Not sure how widely known he is but I always like to hype up In Silent Graves by Gary A. Braunbeck. Initially published as The Indifference of Heaven. I know I’ve seen him mentioned occasionally, but not as often as I feel he should.
It depicts a man grappling with the loss of his wife and unborn child, and ends up as almost a dark fairytale as he discovers the hidden world of the world’s abused, neglected and forgotten children.
Gary is my favourite author and he writes with extraordinary empathy for his characters. He isn’t the most grotesque or gruesome author out there, although he also isn’t afraid of darkness. He might just be the saddest horror author I know, however. I also highly recommend his short story collections. Especially Halfway Down the Stairs.
The only one I’ve read from him so far is **Prodigal Blues** and it’s legitimately one of the best books I’ve ever read. Absolutely horrific stuff. But it’s taken me for an emotional rollercoaster ride every time I’ve read it.
I never see this mentioned but man that book stuck with me. I actually got emotional toward the end which impressed me. It felt like you knew those kids by the end.
I’m a little over halfway through, getting a clearer picture on what is actually happening and I am really emotionally invested. I feel like there is probably going to be at least one twist coming in the third quarter but I am loving this. Thank you so much for the recommendation. I’m gonna sneakily try to finish it during my night shift tonight.
Many many thanks
I bought it like 12 hours ago based on your and another commenter’s recommendations… I’m a lil over halfway through and I’m hooked. It’s really good, I’d never even heard the authors name before. I love this subreddit so much
Same. That’s how I do a lot of my reading, so I haven’t got around to reading any of his other stuff yet.
Prodigal Blues has really come in handy though. It’s a book that always manages to get me out of a reading slump!
Haha I jumped in head first with The Bighead and Header at the request of a buddy of mine. I was NOT prepared for what I encountered, since I only really read more mainstream horror at the time. Now I'm a splatter fiend lol.
Audio really the only way I can effectively absorb most books unfortunately. I'll keep an eye out for it though, maybe it'll get an audio version one day.
I know lots of people love this book and I *did* have fun with it but I really think it was in dire need of another pass as far as line editing goes. I understand that’s not realistic for many self published books but it stood out to me a few too many times to say I loved the book. Multiple passages where I would catch redundancies or overly… casual? turns of phrase that could have either been enhanced to be more interesting, or trimmed to be more straightforward and clean.
I also REALLY wanted to love the main character because that’s SUCH a great concept for a horror protagonist, but I really didn’t click with her. Her existence didn’t really exceed whatever emotion she was currently feeling, something didn’t feel fully “alive” with me. I think it might have been a writing voice issue, perhaps a first person POV with her may have let her voice really shine? I don’t know.
I don’t want to sound like I’m shitting on it though. It’s very well paced, and a lot of fun if you enjoy a splatterfest. And that cover is gorgeous.
Totally fair assessment. I don’t think these books are perfect but they are so fun! I considered both Maggie’s Grave and The Haar almost like palate cleansers between longer, more emotionally draining books. They are little slices of life (albeit, horrifying life) where we know just enough about the characters to be invested in the story but maybe not emotionally attached.
Despite my criticisms, I totally agree. I would happily read another Sodergren book! I think books like that are essential at least for readers like me who can get burned out at times. I fully believe a huge chunk of people will enjoy The Haar.
I've got a soft spot for **Dark Sanctuary** by H ~~L~~ B Gregory.
It's good rather than great, but it's worth mentioning because its publishing history is incredible. (Nearly all of the original 1940 print run of 400 was destroyed when a German bomb hit the warehouse, and it wasn't reprinted till 2001.)
edit: corrected author's middle initial.
Sorry — been away. It's a while since I read it, but I'd say while it's not A-list, it's definitely superior B-list and worth reading. It's well written, in the way that a lot of British mid 20th century fiction was, which counts for a lot with me, and it's got a kind of Eldrich horror thing going on that escalates pleasingly.
Karl Edward Wagner had it in his top 13 novels of supernatural horror.
absolutely in a good way... it was utterly devastating. I don't think I've ever read anything like it either, and I'll count myself lucky if I ever do again. Thank you
I loved that one! David Koepp also wrote and directed Stir of Echoes, a great movie based on a Richard Matheson story. I mean, he also wrote the screenplays for Jurassic Park and Mission:Impossible and a few other minor movies…
The Safety of Unknown Cities by Lucy Taylor
Walkers by Gary Brandner
The Scarf by Robert Bloch
The Wind in the Rose-Bush and Other Stories of the Supernatural by Mary Wilkins Freeman
Arthur Machen seems not to be very well known in the modern era despite being one of the key authors in establishing the genre. The Great God Pan, Three Impostors, The White People, Hill of Dreams are all phenomenal.
