What's the Scariest Story You've Ever Read?

Oh, I thought of another one - The Shout by Robert Graves. Not sure if it was mentioned before though.
 
Only 1 book that managed to both scare and at the same time compel me keep reading and thats Spawn by Shaun Hutson
 
The old black and white adaptation of "Oh Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad" is very sinister, particularly the dream sequence.
 
Would people who have posted multiple titles like to go back and choose just one, as the original posting requested?
 
As far as full novels go, Bryan Camp’s The City of Lost Fortunes and Gather the Fortunes were not exactly frightening or with the foreboding augury of a usual scary story. But, the series, often compared to Chuck Wendig’s Blackbirds, follows a dead black kid and his friend a Psychopomp through the undead underworld of New Orleans, post-Katrina. I read that this author started writing the first book when he was very young, and evacuating his city.

As for shory stories, I like a lot of Ambrose Bierce’s stories. The Damned Thing, The Moonlit Road, etc.
 
The Monkey's Paw. Great setup, very sad middle, then from the moment the knocking starts it became the scariest thing I ever read by a wide margin.
 
The Abyss by Jeremy Cunningham This is a book that one either either likes our doesn't. It's about town next to sealed off mine that runs deep into the earth. Why was it sealed and why must it never be reopened ? I will leave it at that. :)
 
Hellhound heart by Clive Barker. The strange blend of eroticism and horror left me feeling uncomfortable. The Cenobytes are absolutely fantastic as villains. The are extreme but bound by strange rules and a code, they can be reasoned with up to a point which makes them scarier because you are gambling on rules with them that you don't know. to make the whole thing even more off putting Barker throws in paragraphs of gorgeous poetry book ended by unnerving horror or savage gore. I read it when I was in my teens and it creeped me the hell out. now its my favorite horror book.
 
For me, is is true singapore ghost stories when I was young. I was not a christian, then and hearing fellow Singaporeans tell of their haunted experiences truly freak me up. That is to the point that I dare not do homeworks after twelve midnight. Fortunately, I become a christian in my young adult age and knowing that Jesus is greater than ghosts truly set me free.

Now, I can read any horror stories and not grow frightened by them. Watching them, on screen, however, is another thing, altogether. As such, I tend not to watch horror shows.
 
Extollager said:
Would people who have posted multiple titles like to go back and choose just one, as the original posting requested?
Click to expand...
There you go, see!
I've read all through and realised that, although I've commented on a few replies, I haven't actually posted a scary story title....thinking time now:unsure:
 
Danny McG said:
There you go, see!
I've read all through and realised that, although I've commented on a few replies, I haven't actually posted a scary story title....thinking time now:unsure:
Click to expand...
Looking forward to hearing what you come up with. You’ve always had a good few pointers when it comes to spec fiction elsewhere, and I’ve enjoyed all the stuff you’ve recommended.

I want to echo inclusion of The Jaunt as posted upthread. And speaking of Stephen King, I’m tempted to include Revival, too. Very nihilistic.

It’s possibly shorts that are more scary to us than fully fledged long-form stories. That nebulous camp-fire/fireplace vibe that comes with them adds a level of disquiet.

Joe Hill’s Twentieth Century Ghosts antho should be in every horror fan’s collection. Some really unique absurd/horror stuff that lies me in mind of Kafka. Actually I’m now toying with the idea of buying it on my kindle right now.
 
Wellman's Who Fears the Devil? contains most of the Silver John stories. It was published originally by Arkham House (1963). My paperback was from Dell in 1980. Baen issued John the Balladeer in 1988 which included some late stories, and came in 5th in voting for the Locus award for that year. "The Desrick on Yandro" was arguably the best of the short stories, though others have been anthologized as well.

Good stuff that sits on that border between horror and fantasy.
 
Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo This one is sometimes listed under horror and given the subject matter and situation the main character finds himself in. Horrifying.
 
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