Top 10 Best Horror Books of All Time

[@lesliepowell-mccarty7067]

This is an excellent list! Psycho, The Stepford Wives, Burnt Offerings, and Something Wicked this way comes are in my top 10 as well. The Stepford Wives is not only scary it's infuriating. My Mom read it when I was little and was pissed off at the entire family, especially my Dad. 😂

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

😂I hope he managed to get back on her good graces😂My list has good company. I'm happy😁

[@CliffsDarkGems]

An excellent list Michael! I like incest and beheadings, count me in! 🤣I loved Burnt Offerings, a candidate for best book of 2024. The Hellbound Heart, I was interested to see which of his books you would choose. I really enjoyed The Ritual, will look out for The Reddening next. Something Wicked This Way Comes is a gorgeous book and great choice for number one. Hope you are doing well my friend!

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Thanks Cliff😁I'm glad Burnt Offerings and The Ritual worked for you too.😁

[@ericneff9908]

Just finished The Haunting of Hill House last night, based on your rec (and others). I was expecting a well-written but conventional 1950s haunting story. I got a sophisticated, complex, and foreboding character study of Eleanor. I've been thinking about it ever since. To say I was impressed would be quite the understatement.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

I love it! I'm glad you enjoyed it (she's one of my favourite writers), and thanks for letting me know! Wishing you many more successful reads...

[@toddblanchard7765]

Kathe Koja’s “The Cipher” is my top horror novel. Would strongly recommend it.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

I've added it to my TBR. Thanks for the recommendation

[@carlosbranca8080]

I read Burnt Offerings because of your recommendation and man! It's in my top ten horrors too. I will read House of Leaves next year. In October i am starting with The Blackwater Saga by Michael Mcdowell. Great list!

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

😁Hi Carlos! I love hearing that. Thanks. I hear good things about The Blackwater Saga. Let me know how it goes with you.

[@444Raine]

Thank you for the depth of thought in your videos. I too loved A Head Full of Ghosts and everything I've read by Shirley Jackson. I'm adding Something Wicked This Way Comes to my TBR, thanks. Probably my favorite horror book is Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay. I saw the movie in 1975 and never forgot it. I recently read the book and it is just as good or better. I was amused to learn her last chapter explained it all but was so crazy her editors made her remove it. Other favorites of mine are Lunar Park by Bret Easton Ellis, The White Hotel by D.M. Thomas, The Elementals by Michael McDowell, Those Across the River by Christopher Buelman.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

I had heard that she chose to have the chapter 'locked up' to be released upon her passing. I have read it (you can find it on line). I think it doesn't add much. But I did thoroughly enjoy that book.

[@angelwalker979]

Great list! You know i approve! Except for House of Leaves, i haven't read it yet. I'm intimidated by it. 😂😳 i will give it a go eventually! xx p.s. when's Nick Cutter interview?

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Thank you😊I will try to get it out next weekend.

[@angelwalker979]

@@Michael_Wertenberg 😃👍

[@Mxe00.]

Have u read "Voyagers of hell" yet. I think it's perfect blend of horror and fantasy. You must try it.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

I hadn't heard of that one. Thanks for the recommendation.

[@romyespy6586]

I’m currently reading Burnt Offerings. The movie terrified and delighted me as a child.

[@Kritz_Reads]

@@romyespy6586 I think I need to add this to my list. So many people loving on it!

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Let me know what you think when you're finished. I ope you enjoy it asmuch as I did.

[@romyespy6586]

@@Michael_Wertenberg I loved it! I could almost feel Marian's 'hum' in the sitting room. The atmosphere was engrossing !

[@craighill3588]

Ira Levin - never a wasted word. That’s the truth.

