TarHeelMom
Cathlete
I love Intensitylisa's post re: scary movies, and that made me think about scary books, which I have loved ever since I was a pre-teen reading my grandmother's "Reader's Digest Condensed Books" until the middle of the night and scaring myself half to death! 
My all-time favorite goose-bumper is Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House," written way back in the 1950's (and which I first read, by the way, at my grandmother's in -- you guessed it -- a RDCB version.) Trivia note: The first paragraph of this book is widely considered to be the finest "opener" in the entire horror genre. This is a short little book and in some ways it's gotten a little bit dated, but it still contains some of the most startling "gotcha" scenes in print.
Another really great one is Peter Straub's "Ghost Story." In fact, I'd say these two are the most hair-raising books I've ever read. And both were made into crummy movies, although "Ghost Story" was the better of the two. Trivia note: "Ghost Story" was Fred Astaire's last movie. Betcha didn't know that. (What my strange little mind retains is really beyond understanding.)
Here's another great book that was made into a so-so movie: Thomas Diehl's "Primal Fear." I usually figure out a plot well before the end of a book, but the last two pages of this book had my jaw dropping. While it's not really a horror book, it's terrific suspense and a psychological thriller.
I've read just about everything Stephen King has ever written and find the quality varies a lot; his earliest stuff remains the best and scariest, IMHO.
What do you spooky book aficionados like to read??
http://e4u.deltait.com.au/sport/sport23.gif Kathy S.
My all-time favorite goose-bumper is Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House," written way back in the 1950's (and which I first read, by the way, at my grandmother's in -- you guessed it -- a RDCB version.) Trivia note: The first paragraph of this book is widely considered to be the finest "opener" in the entire horror genre. This is a short little book and in some ways it's gotten a little bit dated, but it still contains some of the most startling "gotcha" scenes in print.
Another really great one is Peter Straub's "Ghost Story." In fact, I'd say these two are the most hair-raising books I've ever read. And both were made into crummy movies, although "Ghost Story" was the better of the two. Trivia note: "Ghost Story" was Fred Astaire's last movie. Betcha didn't know that. (What my strange little mind retains is really beyond understanding.
)Here's another great book that was made into a so-so movie: Thomas Diehl's "Primal Fear." I usually figure out a plot well before the end of a book, but the last two pages of this book had my jaw dropping. While it's not really a horror book, it's terrific suspense and a psychological thriller.
I've read just about everything Stephen King has ever written and find the quality varies a lot; his earliest stuff remains the best and scariest, IMHO.
What do you spooky book aficionados like to read??
http://e4u.deltait.com.au/sport/sport23.gif Kathy S.
