Horror books and I are just not working out together.
Truth is we didn’t really try to make the relationship work. But pfft, who’s getting caught up on the details?? * THE FACT IS: I came, I read like one book, and then flittered off to conquer a planet or devour a nation or rearrange my bookshelves or something.
I should probably feel bad for not giving horror a proper go. But…eh, no. I have SKEPTICISMS. In fact, I have a whole list of reasons why I barely ever read horror books. Because why say something briefly when I can ramble ON AND ON about it with a dozen footnotes and tangents about devil cake **??
I’m linking up with Top Ten Tuesday for their “Halloween/horror/scary” themed prompt. And, fair warning: I don’t do Halloween BECAUSE I AM AUSTRALIAN AND IT IS NOT FALL HERE DANGIT. This is not to say that Australia doesn’t do Halloween. They try. But not me. They decorate the shops with overpriced, imported pumpkins (because it ain’t seasonal, folks) try to convince us to buy weird costumes like zombie bride outfits for four-year-olds and extra chocolates. Firstly, #NO to the first, but yet #YES to the second.
I just think it’s silly. We’re not having Autumn/Fall so why would we celebrate a fall-themed holiday? SHEESH. *** If I wanted to get in touch with my ghost/evil/demon side, then I’d dog-ear my own book pages, because if THAT’S not a horror story that will turn me into a monster, I don’t know what is.
* Obviously not me, because I must write these posts to make myself look PRACTICALLY PERFECT IN EVERY WAY. Did you see a failing in me? Oh get your eyesight checked, dear. The queen is flawless 89% of the time. The remaining 11% is for snack breaks and quick naps.
** HELLO I’M TALKING ABOUT HORROR. So we have to choose an evil cake. And devil cake looks freaking delicious and I want a piece ASAP and will sell your soul to get me some. Not my soul, obviously. I like to delegate things like that. #QUEEN
*** I’d apologise for raining on any Halloween-loving Australian’s parade, BUT I’M NOT SORRY BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE, GOOD SIR. I mean, the chocolate makes sense. But still. No one needs a holiday as an excuse to buy chocolate. Buy it now. Buy it always. Live your dreams and build a castle out of it. CAN I HEAR AN AMEN???
1. I HAVE THE IMAGINATION OF A STUNTED GNAT.
This is, of course, assuming gnats don’t have imaginations. I apologise in advance for promoting vicious stereotypes to gnats if it is not true. BUT MOVING TOWARD THE REAL ISSUE: I bet you are sitting there shaking your head and saying, “Cait. You’re a writer. It’s kind of in the JOB DESCRIPTION to have an imagination.”
I hear you. And I have a very specific imagination for things like: dialogue and story plots and types of nicely engraved knives good for stabbing or cake cutting. Ask me to tell you what the characters’s faces look like? I WILL SAY I DON’T KNOW. Ask me to describe a fictional house, family, cliff, cat, wardrobe, inside of a pizza oven, pirate ship, coffee shop, or dish of delicious Persian food — AND I WILL SAY I’VE GOT NOTHING, BRO.
Ergo, if you pass me a horror book that’s describing in great detail a creepy house, my brain just goes, “Okay, cool: BLANK.”
This is not scary. I can’t imagine it, so it’s not freaking me out.
2. WHERE IS THE COMMON SENSE???
Because who the heck buys a creepy house, moves in, watches doors slam and the air get chill and floorboards creak and the kitchen sink incinerator turn on and CHEW UP PEOPLE’S APPENDAGES and doesn’t think “It’s haunted. Let’s move to Tuscany instead.” WHY DON’T PEOPLE THINK THIS THROUGH???????????
Don’t play with children who stare at you creepily. Don’t move into a creepy house. Don’t go to a boarding school in an old asylum. Don’t buy old items from antique stores that are definitely cursed. Don’t play with ouija boards. Don’t kiss frogs. Don’t annoy your neighbour who is clearly a vampire. Don’t don’t don’t don’t do anything that’s written on the list of “HORROR CLICHES”.
Why have people in these situations NEVER SEEN A HORROR MOVIE/BOOK?? Because here I am, rolling my eyes at the inevitable. Use google, you idiot characters.
3. WELL, I’VE ONLY READ LIKE 3 HORRORS.
And they didn’t impress me. Ergo I haven’t sought out anymore because I have a small attention span. And is it just me or does YA not really put forth many horrors??
Which leads me to…
4. MY BEADY LITTLE EYEBALLS DON’T SEE YA HORRORS LURKING ABOUT.
I unashamedly read mostly hyped books and new books. So if I don’t see a dozen bloggers shouting about a glorious YA horror they’ve found — I JUST DON’T KNOW IT EXISTS. I mean, I could google for recommendations. But shhh, stop being so reasonable.
It’s possible horror is a very small niche genre too, so publishers don’t publish much of it? I’m just guessing randomly here, folks. I know nothing. But it’s my duty in life to provide a blog that (A) gives you useless * facts about cake ** and (B) spouts nonsense likes it’s pure fact and then says “I AM RIGHT” when I literally have no clue.
* EXCEPT CAKE FACTS ARE NOT USELESS!! They are crucial to becoming a better person!!
** For instance: did you know traditionally, cakes were used as offerings to powerful and higher deities? Hence I am the Cake Queen and you keep giving me cake because it’s in your historical roots to worship me and do so.
5. IT DOESN’T EVEN SCARE ME. LIKE AT ALL.
I like books with a bit of gore and creepiness and bugs exploding out of your liver and your eyeballs melting and all that fun stuff — because who doesn’t?!? * But IT DOESN’T ACTUALLY SCARE ME. I’ve never felt genuinely terrified by a book.
