Goodreads Authors/Readers discussion

This bookshelf is for horror novels. Readers and authors are invited to share some of their favorite books in this genre!

The Shining

I'll second Vincent's nomination of The Shining, and add these:

I'll add another great King book.

It

Vincent wrote: "I'll add another great King book.

It
"

"It" scared the crap out of me when I saw the TV mini-series (I had already read the book). I liked the spine-tingling novel, but Tim Curry as Pennywise was enough to give *anyone* issues over clowns. :-)

Actually, I didn't get too spooked by "It"...clowns don't scare me. They're kinda weird but don't scare me. I think the creepiest book I've ever read was Stephen King's, "Pet Sematary"...that was one scary read!

Now, Tim Curry kind of scares me...but I love him!

Yeah, it all depends on whether you are scared of clowns. If you go into the story generally liking clowns, the book probably won't have the same effect.

Actually, I never gave clowns much thought one way or the other and I don't much care for circuses either...unless it's Todd Browning's old b&w circus/horror flick, "Freaks"...very weird & very cool! But then that's a movie, not a book.

I think your viewpoint is well taken, Vincent! The author has to hit that dark hidden (or not so hidden) part of the reader's psyche wherein dwells the boogey man. Then the author's got 'ya and you sleep with the lights on for years to come until you one day start feeling a bit foolish...but the fear never really goes away so you switch to a small nightlight.

Enough rambling from me. Take it away other horror fiction readers or our esteemed moderator...:>

Cecilia wrote: "Todd Browning's old b&w circus/horror flick, "Freaks""

We accept her, one of us ...
We accept her, one of us ...

I think that movie is brilliant in so many ways. :-)

YES! That is exactly the 'chant' that was going through my head as I wrote my email about "Freaks"!!!

Way to go, Sharon!

Let's Go Play at the Adams, Under the Skin, Banquet for the Damned, Pictures of the Dark

- Three superb novels and a wonderful book of short fiction I'm reading right now...

Frankenstein

I gotta add Phantoms by Dean Koontz cause that book freaked me out.
Also Rick Hautala's Little Brothers...I swear those little creatures he came up with were crawling around under the trailer I was staying in that summer up in Maine
The Mist by Stephen King was another great one. Especially since I was working in a store at the time that was set up just like the one in the story.

really defines novel writing as far as I am concerned along with the classics.

Scary Clowns always reminds of that true life monster clown John Wayne Gacy who liked all those boys in the '70s.
He would dress up as a clown for kids parties and go to the hospital, after that I couldn't see a clown without thinking how sick is that.
I guess there is enough scary stuff in the real world you don't have to make it up.
That's what I use to say when I was a cop. Some of the excuses people came up for the things they did, I always said 'You just can't make up this stuff'. I was always amazed what people could say or do.
When I am putting evil into the plot, I just have to look at the real world. It is already there, I don't have to make it up;, just change the names, the dates and the town.
I have already seen enough scary stuff to put in more stories than I will ever write.

You said it, Fern! There is truly enough sickness in this world we live in without having to look too far. Maybe that's why I enjoy some humor along with my spooks on occasion.
I've been enjoying Christopher Moore's "Bite Me" lately...he's a hoot!
I enjoy reading books that mix horror and humor...yea, I know, sick. Guess that's why I've always liked Moore's books since I first read "Practical Demonkeeping"...his first novel.

However, I still think the creepiest book I've read to date is Stephen King's "Pet Sematary"...way, way creepy!

I'm really glad Vincent has put this group together so we all have a way of 'meeting' new authors (and authors new to us) and learning what they have to offer. Geez...I've seen so many books I want to read from this site...it's unreal!

Thanks to all you authors, readers and, of course, Vincent!

Cheers!
--Cecilia

You know we don't laugh enough. That's why I am an old sitcom junkie. I truly love I Love Lucy.
I try to guess what episode it is within the first 10 seconds.
I have to admitt my writing is fairly serious, I tend intertwine animal abuse into the story line. That to me is very horrorable.

I'm not much of a sitcom person...but the "I Love Lucy" episodes were pretty funny. Love the old b & w films...that was a whole other era in time.

Nothing wrong with writing "serious" fiction either. Reading about animal abuse really makes me ill & angry...that's something I can't take & hope the law comes down hard on the perp! I know child abuse is horrible...but animal abuse rates right up there with it in my book.

Fern, I bet you've seen a lot of the ugly part of 'civilization' in your previous life as an officer of the law so am sure you have the inside track allowing you to write a pretty good story.

I hope all the stuff I had seen and heard helps me be a better story teller.

Experience is a great yet sometimes rough teacher.
I'm sure your experience will work in your favor when you put pen to paper...or maybe fingers to keyboard.

its not scary per say but its zombies :D
seriously loved it so much i bought it soo great

I see a lot of Stephen King
So thought I should add my favourite king's novel
Dreamcatcher


One of the best work of Stephen King

I thought Dreamcatcher the movie was really cool...it's one of those movies that gets better each time I watch it...also that thing that came out of the guys butt gave me some serious nightmares.

A really great horror author you should all check out is Graham Masterton...that guy can come up with some interesting stuff...and some painfull stuff as well. The Holy Harp has got to be the most painful thing I have ever read about in a book...ouch!!!

Melanie, I have Mira Grant's "FEED" on my to-read list! Looks like something I'd really enjoy and also had some pretty good reviews, too!

There are so many awesome books and authors out there it's great to have this discussion list to share with one another! If it weren't for our sharing...I would have never 'discovered' so many cool authors and their creative endeavors!

Cheers!
--Cecilia

Cecilia wrote: "Melanie, I have Mira Grant's "FEED" on my to-read list! Looks like something I'd really enjoy and also had some pretty good reviews, too!

There are so many awesome books and authors out there it..."
I really loved it, must admit self confessed zombie nut...but the whole idea of our future world was just so interesting
i hope you like it when you get around to it :D

Thanks for the 'verification' that "FEED" was a winner, Melanie! I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy the book whenever I EVER get around to reading it...but I will get it read...along with all those other 100,000 books I want to read before I pass on. Wonder if one gets to read on the 'other side'...hmmm...

I'm working on WWZ, too, B.E. I've liked what I've managed to get to read so far...really cool!!!

Zombie Apocalypse:Redemption My first horror/apocalyptic/zombie novel.
Synopsis
Dr. Donna Cairn is a genetics researcher for the Center of Disease Control. When the CDC issued the Zombie Apocalypse Alert, she discounted it as a way of advertising hurricane preparedness. When a conspiracy buff working with her in the silo speaks to her about the debunked Hapgood theory of Earth Crust Displacement, she again discounts it as just that some wacko, paranoid rambling. But when radiation levels after the Japanese earthquakes starting rising, all bets were off.

Simple dog bite patients are dying from a mysterious fever. Bodies start coming up missing from the morgues across the globe. When the death count reaches over one quarter of the world’s population dying due to this new plague, the CDC sends their best virologist, Kit Seger, to help Donna in her quest of finding the virus in her converted missile silo laboratory in Nebraska.

The dead have risen and hunger for human flesh. She never believed in zombies before, but now she believes in them. Can she and Kit find the cure before mankind becomes extinct? How do you cure people who are already dead? And better yet, how do you kill the dead?

Can it be that Donna’s unborn niece and nephew are the answer? With the earthquakes rumbling, zombies at the gate, and time running out will they find what they are looking for? Man can only hope.

Available at amazon.com, createspace, smashwords and other e-retailers.

Here's my first horror novel Shadows, published by Generation Next. Its dark and twisted!
It's available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords.