r/horrorlit

I've heard so many say that they enjoyed books like the The Deep (Cutter), Last Days or most Adam Nevill​, but the ending really didn't do it for them. Last Days seems to be a notorious example. I have never heard any positive opinions about the ending, but it's odd that something can start out as everyone's favorite ​and then drastically decline in quality​. I still have yet to read it because I've heard so many bad reviews so I don't know where it fell off at, same for a lot of books that are mentioned or reviewed as having bad endings.

What are your general, or specific, opinions about horror endings? Where do you feel like a lot of things fall flat or decline in quality? I have a feeling that, for a lot of very divisive endings, such as I'm Thinking of Ending Things, the author gets too ambitious. Completely changes the tone, changes the rules of the universe or story, shoehorns too much mystery, too much abstract. or the author oth​erwise really drops the ball confusing resolution for problems going away, people ending, etc.

Looking for something like the first Jumanji movie. The one with Robin Williams. Or something like House of Leaves.

Books, in which expeditions into the unknown take place and end up rather disturbing. (HoL, Annihilation, Predator Badlands [even thos this is a movie, but the Vibe is perfect]).

I bet this question was asked before, but I never got the answer or the recommendation I was looking for.

I am not looking for something lovecraftian or weird per se, but rather something that scratches that itch about the unknown.

Something like the noises inside the infamously impossible house.

Sadly I don't know how to describe it any better then through examples.

I look for something like the planet in the new Predator (Predator Badlands) movie. Something like the house in "Piranesi" or the zone in "Annihilation". Something unbelievable, dangerous, maybe grotesque.

I do enjoy books from the horror genre the most, but dark fantasy or scifi is also very welcome. I'd also say, that the hotel from shining does not fit what I am looking for, as it's just "ghosts" or "evil" and not a "mysterious enough".

I also read all of Lovecraft, Algernon Blackwoods "The Willows" (which absolutely scrached the itch), also its retelling by T. Kingfisher.

I also read "A Short Stay In Hell", which did not really fit what I was looking for, the same goes for the "King in Yellow" or "The Fisherman". I enjoyed almost all of them, but they are not, what I yearn at the moment.

"For Tomorrow" fits better, but not exactly.

I hope you get what I am trying to say. It's very hard for me to put in words.

"Luminous Dead" wasn't alien-esque/didn't have enough creatures and secrets within the cave.

And not something where the threat is just ghosts. I've read "Stairwell in the Woods" recently and was very disappointed by the reveal at the end.

Thanks for your time and help!

And if I wrote it rather weirdly, I'll gladly try to explain it again.

I am a fast reader especially when I really like a book. I would really like some long ebooks. I don't do regular books because I am a plumber and will mess them up at work. The longer the better.

I use Kobo if that helps.

Themes I love:

Survival Horror like Dead Space

Mindfuck like the show Severance

SCP and Backrooms

Lovecraft At the Mountains of Madness

Hidden ruins, tombs, like a fucked up Indiana Jones.

Caves

Books I've read:

All of Lovecraft

The red planet series by David Wellington

The last astronaut by David Wellington

The ruins by Scott Smith

The southern reach series by Jeff Vandermeer

The luminous dead

Thanks so much ahead of time ❤️.

Which horror writers do you think write the best action sequences?

Stephen Graham Jones is my favorite, but I noticed his writing style is very divisive in the community.

I got into horror by way of sci fi and there are some truly frightening concepts in the ladder.

Blindsight by Watts is a big one: positing that consciousness is a virus that hinders true intelligence.

The Blight from A Deepness In The Sky by Vinge. An ancient superintelligence that takes over minds, networks, civilizations and tech to use as an extension of itself, completely beyond our comprehension.

Permutation City by Egan. The classic simulation theory made eerily tangible.

There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm basically describes the limits of human cognition as a weak spot for a foreign intelligence attack vector of some kind.

This is the scariest kind of shit for me.

Ultimately, what I'm hunting for is the scary in questioning our own interpretations of reality.

An author I've read who comes rather close is Brian Evenson! Last Days and Immobility are pretty heckin scary without the sci-fi.

I've gone the Extreme Horror Lit route with Exquisite Corpse, Zola, The Girl Next Door, The End of Alice...they are all fun in their own right but not quite what I'm looking for.

Got any recs?!?

Thank you kindly in advance.

edit for italics correction

I’m getting back into horror novels, but I’m having a difficult time finding something that scratches my itch.
I recently finished:
“into the drowning deep” by Mira Grant
“The Hunger” by Alma Katsu
“The Terror” by Dan Simmons

Looking for:
- Monsters, but NOT aliens
- Monsters aren’t sexy
- Setting can be historical, or on the ocean, or in caves, Not in space though.
- minimal to no romance. Mainly I’m not interested in smut
- I’m fine with gore, but not crazy over the top.

Thank you so much everyone! I’m trying to get back into reading, but I’m having a hard time finding something that fits my niche, and I don’t trust BookTok.

The greatest modern writer of horror IMO and the author of one of the most terrifying novel of all time LAST DAYS; Adam Nevill has revealed via his newsletter:

"Last week, a major announcement broke from Apple TV. The studio will be making a new TV series, Ascension, based on my 2012 novel, Last Days. The press release is still circulating in the entertainment press. I'm getting alerts every day – which are far more welcome than the usual plethora of AI spam emails that pile up, promising unbelievable opportunities. But, this opportunity is actually real. For me as a horror writer, the announcement of this green-lit production couldn't get much bigger or exciting.

So Ascension is the legendary Alfonso Cuarón's new TV series for Apple TV (he made one of my absolutely favourite films too, Children of Men, as well as academy award winners, Roma and Gravity), co-showrun with the awesome Natalie Erika James and Christian White (Relic, Apartment 7A - if you haven't seen them, get on it), and starring Caitríona Balfe (Outlander)."

