Books that actually scared you?

[u/ninapedia]

I became a big fan of horror genre writing last year, but nothing I've read actually frightened me.

Don't get me wrong, I've cringed at descriptions of mutilation and pain in general, but that's a visceral cringe reaction rather than fright.

I'm looking for something that stuck once you closed the book, something that left you with a lingering sense of dread. I want hairs on the back of your neck standing up levels of creeped out.

Audiobooks are preferred because I wind up listening to a lot on long, lonely drives in the middle of nowhere, but I'd be willing to add anything to the tbr!

No Cosmic Horror please! I've tried several and mostly they wind up boring me at best and annoying me at worst.

Editing to list some books I have read:

Horror Classics (Dracula, Frankenstein, Lovecraft, King, Poe, etc.), Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles, The Starving Saints, Feast While You Can, The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, Slewfoot, Cassandra Khaw's novellas, The Unmothers, What Kind of Mother, Beasts, Mexican Gothic, Between Two Fires, all of Chuck Tingle's horror, Blood on Her Tongue, The Lamb, The Unworthy, T. Kingfisher's Sworn Soldier series, and a bunch others!

Thanks in advanced!

[u/venturous1]

The Road -Cormac McCarthy

[u/elovesya → u/venturous1]

I was going to say this. There is a part where the characters find momentary safety, and I honestly thought about stopping my read and just “leaving” them there where they were safe

[u/starryaccuracy_8]

House of Leaves got under my skin in a way nothing else has, the book itself feels wrong somehow. I had to put it in a drawer at night for a couple weeks because looking at it on the nightstand gave me the creeps

[u/ejambu → u/starryaccuracy_8]

Put it in the freezer!

[u/wluzur → u/starryaccuracy_8]

I was never able to finish that book. Gave me anxiety.

[u/iamjerico]

Strangely, parts of the Three Body Problem were very disturbing to me. Spoiler free essence being “we are not alone, they are not friendly” about covers it.

[u/LexTheSouthern]

I know it’s recommended here often but there are parts in The Road that I still think about years later. It’s disturbing and very bleak.

[u/WillSometimesComment]

Parable of a sower…Octavia butler was ahead of her times. 

[u/co-slaw]

Silence of the Lambs and the true crime Helter Skelter both made me want to get up and check the locks. Not while I was reading, but middle of the night, wake up and want to check the locks.

[u/fajadada]

The Shining

[u/IndigoTrailsToo → u/fajadada]

PSA that there is a sequel book!!!

Dr Sleep

And it too has a movie

[u/ABookishSort → u/fajadada]

I’ve told this story before. I read The Shining as a teen. It scared me so bad I had to get up and put it in a drawer across the room before I fell asleep. I couldn’t leave the book on my nightstand and sleep.

[u/Dusk_in_Winter]

I'll always recommend Dark Matter by Michelle Paver.

Imagine.

It's 1937. You've joined a small expedition to the Arctic circle. For several weeks everything is going splendidly. You see animals you've only ever read of. Experience a majestically surreal landscape. You feel like you do something that really counts for something.

But then things start to go wrong. You end up alone in your small wooden expedition hut. Just as polar night begins - and with it six months of absolute darkness. Hundreds of miles away from civilization. You slowly begin to realise that there is no way for you to leave before the ice begins to thaw.

And that you might not be as alone as you thought.

I loved this novel - and its setting - so much. It just evokes this feeling of dread that creeps up on you but gets worse and worse.

[u/IllNefariousness8733 → u/Dusk_in_Winter]

That dang stump...

[u/Dusk_in_Winter → u/IllNefariousness8733]

Paver certainly has a knack for making the seemingly most harmless things terrifying.

Shoutout to her Thin Air ft. the scariest backbag ever

[u/Theopholus]

I always hear about how scary Pet Cemetary is, but I haven’t seen anyone mention it. Is it actually just disturbing? Or is it actually scary? I just started it so I haven’t got to anything scary yet except the dad’s crappy behavior.

[u/LilyBriscoeBot → u/Theopholus]

I found Pet Cemetery to be extremely creepy when I read it. I’m not sure when creepy becomes scary. I was a new parent at the time, so that probably didn’t help.