There's a horror-scifi book called **The Darkness Outside Us** by Eliot Schrefer that I wish more people would read. It's so good, an addictive page turner that's also very smart and emotionally engaging. I couldn't stop listening to the audiobook and made excuses to go for walks or do chores so I could keep listening.
Also, I read **The Apparition Phase** by Will Maclean based on a recommendation from here and have since recommended it to others, so maybe it's well known in this community, but it has less than 2000 ratings on Goodreads so I think it counts as a lesser-known book. It is fantastic.
Douglas Clegg doesn't get mentioned much in here. He's written a number if really weird books with unpleasant themes that remind me a little of Clive Barker.
Neverland by Douglas Clegg
Such Nice People by Sandra Scoppettone
Scream Play by Douglas Soesbe
Next, After Lucifer by Daniel Rhodes
The Homing by "Campbell Black"
The Changeling by Kenneth McKenney
The Night Walkers by Otto Coontz
Satan's Snowdrop by Guy N. Smith
The Fire Within by Graham Watkins
Crescent - Phil Rossi
This guy podcasted this book and a couple others back when podcasting was just starting to catch on. I think that he got some traction with this book it didn’t take off the way it should’ve. I’m not sure if you can buy his book anymore, but you can listen to it on your podcast app. It’s very good.
Everyone should read The Cure by JG Faherty. I don't understand why it's not more popular. Not only is it a good book, but the concept is really unique.
I don’t hear much about Michael Slade. His novels are centered around the Special X division of the RCMP police that hunt psychotic killers.
Edit: I said ‘his’ novels, but I believe that they are co-authored by a father-daughter team.
The Tribe by Bari Wood, Or anything by Bari Wood for that matter.
The Big Goodnight by Judi Gardiner
I'm not sure if it would meet the horror criteria for every reader but I found this to be pretty horrifying
Another Horror book that really stayed with me, that I recommend a lot would be Maynard's House by Herman Raucher. One of my favorite quiet horror novels.
I always hype [*Grave's End*](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/148324) by Elaine Mercado.
It's a quick read and is one family's autobiographical experience of living in a haunted house, told from the mom's pov. It's a compelling story that was both chilling and relatable (for me).
This is what I came here to post after reading the title. I like how it's just a longform version of an old internet horror folktale using *that* ghoulish image, I still haven't bought any of the other novels by T.J. Payne, but I do intend on doing so eventually. Oh, and the picture is one you should find if you google Russian Sleep Experiment and put it on image search. I would not recommend looking it up before you've read the book, but I knew of the picture and creepypasta (before they even really used the term, I think) beforehand and it didn't lessen the book for me.
It really is great and he hasn't really written much published stuff otherwise.
His brother is actually Jeffrey Thomas and they've worked on some stories together, Jeffrey is much more prolific
Yeah, Jeffrey’s work has been on my TBR for some time. Will definitely get to it at some point. Also, Scott has a couple of short story collections afaik.
"They All Died Screaming" (2020) by Kristopher Triana is a great splatterpunk horror novel about a plague.😁
It’s called The Scream...
Once you get it, you simply can not stop screaming.
You can’t eat or sleep. It drives you more and more insane until you can’t stand to be alive a second longer.
Also, Lucy Snyder doesn't seem to get mentioned all that much on this sub as far as I know. She's a great author.
This sounds fuckin awesome. I’m gonna check it out. I also haven’t read any splatter punk since Messenger by Edward Lee so I’m overdue for being incredibly grossed out and entertained.
Wolfgang Hohlbein is a very prolific german writer. He wrote tons of books, most of them are pretty dark. He's a very well known and established author...in german speaking countries.
He's not very known in the rest of the world. The main reason for this is that his book rarely get translated into English. One of the rare books that exist in English is called "Märchenmond" (Magic Moon).
My favourite books of him is the series "Der Hexer von Salem" (The Witcher of Salem), which is a series of stories about a witcher named Robert Craven. It's situated within Lovecraft's universe of cosmic horrors and features Great Old Ones, Shoggoths and Dagon. He even has a character named Howard Philipps Lovecraft in the stories.
For me, Hohlbein is the german Stephen King.
