Horror Books

Cayal

Cayal

The Immortal Prince
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Does any know of any horror books that are in the mold of Silent Hill style horror?

A more psychological horror I would call it.

I would love to hear any recommendations.

Thanks
 
I would check out Thomas Ligotti and Clark Ashton Smith, if I were you.
 
Nesacat said:
You might to take a look at the Horror Recommendations thread Jaire ... most of them are what you are looking for.

Off the top of my head would be Shirley Jackson's Haunting of Hill House.
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What is it with Jackson? I just read a short story of hers from the Joshi collection and couldn't stand it UGH!! I'm sure some of her stuff is good but I was less than impressed.......:eek:
 
GOLLUM said:
Excellent suggestions if I do say so myself....:D
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Why is it that the good stuff is always the hardest to find, and the most expensive when you do?

I bet you could devise a formula around this phenomena.

Good genre fiction = (# of years OOP)(availability at local chains)/(units of dust on shelves of used book stores)(cost of readable edition)

Or something. Math was never my forte.
 
D_Davis said:
Why is it that the good stuff is always the hardest to find, and the most expensive when you do?

I bet you could devise a formula around this phenomena.

Good genre fiction = (# of years OOP)(availability at local chains)/(units of dust on shelves of used book stores)(cost of readable edition)

Or something. Math was never my forte.
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Actually the Masterwork series by Victor Gollancz is a very good collection of classic works of the genre in the past 100 plus years. I have the entire Fantasy series and some of the SF as well. Not too pricey either.
 
GOLLUM said:
Actually the Masterwork series by Victor Gollancz is a very good collection of classic works of the genre in the past 100 plus years. I have the entire Fantasy series and some of the SF as well. Not too pricey either.
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Yeah, they really are. They're a little pricey here in the states, but they are nice editions.

Are they ever planning on doing a Horror series?
 
D_Davis said:
Yeah, they really are. They're a little pricey here in the states, but they are nice editions.

Are they ever planning on doing a Horror series?
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Not to my knowledge but they may be putting out a masterwork edition of Lovecraft's stuff.
 
GOLLUM said:
What is it with Jackson? I just read a short story of hers from the Joshi collection and couldn't stand it UGH!! I'm sure some of her stuff is good but I was less than impressed.......:eek:
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Not read "A Visit" that I can recall; but then, it's been some time since I read anything other than scattered stories by Jackson (really need to revisit her work again).

Yes, some of her stuff is good -- much more than good. She often hits a nerve with her work, and she almost never leaves any sort of comfortable resolution to things. No one is guiltless in her work, and no one's perceptions are to be entirely trusted; so even in those tales which border on the supernatural, one is never quite sure. Her style is also often very subtle and understated, so that it isn't until a later rereading that you get hit with the nastiness she's going after -- a delayed reaction, but often all the more powerful for that....
 
Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of The Hill House is not terribly subtle but very frightening book. It became a classic film, The Haunting, the original not that pathetic remake.

That being said. I read a book of short stories, The Lottery and Other Stories. This collection showcased an enigmatic character by the name of James, the Demon Lover. He occasionally appeared in some stories. Others where his name was mentioned in passing. Whenever and wherever he passes by, everything changes, not usually for the better. That's what made this collection sinister, especially the famous story The Lottery. That story got a lot of her readers upset when it first came out in a magazine. It sparked a lot of controversy during Jackson's lifetime.
 
Thanks, looks like there's hope yet....;)

I didn't think Joshi would have had a hack in that collection...:)
 
I would reccomend the master Mr Lovecraft, subtle and eerie. A chap called John Conelly is one to I feel I should reccomend. I cant recall any names of his books apart from the amazing "book of lost things" a strange adult fairy tale. Clive Barker is another one to read, weightier and tending towards adult dark fantasy in his later work but writes a superb ,well farce really in the books of blood.

Let us know how you get on.
 
brsrkrkomdy said:
Who are you callin' a hack?
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No-one actually. It was just that from that one story I was less than impressed by Jackson but I'll need to read more of her work before coming to any lasting conclusion. Obviously you can't normally judge an author on a single short story and it sounds as if Jackson is worth checking out further, so I shall let you all know how I fare.

Cheers....:)
 
GOLLUM said:
No-one actually. It was just that from that one story I was less than impressed by Jackson but I'll need to read more of her work before coming to any lasting conclusion. Obviously you can't normally judge an author on a single short story and it sounds as if Jackson is worth checking out further, so I shall let you all know how I fare.

Cheers....:)
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Good. ;)
 
Cayal said:
Does any know of any horror books that are in the mold of Silent Hill style horror?

A more psychological horror I would call it.

I would love to hear any recommendations.

Thanks
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Burnt Offerings by Robert Marasco
 
Try the "Books Of Blood 1-6" by Clive Barker, some of the stories are really good!
 
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