Horror Writers Association (HWA)'s "Horror Reading List"

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These 40 books were chosen by the Horror Writers Association as suggested reading. Please do not change or remove the books on this list.

From the HWA’s website:
"The Horror Writers Association was formed, in part, to foster a greater appreciation of dark fiction among members of the general public. Whether you are new to Horror, or simply want to become familiar with some of the classics and "bests" of dark fiction, the following books are a wonderful place to begin.

Like most "best of" lists, ours is somewhat quirky. The books that appear here were picked using a survey of HWA’s general membership in 1996, so many excellent books published more recently do not appear here, and some of those that do are now out of print. Most of the recognized classics of dark fiction do appear here, though."

List is alphabetical by author.

  1. 1.
    The Best Ghost Stories of Algernon Blackwood
    by Algernon Blackwood

    Drag me to re-order


  2. 2.
    The Exorcist
    by William Peter Blatty

    Drag me to re-order


  3. 3.
    Something Wicked This Way Comes
    by Ray Bradbury

    Drag me to re-order


  4. 4.
    Lost Souls
    by Poppy Z. Brite

    Drag me to re-order


  5. 5.
    The Hungry Moon
    by Ramsey Campbell

    Drag me to re-order


  6. 6.
    The Between
    by Tananarive Due

    Drag me to re-order


  7. 7.
    The Dark Country
    by Dennis Etchison

    Drag me to re-order


  8. 8.
    Raven
    by Charles L. Grant

    Drag me to re-order


  9. 9.
    Dead in the Water
    by Nancy Holder

    Drag me to re-order


  10. 10.
    The Haunting of Hill House (Penguin Classics)
    by Shirley Jackson

    Drag me to re-order


  11. 11.
    The Lottery: And Other Stories
    by Shirley Jackson

    Drag me to re-order


  12. 12.
    The Turn of the Screw (Penguin Popular Classics)
    by Henry James

    Drag me to re-order


  13. 13.
    The Penguin Complete Ghost Stories of M. R. James
    by M. R. James

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  14. 14.
    ?
    Dr Adder
    by K. W Jeter

    Drag me to re-order


  15. 15.

  16. 16.
    Pet Sematary
    by Stephen King

    Drag me to re-order


  17. 17.
    The Shining
    by Stephen King

    Drag me to re-order


  18. 18.
    The Stand (Modern Classics)
    by Stephen King

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  19. 19.
    Skin
    by Kathe Koja

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  20. 20.
    ?
    Dark Dance
    by Tanith Lee

    Drag me to re-order


  21. 21.
    Conjure Wife
    by Fritz Leiber

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  22. 22.
    Rosemary's Baby
    by Ira Levin

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  23. 23.
    Songs of a Dead Dreamer
    by Thomas Ligotti

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  24. 24.
    ?
    Lovers Living, Lovers Dead
    by Richard Lortz

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  25. 25.
    The Dunwich Horror and Others
    by H. P. Lovecraft

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  26. 26.
    At the Mountains of Madness and Other Tales of Terror
    by H. P. Lovecraft

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  27. 27.
    The Hill of Dreams
    by Arthur Machen

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  28. 28.
    Tales of Horror and the Supernatural
    by Arthur Machen

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  29. 29.
    Sineater
    by Elizabeth Massie

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  30. 30.
    I Am Legend (ties into movie)
    by Richard Matheson

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  31. 31.
    Relic
    by Lincoln Child

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  32. 32.
    Frankenstein (Penguin Classics)
    by Mary Shelley

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  33. 33.
    Book of the Dead
    by John Skipp

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  34. 34.
    Ghoul
    by Michael Slade

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  35. 35.
    Vampire Junction
    by S. P. Somtow

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  36. 37.
    Bram Stoker's Dracula
    by Bram Stoker

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  37. 38.
    Some of Your Blood
    by Theodore Sturgeon

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  38. 39.
    ?
    Phantom
    by Thomas Tessier

    Drag me to re-order


  39. 40.
    Sacrifice
    by Andrew Vachss

    Drag me to re-order


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Created by The Subjected Reader on Dec 20, 2006.
 

Comments

Darklands — 1 year ago

The source lists Darklands by Dennis Etchison, but I don’t think that book actually exists. I suspect it’s supposed to be his book The Dark Country. (Unless it’s supposed to be his other book Darkside, but The Dark Country seems to be better known.)


Changed... — 2 years ago

Sorry to mess up everyone’s checks, but I’ve just switched to a different, less messy-looking edition of Something Wicked This Way Comes (#3).