15 Classic Horror Books to Haunt Your Dreams

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (1818)

Possibly the mother of all science-fiction novels, Mary Shelley's gothic horror novel Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, was born out of a ghost story writing competition on a stormy afternoon that included her husband Percy B. Shelley, Lord Byron, and Byron's friend John Polidori who would later write "The Vampyre" based on the ghost tale created by Lord Byron that very same afternoon.

All works written by Edgar Allan Poe (1831-1849)

Edgar Allan Poe's life was as dark and mysterious as his works of art. Not gaining much notoriety while alive, he is now a household name synonymous with gothic fiction and the horror genre as a whole!

An edition of his selected works is a must-have addition for your collection of classic horror books and LitJoy's special edition is to DIE for. The "Black Cat" is a purrrr-fect spin-chilling read on a fall evening, and "The Fall of the House of Usher" gives readers of gothic literature a quintessential haunted house with psychological fright.

Wuthering Heights by by Emily Brontë (1847)

How about one of the most perfect gothic romance novels for a twist on horror? Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights brings readers suspense, revenge, violence, obsession, and ghosts! It's intense, eerily unsettling, and a perfect classic horror story. Grab LitJoy's special edition of the novel and wrap yourself up with Catherine's ghost as you read.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë (1847)

After reading Wuthering Heights, perhaps pick up LitJoy's special edition of Jane Eyre by Emily's sister Charlotte for comparison. Jane Eyre written by Charlotte Brontë brings readers a gothic tale filled with mystery and villains. Lauded as a thriller in its time (and maybe still today—you be the judge!), Jane's good heart and unwavering spirit stay central in this story of dark and twisted secrets with an unlikely romance.

Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson (1886)

Invoking horror and despair, Robert Lous Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde presents readers with suspense and the struggle between good and evil that lies within each of us. Stevenson uses descriptive and juxtaposing imagery like "trampled calmly" and "dreadful smile" along with intense and grotesque behavior to create suspense, fear, and terror.

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1891)

Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray tells a dark tale of horror and suspense as it follows the decline of the youthful and beautiful Dorian Gray whose portrait takes on the demise of his debauchery while Dorian himself remains untouched by his crimes. A Faustian retelling, Wilde's story was not received well by the morally-rigid Victorian London critics citing immoral, hedonistic content. But it among one of the favorite classic horror stories to revisit year after year especially with LitJoy's edition of the novel.

Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897)

Bram Stoker's Dracula is the definitive origin of modern vampire art: alluring, enchanting, mesmerizing and predatorily evil! No classic horror book list is complete without the iconic blood-sucking walking dead man.

While everyone knows of him, most don't know Count Dracula as intimately as the readers of this haunting epistolary novel. Diaries, letters, logs and newspaper clippings give rise to the mystery and terror that have horrified us for more than 100 years! Grab the LitJoy Dracula Special Edition to enjoy gorgeous illustrations as you read through this classic tale of blood and gothic horror.

Among the Shadows by L.M. Montgomery (rediscovered stories published 1991)

Did you know that the children's classic literature author of Anne of Green Gables wrote strange and supernatural tales, too?

If you've read some of L.M. Montgomery's other works you may recognize the dark themes present throughout her novels. These 19 rediscovered short stories published by Rea Wilmshurst present the strange and supernatural along with murders, thieves, and drunkards, perfect to curl up with this spooky season. And if you feel so inspired to reread one of L.M. Montgomery's more well-known favorites from your childhood, check out LitJoy's edition of her timeless classic Anne of Green Gables.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (1959)

Known as one of the most definitive haunted house stories, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson was a finalist for the National Book Award upon its publication in 1959. The novel has elicited two film adaptations and most recently a Netflix series in 2018. Pick up the novel to see the origin of the haunting adaptations where the terror doesn't hit you in the face, but follows you around like the ghost in the story until the solitude and dread becomes too much to bear!

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury (1962)

Set in the mysterious (fictional) Green Town, Illinois, Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes is scary and suspenseful and still popular today. A favorite to pick up for a reread during the spooky season of Halloween—the time setting of the novel—Bradbury gives us Cooger & Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show complete with smoke and mirrors and nightmares.

Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice (1976)

Vampires are back! With AMC's Interview with the Vampire TV series debuting at the beginning of this month on 10/2, we couldn't pass up an opportunity to suggest reading the original source penned by the gothic horror novelist Anne Rice.

Rice brought to life the vulnerable and tragic Louis and the radiantly seductive Lestat in the first book of The Vampire Chronicles trilogy. We don't know about you, but we'll always see Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise as we read the intoxicating classic horror book, but it is Rice's brilliance that brought them to us in the first place!

The Shining by Stephen King (1977)

What is a classic horror book list if it doesn't include the legendary storyteller of horror and supernatural fiction: Stephen King? We already suggested his first novel Carrie (1974) as a spooky season must-watch ; three years and one book later, he pens a terrifying atmospheric haunted hotel story that creates tense and creepy suspense between the natural and supernatural. And while Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation of the novel is highly regarded as a great horror film, King himself has publicly denounced it. Read the original and see for yourself!

The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson (1977)

Talk about haunted houses! How about a true story of a house possessed by evil spirits? Jay Anson's The Amityville Horror is as frightening and terrorizing as any great classic horror, but this time it's real! The story follows the true accounts of the Lutz family after they moved into their dream home and had to flee gripped with spine-chilling fear just 28 days later.

Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris (1988)

Thomas Harris, creator of Hannibal Lecter, brings him back as an imprisoned consultant for Clarice Starling and Will Graham to help them catch another serial killer, Buffalo Bill. Harris' novel is morbidly vivid with psychological terror. Probably one of the most well-known psychopathic horror stories to date with a film adaptation that is top notch!

Pet Sematary by Stephen King (1983)

Yes, another Stephen King. But what's Halloween without a tromp through a graveyard?

Pet Sematary was inspired by the real life death of his daughter's cat Smucky who was struck by a passing truck. King buried Smucky in the pet cemetery located behind the family's home in Maine that had a sign that read "Pet Sematary" at its entrance. Hence, the title of the book that King notoriously thought was too scary to print!

• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (1818)
• Anything Edgar Allan Poe (1831-1849)
• The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1891)
• Dracula By Bram Stoker (1897)
• The Turn of the Screw by Henry James (1898)
• Anything H.P. Lovecraft (1916-1944)
• The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (1959)
• We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson (1962)

• Anything Dean Koontz (1968-present)
• Anything Stephen King (1974-current)
• Amityville Horror by Jay Anson (1977)
• Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz (1981-1991)
• Fear Street & Goosebumps books by R. L. Stine (1989-present)
• The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova (2005)
• House by Frank E. Peretti and Ted Dekker (2006)
• The Maze Runner by James Dashner (2006)
• The Diviners by Libba Bray (2012)