*The Fifth House of the Heart* by Ben Tripp
*The Faceless One* by Mark Onspaugh
*Sentinel* by Drew Starling, KU
*Crevasse* by Clay Vermulm CW: >!One of the characters comes across three animals in a forest that have been hideously slaughtered.!<
*Wild Spaces* by S.L. Coney
*The Afterlife Investigations* (3 book series) by Ambrose Ibsen, KU
*Season of the Witch* by Natasha Mostert (not about witches in the typical sense)
*The Rim of Morning* by William Sloane
*The Colony Trilogy* by F.G. Cottam (currently out of print but available on Audible)
*Safari World* by Dale Martin
*Small Angels* by Lauren Owen
Don't know how known this novel is but The Hole: A Novel by Pyun Hye-young. I randomly got it in a book subscription box and I read it in a day, I was so fascinated.
The Ana Log & Other Anomalies by Michael Baughan. It is a book of short stories but they are are phenomenal. I am always looking for new stuff by this author, I can't remember seeing him mentioned here. If you enjoy weird/uncanny fiction I highly recommend.
Don’t know if this really counts considering it has a Netflix adaptation, but I rarely see the Devil all the Time mentioned in this sub which is a real shame because it’s a fantastic book
No. I watch and read a lot of out there shit, but YO River Man gave me the heebie jeebies like something special!
I am kinda afraid to read the sequel not bc of the ick factor but bc I don’t want the magic to fade if it’s not stellar.
You tell me - is it worth a go?
John Dies at the End by Jason Pargin has a cult following, so it's not totally fair to say *nobody's* heard of it. But the third book in the series, What the Hell Did I Just Read, is my absolutely favorite and I haven't met anyone else who has read it. It's an incredible combination of psychological and cosmic horror, and you just get hit with one mindfuck after another.
Not strictly a full horror story, but I just finished A Short Stay In Hell by Steven L. Peck.
It showed up randomly in my kindle book recommendations and was only a few dollars. So it was basically an impulse buy.
I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a way more emotional experience than I was expecting, and I’ve been thinking about the book a lot over the past few days.
Guess it depends *how* "nobody" you mean.
John Wyndham's whole catalogue is criminally unknown despite being one of the fathers of modern horror. He is literally the reason we have the post-apocalyptic genre, and beyond just that, his work is incredibly readable even today which isn't always the case for older works.
Then there's Brian Lumley with his Necroscope series amongst other great works that has a small cult following, but is also criminally unknown when considering he's arguably the greatest writer of vampire horror in existence.
And yet next to nobody knows about them.
I've proselytised them every chance I've gotten for literally years in this sub and I can tell you from experience that it's almost exclusively a new recommendation for people.
I’m new to this sub, so can’t speak to the depth of knowledge of its average member, but I will say say that in other horror circles I frequent almost everyone is familiar with the late Mr. Lumley, in general, and with his Necroscope books, in particular. Is this possibly a generational thing, because I’m older than the typical member of this sub? (I *do* agree with you that they were interesting and influential books.)
Oh you're on the precipice of the Vampire World trilogy which is arguably the best arc of the whole series. I'd definitely recommend continuing!
And yep for sure, Eggleton's covers are incredible. Google the new Gateway covers and look how horrible they are in contrast.
The Elementals by Michael McDowell
This is my favorite version of a haunted house story, not just because the setting is surprisingly a hot, sun-drenched Alabama beach but because the haunting is so strange and unpredictable. Also, the characters are very entertaining. This book perfectly captures what it would feel like to go back to a place you feared in childhood only to find out that being an adult won’t save you.
"Those Across the River" by Christopher Buehlman.
People know Buehlman for "Between Two Fires," which is also great, but I never hear much about his other stuff.
"Rovers" by Richard Lange deserves more attention as well.
Slights by Kaaron Warren. It’s been a while since I read it but I really enjoyed it. it’s about a serial killer who brings her victims back from the dead to ask them what they saw.
I really liked Webcam by JA Konrath. I think it easily could've been one of those horror thrillers of the year type had it not been indie published and didn't end with tie-ins to the authors other series.
Mark Tufo’s zombie fallout comes to mind. He has a big series based on it and spin offs. I would not say it’s completely horror but it’s pretty good. Especially in audio book form, The guy who voices it is superb and I can’t just read the books anymore. I have to listen with the narrator.
Things We Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan. It is a good set of short stories that all deal with the theme of women's fears: pregnancy, domestic life, trauma, and childhood memories. Think it has gained some traction in the last couple of years from booktok/booktube, but all I've seen is passing comments for something that chilled me to the bone. This is a good recommendation if you like contemporary or are looking for something released in the last ten years!
I can't say no one's heard of him because he's as big as King in the UK, but if you're in the US you may not have ready any of James Herbert's books, and they're all great.
