# Your Opinion on the Horror Stories and Authors listed below



## iceguy303 (Mar 18, 2008)

* All, *

*I have started reading Stephen King's Danse Macabre.   In his appendix he listed the following books that have made a significant contribution to the Horror Genre between the 1940's -80's.  The titles with asterisks are stories with additional significance.  *

*What my question is to you is: Have you read any of these books and if so, what is your take on them.  Did you like the book?  No? Why?  *

*I have searched google for this list, but without luck I was relegated to type it out.  My goal is to read every one of these on the list so that as I continue to write, I have a better chance of making the story successful.  Enjoy and I look forward to hearing from you. *




*Adams, Richard*
The Plague Dogs
Watership Down*

*Aickman, Robert*
Cold Hand in Mine
Painted Devils 

*Ayme, Marcel*
The Walker through Walls

*Bainbridge, Beryl*
Harriet Said

*Ballard, J.G.*
Concrete Island*
High Rise

*Beaumont, Charles *
Hunger*
The Magic Man

*Bloch, Robert*
Pleasant Dreams*
Psycho*

*Bradbury, Ray*
Dandelion Wine
Something Wicked Comes this Way*
The October Country

*Brennan, Joseph Payne*
The Shapes of Midnight*

*Brown, Frederic *
Nightmares and Geezenstacks*

*Bryant, Edward*
Among the Dead

*Caird, Janet*
The Loch

*Campbell, Ramsey*
Demons by Daylight
The Doll who Ate his Mother*
The Parasite*

*Charnas, Suzy McKee*
The Vampire Tapestry

*Cortazar, Julio*
The End of the Game and Other Stories

*Crews, Harry*
A Feast of Snakes

*Dahl, Roald*
Kiss Kiss* 
Someone Like You*

*Daniels, Les*
The Black Castle

*Donaldson, Stephen R. *
The Thomas Covenant Trilogy (3 Vols.)*

*Maurier, Daphne Du*
Don’t Look Now

*Ellison, Harlan*
Deathbird Stories*
Strange Wine*

*Farris, John*
All Heads Turn When the Hunt Goes By

*Finney, Charles G. *
The Ghosts of Manacle

*Finney, Jack*
The Body Snatchers*
I Love Galesburg in the Springtime
The Third Level*
Time and Again*

*Golding, William*
The Lord of the Flies*

*Gorey, Edward*
Amphigorey
Amphigorey Too

*Grant, Charles L.*
The Hour of the Oxrun Dead
The Sound of Midnight*

*Grubb, Davis*
Twelve Tales of Horror*

*Hallahan, William H. *
The Keeper of the Children 
The Search for Joseph Tully

*Herbert, James*
The Fog
The Spear*
The Survivor

*Hjortsberg, William*
Falling Angel*

*Jackson, Shirley*
The Haunting of Hill House*
The Lottery and Others*
The Sundial

*Kersh, Gerald*
Men Without Bones*

*Kirk, Russell*
The Princess of all Lands

*Kneale, Nigel*
Tomato Caine

*Kotzwinkle, William*
Dr. Rat*

*Kozinski, Jerry*
The Painted Bird*

*Leiber, Fritz*
Our Lady of Darkness

*Le Guin, Ursula*
The Lathe of Heaven*
Orsinian Tales

*Levin, Ira*
Rosemary’s Baby*
The Stepford Wives

*MacDonald, John D.*
The Girl, the Gold Watch, and Everything

*Malamud, Bernard*
The Magic Barrel*
The Natural

*Marasco, Robert*
Burnt Offerings*

*Marquez, Gabriel Maria*
One Hundred Years of Solitude

*Matheson, Richard*
Hell House
I am Legend*
Shock II
The Shrinking Man*
A Stir of Echoes

*MacDowell, Michael*
The Amulet*
Cold Moon over Babylon*

*McEwen, Ian*
The Cement Garden

*Metcalf, John*
The Feasting Dead

*Murdock, Iris*
The Unicorn

*Oates, Joyce Carol*
Nightside*

*O’Connor, Flannery*
A Good Man is Hard to Find*

*Peake,Mervyn*
The Gormenghast Trilogy (3 Vol)*

*Pynchon, Thomas*
V.*

*Rampo, Edogawa*
Tales of Mystery and Imagination

*Ray, Jean*
Ghouls in my Grave

*Rice, Anne*
Interview with the Vampire

*Roth, Philip*
The Breast

*Russel, Ray*
Sardonicus*

*Samson, Joan*
The Auctioneer*

*Sansom, William*
The Collected Stories of William Sansom

*Sarban*
Ringstones: The Sound of his Horn*

*Siddons, Anne Rivers*
The House Next Door*

*Singer, Asaac Bashevis*
The Séance and Other Stories

*Smith, Martin Cruz*
Nightwing

*Straub, Peter*
Ghost Story*
If you Could See Me Now
Julia
Shadowland*

*Sturgeon, Theodore*
Cavair
The Dreaming Jewels
Some of your Blood*

*Tessier, Thomas*
The Nightwalker

*Theroux, Paul*
The Black House

*Tryon, Thomas*
The Other*

*Whitten, Les*
Progeny of the Adder*

*Williams, Thomas*
Tsuga’s Children*

*Wilson, Gahan*
I Paint What you See

*Wright, T.M.*
Strange Seed*

*Wyndham, John*
The Chysalids
The Day of the Triffids*


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## Sam (Mar 18, 2008)

You want my opinion on _every _single one of them? I'd be here 'til Christmas. I stopped reading once I didn't see any Koontz. No King either? 

