Grace Callard
Horror media is a staple in all sorts of media, but to me, books are the scariest of all. They can get away with more gore and mature themes. Be warned the books on this list are all for the more mature reader.
1984
1984 is a classic in dystopian fiction and to many people is not considered a horror novel and that’s why it’s so low on this list. 1984 is a book about a dystopian society where Oceania is heavily controlled by the government. 1984 came out in 1949 to excellent reviews and it has since held up due to its timeless themes, such as the way that the truth in the book is manipulated to affect the people’s views and opinions on their country.
The Honeys
The Honeys is a great read for younger teens interested in getting into horror media. The Honeys is about a young genderfluid teen, Mars, after his sister’s death in their family home plans to go to camp Aspen, where his sister, Caroline, disappeared from before her death. But while he’s there he discovers that there is more hiding underneath the surface of the picturesque camp.
I love this book because it pulls off so many things at once, such as being openly queer in a very traditional setting and in a political family and showing what that means for so many people. The horror in this book is a perfect show of how horror and gore can be used for a beautiful coming of age story. The gore in this book is very well done with its inclusion of wildlife. And that’s all I’ll say for this book but if it interests you at all I highly recommend checking it out.
Recursion
Recursion is my personal favorite book of all time but it’s a bit more of a thriller than a horror, which means it has a bit less suspense and gore and is more action packed than most horror stories. The premise for the story is a bit like the butterfly effect, which is the idea that one small event, like a butterfly flapping its wings, can change the whole course of human history. The story begins with New York City cop Barry Sutton having to deal with a new disease called “False Memory Syndrome” or FMS and that’s all that can be said without any spoilers.
I highly recommend going into this book as blind as possible as Recursion is a mind boggling story that goes on a journey unlike any other.
2.Tender is the Flesh
To start off, the books after this point require a very big warning for anyone interested. Tender is the flesh is a dystopian horror translated from Spanish from an Argentinian author, where animals have acquired a disease wherein humans can no longer eat them, and in the next step, the government begins to make the transition towards eating human meat. Tender is the flesh is a disturbing, gory book that follows a meat packing factory employee as he is gifted a human being to raise and one day slaughter for food. This book is a psychological nightmare that is only about 200 pages. It depicts many horrific scenes such as the raising and slaughtering of humans in the same way that animals are treated today.
American Psycho
American Psycho is a classic horror movie that came from an even more horrifying book. American Psycho is about Patrick Bateman, a 26 year old man working on wall street who is also a psychopath. This book is a satire on American life for a rich man, and it does this very well. American Psycho is a critique on what we consider the high life, as Bateman graphically tortures and murders men and mostly women he also goes about his life as a wall street worker. The gore in this book is incredibly graphic and is not for the faint of heart or anyone with a weak stomach.
Horror books are one of my favorite genres of books because they really make me feel the disgust and fear that the author intended. American Psycho is my favorite because of the juxtaposition between the parts that make you laugh at the ridiculousness of some of the scenes and the fear you feel at the horrific gory scenes.