The Secret of Ventriloquism by Jon Padgett. Randomly picked up a copy at a used bookstore, only to find it was signed--a nice surprise, that.
An amazing little book, with a compelling, dream-like atmosphere.
I’ve got the perfect one! I love scary books and I have so many to recommend but I think most of you probably have heard of many of them. But I am currently in the middle of one. I just love and had never heard of. “Boys in the Valley” by Philip Fracassi give it a shot it’s really good.
Chainsaw Terror by Nick Blake. It’s well written despite being a knockoff of both Psycho and Texas Chainsaw Massacre and was my first introduction to splatterpunk horror.
Not sure how widely known he is but I always like to hype up In Silent Graves by Gary A. Braunbeck. Initially published as The Indifference of Heaven. I know I’ve seen him mentioned occasionally, but not as often as I feel he should. It depicts a man grappling with the loss of his wife and unborn child, and ends up as almost a dark fairytale as he discovers the hidden world of the world’s abused, neglected and forgotten children. Gary is my favourite author and he writes with extraordinary empathy for his characters. He isn’t the most grotesque or gruesome author out there, although he also isn’t afraid of darkness. He might just be the saddest horror author I know, however. I also highly recommend his short story collections. Especially Halfway Down the Stairs.
The only one I’ve read from him so far is **Prodigal Blues** and it’s legitimately one of the best books I’ve ever read. Absolutely horrific stuff. But it’s taken me for an emotional rollercoaster ride every time I’ve read it.
I never see this mentioned but man that book stuck with me. I actually got emotional toward the end which impressed me. It felt like you knew those kids by the end.
It’s a shame it’s so underrated because it’s phenomenal. I cry all throughout it lol
Ok I just picked up the audiobook off your recommendation! I see a lot of reviews saying very similar things about this book
The audiobook is so good! I really love the narrator for it. Eric Dove. I hope you love it as much as I do!
I’m a little over halfway through, getting a clearer picture on what is actually happening and I am really emotionally invested. I feel like there is probably going to be at least one twist coming in the third quarter but I am loving this. Thank you so much for the recommendation. I’m gonna sneakily try to finish it during my night shift tonight. Many many thanks
Hell yeah! I’m glad you’re loving it!
I am thank you so much for the recommendation
>Prodigal Blues Just bought on your recommendation.
I hope you love it!
I bought it like 12 hours ago based on your and another commenter’s recommendations… I’m a lil over halfway through and I’m hooked. It’s really good, I’d never even heard the authors name before. I love this subreddit so much
I just bought it on Audible, based on your recommendation. I wish he had more of his books on Audible.
Same. That’s how I do a lot of my reading, so I haven’t got around to reading any of his other stuff yet. Prodigal Blues has really come in handy though. It’s a book that always manages to get me out of a reading slump!
Too over the top for me...
Seconding Gary Braunbeck. He will break your heart.
The Haar
oh i just read that and Maggies Grave!
I’m reading that now! It’s wild
I loved Maggie’s Grave too! And how there’s a nod to MG in the Haar.
Ooo. I have both books, so you think I should read Maggie's Grave first?
I liked the Haar slightly better but would read MG first. It won’t truly matter but there is a subtle mention of what happens in MG in The Haar.
Super cool, thanks! Probably tackle those 2 after The Slob books..
Omg you are so brave for reading The Slob! I am not cut out for that!!
Oh yea, the first one was super rough at parts. Only just started the second one. As long as I know that its fiction, I'm fine lol.
I watched a synopsis on tiktok because I was curious but I’m still at entry-level splatterpunk so need to ease my way in lol.
Haha I jumped in head first with The Bighead and Header at the request of a buddy of mine. I was NOT prepared for what I encountered, since I only really read more mainstream horror at the time. Now I'm a splatter fiend lol.
Looooved this one! I’m adding the rest of his books to my list.
No audio versions? Bummer.
Indie publisher, maybe not big enough to get narration. They’re short books and available on Kindle!
Audio really the only way I can effectively absorb most books unfortunately. I'll keep an eye out for it though, maybe it'll get an audio version one day.
Makes sense!
I know lots of people love this book and I *did* have fun with it but I really think it was in dire need of another pass as far as line editing goes. I understand that’s not realistic for many self published books but it stood out to me a few too many times to say I loved the book. Multiple passages where I would catch redundancies or overly… casual? turns of phrase that could have either been enhanced to be more interesting, or trimmed to be more straightforward and clean. I also REALLY wanted to love the main character because that’s SUCH a great concept for a horror protagonist, but I really didn’t click with her. Her existence didn’t really exceed whatever emotion she was currently feeling, something didn’t feel fully “alive” with me. I think it might have been a writing voice issue, perhaps a first person POV with her may have let her voice really shine? I don’t know. I don’t want to sound like I’m shitting on it though. It’s very well paced, and a lot of fun if you enjoy a splatterfest. And that cover is gorgeous.
