What Does the Bookworm Say?: Scary Books
Hi and welcome to What Does the Bookworm Say?, a feature where I discuss bookish topics with my friends at The Reader’s Antidote, Books Unbound and The Windy Pages. Each week, we will discuss a new bookish topic. This week’s topic is scary books. What makes a book scary and what are some of your favorite scary books?
What makes a book scary? That’s a hard question to answer and I think it’s going to be different for every person. While I love Halloween and horror movies, I realized that I haven’t read a lot of books that would be considered horror or scary. I find books with a thread of truth in them to be scary. I think that’s why people are so fascinated with stories about serial killers. They actually exist in the world and, even if you are reading a fictional book, I think there is a thread of believably that makes that kind of story scary. Stories about ghosts and things don’t usually frighten me as much because I don’t really believe in them. I think ghosts are definitely possible but I’ve never had an experience with them that would make me frightened of them. I know some people who are terrified by ghost stories but I am not. A good scary book is usually very atmospheric and has a good sense of setting. A creepy house or town can definitely make a book even scarier.
I don’t know if this has been very helpful but here is a list of a few books that I think are pretty scary.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy – I remember being totally freaked out after reading this book. Set in a post-apocalyptic world where something has caused the sun’s rays to no longer reach the earth, this is a terrifying depiction of what would happen if all of the organic life on earth died. The few human survivors become nomads, moving in order to scavenge what little resources there are to survive. Bands of cannibals roam and no one can be trusted. I think this book is scary to me because I can actually imagine that this is the way the world would go, should a situation like this occur. I don’t have much faith in humanity I guess and can readily imagine us all eating each other.
The Hot Zone by Richard Preston – A true and frightening book about the Ebola virus. This book is so scary because it’s true. The symptoms of Ebola are terrifying and you’re not going to want to touch anything after reading this. And with several cases of Ebola making headlines right now, this book is especially relevant, even 15 years after it was published.
The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris – Like a lot of people, I saw the movie adaptation of this book before reading it. But I loved the movie so much that I wanted to go back and read the book. It’s definitely just as scary as the film. I haven’t read it in years but I remember being freaked out after reading it.
I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga – Told from the POV of a teen whose father is the most notorious serial killer in recent history. Jasper’s father raised him to be a killer as well, drilling into him lessons in how to be the perfect serial killer. At times, Jasper isn’t sure if he really escaped his father’s influence. This is a super scary story because we really get a look into what it might be like to be the son of a serial killer. He doubts himself and his thoughts. When his father escapes jail, all hell breaks loose…
The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd – This is a dark, Gothic re-telling of The Island of Dr Moreau. There was a really ominous air throughout the book and a feeling of dread. This was a really dark and intense book.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley – I read this when I was in high school while my parents drove us to vacation in Lake Tahoe. It was the one time I didn’t get carsick while reading in the car. I remember being completely riveted to the story and it stayed with me for days afterwards. One of the original horror novels, I can see why people are still interested in the themes and story today.
Those are some of my favorite scary books. What books make you hide under the covers? Don’t forget to check out The Reader’s Antidote, Books Unbound and The Windy Pages to see what their answers are to today’s question.