[@DAGDRUM53]

You are more adventurous in your reading than I am, Mark, I tend to stick with old favorites (flawed thinking indeed). Without your drawing my attention to authors I've never heard of (or worse, prejudging them) I would've never considered many of the names on your list. That defines the goodness of all quality booktubers; they're ubiquitous yet so few are worthwhile. An example would be the plethora of them extolling the praises of, for example, the Malazon series. Tried it, but it just wasn't my jam, that's not a criticism of anyone. I will definitely be trying The Reddening, Stepford Wives and Burnt Offerings (many many books borrow that Biblical terminology for a title; I did enjoy Laurell K. Hamilton's take on it, one of her best Anita Blake books---the first ten are impressive, the subsequent 20 only have three or four scattered gems among them). So before I inadvertently become a book reviewer myself I doff ol' chapeau for another informative video essay and bid you adieu. I'm off to check out your video Horror Books With Killer Endings (there are so few and Stephen King isn't among of them). Damn, there I go again. Be well!

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

😅Thanks for the kind words. If you do check out those books, please let me know how you get on with them!

[@DAGDRUM53]

@@Michael_Wertenberg I will let you know and, now watching your Killer Endings video, hope I didn't abrade your feelings besmirching King's endings. He is a favored son among American writers (vast remuneration & countless movie adaptations don't lie) and I've read/enjoyed many works by his from secondhand bookstores and my local library. I've added Doctor Sleep to the three other books I promised I'd seek out. Probably more as I've not finished your Endings video yet.

[@angelwalker979]

I love the Anita Blake series! I don't think I've seen a booktuber yet talk about them.🤔

[@DAGDRUM53]

@@angelwalker979 Only recently did I see one, a guy who went to school with her, but he admits he quit reading Anita after book #10. Sorry, I don't recall his name. I bought new copies of the first 25 Blakes, and all 9 of the Merry Gentry series.

[@angelwalker979]

@DAGDRUM53 yeah they're good. I stopped after Obsidian Butterfly. I was starting to get just burnt out on them bc I binged read so many at the time lol. Love to pick them back up at some point. I've only read the first Merry Gentry book.

[@Kritz_Reads]

Michael on children being beheaded: 😃. Michael on child exorcism 😡. I always hear everyone talk about Shirley Jackson's we have always lived in the castle and hill house (both of which I've read), but I'm curious, what are some of her other works that you have loved? I own Sundial, but haven't gotten to it yet. Happy to see Psycho here since I had it in my pile for this month. I never really hear anyone speak about this one.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

How does Michael condemning child exprcism get an angry face!🤷To each their own, I suppose. We Have Always Lived in the Castle is my favourite. Sundial, my least favourite. Sorry. It's really Hill House and The Lottery, that would satisfy horror fans, I think. Though Hangsaman is an excellent, dark academia/experimental novel, and her hit Bird's Nest is an interesting take on identity anxiety and the societal pressures put on women to adopt certain behaviours. A book about multiple personalities decades before that was ever really a thing. (Though, it's most likely not a thing in psychology, I mean a thing as a trope.)

[@Kritz_Reads]

@@Michael_Wertenberg the angry face was you being mad about it and the happy face was also you enjoying beheadings. I can't believe you didn't see yourself in those very accurate emojis. Bird's Nest sounds like something I would be into

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

@@Kritz_Reads 😅I'm still learning about emojis. I like how you give out emoji assignments at the end of your videos for those like me who need the practice. I appreciate the help. I didn't realize emojis could be 2nd person. But it makes sense that they can. Duly noted.🎓

[@Kritz_Reads]

@@Michael_Wertenberg don’t worry. One day you shall master the emoji and could then write an entire novel with them. I just thought it was funny that you went from speaking gleefully about child decapitation to being upset about exorcism. I forget what I was recently reading that mentioned it is almost only females that underwent these exorcisms. I’m not certain if that is true, but I did find that interesting

[@onourpath]

I snort-laughed over this as well!

[@dianadavis286]

Thanks for the list. I just put the Reddening on my Kindle - it is free from Kindle Unlimited in the US. Your list is amazing, and thank you for having a well-rounded list not filled with Stephen King (who is great, but there are so many other books out there.) The Reddening is the only book that I have not read. I agree with you about exorcism. The William Peter Blatty classic disturbed me, not because of the religious undertone, but for the medical abuse that Regan undergoes. I couldn't make it through House of Leaves. It was a gorgeously laid out novel, but my brain just couldn't do it! Horror has been my go to since my Dad (who gave me my love of reading) gave me my first Poe book when I was 6. The first full-on horror novel I read was Flowers in the Attic, and like most women of my generation, I was given that book by my mom!

