I have been a fan of horror and suspense since way back when; King, Koontz, Herbert, bring them all on. But of all the books I have read down the years, there is one which haunts me even to this day, and that is one of Stephen Kings called ‘The Long Walk’ written under his Bachmann persona. Not a ghoulies and ghosties, not monsters or aliens, but a truly disturbing and horrifying premise. I can thoroughly recommend it, but sorry any hints will ruin it. :twisted::twisted:
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Ann franks diary totally disturbed me as a child … up to then Id been a over protected from the world young girl from the country side , I knew nothing about the war and the things that happened … I remember having terrible dreams for many years after reading that book.
But now I look back on it Im glad I read it as it was one of the frist things that started me thinking for my self and not to just except what I was told by my peers
The magic cottage by James Herbert, until I read that I loved camping in the woods, after reading it we got a caravan and stayed as far from woods as possible !
Yes, Anne Frank’s diary definitely and George Orwell’s 1984 and Animal Farm.
For me it was King Solomon’s Mines by H. Rider Haggard I thought it was really creepy and scary. Nothing else has ever scared me as much; after reading some I slept with the light on.
BTW the only film ever to give me nightmares I saw about the same time ironically a Three Stooges comedy which involved caves, treasure and revolving chairs. Make what you will of that.
The Devil Rides Out by Dennis Wheatley
(Subsequently made into a movie)
In Cold Blood …Truman Capote… also a good movie but not as thrilling as the book! (imo)
Skallagrig by William Horwood. A Christian friend lent it to me, and I re-read it a year or so ago. If anyone has - or knows someone who has - cerebral palsy I would highly recommend you read it. It’s haunting, very painful to read in parts but ultimately heart wrenchingly rewarding.
I also loved The Night Listener by Armistead Maupin. This is a real puzzler and I couldn’t put it down.
I read the book and had no desire to watch the film. The book scared me witless.:shock:
Brian Keenan’s “An Evil Cradling” absolutely haunting. To think humans can do this to other humans. Made me prefer animals so much more!
I read ‘The Devil Rides Out’ when in my teens, along with all Wheatleys’ other books, which although I found a bit scary at the time, are considerably less scary nowadays when compared with other horror stuff.
I love Armistead’s Tales of the City series, both as books and t.v. series, I had no idea he had written a scary book, will have to look out for that one.
Never mind the book The Devil Rides Out being scary, the film did it for me!!!
I don’t know where to start there are so many…
Scariest book… Susan Hills ‘The Woman in Black’
One book that left an impression for a long time was
The Flowers Of The Field by Sarah Harrison, a graphic portrait of WW1
As a child Anna Sewells Black Beauty, Kingsley’s The Water Babies and Brontes Jane Eyre all affected me greatly for various reasons.
Perfect People - Peter James, disturbing, about genetics. Before I Go To Sleep - S.J.Watson, I’m reading at the mo, about a woman with amnesia.
I’m a horror fan myself and nothing I have ever read or seen on the screen scared me as much as ‘The Exorcist’, I really do think some very evil people are possessed by something not of this world, something completely alien to human nature.
I’ve also been a horror and sci-fi fan since about the age of 15 and my first horror book was by Dennis Wheatley and it frightened and hooked me on that genre (I suppose that’s the sign of a good writer).
Of late, the only writer that has managed to make me feel uncomfortable about the scenarios is Neil Gaiman - probably because they’re a bit too close to a society I recognise!
Did you know that this is being made into a film even as we speak? With Kidman in the lead role?
The Bible is the scariest book if you believe it to be literally true. The deity featured in it is the worst monster ever created.:shock:
I also like The Devil Rides Out, A few years ago I got it in Audio Form and made the mistake of taking the wee player to bed with me (as I was on my own that night) I scared myself silly at the noises the old house made settling for the night…Also that was the night I’d not shut the kitchen door properly and those blooming Sheepdogs decided to creep out and sneak into the bedroom (hoping I wouldn’t notice) I almost fainted when the bedroom door swung quietly open, jeezzzze
I listened to the rest during the day. 
Which one? I can imagine Kidman in the amnesia one. I found the author forgot that the character Christine could only remember the day she was in. A few times she said she remembered things that were days before. Must have been difficult to write!