# Recommend some horror books with unusual premises

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Tags:** books-writing-myths\
**Created:** [May 4, 2025, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866 "2025-05-04T14:23:45Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\
**Post date:** [May 10, 2025, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866/41 "2025-05-10T19:23:05Z")

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The Ruins by Scott Smith.

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**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866/42 "2025-05-11T11:16:34Z")

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I’m not familiar with that Jack Sparks.

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**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2025, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866/43 "2025-05-12T13:10:57Z")

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In “The List of Seven” the two main characters are a fictionalized Arthur Conan Doyle, and Jack Sparks who is a sort of detective/secret agent for the Crown. By the end of the book Sparks becomes Doyle’s inspiration for Sherlock Holmes.

And even though it doesn’t exactly pass all the requirements set out by the OP, I would still recommend it. Mark Frost, the author, was co-creator of “Twin Peaks” with David Lynch, so as you might expect there is plenty of weird creepy stuff going on.

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**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\
**Post date:** [May 28, 2025, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866/44 "2025-05-28T10:38:41Z")

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Loved that novel (along with its sequel, _The Six Messiahs_), but yeah, I didn’t get a real “horror novel” vibe while reading it (even if I could detect some Lovecraft-esque elements),

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**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\
**Post date:** [May 30, 2025, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866/45 "2025-05-30T20:19:48Z")

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_Sorrow’s Knot_ by Erin Bow. It’s the last book I stayed up late to read. Very interesting monsters.

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**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\
**Post date:** [June 1, 2025, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-horror-books-with-unusual-premises/1017866/46 "2025-06-01T21:36:20Z")

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Another outstanding one (which I read in one day) is _Mapping the Interior_, a novella by Stephen Graham Jones. A boy sees his father’s ghost and…well, describing it any further would spoil it, I think.

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