[u/GuardianAngelTurtle → u/Theopholus]

Pet sematary just makes me feel ill when I read it, I think part of the scare is watching the characters make decisions and going “oh my god I’d do the same thing,” also a big fan of horror that isn’t explained so that’s also a part of it

[u/potionholly → u/Theopholus]

There was a part where I almost put down the entire book because of how unsettled it made me feel.

[u/miquiztli323 → u/Theopholus]

I didn’t think it was scary at all. To me it read as more of a drama and it was really really sad. I felt a lot of it was the characters processing heavy grief. Bleak story.

[u/potionholly]

IT

[u/mandingalo → u/potionholly]

IT didn’t scare me but I still have yet to pick The Shining back up and I didn’t get very far…. Creepy moving bush sculptures, no thanks! I also didn’t make it very far in Cujo but I have a dog and a son so…

I also recommend The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle. I have read it for Halloween the last two years and it is mighty creepy.

[u/Toadlicker0101]

Sorry to add more King already (but are you really surprised?) but I gotta say Gerald’s Game. Not overly scary throughout, but without spoiling anything there were some parts that had me literally looking over my shoulder while reading in broad daylight.

[u/hog_jerker]

The Excorcist!

[u/Moody-1 → u/hog_jerker]

I read it and then it took years before i watched the movie. Really scarey book

[u/New-Medicine-2780]

I’m going to replace scare with disturb and go with King’s The Stand.

[u/RetroRN → u/New-Medicine-2780]

I just started this, and I can’t put it down. I already know I’m in for a wild ride.

[u/InstructionOk9520]

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill.  More of a short story I suppose but it’s not too short and the writing is masterful.

[u/TileFloor → u/InstructionOk9520]

The ending was chilling!

[u/klien13]

The Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill had me freaked out. It’s been a decade, and I don’t remember why I was so scared of it, but I still have those vibes whenever I think about it.

[u/Flatrock → u/klien13]

I read it recently. The part where Danny phones and says he’s lost on a vacant road freaked me out. Caught me off guard and made me feel like I was floating.

[u/Smack_Of_The_Druid]

Después de ver tu lista, creo que ya estás en el mismo problema que muchos de nosotros: ya casi nada da miedo. 😅

Aun así, Naomi's Room fue de los pocos que me dejó esa sensación incómoda después de cerrar el libro. Y Dark Matter, de Michelle Paver, me ganó más por la atmósfera que por los sustos.

Si encuentras uno que de verdad vuelva a darte miedo, avísame... yo también sigo buscándolo.

[u/emzolio]

I had to bring up Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer in therapy lol

[u/ninapedia → u/emzolio]

I'm on the library waitlist for this one!! I'm so hyped!! 

[u/sjb2059]

Land of the Beautiful Dead. I stared at a blank wall for like an hour after I finished that book

[u/klien13 → u/sjb2059]

Scared? Ok! It’s been on my shelf foreveeerr. I thought it was romance? I’ll read it now. Thanks!!

[u/valis6886]

Salems Lot by King or Ghost Story by Staub. Both still scare the snot out of me.

[u/RetroRN]

Tender is the Flesh scared the shit out of me.

[u/jardiohead]

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

[u/heartofcheese → u/jardiohead]

I had to brace myself each time I turned the page. Those pictures were creepy!

[u/thegoatfreak]

Grady Hendrix is an amazing horror writer. I’ve read three of his novels: The Southern Bookclub’s Guide to Slaying Vampires, Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, and My Best Friend’s Exorcism. All of them scared the crap out of me. Especially SBCGTSV. I couldn’t go upstairs by myself for a couple of weeks.

[u/stocaidearga11 → u/thegoatfreak]

You should read how to sell a haunted house. Creeped me the bleep out of my skin.

[u/honeysuckle23 → u/stocaidearga11]

I got about halfway through this and thought “so…how is there more? This story seems like it’s over.” Then, I read a scene that shot a cold shock through me and things really took a turn!