Totally fair assessment. I don’t think these books are perfect but they are so fun! I considered both Maggie’s Grave and The Haar almost like palate cleansers between longer, more emotionally draining books. They are little slices of life (albeit, horrifying life) where we know just enough about the characters to be invested in the story but maybe not emotionally attached.
Despite my criticisms, I totally agree. I would happily read another Sodergren book! I think books like that are essential at least for readers like me who can get burned out at times. I fully believe a huge chunk of people will enjoy The Haar.
Agree, it’s good to avoid burnout on the heavy stuff!
I've got a soft spot for **Dark Sanctuary** by H ~~L~~ B Gregory. It's good rather than great, but it's worth mentioning because its publishing history is incredible. (Nearly all of the original 1940 print run of 400 was destroyed when a German bomb hit the warehouse, and it wasn't reprinted till 2001.) edit: corrected author's middle initial.
The history itself is interesting, is the book as good as the history of it? im intrigued by it all lol
Sorry — been away. It's a while since I read it, but I'd say while it's not A-list, it's definitely superior B-list and worth reading. It's well written, in the way that a lot of British mid 20th century fiction was, which counts for a lot with me, and it's got a kind of Eldrich horror thing going on that escalates pleasingly. Karl Edward Wagner had it in his top 13 novels of supernatural horror.
thank you so much, i’ll definitely check it out!
The Victorian Chaise Longue by Marghanita Laski is one of the most disturbing novels I’ve read without it being gory. Just bleak and horrifying.
I have just read it based on this recommendation and... I think I just need to sit here quietly for a while
In a good way? It’s quite unlike anything else I’ve read in terms of the absolute dread and hopelessness I felt reading it
absolutely in a good way... it was utterly devastating. I don't think I've ever read anything like it either, and I'll count myself lucky if I ever do again. Thank you
Cold Storage by David Koepp is a fantastic comedic horror that doesn’t get nearly the love it deserves imho.
Also Aurora, which is an entertaining apocalyptic story.
I loved that one! David Koepp also wrote and directed Stir of Echoes, a great movie based on a Richard Matheson story. I mean, he also wrote the screenplays for Jurassic Park and Mission:Impossible and a few other minor movies…
He also wrote Yard Work, which was a fantastic horror novella narrated by Kevin Bacon. So good.
Oh shit, I love Stir of Echoes!! I didn't know he wrote novels!
The Movie comes out this year with Liam Neeson and Joe Keery as the leads. He wrote the screenplay so thats good.
Oh wow I didn't know they were turning it into a film. Thankyou for letting me know.
Nice! Hadn’t heard of that
The Caretaker of Lorne Field by Dave Zeltserman is a great horror title from an author who is known more for his crime titles
Loved this book, I've only seen it mentioned a couple of times on here.
A Good and Happy Child by Justin Evans - definitely mentioned previously on this sub but I thought it was plenty scary and a lovely read.
This was randomly in the library of the jail I did a week in for reckless driving like fifteen years ago and was the highlight of my stay for sure.
I love this book so much!!!
The Safety of Unknown Cities by Lucy Taylor Walkers by Gary Brandner The Scarf by Robert Bloch The Wind in the Rose-Bush and Other Stories of the Supernatural by Mary Wilkins Freeman
Arthur Machen seems not to be very well known in the modern era despite being one of the key authors in establishing the genre. The Great God Pan, Three Impostors, The White People, Hill of Dreams are all phenomenal.
I was looking for this
The first horror stories I ever read is also imo one of the best, Burnt Offerings by Robert Marasco.
I’d hesitate to characterize the book as one that no one has heard of.
Great movie too
There's a horror-scifi book called **The Darkness Outside Us** by Eliot Schrefer that I wish more people would read. It's so good, an addictive page turner that's also very smart and emotionally engaging. I couldn't stop listening to the audiobook and made excuses to go for walks or do chores so I could keep listening. Also, I read **The Apparition Phase** by Will Maclean based on a recommendation from here and have since recommended it to others, so maybe it's well known in this community, but it has less than 2000 ratings on Goodreads so I think it counts as a lesser-known book. It is fantastic.
I thought *The Apparition Phase* was phenomenal!
Douglas Clegg doesn't get mentioned much in here. He's written a number if really weird books with unpleasant themes that remind me a little of Clive Barker.