🎊🎉👏🏾

As I find myself gearing up for spooky season (which has slowly crept to become September through November in my house) I’m starting to realize how much of what I read the rest of the year is horror. I think it’s around every second or third book this past year has been something scary. It made me wonder what ratio of horror other people are reading. Does that change for spooky season?

hi, i’m trying to branch out a bit in terms of genres and these two have really interested me lately. they’re not ones i’m super familiar with but the few that i have found always really make me want to read more. soo are there any ecohorror recommendations? or folk horror? or maybe there’s a genre i’m unaware of that might follow similar themes? i’ll take anything!!! (*i also posted this to the bookrecommendations sub too)

As some might know, there is a new Hellraiser game coming out this October. I personally think it looks amazing and cannot wait to get my hands on a copy. I usually do not pre-order games, but this is one instance where I am actually considering it. I want this game to do well enough that we start getting story-driven single player games based on horror IPs instead of all the Dead by Daylight style games we've gotten in the last few years, which are just not for me.

Anywho, I was looking at the pre-order page, and one of the bonuses you get if pre-ordering the game is the "Bleeding Hearts digital novella." Looking at the pre-order trailer, it seems the author behind the novella is called L. J. Wolfe. I think. It's small and hard to see. But I cannot find anything about this novella or author online. I am guessing it's a writer using a penname? Not sure. Just thought I'd post here and see if anyone had any information on this.

I recently read The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay (2018). I absolutely loved it, so I decided that I'd watch the movie "Knock at the Cabin" (2023). Bad move. Shyamalan completely changed the plot, to the point that it felt more like a fanfiction than a movie adaptation. What book/movie combo made y'all feel that way?

Came across a recommendation for Headlights by CJ Leede on BookTok and folks, I found this book insanely boring and a slog to get through. Everything between Daniel and Hannah felt poorly constructed. The supernatural part was poorly executed. I felt like I was hate finishing it by the end.

Maybe my worst read of 2026.

I’m hosting October book club and would love some dark horror books that are 300-400 pages. Some of the women in my group use audible. I’d love something ultra creepy and good for readers who aren’t avid consumers of horror. Good writing, good character development, good discussion potential. I’ve already let them know I’m going to go for darker reads.
Some of my personal favorite authors are Karin Slaughter, Gillian Flynn, Shirley Jackson if that helps!

That is obviously a very relative statement, but I am 3/4 of the way through "Wake Up and Open Your Eyes" by Clay McLeod Chapman and oh.my.god. I have read a few of this author's books (specifically "Ghost Eaters" and "Whisper Down the Lane," both very very very very good) but this one has blown everything out of the water by a landslide. I do not want to give any spoilers at all because this book has had me glued to its pages. But it has to do with a news channel called "Fax News" (Just the Fax!), strange, weird brainwashing? Possession? Social media, technology addiction, with the best, most horrific, and revolting twists. I am on page 240, and I do not want it to ever end because I will never be able to read it all again for the first time, a feeling I have not had while reading in a long time. I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a truly captivating read!!!!

It doesn’t have to be cosmic horror but that’s what I’m into rn but I’m looking for a horror book that is just so depressing and bleak in its outlook on the world, books that don’t give you a way out of the darkness, there is no bright side to the story.

I’ve read Revival by Stephen King so don’t say that one, and I don’t think that book is as nihilistic as people say it is, I’ve read plenty of Lovecraft and I’ve recently been getting into Laird Barron

Hi all! My partner is looking for some suggestions in the southern gothic horror genre. She is interested in books published whenever, but she is really looking for at least a few solid recent releases. Thank you!!

I don’t want ghost stories, haunted houses, demonic possesion, serial killers, etc. I want to read something that repeatedly makes me say “w.t.f.” Horrors beyond human comprehension type stuff. For an example I recently finished The Cipher by Kathe Koja. Exactly the vibe I’m going for but that book left me pretty disappointed. Bonus points if one or more characters is slowly driven insane.

I love scary winter books with monsters or just a regular bad guy. Anything with snow and the cold. Looking for something to enjoy while I enjoy my pumpkin spice lattes.

So far I've read -

North Woods by doug hoover- didnt care for it too much.

Snow by Roland Mafi- was alright.

Old Country- Matt Query - it took awhile but I enjoyed it.

A clown in the cornfield- Adam Cesar first time i could say books were better than the movie.

What do you all recommend?

I need to know what to listen to next on Audible. I enjoy supernatural or mind venting or just very dark books—doesn’t have to be gory. Gore doesn’t do anything for me. It can be in there, but it doesn’t elevate the book to me. An interesting premise is more important or just a nice winding tail I can get into.

Here are some audiobooks I loved:

Incidents Around the House

The Lesser Dead

The September House

The Exorcist

A Short Stay in Hell

Baby Teeth

Pretty much anything by Stephen King I’ve already listened to and enjoyed. I also like John Saul and Dean Koontz sometimes. Speaking of King, I must mention that I do not enjoy Joe Hill’s books

Here are some audiobooks that did not work for me:

Between Two Fires-not my style at all and not what I think of when I think of horro. I prefer somber tales, I don’t need any comedy, although sometimes comedies OK as I did like the September House.

Song of Kali-I felt like there should’ve been more to the story and it didn’t feel completely fleshed out.

We Used to Live Here-hearing that it started as a creepy pasta explains it more, but I did not enjoy this book.

Penpal-I disliked it so much that I actually returned the title. Not at all my style, I don’t need that kind of romance stuff in it.

Here are some that were just mid to me:

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter-decent story but didn’t blow me away.

Mary-an OK story but not super great to me. Decent though I don’t regret listening to it.

Thanks.