Sam.


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## Stewart (Mar 18, 2008)

Sam Winchester said:


> I stopped reading once I didn't see any Koontz. No King either?





> Stephen King's Danse Macabre.  In his appendix he listed the following books that have made a significant contribution to the Horror Genre between the 1940's -80's




What on earth would a Dean Koontz be doing in a list of "significant contributions"? Likewise King, in his own book.

Regarding the list, it's very varied, which makes it extremely interesting. Man of them I've never heard of, whether it's because they are deep in genre, or because they've never made the leap across the ocean. But here's a couple of reviews of some of them:

_Don't Look Now_, Daphne du Maurier
_High Rise_, JG Ballard
_I Am Legend_, Richard Matheson


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## iceguy303 (Mar 19, 2008)

Thanks Stewart.  I will check out those links .  I spoke to my wife about the book list and she truly loved _The Haunting of Hill House. _ I think that is the next one on my list.  I have read _I am Legend, Interview with the Vampire, _and _The lottery_ so far, but as for the rest, I have heard only a few of the titles.  I dont know if you have read _Danse Macabre_, but it goes into a great number of books that I have found very interesting.  Even though I am a huge movie fan, I could do without his coverage on past horror films.  




Stewart said:


> What on earth would a Dean Koontz be doing in a list of "significant contributions"? Likewise King, in his own book.
> 
> Regarding the list, it's very varied, which makes it extremely interesting. Man of them I've never heard of, whether it's because they are deep in genre, or because they've never made the leap across the ocean. But here's a couple of reviews of some of them:
> 
> ...


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## Truth-Teller (Mar 19, 2008)

They're good.

But some are downright boring.


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## Mike C (Mar 20, 2008)

Interesting list, because a lot of them aren't horror. It's nice to see that King acknowledges the influence of other genres.

Ballard is certainly significant, though more as a literary SF author than horror - though some of his stories certainly fit the 'nightmare scenario' mould; High-Rise, for example, was a believeable inturpretation of an adult version of Lord of the Flies.

Bloch's Psycho and Bradbury's Something Wicked... are horror standards; required reading if you write the genre. Ditto Herbert's work. But Donaldson's Covenant trilogy? Interesting reading, but just how much bloody guilt can you take? It's depressing, and not in a good way. 

Ursula LeGuin is excellent, but by no means horror. Likewise Marquez's Hundred years of solitude; it's a landmark in Magical Realism, not horror.

The list's too long for detailed comment, but skipping to the end, John Wyndham - nice to see him get a mention. Highly influential in SF circles and beyond, I'd also add The Kraken Wakes to that list.


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## Mike C (Mar 20, 2008)

Truth-Teller said:


> They're good.
> 
> But some are downright boring.




Quite a blanket statement - how many of them have you actually read?


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## Sam (Mar 20, 2008)

Didn't really read the thread. Sorry. Besides, the only horror I've ever read is Koontz and King. I'm more action-adventure. 

Sam.


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## seigfried007 (Mar 21, 2008)

The list was also 1940's to 1980's- in other words, a lot of these books are hard to find, out of print, and might not have been published over here en masse when originally published.

I did find the variety very interesting becasue, as Mike mentioned, many of those works weren't horror. I noticed a few names, but I've read very few of them (haven't run into many of them at all and didn't know they came highly recommended).

I'm not as big a fan of Koontz and King, interestingly enough, Read some Clive Barker too and if you like Koontz and King, you might like him. However, like most 'horror' lately, it's little but disturbed sex and some interesting scenery even though several of the premises are incredibly thought provoking/frightening (read the Body Politic). 

Mike, I found Lord of the Flies plenty horrific enough--all the more so because it involved children. It's rates quite high on the list of Most Disturbing Books I Have Ever Read. I've read a fair bit of its literary critiques and papers various scholars have written on it and the more I find, the more disturbing that book is for me, though, granted, I have a history with boys such as that book describes.

I've heard a great deal about Watership Down and have been warned not to read it because it was so traumatizing to other people I knew. I've got the gist of it and it sounds pretty darned... well, disturbing (but influential and interesting most certainly).

I've heard a great deal of praise for Day of the Triffids but have never found a copy to read myself. 

Oddly enough I'm more familiar with more of the classics: Poe, Lovecraft, Stoker and Schelley. I've read quite a bit of Poe, but haven't gotten ahold of any Lovecraft yet though he's definitely on my to-read list. Frankenstein and Dracula are staples and classics with good reason (I more of a Frankenstein fan though). 