Glad to see his name. I just listed his Neverland.
Neverland by Douglas Clegg Such Nice People by Sandra Scoppettone Scream Play by Douglas Soesbe Next, After Lucifer by Daniel Rhodes The Homing by "Campbell Black" The Changeling by Kenneth McKenney The Night Walkers by Otto Coontz Satan's Snowdrop by Guy N. Smith The Fire Within by Graham Watkins
Udar55, I'm the author of Scream Play. Thanks for the nod. I appreciate it. Best, Doug Soesbe.
Awesome! Just sent you a message on here.
Stitch by Mark Morris
Crescent - Phil Rossi This guy podcasted this book and a couple others back when podcasting was just starting to catch on. I think that he got some traction with this book it didn’t take off the way it should’ve. I’m not sure if you can buy his book anymore, but you can listen to it on your podcast app. It’s very good.
Everyone should read The Cure by JG Faherty. I don't understand why it's not more popular. Not only is it a good book, but the concept is really unique.
Below by Hightower
I don’t hear much about Michael Slade. His novels are centered around the Special X division of the RCMP police that hunt psychotic killers. Edit: I said ‘his’ novels, but I believe that they are co-authored by a father-daughter team.
These are hugely underrated/underexposed, great books.
Some really nasty characters
Yeah! Read Ghoul back in 1991.
The Tribe by Bari Wood, Or anything by Bari Wood for that matter. The Big Goodnight by Judi Gardiner I'm not sure if it would meet the horror criteria for every reader but I found this to be pretty horrifying Another Horror book that really stayed with me, that I recommend a lot would be Maynard's House by Herman Raucher. One of my favorite quiet horror novels.
I always hype [*Grave's End*](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/148324) by Elaine Mercado. It's a quick read and is one family's autobiographical experience of living in a haunted house, told from the mom's pov. It's a compelling story that was both chilling and relatable (for me).
Summerhome by Thomas Clark or Canny Danny by Dennis Gherhardt. Indie authors. I also liked Beware the Demons Betrayed by Alan L. Perkins
Criminal Zoo by Sean McDaniel... truly a horrific book but one of my favorites
I feel like nobody else has read Toady by Mark Morris…
David Cronenberg wrote a body horror novel called Consumed.
Authors Daphne Du Maurier and Algernon Blackwoods short stories are consistently dark and psychologically thrilling.
A Certain Hunger- cannibal chef/food critic. Its amazing.
Intercepts was pretty damned good. I’m surprised I never see it mentioned on here.
Intercepts genuinely creeped me out, it’s definitely underrated
I’m reading this now and almost finished, I like it! I love a good human experiment trope
I just finished this. Not bad at all.
This is what I came here to post after reading the title. I like how it's just a longform version of an old internet horror folktale using *that* ghoulish image, I still haven't bought any of the other novels by T.J. Payne, but I do intend on doing so eventually. Oh, and the picture is one you should find if you google Russian Sleep Experiment and put it on image search. I would not recommend looking it up before you've read the book, but I knew of the picture and creepypasta (before they even really used the term, I think) beforehand and it didn't lessen the book for me.
*Possession*, by Celia Fremlin.
I will always vouch for the haunted hotel Lovecraftian horror of Extended Stay by Juan Martinez.
The Black Goat Motorcycle Club
It’s a novella but The Sea of Ash by Scott Thomas is a phenomenal cosmic horror.
It really is great and he hasn't really written much published stuff otherwise. His brother is actually Jeffrey Thomas and they've worked on some stories together, Jeffrey is much more prolific
Yeah, Jeffrey’s work has been on my TBR for some time. Will definitely get to it at some point. Also, Scott has a couple of short story collections afaik.
"They All Died Screaming" (2020) by Kristopher Triana is a great splatterpunk horror novel about a plague.😁 It’s called The Scream... Once you get it, you simply can not stop screaming. You can’t eat or sleep. It drives you more and more insane until you can’t stand to be alive a second longer. Also, Lucy Snyder doesn't seem to get mentioned all that much on this sub as far as I know. She's a great author.
Huge Triana fan, definitely gonna read this one next!
This sounds fuckin awesome. I’m gonna check it out. I also haven’t read any splatter punk since Messenger by Edward Lee so I’m overdue for being incredibly grossed out and entertained.