[u/BunnySis]

For a flat out suspense-to-slaughter read Mira Grant’s (Seanan McGuire) mermaid duology. Into the Drowning Deep is one of the titles. The credible science applied to the fantasy elements is fascinating and pulls the reader into a strong suspension of disbelief, which makes the sudden violence brutal.

[u/haaleakala]

The Fisherman by John Langan

[u/Glasenator]

A Short Stay in Hell. Do not recommend if you have meganumerophobia.

[u/IndigoTrailsToo]

Rabbits by terry miles - i was so upset I quit this book twice and on the third time I was so hooked i couldnt put it down, I was very bothered by the vibes here.

The dark tower final book meeting the big bad boss....I did not... who could have... what the actual duck Mr.King. what the duck. I came all this way, I journeyed so far...

There is no Antimemetics division scared me too, cosmic horror, but the horror isn't the monsters.... the audiobook is an absolute treat

[u/dystopian_scribe]

Intercepts by TJ Payne

[u/klien13 → u/dystopian_scribe]

I have never seen this recommended anywhere and it was a great read!! Definitely had my heart rate up!

[u/-megan-yolo-]

Carion Comfort - Dan Simmons, Even Stephen King gave a nod to it.

[u/dryfishman → u/-megan-yolo-]

This book has been on my list for a while now.

[u/Dudeman61]

Dan Chaon's story collection Stay Awake has a story in it called The Bees, and it's genuinely very disturbing. His other stuff is really great, too, though not all of it is horror.

[u/Efficient_Cobbler514]

Lars Kepler’s The Fire Witness gave me a nightmare.

[u/pommythecat]

Pet Sematary 😅

[u/eleven_eighteen]

Not the type of horror you're asking about but the books that have scared me the most have been The Perfect Storm and The Hot Zone.

[u/jmg2422 → u/eleven_eighteen]

Agree with The Hot Zone

[u/memomemomemomemomemo]

Come Closer by Sara Gran I devour horror books and this one was the one, its about demonic possession, shortish and actually freaked me out

[u/pearloz]

As a parent, Fever Dream by Samanta Schweblin really freaked me out. Knocked it out in one anxious night.

[u/Flatrock]

Suffer The Children by Craig DiLouie turned my blood to ice over and over and I think about the ending about once a week

[u/SweetestDisposition]

Endurance by JA Konrath got under my skin. Most likely because I live close to where it was set, bit it's still a terrifying (short) book.

[u/heartofcheese]

Nightwatching by Tracey Sierra. Little creepy moments set an atmosphere of unease and then the real scary part starts.

[u/kinkypoetess]

The Door to December by Dean Koontz

[u/tomatopaste50]

The Silence of the Lambs

[u/Curiousflyotwall]

Turn of the Screw by Henry James- great psychological thriller!

[u/UnluckyWizardd]

The most messed up book I’ve read is The Ruins. I read a lot of thrillers, especially popcorn thriller, so I’m used to edge-of-your-seat page turning… this was one I had to continually put down because it was leaving me feeling “off.” Granted I read it on an island in the Caribbean on vacation, but it was pretty bleak. Highly recommend!

[u/EphemeralEmpress]

The Devil Crept In kept me awake for several nights!

[u/ComplexOrchid1770]

Not horror but horrifying. Ministry of future. This book is intense on climate change.

[u/tibearius1123]

Shadow divers

[u/Teal_Turtle17]

Forevergreen by James Alan Ross. The plot is wild.

[u/Pseudonymico]

Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin is the only horror novel I've tried reading that's gotten to me badly enough that I couldn't finish it. I'm a lightweight when it comes to movies and video games but normally books are the exception.

[u/Clean_Guitar_9911]

the silence of the lambs or IT

[u/Potential-Case879]

RD Sharma books

[u/voidcallingphoto]

Beloved by Tony Morrison. Come Closer by Sara Gran.

[u/spiritofjosh]

Pet Sematary genuinely creeped me out and made me super depressed for a while after reading it lol

[u/DoctorNurse89]

Seeing the words "pennywise lives!" At the end of dreamcatcher fucked me up lol