War of the Worlds, while sci-fi, I suppose would also fit on my list of great horror. It's so difficulat to beat its opening lines-probably the best first page ever written in fiction. Just a friggin' awesome tale. I never got to read the end of it as my copy was lost or destroyed and I haven't gotten around to finding another one though I've seen both movies and listened to the 1978 musical version (which was doubly wonderful and comes highly recommended. My father used to torture my younger brother and I with it and it--and it's fabulous art--are pleasantly frightening still for me)


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## BOURBON (Mar 21, 2008)

303 - later in DM King recommends Siodmak. If you read none of the above, read him. Donovan's Brain is one of the most influential and really disturbing. If you like it... Hauser's Memory, Gabriel's Body and The Third Ear make for incredible reading. BB


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## Katastrof (Mar 21, 2008)

Seig - Lovecraft is a definite must read. I'm reading a collection of some of his short stories, and they are wonderful. Some are even spooky, and I rarely get scared from a book, let alone a short story. And his description is some of the best I've read.


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## strangedaze (Mar 21, 2008)

This list is more than slightly fucked. Roth's novella, The Breast, is about a guy who's transformed into a breast. Horror, or wet dream? Kozinski's Painted Bird isn't really horror either, though it's definitely rife with atrocity.


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## iceguy303 (Mar 23, 2008)

I have Peter Straub's _Ghost Story_ and Shirley Jackson's_ The Haunting of Hill House _coming in the mail. I am really looking forward to diving into them.  Thank you for everyone's opinion here.  I will tune in when I have them under my belt.  Regards and Happy Easter.


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## iceguy303 (Apr 5, 2008)

*thanks for the recommendations*



BOURBON said:


> 303 - later in DM King recommends Siodmak. If you read none of the above, read him. Donovan's Brain is one of the most influential and really disturbing. If you like it... Hauser's Memory, Gabriel's Body and The Third Ear make for incredible reading. BB


 

I will certainly keeping these titles in mind.  Thanks for the suggestions.


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## Tiamat (Apr 5, 2008)

Something Wicked Comes this Way (isn't it Something Wicked This Way Comes?) is one of my favourite books of all-time.  I adore Bradbury's prose, though I didn't find it particularly scary.

The Lord of the Flies (and people may well hate me for this) is one of my least favourite books ever.  If I hadn't had to read it for school, I would have stopped reading after chapter 7.  I won't say why though, on the off chance someone here hasn't read it but wants to.  

Orsinian Tales is a collection of short stories, most of them good.  I wouldn't call any of them horror though.


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## Remedy (Apr 5, 2008)

iceguy303 said:


> *Golding, William*
> The Lord of the Flies*


Ah, Lord of the Flies. I read that for school. Personally, I think it's a decent book; not all that much to rave about, but little to rant about either. I don't think it's truly all that horror though, unless the horror lies in the behavior exhibited, which it very well might. 



iceguy303 said:


> *Rice, Anne*
> Interview with the Vampire




 Anne Rice is someone who has a very distinct writing style; you either love her, or you hate her. I hated her writing; I found it very dry, too talking at, and too void of all things interesting. On the other hand though, I have a friend who loves her, so to each their own and all. 

A lot of the books on your list sound familiar in the "I think I've read that, but I can't remember way", which tells of both my fairly awful memory and how much the books impressed me.


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## Flintenspiel (Apr 16, 2008)

Horror is a really broad term. There are so many facets of horror that can be discussed. It really begs the bigger question of who defines where books go on the bookshelf? Who says that this book is horror and this book isn't? 

As for the list:
Anne Rice- Certainly a little bit dry, but definitely an influence to the genre. 
Richard Matheson's I am Legend- Horror in the sense of what happens in a person's mind. That's where the horror comes in. 

Those are the only two remember from the list.


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## moderan (Jun 11, 2008)

I can highly recommend, if you can find it, Ray Russell's Sardonicus. Terrific collection-the title story was made into the film Mr Sardonicus which is remarkably faithful to the text.
Theodore Sturgeon's Some of your Blood is very well-written but isn't really horror in the classic sense. It involves a form of vampirism. Caviar is a collection of sf short stories, extremely good but not at all horror. I would guess that King recommends those because Sturgeon was a master craftsman.


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## velo (Jun 11, 2008)

I what King means is that while most certainly all of these titles can not be considered "horror" novels, something about the story has contributed to the genre.  It's like a metal band saying BB King was one of their influences.  Doesn't mean they play the electric blues, too, but it just means they took a particular bit of his playing or music and adapted it to their needs.  

Look at Watership Down, no way can you call that "horror."  But it is fairly brutal, unforgiving, and macabre at points, all aspects that it shares with the horror genre.  

I don't really read horror books, so many of them are so boring, formulaic, and poorly written.  How Dean Koontz ever 'made it' as an author is beyond me.  I read a couple of his books based on recommendations from friends in high school and was shocked at how agonizingly painful they were to read.  

King, on the other hand, is a damn good writer.  I don't go in for his more gruesome stuff but have read a few of his books and enjoyed them, but more for the overall story such as in "The Stand," and not the horror elements.


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