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Great comment! Thank you for the kind words😁I'm like you, my love of horror started at an early age with Poe. Let me know how The Reddening works on you.

[@dianadavis286]

@@Michael_Wertenberg I've been reading it. I'm so impressed by the windswept, vast isolation that Nevill evokes. I'm taking it in small pieces because I have a couple of ARCs to read and review, and Nevill's prose is, at times, a little dense and require a bit of digestion before moving on. Thank you again for the rec! I'm looking for my copy of the Troop before I look at your Cutter interview.

[@NiceTryGuvnah]

The only book I have read from adam nevill so far is all the fiends of hell, but I would highly recommend it.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Yes! I love that book.

[@literarylove123]

Disturb Not the Dream is on my Kindle right now. Shirley Jackson♥ House of Leaves is my November project. I'm going to make it work this time! The Reddening is so good. I recently reread The Stepford Wives for a book club. It still packs a punch today.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

😁🤞

[@alexaproffitt4640]

You had me at VC Andrews on crack…💯💯💯

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

😁

[@BlueEyedMatt42]

I love The Reddening so much, but I didn’t like the ending of one of the main characters story. But I loved the journey. I’m reading The Vessel for Halloween and will be reading Cunning Folk next year.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

I think you picked a good one for a Halloween read😃

[@Paul_Bond.]

Now I've watched the video. Haven't read Disturb Not the Dream or Burn Offerings or The Reddening., nor have I read Something Wicked This Way Comes. Very shocked by that pick, I love Bradbury but have never read that novel. Thanks very much Michael, much for me to read.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

I would be curious to hear what a Bradbury fan thinks of that novel compared to his others. I've only read 3, but I assume that one is his best (but that's a rather uninformed assumption). Still, it's quite the masterpiece.

[@ericneff9908]

What is the best format/edition in which to read House of Leaves? I assume it wouldn't work on Kindle?

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

The problem with Kindle (from my limited experience using it) is that it only displays about 1/3 of the page at a time. The page size is important in HOL. I think an ebook read on a laptop would work. Just make sure the ebook edition has the same (or very similar) page count as the print edition.

[@ericneff9908]

@@Michael_Wertenberg Something Jeff Bezos can't control. I like it! Thanks, I just ordered it. Been on my TBR for quite a while.

[@nikita2900]

Get the book…..

[@ericneff9908]

@@nikita2900 I haven't read a paper book in so long, I'm not sure I remember how to open it!

[@PPPPresto]

It could never work on Kindle. Just the book as intended.

[@Alicia-606]

Incest & beheadings! I’ve had Disturb Not the Dream on my tbr for too long. It just moved way up. I loved Scarlet Gospels. Great list 👏🏻

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Thanks. If you do read it, letme know what you think. Trigger warnings!

[@newtvonmonster]

Clive is my guy! I've read every word he's ever put to paper. ♡♡♡

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Same. Except I haven't got my hands (or eyes) on his plays. Can't seem to find them.

[@JohnnyRecently]

I adore every book you mentioned, except "A Head Full Of Ghosts".

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Probably, A Head Full of Ghosts might have been the first horror book I read that introduced critical thinking. And I'm a sucker for critical thinking🙃

[@JohnnyRecently]

@@Michael_Wertenberg I'm also a sucker for logic and critical thinking. The obscure horror novel in my top ten is "The Retreat" by Jerrold Mundis"...published in 1985. I warn you, some people are triggered by "The Retreat".

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

@@JohnnyRecently Thanks for the recommendation. I hadn't heard of that one before. Very cool cover!

[@arekkrolak6320]

From the authors you mention I can read anything by Ray Bradbury and J L Borges, the only book about exorcisms that is surely worth reading is Devils of Loudun by A Huxley

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

'm not fsmiliar with Devils of Loudun. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

[@Summalogicae]

I find myself doing the quivering lip thing (should be a trademark phrase) during the penultimate question of job interviews

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

😁I wonder what is the penultimate question: why do you want this job? I can see tears threatening to pour from that trigger😆

[@johnwalsh4857]

First horror movie I watched was the Sentinel back in 1978. Scared me silly, now watching it again nearly 50 years later, its not scary but creepy.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

I haven't seen that movie. I did read the book, though, last year for my video series on '70s horror. I thought it was excellent. Part horror, part mystery page-turner. I should probably check out the movie. Good chance I'll like it.

