# Looking for horror fiction recommendations **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 13, 2006, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483 "2006-04-13T04:10:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/1 "2006-04-13T04:10:07Z")
I used to read a lot of horror, almost exclusively, in fact. But I’ve hit a dry spell over the last few years. I don’t know if I’m jaded or what. I’m not real crazy about the newer stuff. The writing is either long on style and short on story (or vice versa), and it’s not very original. Seems like everything is vampires (detectives and waitresses), or haunted towns with secrets unleashed by newcomers with troubled marriages. I want something new, original, well-written, and scary. Most recently I’ve enjoyed The Good House by Tananarive Due, Night Country by Stewart O’Nan, lost boy lost girl and in the night room by Peter Straub, and Feesters in the Lake by Bob Leman. I don’t like gore and torture and things that eat babies. So does anyone have any recommendations? Is anyone still reading horror? There seems to be a ton of horror movies, but no books. Thirty, forty years ago it was just the opposite. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/2 "2006-04-13T04:41:09Z")
Well, _Harvest Home_ and _The Other_ by Thomas Tryon are pretty good. However, they are not now, and they are out of print, also, not always easy to find. They are definitely worth it if you can find a cheap copy. _House of Blood_ by Brian Smith is relatively new. It isn’t bad, but its not something that will ever be regarded as “classic”. And, there were a lot of proofreading mistakes in grammar in my copy. If you can get past that, it isn’t a bad little book. Other than that, I have no real recommendations on newer horror that isn’t all blood and gore, or just plain awful. I agree that horror novels aren’t what they used to be. What I do a lot of the time is go to used book stores, and get horror novels from the 60’s 70’s and 80’s, that are out of print, unheard of, or just hard to find. They are just written much better. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/3 "2006-04-13T13:17:27Z")
I was all excited by the title of this thread, but then I saw it had been started by one of the posters I consider a Horror Writing Authority. I did see yesterday that my library has ordered something I haven’t read yet, so I hope that will be the case for you also: Best of the Borderlands, which is a collection featuring Elizabeth E. Monteleone, Stephen King, Paul F. Wilson, Whitley Streiber, Joe R. Lansdale, Ramsey Campbell, Poppy Z. Brite, Charles L. Grant, and Bentley Little. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/4 "2006-04-13T13:44:41Z")
Don’t forget David Schow or Brian Lumley, although Lumley is exactly that vampire dective thing you asked against, he’s still pretty good. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/5 "2006-04-13T13:51:44Z")
See if you can track down a copy of Nick Mamatas’ “Move Under Ground”. It’s a first-person narrative of Jack Kerouac’s fight against Cthulhu, and it’s worth it just for the idea alone. I’m finding it slow going because I hate Kerouac’s prose style, but you might like it… ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/6 "2006-04-13T13:54:13Z")
I have really enjoyed everything I have read by English author _Christopher Fowler_. Most of his work is spooky and unsettling without resorting to gruesome crap. ---
**Author:** ![Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stark_Raven_Mad)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/7 "2006-04-13T14:49:28Z")
Doesn’t quite go with your criterion of new, but H.P. Lovecraft’s stuff is pretty awesomely freaky. Most of it’s available online as well (I think it’s in the public domain). When you’ve exhausted his oeuvre, go shopping for Cthulhu plush toys that you can display prominently so you can be the envy of geeks everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/8 "2006-04-13T15:40:55Z")
Thanks for the suggestions. 🙂 **MudShark** , Thomas Tryon is one of the writers I was remembering fondly when I was typing the OP. 🙂 Bryan Smith – I read a few pages of House of Blood. It felt derivative, and I put it aside for a time of desperation. I’m almost there! **DungBeetle** , thanks for the compliment. I’ve read most of those authors and enjoyed them. I haven’t had any trouble finding good horror in short story form. Maybe that’s where it belongs. **Cluricaun** , the first paragraph of Necroscope put me off Lumley – clunky description of a room or a building, if I remember right. Isn’t the beginning of a novel the place where a writer is supposed to shine? Get us hooked, and then they can disappoint later? I like David Schow’s short stories, haven’t tried a novel. **ultrafilter** , I’ll try that Mamatas title. Sounds intriguing. **don’t ask** - cool! Spooky and unsettling is good. I think I’ve read some of Fowler’s short stuff in the Year’s Best anthologies, either Datlow or Jones. **Stark Raven Mad** , I love Lovecraft. I heard there might be a movie of At the Mountains of Madness! 🙂 I’m getting a bit of a horror fix from fantasy – George R. R. Martin, Steven Erikson, and R. Scott Bakker have some nice horrific elements in their books. Sometimes it’s even more effective when you’re not expecting it. ---