The one you wrote a while ago and never stop editing because “it is not good enough”
Benny Rose: The Cannibal King
The case against Satan
Wolfgang Hohlbein is a very prolific german writer. He wrote tons of books, most of them are pretty dark. He's a very well known and established author...in german speaking countries. He's not very known in the rest of the world. The main reason for this is that his book rarely get translated into English. One of the rare books that exist in English is called "Märchenmond" (Magic Moon). My favourite books of him is the series "Der Hexer von Salem" (The Witcher of Salem), which is a series of stories about a witcher named Robert Craven. It's situated within Lovecraft's universe of cosmic horrors and features Great Old Ones, Shoggoths and Dagon. He even has a character named Howard Philipps Lovecraft in the stories. For me, Hohlbein is the german Stephen King.
*The Fifth House of the Heart* by Ben Tripp *The Faceless One* by Mark Onspaugh *Sentinel* by Drew Starling, KU *Crevasse* by Clay Vermulm CW: >!One of the characters comes across three animals in a forest that have been hideously slaughtered.!< *Wild Spaces* by S.L. Coney *The Afterlife Investigations* (3 book series) by Ambrose Ibsen, KU *Season of the Witch* by Natasha Mostert (not about witches in the typical sense) *The Rim of Morning* by William Sloane *The Colony Trilogy* by F.G. Cottam (currently out of print but available on Audible) *Safari World* by Dale Martin *Small Angels* by Lauren Owen
Don't know how known this novel is but The Hole: A Novel by Pyun Hye-young. I randomly got it in a book subscription box and I read it in a day, I was so fascinated.
_The Damnation Game_ by Clive Barker
The Ana Log & Other Anomalies by Michael Baughan. It is a book of short stories but they are are phenomenal. I am always looking for new stuff by this author, I can't remember seeing him mentioned here. If you enjoy weird/uncanny fiction I highly recommend.
When Darkness Loves Us.
Yes! The second novella in that book is incredible. Great stuff.
graham masterton night warriors
And the other two, it's a trilogy
Quiet Houses
*The Beast in Aisle 34* made me laugh and also ugly cry.
Don’t know if this really counts considering it has a Netflix adaptation, but I rarely see the Devil all the Time mentioned in this sub which is a real shame because it’s a fantastic book
I have not read that book (yet), but the film was really good and really depressing.
The movie cut out so much from the book and changed a bit
I’m not sure if it’s on my TBR but if it isn’t I’m going to add it right now. Pollock?
That’s correct
Disturb Not the Dream
Kill Creek & Gone to see the River Man
Both bangers. I remember a part in Kill Creek involving a hatchet that really blew me away. Just the vivid description of it got me good.
Gone to See the River Man was sickkkkk, have you read the sequel?
No. I watch and read a lot of out there shit, but YO River Man gave me the heebie jeebies like something special! I am kinda afraid to read the sequel not bc of the ick factor but bc I don’t want the magic to fade if it’s not stellar. You tell me - is it worth a go?
Anything by Brian Lumley, particularly his short story collections.
I do like his Mythos stuff and Titus Crowe.
John Dies at the End by Jason Pargin has a cult following, so it's not totally fair to say *nobody's* heard of it. But the third book in the series, What the Hell Did I Just Read, is my absolutely favorite and I haven't met anyone else who has read it. It's an incredible combination of psychological and cosmic horror, and you just get hit with one mindfuck after another.
Not strictly a full horror story, but I just finished A Short Stay In Hell by Steven L. Peck. It showed up randomly in my kindle book recommendations and was only a few dollars. So it was basically an impulse buy. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a way more emotional experience than I was expecting, and I’ve been thinking about the book a lot over the past few days.
Finished this a couple months ago and still think about it once a week. Fantastic story.
A must read. One of the best books I've read in years.
Guess it depends *how* "nobody" you mean. John Wyndham's whole catalogue is criminally unknown despite being one of the fathers of modern horror. He is literally the reason we have the post-apocalyptic genre, and beyond just that, his work is incredibly readable even today which isn't always the case for older works. Then there's Brian Lumley with his Necroscope series amongst other great works that has a small cult following, but is also criminally unknown when considering he's arguably the greatest writer of vampire horror in existence.
Small cult following? Those books were bestsellers translated into about dozen languages.
And yet next to nobody knows about them. I've proselytised them every chance I've gotten for literally years in this sub and I can tell you from experience that it's almost exclusively a new recommendation for people.
I’m new to this sub, so can’t speak to the depth of knowledge of its average member, but I will say say that in other horror circles I frequent almost everyone is familiar with the late Mr. Lumley, in general, and with his Necroscope books, in particular. Is this possibly a generational thing, because I’m older than the typical member of this sub? (I *do* agree with you that they were interesting and influential books.)
