Anything Goes discussion

lets discuss horror authors, the ones that scare you so much that you cannot get to sleep at night or the ones that were dull and predictable.

So I'm not sure if this would 100% count as horror, but to me the premise was really creepy/freaky/scary. I give a big recomendation to the book Wither by Lauren DeStefano (A goodreads author!). The book is about a girl who is born into a post-eutopian world where everyone dies young. She is a second generation, and second generation women are being plucked off the street and sold into husbandry. Those not chosen - get shot. It starts with her in a van, about to be chosen to become the new - and third - wife of a very rich man, and follows as she tries to escape.
The second one, Fever, just was released this February, and though I bought it the month it came out (would have bought it that week but was in hospital at time) I have yet to read it.

Not into horror at all. The closest I've got recently is China Mieville's Kraken, but that's really fantasy horror, which would be a sub-genre. (Though I suppose pretty much all horror is fantasy!)

Anyway, Kraken was OK, but I'm pretty sure I probably wouldn't read it again: I wasn't emotionally or intellectually engaged enough.

Silver wrote: "So I'm not sure if this would 100% count as horror, but to me the premise was really creepy/freaky/scary. I give a big recomendation to the book Wither by Lauren DeStefano (A goodreads author!). Th..."

Sounds good to me. Which is lucky because I have a copy lurking at home somewhere in my TBR mountain.

I love John Saul, lots of his novels involve children and are really creepy. Stephen King is the king of horror for me. For medical horrors I like Robin Cook and for other creepy ones James Herbert.

During the late 70's and early 80's I couldnt read enough horror novels.

I am currently reading Hell Train by Christopher Fowler, a recommendation from my sci fi group....enjoying it very much!

I agree, Stephen King wrote the book on horror - literally. Bahahahaha... okay, so sleepiness brings out the worst humor in me.

Stephen King all the way!

to try and move away from the standard stephen king, koontz lists - one of the most horrifying books i read was American Psycho by Brett Eastern Ellis. it's not a horror novel as such but it is horrifying, some of the tortures become almost like Dali's Soft Watches, once you read them you basically cannot forget them. there's a sequence with a car battery and a nipple that - well as I say, you can't forget it. Lunar Park by the same author is far more a standard horror story and is well worth reading, a fun riff on poltergeist and stephen king novels


Flicker was fun though way too long. again some parts are very memorable

Not sure you'd include Ghost stories in this, but they are as scary as I go. Current favourite authors of this genre are Susan Hill and F.G. Cottam. I've read American Phycho too and Sandyboy is right, you don't forget that in a hurry.
A book I read many years ago Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon gave me nightmares for years!

Horror isn't really my thing as well but by Edward Lee is the book that got me into reading casually. Like Kyle, Lee is an author I like and aside from a few Stephen King and Koontz books his books are what I think of when I think horror. None of his books that I read were dull and predictable. But a couple stories had me looking over my shoulder for a bit. lol

I'm not keen on full-on or gory horror, but I've read a few Graham Joyce books, which some reviewers have termed horror. I found them disturbing and a tad creepy, but completely excellent. I'm reading The Tooth Fairy right now, and I think that will be scarier than either Some Kind Of Fairy Tale or The Silent Land.