A couple of titles are obvious to any person who knows the basic literary canon, but some might be new to you:
- Edgar Allen Poe's short stories. Seriously, who can read A Tell Tale Heart and not love Poe?
- Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Read it, even if only to finally understand how off all of the movie adaptations are (Sorry James).
- In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. Not scary per say, but murder mysteries are definitely in season this time of year.
- Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Am I the only one who found Ichabod Crane kind of good looking?
- The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, even if only to ask yourself if he should be filed as an American author, or a British author.
- House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. Recommended to me by the fantastic Liz, this book will always be a favorite of mine.
- Anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire. Horrible Brad Pitt adaptation aside, the book is a classic.
- The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. While the entire book isn't scary, the end definitely scared the crap out of me. Who knew that a dandy like Wilde could write like that?
- The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. Not scary at all, seeing as it's a children's book, but it definitely makes the list for sheer, awesome, Gaiman-ness.
- And last but not least in my top ten, Stephen King's The Shining. Save a spot in the freezer, this one will scare you.
I heard Jonathan Franzen's FREEDOM! its a really good novel. I hear its about America.
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