[@Paul_Bond.]

I haven't even watched this yet but you are playing with fire.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Never🙃🧨

[@GentleReader01]

Actual Victorian erotica is very heavy on spanking. Apparently their #1 fetish. Mostly pretty dull. A lot of it is available online, but not really recommended being a random sample for curiosity’s sake. You need to be reading Laird Barron for transgressive family stuff. He grew up in and abusive home in Alaska, the kind of situation where taking part in the Iditarod was a welcome relief. Pick up his current collection, Not A Speck Of Light, so I can stop lecturing you about this. :) But seriously, you’re going to dig it. Picks of yours that I’d want on my list: The Haunting of Hill House. Jackson’s prose reminds me of American Craftsman architecture (look up the Gamble House and other work by Greene & Greene), so solid and smooth and elegant. Psycho. The Hellbound Heart. House of Leaves. I would swap out The Reddening for All The Fiends Of Hell, for pretty much the reasons you give here. I feel like I’d a slot for all of Levin’s horror and thrillers together. :) Something Wicked This Way Comes. In no particular order, authors I’d consider for other slots include T.E.D. Klein, Caitlin Kiernan, Hailey Piper, Brian Evenson, Nathan Ballingrud, Tananarive Due, Peter Fehervari, Charles Stross, Farah Rose Smith…we live in an age of great horror.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

Love the comment! Laird Barron has been on my TBG for ages, as has Brian Everson. Which book do I pick for my first Brian Everson experience?

[@GentleReader01]

@@Michael_Wertenberg his current collection Good Night, Sleep Tight is as good as any, it seems so far.

[@anotherbibliophilereads]

I have read 8 out of 10. Or 7 if you don’t count the DNF of House of Leaves. I haven’t read Head Full of Ghosts or Stepford Wives.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

You're not the only one to DNF that one. It took me about 150 pages or so before I got into it, so I can't blame you for abandoning it.

[@anotherbibliophilereads]

@@Michael_Wertenberg I was in a reading group online for House of Leaves and a few a the readers went on wild rabbit hunt claiming there was a secret meaning in the misspellings. No idea if that was true, but I threw in the towel at that point. BTW, the Kindle version of The Stepford Wives is on sale for $1.99 today. How could I say no to that.

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

@@anotherbibliophilereads 😅Nice score!

[@onourpath]

Wait... I thought your favorite was that one about the guy who whistled. It was written back in the 60s or something? Of course, I can't remember the name😮 of it right now. 🙄

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

You're probably thinking of The Night of the Hunter by Davis Grubb. Love that book. I don't think it's pure horror or horror enough to be considered here, though. At least that was my thinking. Same goes for Exquisite Corpse.

[@onourpath]

@@Michael_Wertenberg ah, gotcha, makes sense. Thanks

[@onourpath]

@Michael_Wertenberg @Michael_Wertenberg well, I did love Burnt Offerings and Hill House. I've got House of Leaves on the big pile, too. I love me some creepy houses!

[@Tetsujin-28]

"One Line Reviews", "Horror for Smart People". I miss the humor. #Algorithm I'll probably pick up a paperback edition of *something wicked* because I'm afraid to *soil* the Folio edition I have. I'm currently reading The Book Eaters (Sunyi Dean). For Oct I look forward to Regrettably, I am About to Cause Trouble (Amie McNee). "Therapy where we sit and eat pasta and talk about our trauma, called Penne for your thoughts."

[@Michael_Wertenberg]

😅YT is always flagging your comments! You rabble rouser! I like the title of the Anie McNee book. Good luck with it. Let me know how it goes.

[@Tetsujin-28]

@@Michael_Wertenberg I still have no idea why and reading my comment again I wouldn't know which word to delete.

Isn't there enough horror in the world at the moment ? I am sorry but I feel some of the books you have described ( beheading children particularly ) are juvenile and lacking empathy for human suffering.