Book Recommendations from Durbin

Book Recommendations

If you are interested in reading more horror novels, below are a few I recommend:

Pet Sematary by Stephen King

I am not the world's biggest Stephen King fan, simply because his writing isn't very strong at the sentence level and his story lines tend to falter into silly cliches mid-way through his books, but this book is really strong and creepy. It's a zombie story, but not your typical zombie apocalypse as it is much more intimate. If you like it, you could give The Shining a try as well. It's not as good as the film by Kubrick, which is a masterpiece, but it's still pretty fun and the first half is really, really good.

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

Vampire-zombie apocalypse goodness here. Last man on earth. Nothing like the film, either, so don't expect them to be the same.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

One of my favorite novels of any genre. This is a psychological horror novel that set the standard for haunted house novels. If you like it, check out her other masterpiece, We Have Always Lived in the Castle.

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

A great and spooky ghost story; much better than the film.

Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice

One of my favorite novels of all time; this is an existential and gorgeous meditation on the meaning of human existence, told through the eyes of a vampire. It's scary, too.

Under the Skin by Michael Faber

There is a good film by the same name, but the novel is even better. It's a sci-fi horror narrative, about a woman who picks up hitchhikers and does something horrible to them. I don't want to tell you what because you'll want to discover it yourself. I strongly recommend NOT reading any spoilers about this book and letting yourself discover it as you read.

Battle Royale by Kousahun Takami

Also a cult classic film (that is extremely gory, so you've been forewarned) this is a tale of high schoolers who have to fight each other to the death. This book came out long before the Hunger Games, and is much more violent (also, their deaths are not televised). A classic in Japanese horror literature.