Horror novels can be the best or worst book you read depending on the author. Some authors know how to write an amazing novel while others include too many tropes. That is why we decided to list the 20 best horror novels of all time. Keep reading to see what made our list.
Choosing only 20 horror novels was not easy. Or enough. Stephen King can dominate this list with his bestsellers and it would be hard to argue that. But he isn’t the only author that excels at writing horror. You can see the full list below.
The 20 Best Horror Novels of All Time
- The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
- Dracula by Bram Stoker
- The Shining by Stephen King
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
- It by Stephen King
- The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
- Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
- Ghost Story by Peter Straub
- Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
- Ring by Koji Suzuki
- Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons
- The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
- Pet Sematary by Stephen King
- Carrie by Stephen King
- Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler
- The Stand by Stephen King
- At the Mountains of Madness by H. P. Lovecraft
- Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
- Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
- Salem’s Lot by Stephen King
Dracula
Frankenstein is a classic that is a must read no matter what your favorite genre is. It is a sci-fi novel that is also thought provoking. The novel is considered the first sci-fi novel and holds up well even centuries later. Few monsters become mainstream yet Frankenstein has, despite many people never reading the novel behind it.
Frankenstein
A classic horror novel that has become mainstream is Dracula by Bram Stoker. First published in 1897, the novel was considered the best vampire novel written in its time and labeled as too frightening for many readers. While Stoker didn’t invent vampires, his take on the creatures is the one that has come to define them.
Interview with a Vampire
A horror novel that I read recently and loved was I Interview with the Vampire (The Vampire Chronicles, #1) by Anne Rice. It tells the story of a vampire named Louis de Pointe du Lac who recalls his 300-year-old past. I love the different approach to the vampire genre and was mesmerized with this novel. Rice’s approach to this brilliant novel makes it one of the best vampire novels ever written.
Carrion Comfort
One of the best horror novels I have ever read has to be Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons. The novel is about a select few people in society that have the power to control other people and make them any physical task including murder. They consider this a game but their actions have consequences that have ruined many lives and these people want revenge.
The Silence of the Lambs
Is there a better thriller novel than Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris? When you are reading the novel, it doesn’t feel like there is. What makes this novel interesting is that it isn’t even the first novel in the Hannibal series. But it is definitely the best book partly because it centers around Hannibal.
Conclusion
That is all for our list of the 20 best horror novels of all time. How many of these books have you read? What other books should have made the list? Let us know in the comments below! Happy reading!
Fixed!
What about James Herbert’s “The Rats”?
Yes, The Rats
The f**king Steven King show, don’t you guys read anything else? No Ramsey Campbell?
What about Moon by James Herbert
What about Necroscope by Brian Lumley. I see Clive Barker has no mention. Or AA Milne.
Totally agree, Brian lumley’s entire bibliography is amazing, as is Clive barker’s. Two of the most descriptive and inventive authors I’ve ever read
Yes, the Rats
To much king. You are missing some of the other “kings” of horror.
No dean kuntz
No F Paul Wilson
No Edgar Allen Poe
Where is “I am legend”?
“Who goes there?”
I request a re-release with a limit of one book per author.
The Tomb by F. Paul Wilson is terrific. Dean Koontz’s Strangers or The Bad Place.
Another book I picked up and which scared the hell out of me is The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey. I found it in the horror section of Indigo once and when I returned to buy its sequel, found that they had all been moved to the young adult section. It is a dark, terrifying novel that has no business in the YA section other than the fact that the main character is 13 years old.
You gotta add Dean Koontz and more than one Peter Straub like his book “Koko”
I love Stephen King but damn spread the love six titles out of twenty is just ridiculous.
How about The Woman In Black by Susan Hill? It’s a great horror book that gives you goosebumps
I saw the Channel 4 production of Woman in Black with Adrian Rawlings in the part of the young Solicitor. Much better than the later film. Read the book, seen the stage production too. As for the list, my personal all time favourite which should have been no. 1 is The Stand. Prophetic too. (Covid?)
Silence of the Lambs is not a horror.
At least, all the Stephen King on this list were written before he became a gigantic douchebag!! He’s not as talented as he used to be, for sure. He should retire or…die.
As he is a month younger than me, I really hope you are wrong 😂😂😂; having said that I have rather enjoyed the Finders Keepers/ Holly Gibney series.
Turn of the Screw by Henry James?
Mexican Gothic does not belong on this list.