**Author:** ![LiveOnAPlane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@LiveOnAPlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LiveOnAPlane)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/9 "2006-04-13T15:50:11Z")
Have you read “Wolfen” by any chance? If you saw the movie, I can understand thinking it kind of sucks, but I found the novel quite different, not too gross and genuinely scary in places. (Or, was the title “The Wolfen” ?) I shoulda Googled first, no time now at work. ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/10 "2006-04-13T16:13:43Z")
How do you feel about horror that treads into fantasy? Some of my favorites are Clive Barker, Neil Gaiman and Ramsey Campbell (well, only some from that last one). For Ramsey Campbell, maybe try _The Long Lost_ or _The Hungry Moon_. Neil Gaiman: _Coraline_ (technically for young readers but creepy as hell!) or _Smoke and Mirrors_ Clive Barker: _The Books of Blood_, _Hellbound Heart_ (this was what the movie _Hellraiser_ was based on), _The Damnation Game_. For more fantasy (mixed with horror), I tremendously enjoyed _The Great and Secret Show_ and its sequel, _Everville_. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/11 "2006-04-13T16:22:16Z")
> [@LiveOnAPlane](#): > > Have you read “Wolfen” by any chance? If you saw the movie, I can understand thinking it kind of sucks, but I found the novel quite different, not too gross and genuinely scary in places. > > (Or, was the title “The Wolfen” ?) I shoulda Googled first, no time now at work. _Wolfen_ by Whitley Streiber - terrific book an amalgam of detective story and horror/fantasy much like William Hjortsberg’s _Angel Heart_. Both great reads. ---
**Author:** ![Cockatiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cockatiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cockatiel)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/12 "2006-04-13T17:12:41Z")
It’s not particularly scary, but Robert McCammon’s [Swan Song](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0671741039/104-0501610-1481502) is amazing. It’s about the survival of American society after nuclear war breaks out, but there’s plenty of supernatural and creepy stuff in there and the characters and story are enthralling. Beware, it IS long, but very worth it. You might want to check out some more things by this guy, because books are good. I think he’s very underrated. ---
**Author:** ![Cockatiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cockatiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cockatiel)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/13 "2006-04-13T17:16:24Z")
> [@Cockatiel](#): > > You might want to check out some more things by this guy, because books are good. Of course books are good. **His** books are even better. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/14 "2006-04-13T17:23:16Z")
**Carrion comfort** by Dan Simmons was pretty good. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/15 "2006-04-13T18:00:43Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > **Cluricaun** , the first paragraph of Necroscope put me off Lumley – clunky description of a room or a building, if I remember right. Isn’t the beginning of a novel the place where a writer is supposed to shine? Get us hooked, and then they can disappoint later? I like David Schow’s short stories, haven’t tried a novel. Yeah, Lumley is an investment into future payoffs. It takes two books for the story to begin going anywhere, but it can be rewarding if you keep slugging away, and don’t mind some dated material involving evil Russians. Schow is a classic, well worth checking out. He’s at his best in short stories, but he’s got some skill. > [@Beadalin](#): > > I tremendously enjoyed The Great and Secret Show and its sequel, Everville. Really? The Great and Secret Show was my downfall with Barker. I’ve attempted to read it several times, but always get mired down in, what to me, amounts to his garbled hallucinogenic volume. There may be a decent book in there somewhere, but it gets overwhelmed with hard to follow nonsense. I’m not really one to ever put down a book once I start, but I always fold about 3/4 of the way through. