Popular Horror Novels & Stories

He pauses before continuing with that slithering accent like something you would hear in a horror story or someplace in the darkest parts of Europe, “Have you ever wondered if the things that go bump in the night really exist? Or if they are a figment of your imagination?” Getting more creeped out by the second, I keep staring at him and then find that I can speak again. Before I utter an answer, I raise my hand up to my forehead and wipe a strand of my blonde hair out of my eyes so I can concentrate. “Sure, I have always been intrigued by the forces of darkness, but do they really exist as they do in my novels and dreams?”

There's a monster at my door. No shadow can hide me. Darkness cannot conceal me. I'm a flickering light, I'm warm flesh, I'm a beating heart. Knock, knock, knock . There's a monster at my door and it won't go away. It won't ever go away. ******* The faint scent of cigarette smoke filtered through the gap in the partly-open doorway. The voice of a newsreader I couldn't stand, drifted in with the smoke, serving as nothing but background noise to the crack of bone and screams I could still hear.

I grinned. Rina snorted. “I’m a little annoyed by people trying to turn classic literature into horror shit.” Kimi and I looked at her in surprise. “So, you prefer pure horror?” I asked. Rina rolled her eyes. “Have you met your sister? She’s all about the jump scares and psychological thrillers.” I wrinkled my nose. “So is your brother. I’m not going to lie, Blood and Chocolate and Warm Bodies were a compromise. As was Shaun of the Dead.”

Tinsley had already claimed a spot against the side of the truck bed, blanket arranged, with the settled energy of someone who had arrived with opinions and intended to deploy them. “The problem with modern horror,” she said, to the general air, “is the color grading. Everything is teal and orange and it flattens the fear response.” “What does that mean,” Emory said. “It means you stop being scared because everything looks the same.” “I am going to be scared,” Emory said. “Regardless of the color grading.” “You are going to cover your eyes.” “I am going to be scared and then cover my eyes, in that order, which is the correct order.”

They emerge from a hole in the ground, a dark and menacing opening that seems to be the very gate to the underworld. The Drider, an equally terrifying entity, accompanies them. Its appearance is a grotesque blend of spider and humanoid, with a body covered in dark hair and long, sharp legs that creak with every movement. Its eyes, a bloody red, reflect pure malice and an insatiable thirst for power. Together, Drider and the Skinning of the mind are the embodiment of horror, a sight that could chill the bravest of souls to the bone.

“I don’t know what’s so Adult about them. It’s not like you’re watching people do their tax returns or something. Anyway, I convinced him to try some other stuff and it was a hit. Now he lets me do the ordering.” He was getting comfortable with me. I had no idea where I was headed with any of this, but my instincts told me there was something about this kid. I figured if I kept him talking I might find out what. “So, the horror ones are pretty popular?” “Oh, yeah,” he said. “People act like they don’t like it. Like make fun of the titles and stuff, but they still rent ‘em. And then rent more. Gorier the better.” He smiled.