The Greatest Horror Books of All Time Books
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The Greatest Horror Books of All Time

original ranker cptron  4,618 views 135 items 7 followers
The greatest horror books of all time are books that make the hair on the back of your neck stand up just from the rustle of turning the pages. These scary horror novels are books you don't want to read at night (or by yourself) because they're just a little too scary. Many of these scary books have been turned into the scariest movies ever made, while others are too frightening to be imagined in real life.

From Stephen King classics like "The Shining" and "It" to classic stories like Bram Stoker's "Dracula" and Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein", these scary horror novels are known for their fright factor and smart writing that makes you believe the horrific events in the books are really possible.

What are the best horror novels? What is the scariest horror book? This list of the best horror novels is here to help you find a good scare on the written page. If you don't see your favorite horror book on the list of great scary novels, make sure to add it so other people can get the same fright you did.

If you're still looking for a good scare after peeking at this greatest horror books list, check out the scarefests in the best found footage films for a good scare.

List Criteria: Scary / horror novels or other fiction

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Rank     Name
  1. 1
    Up 130
    Down 18
    Stephen King
  2. 2
    Up 90
    Down 16
    Bram Stoker
  3. 3
    Up 106
    Down 27
    Stephen King
  4. 4
    Up 107
    Down 13
    Stephen King
  5. 5
    Up 63
    Down 15
    Mary Shelley
  6. 6
    Up 84
    Down 10
    Edgar Allan Poe, Nextext
  7. 7
    Up 72
    Down 14
    Richard Matheson
  8. 8
    Up 73
    Down 13
    H. P. Lovecraft
  9. 9
    Up 64
    Down 10
    Peter Straub
  10. 10
    Up 76
    Down 13
    Stephen King
  11. 11
    Up 65
    Down 20
    Stephen King
  12. 12
    Up 58
    Down 8
    William Peter Blatty
  13. 13
    Up 38
    Down 6
    Robert Louis Stevenson
  14. 14
    Up 47
    Down 10
    Oscar Wilde
  15. 15
    Up 35
    Down 7
    H. P. Lovecraft
  16. 16
    Up 34
    Down 7
    Ira Levin
  17. 17
    Up 27
    Down 5
    Henry James
  18. 18
    Up 68
    Down 17

    The Silence of the Lambs

    Thomas Harris
  19. 19
    Up 24
    Down 4

    Books of Blood

    Clive Barker
  20. 20
    Up 37
    Down 6
    Ray Bradbury
  21. 21
    Up 32
    Down 7

    The Call of Cthulhu and Other Weird Stories

    H. P. Lovecraft
  22. 22
    Up 32
    Down 4
    Robert Bloch
  23. 23
    Up 40
    Down 12
    Stephen King
  24. 24
    Up 40
    Down 12
    Dean Koontz
  25. 25
    Up 36
    Down 13
    Robert R. McCammon
  26. 26
    Up 36
    Down 13
    Clive Barker
  27. 27
    Up 27
    Down 7
    Jay Anson
  28. 28
    Up 38
    Down 17
    James Herbert
  29. 29
    Up 25
    Down 3
    Mark Z. Danielewski
  30. 30
    Up 30
    Down 11
    Dan Simmons
  31. 31
    Up 39
    Down 11
    Shirley Jackson
  32. 32
    Up 27
    Down 8

    Swan Song

    Robert R. McCammon
  33. 33
    Up 34
    Down 13
    Anne Rice
  34. 34
    Up 24
    Down 6

    Hell House

    Richard Matheson
  35. 35
    Up 24
    Down 3
    Washington Irving
  36. 36
    Up 11
    Down 2
    Stephen King
  37. 37
    Up 21
    Down 5
    James Herbert
  38. 38
    Up 30
    Down 8
    Joe Hill
  39. 39
    Up 20
    Down 1
    H. G. Wells
  40. 40
    Up 23
    Down 11
    Richard Laymon
  41. 41
    Up 24
    Down 10
    Peter Benchley
  42. 42
    Up 22
    Down 9

    Stinger

    Robert R. McCammon
  43. 43
    Up 27
    Down 6
    Clive Barker
  44. 44
    Up 24
    Down 10
    Michael Crichton
  45. 45
    Up 23
    Down 10
    Dan Simmons
  46. 46
    Up 23
    Down 13
    Ramsey Campbell
  47. 47
    Up 17
    Down 5
    Neil Gaiman
  48. 48
    Up 15
    Down 5
    Ramsey Campbell
  49. 49
    Up 18
    Down 8

    One Rainy Night

    Richard Laymon
  50. 50
    Up 21
    Down 7
    Bret Easton Ellis
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