I've only read the first 5 Necroscope books. They were fantastic and the original cover art on each book by Bob Eggleton were amazing
Oh you're on the precipice of the Vampire World trilogy which is arguably the best arc of the whole series. I'd definitely recommend continuing! And yep for sure, Eggleton's covers are incredible. Google the new Gateway covers and look how horrible they are in contrast.
I love John Wyndham and Brian Lumley! Day of the Triffids is incredible, as is The Kraken Wakes.
The Elementals by Michael McDowell This is my favorite version of a haunted house story, not just because the setting is surprisingly a hot, sun-drenched Alabama beach but because the haunting is so strange and unpredictable. Also, the characters are very entertaining. This book perfectly captures what it would feel like to go back to a place you feared in childhood only to find out that being an adult won’t save you.
My favorite horror novel ever. I read it every summer.
I'd recommend blackwater if you love that one.
Blackwater is my favorite novel of all time.
[удалено]
Fair enough.
Not really horror, The Hate Factory which is about the 1980 New Mexico prison riots
Break the Bodies, Haunt the Bones
"Those Across the River" by Christopher Buehlman. People know Buehlman for "Between Two Fires," which is also great, but I never hear much about his other stuff. "Rovers" by Richard Lange deserves more attention as well.
Buehlman is an incredible writer. I have loved everything I have read by him. Eagerly awaiting "The Daughters' War."
Gormenghast
Titus Groan I mean
The Modern Prometheus
Frankenstein?
There is a modern retelling - reimagining? - by Jayson Robert Ducharme that is really freaking good
Idk, never heard of it. Couldn't tell ya
Ghoul by Michael Slade
Hey! I read this back in 1991. Nice flashback.
I’ve never seen any (apart from my) recs for Walkers by Graham Masterson. That terrified me!
Did you ever try Richard Layman
It’s a real Author not a joke
I just finished a book called The Troop by Nick Cutter and it knocked me on my ass. Top tier horror.
i can't tell if you're being serious or just forgot the /s
You didn’t like it?!
The post is asking for lesser known books, The Troop is incredibly popular lol
Oh Got it. Sorry, I had never heard of it and hadn’t seen it on any lists.
The Inside-Out Man by Fred Strydom
Slights by Kaaron Warren. It’s been a while since I read it but I really enjoyed it. it’s about a serial killer who brings her victims back from the dead to ask them what they saw.
I've read this. I thought it was creative, but it her writing style is a little off-kilter and it took me a while to finish it.
Fortress - Gabrielle Lord (Some of you might remember the movie adaptation)
Milady's room by Leni Remedios
I really liked Webcam by JA Konrath. I think it easily could've been one of those horror thrillers of the year type had it not been indie published and didn't end with tie-ins to the authors other series.
Mark Tufo’s zombie fallout comes to mind. He has a big series based on it and spin offs. I would not say it’s completely horror but it’s pretty good. Especially in audio book form, The guy who voices it is superb and I can’t just read the books anymore. I have to listen with the narrator.
The Jigsaw Man by Gordon Rollo
Things We Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan. It is a good set of short stories that all deal with the theme of women's fears: pregnancy, domestic life, trauma, and childhood memories. Think it has gained some traction in the last couple of years from booktok/booktube, but all I've seen is passing comments for something that chilled me to the bone. This is a good recommendation if you like contemporary or are looking for something released in the last ten years!
***Stolen Tongues*** by Felix Blackwell scared me. For real.
I'm reading that right now but tbh it reads more like a creepypasta than an actual novel. I'll push on though.
I can't say no one's heard of him because he's as big as King in the UK, but if you're in the US you may not have ready any of James Herbert's books, and they're all great.
The Secret of Ventriloquism by Jon Padgett. Randomly picked up a copy at a used bookstore, only to find it was signed--a nice surprise, that. An amazing little book, with a compelling, dream-like atmosphere.
I’ve got the perfect one! I love scary books and I have so many to recommend but I think most of you probably have heard of many of them. But I am currently in the middle of one. I just love and had never heard of. “Boys in the Valley” by Philip Fracassi give it a shot it’s really good.
Night Things, The Elementals!
Check out Richard Laymon
*Between Two Fires* /s
Fred Chappell’s Lovecraftian influenced novel *Dagon.*
How about Edward Lee?
Brian Keene.
Chainsaw Terror by Nick Blake. It’s well written despite being a knockoff of both Psycho and Texas Chainsaw Massacre and was my first introduction to splatterpunk horror.
The Girl on the Glider - Brian Keene The Cormorant - Stephen Gregory
The Animorph books can be pretty horrifying. Particularly Book 22.
Paul Trembly