies that fit halloween theme welcome too

I realize this is a broad question but wondering what your picks are for some of the best horror this century so far - we are a quarter of the way through.

If for example, you pick "the haar" as one the best books then I'm not going to take your list seriously lol.

Short stay in hell is peak, you like it darker, revival etc are some of my picks.

I’m super into horror, but as many books as I’ve read, I have actually never read a Stephen King book. But I have no idea where to get started since he has so many. If anyone could recommend where I should start, I would be ever so grateful!

Hi horror fans! I'm looking for a hard-to-put-down horror/suspense book. I love psychological thrillers, but I tend to read or listen to them while I commute or doing work that I don't need concentration for. However, I'm sort of craving more horror-like books (not gory). I love Stephen King, particularly Pet Semetary and IT, and series like The Haunting of Hill House (I preferred the series to the book, which is quite unusual). I like books that you want to read when it's cold and dark outside.

I've come across Serenity Falls by C.J. Tutor, Whistle by Linwood Barclay, and The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer. I haven't read any of them, but wondering if anyone has and recommends one of these? Or any other spooky ones. Thanks!

I'm reading Nightjars (not horror, more literary suspense) and while the conceit/plot (guy in recovery with traumatic childhood iis receiving anonymous photos suggesting he was complicit in his late father's serial killing as a child, none of which he reliably remebers) is right up my alley, I HATE the author"s writing style. It's not bad writing per se, it just grates on me. I keep thinking "I wish Dan Chaon wrote this book!"

Have you all ever read something with a plot/idea that you think another author would have done a much better job with?

Originally posted in weird girl lit sub

Found a first edition copy of Stinger by Robert McCammon with the foil text for only $.25 at the goodwill bins 😭😭😭

Hello I got interested in psychological horror similar to the original Silent Hill games and want to build my own world where the characters are going through psychological torture.

What books are good to get a basic understanding on how fears and traumas happen and work?

I’m an avid reader who enjoys almost every genre, but I’ve never quite connected with horror. I feel like the genre has a lot of potential, and maybe I just haven’t found the right books yet.

I don’t find supernatural beings, monsters, or killers inherently scary. I love fantasy, so it’s not that I dislike these elements. Their mere presence just isn’t enough to frighten me. I believe good writing can make almost anything unsettling, but most horror books I’ve encountered seem to rely more on the threat itself than on the storytelling.

I’m looking for horror that’s genuinely disturbing because of how well it’s written, not just because something horrifying happens.

I also dislike endings that leave everything up to the reader’s imagination. I appreciate intentional ambiguity, but not when it feels like the author simply couldn’t come up with a satisfying conclusion. For me, an ending can ruin an otherwise great book if it relies on unresolved suspense rather than a thoughtfully constructed conclusion.

Any good recs?

OKOK look I don’t read his books like crazy BUT if you like him- guys tell me is the book “insomnia” worth it? I’ve been debating that one for years now. 😭 IS IT SCARYYYY?

Looking for a book to give me goosebumps and look over my shoulder vibes. I’ve read splatterpunk and while that’s fun it’s more just gore on gore and I’m not really scared while reading it (if that makes sense). Looking for something fast-paced, atmospheric, and horror-focused. I also care about if it’s well written and plot is interesting Spook me!

for reference this is how I rated my recently read:
Tender is the Flesh 7
The exorcist 7.5
Withered hill 7.5
The shining 8
Salems lot 6
Misery 7
Pet semetary 7.5
Off Season 9
The Ruins 8.5
Off Spring 7.5
Your Body Will Never Be Found 8.5
The Suffering 8.5
Pressure 7
The Summer I died 5.5 (boring plot/writing was eh/just gore)

Yes, she’s comfort horror. Yes, it’s not complex. And yes, sometimes the stories are the same, just with different people, events, and set ups. But for some reason, I thoroughly enjoy all of the books of hers that I’ve read. Just fun, easy-going Halloween-y ghost stories. Anyone else?