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/16 "2006-04-13T18:02:54Z")
**LiveOnAPlane** , yeah, I’ve read and liked Wolfen, The Hunger, and Night Church. I think those were all written before Strieber had his alien experience. I stopped reading him after that. **beadalin** , I love a mix of fantasy and horror, and Barker is good with that. I didn’t read his Hollywood book but I’ve read all the others. Loved Coraline too. Haven’t read much Gaiman, just American Gods and one of the Sandman books. I haven’t kept up with Ramsey Campbell. I think the last one I read was Incarnate. I’d forgotten how nicely moody he gets. **Cockatiel** , I’ve read everything by McCammon and liked all of it, even the early stuff. Stay away from Speaks the Nightbird. Bloated and predictable, with way too much to-ing and fro-ing. **Qadgop the Mercotan** , I liked Carrion Comfort, Summer of Night (reminded me of King’s It), and even Song of Kali, which is well-hated. Haven’t read A Winter Haunting. I like his SF too, Hyperion and Ilium/Olympos. I just remembered one recent horror title I really liked – Eyes of the Carp, a novella by T. M. Wright. It’s the journal of a psychopath, and it’s clever and funny. Another good one is Shikar by Jack Warner. It’s being reissued – I think the new title is Maneater. It’s about a Bengal tiger loose in Georgia, and it’s a nice mix of southern/rural life, fantasy, and horror. I’ve ordered the Mamatas book from Amazon. Not having so much luck finding good (and cheap) copies of Christopher Fowler books, but I know where I can go to trade for some. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/17 "2006-04-13T18:14:23Z")
Have you read any Tim Powers? I really like him and think that he’s best described to newcomers to his work as horror. It’s there, but it’s not all that’s in the books. For a good introduction to why I think he writes excellent horror, see if you can pick up [On Stranger Tides](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1930235321/sr=8-12/qid=1144951896/ref=pd_bbs_12/104-1250882-3812732?%5Fencoding=UTF8), or [The Anubis Gates](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0441004016/sr=8-4/qid=1144951896/ref=pd_bbs_4/104-1250882-3812732?%5Fencoding=UTF8), or The Stress of Her Regard. Of course, if you like Lovecraft - try Dinner at Deviant’s Palace. It’s one of his earlier works, but I find that it reads like a spiritual descentand of “The Colour Out of Space.” ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/18 "2006-04-13T18:15:39Z")
> [@Cluricaun](#): > > The Great and Secret Show was my downfall with Barker. I’ve attempted to read it several times, but always get mired down in, what to me, amounts to his garbled hallucinogenic volume. Well, I’m glad it wasn’t just us! My husband bought this book second-hand (we get a lot of books that way) because he thought the premise was promising. Read a few chapters, then passed it to me and said “I can’t make sense of this; see what you can make of it”. Well, it was by me, too. I forced myself to finish it all, but I just couldn’t grasp it. For a little while, it would seem to start to make sense, but then it would just veer off into hallucination land again. > [@QtM](#): > > Carrion comfort by Dan Simmons was pretty good. I’ve also enjoyed Children of the Night and Song of Kali, by the same author. ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/19 "2006-04-13T18:16:50Z")
> [@Cluricaun](#): > > Really? The Great and Secret Show was my downfall with Barker. I know a couple of other people who feel the same way you do, so you’re not alone. I loved it, though, because it was so bizarre and epic and detailed. I’ve always really gotten into books where the character(s) discovers some hidden world that’s just a layer of this one – anything that covers the overlap between the mundane and the supernatural is cool with me. I absolutely devoured Raymond E. Feist’s _Faerie Tale_, and now that I think of it, almost all of Barker and Gaiman’s books fall into this theme, as well. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2006, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483/20 "2006-04-13T18:18:44Z")
Bah, hit submit by accident. Please forgive the incomplete linking, and poor spelling. [The Stress of Her Regard](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0441790976/sr=8-1/qid=1144951959/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-1250882-3812732?%5Fencoding=UTF8) [Dinner at Deviant’s Palace](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1892284847/qid=1144952189/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-1250882-3812732?s=books&v=glance&n=283155) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-horror-fiction-recommendations/352483.md?page=2)