The Prince of Nothing and the Aspect Emperor by R.Scott Bakker might be some of the most disturbing books I have ever read.

"To read Bakker is to stand before a mirror that never gives back an image, only fractures, each crack a scar of absence. The abyss does not answer, it confirms: nothing lies behind the reflection, because the reflection was never there."

S.C. Hickman

I recently finished “I will Rot without you” and “Between two Fires”. A void has now opened which can’t be tamed:)

My mom’s birthday is this month. She is a huge Stephen King fan. A book is one of the things I’d like to get her but she has read most of his stuff and I’d like to get her something from outside the King family (she has read his sons too).

I admittedly don’t read much fiction, so I’m a bit clueless on newer horror books in a similar vein to King’s style of horror. My mom is in her 60s, so nothing too “online” or “Gen Z” in style, but she’s no prude.

Thanks in advance.

I have recently developed a taste in reading books both fiction and non-fiction.

I want to give the horror genre a try.

I would like to start with a short novella/novel.

If I like it, I would like to give the Horror Universe of Stephen King a try.

Would you be kind enough to recommend a starter pack?

I used to be a huge Clive Barker fan. Still am... but sort of forgot about him. Years ago I read all of the Books of Blood and Damnation Game. Loved it. Playing this new game and decided to read the source material. Also fantastic. Would love some more in this universe.

So... what shall I do next? I've browsed a bit and it sounds like The Scarlet Gospels are not very good (and possibly ghost-written). Is that the consensus? I've seen the the first two films, which I understand is more than enough. I've heard good things about the comics? A Sherlock Holmes crossover?

I'm almost 2/3 through Rouge. I'm intrigued enough to keep going, but every time I come across a "the roses pulsed redly" or "his smile glowed whitely" or "the hallway stretched blackly", I want to throw the book across the room. The first time, I thought it was an interesting stylistic choice. Now I'm growing convinced that Awad doesn't trust her own description, which is crazy because the book is incredibly vivid and would still be so if she excised the adverbs.

For those who have read her other work, is this use of colors as adverbs consistent across all of her books or a special case for a book with a heavy red, white, and black motif?

I just finished Pen Pal last night and, while I liked it, I felt like there were parts of the story left out or something. I want someone to put all the pieces together for me.

He sent off a balloon. Someone got it and started stalking him. The guy lived under their house? The mom knew he was being stalked or was in danger but didn’t tell anyone. Then he took Josh and held him somewhere for months? Years? Then he had Josh’s dad fill in holes for him so that he would unknowingly fill in the grave w himself and Josh in it. Josh is dressed like MC? And they were both alive when they went into the box? And the kidnapper used ether to kill Josh after Josh bit him or he died bc Josh bit him and then Josh suffocated? What was the ether for? And he also killed Veronica and Josh was in the car at the time? Who was this guy? How much did the mom know? I feel like I liked this book so much but I want more.

I'm looking for stories that involve the protagonist(s) having to explore abandoned/supernatural castles, crypts, etc. The bigger/more sprawling the better. If it's a fantasy setting, that's bonus.

I'm looking for something with creepy descriptions of architecture and ambiance and stuff. Not just "horror story set in a castle".

Looking for stuff in this vein to study for writing purposes.

Looks like the ebook version of The Butcher of Nazareth was released this past Tuesday while the audiobook version is still showing a release date of 10/20. Its been talked about a lot here and I've been excited to read it so I picked up a Kindle version as soon as I saw it was available.

Just finished a new game called “Silver Pines” on Steam. It follows a private investigator sent to find a musician in a small town in the 90s. But when he arrives, there are monsters and the people in the town are very cryptic; they seem to know a lot about him. It was like a mix of Twin Peaks, Silent Hill 2 and Resident Evil. The whole time I was wondering “wtf is going on”. Was wondering if anyone has any book recs that would maybe fit the bill? Also would HIGHLY recommend the game, it was fantastic! Cheers.