HOWEVER: I do feel terrified by real life frequently. In fact, all the time. Everyone is a potential serial killer and the house is going to fall on me. #AnxietyProblems
* Ahh. Sane people maybe?
6. CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE GHOSTS’ FEELINGS NOW???
I am notorious for having a soft spot for precious tragic cinnamon rolls WHO ALSO WANT TO CUT YOUR HEART OUT but are possibly just under-loved and need warm pretzels and calming classical music.
Sure that ghost is trying to gut you…but maybe he wants to be friends??? And has anyone thought of offering that demon a nice cupcake? Can we give the creeptastic house a coat of yellow paint? #HAPPYVIBES
I just think we should consider everyone’s FEELINGS here.
7. THE COVERS ARE OFFENSIVE TO MY GOOD TASTE.
The real horror story are these dull covers:
I’m not inspired to pick this up, peoples, not at all.
8. WHAT EVEN COUNTS AS HORROR??
Paranormal aspects don’t send shivers down my spine in books because it’s not real. You want to know some REAL terrors that horror books should be about???
- phone conversations
- your neighbours partying at 3am when you want to sleep
- the last piece of cake being gone
- bookmail arriving damaged
- responsibilities of, like, any kind
- dropping your toast jam side down
- your favourite book ending on a cliffhanger with no sequel in the works
- christmas gatherings
- plucking eyebrows
- THE INTERNET NOT WORKING
9. NOT ENOUGH FOOD.
I guess getting scared out of your pink fluffy socks is supposed to make you not think about food? But, seriously, who wants to read a book where no one is eating??? I’m hungry just thinking about it.
Demon attacks + snack breaks = a great book and I’d read that!
10. I’D RATHER WATCH IT THAN READ IT.
Which is a phrase I thought my bookworm soul would NEVER SAY. But there you go. I have fallen. This is one of the very slim and few times that I would rather watch, for instance, the Winchester brothers stabbing things in the face and getting covered in blood than I would reading about it. I get creeped out watching things ALL THE TIME. Ever seen Stranger Things?? Hahhahha. Yeah please send me a fluffy blanket and protect me for I’m delicate and traumatised. And I love being creeped out watching things! Although I’ve never tried hardcore horror because I might not be terrified but I WILL overthink it which equals the same result of never sleeping again.
But who even wants to sleep??? You can sleep WHEN YOU’RE DEAD. *
* Perfect horror slogan, omg, I’ve missed my calling and I NEED TO BE A CREEPY HORROR CREATURE that slinks out of the darkness and whispers this from under your bed. If writing doesn’t work out for me, I’ll go with this.
Ha I used to love horror books, not the cliched ones but original ones. Like as a kid I LOVED the goosebumps (I think that’s te English name?) books! But anxiety issues came my way and now I’d rather not cause myself to be an even bigger anxiety mess so I don’t read those anymore 😂
Yes I’ve heard of Goosebumps!! I’ve never read one though.🙈🙊 And omg I hear you with the anxiety. *sends you comforting cake* We don’t need triggers in our lives, right?!
Oh I would definitely prefer to watch horror over reading it. (Stranger Things has me permanently terrified but also very glad to be terrified because I like the story???) I don’t tend to read horror because of all your reasons, especially the common sense one. It would be interesting to see a horror book set in the least creepy and newest house ever for once. 😀
I loooove Stranger Things! Says she who hasn’t seen the last two episodes.🙈🙊 I’m TERRIBLE. I love it, but I have the attention span of a deluded grape and I just keep wandering off before finishing it. Plus I want Eleven my precious darling to be okay. <3
There’s not much horror these days, but back in the late 80s/early 90s when YA was really becoming its own category, horror was THE thing. Scholastic had Point Horror, which was a series that at its peak was putting out at least a dozen novels a year. And that was just the one series. You had authors like Richie Tankersley Cusick, D E Athkins, Carol Ellis under that brand, plus LJ “The Vampire Diaries” Smith’s The Forbidden Game trilogy. Diane Hoh’s Nightmare Hall had 29 books in the space of two years (93-95), and if published today would be classified as New Adult (it’s a horror series set as a university). Christopher Pike was probably one of the big horror names, and RL Stine was occasionally dipping into YA with things like Fear Street Sagas and Fear Street Seniors.
These were also coming out at a time when Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer were big: the “smart” sexy slasher films starring people who were supposed to be teachers. I Know What You Did Last Summer was based on a 70s YA book by Lois Duncan.
Maybe a YA novel that is unabashedly horror will strike at the right time to become popular enough to help the horror genre rise back up in YA. Until then, most YA horror is horror romance with more emphasis on supernatural and romance than horror. And ebooks that are republishing some of these older horror novels like Point Horror.
Oh wow! So YA horror just had it’s spotlight before I was reading basically. 😂 Although I read two Point Horror books last year and thought they were the worst things ever. 🙈🙊 MAYBE I’M JUST TOO OLD.
And yes, so true! Maybe we just need that breakthrough YA horror that will get everyone into the genre!
Some of those Point Horror books were really bad! Although I reread my favourite (Trick or Treat, I think it was Richie Tankersley Cusick) a few years ago and it still sent shivers down my spine.
For YA horror not from my childhood(!), earlier this year I read Darkmere by Helen Maslin and Frozen Charlotte by Alex Bell and enjoyed both. The latter book requires less imagination as the creepy dead dolls in the book were a real thing in Victorian times (seriously, they came in their own coffin and everything!) and you can find images online. Thanks for that Victorians! (This tells you about the dolls if anyone wants to feel slightly creeped out! http://dangerousminds.net/comments/frozen_charlotte_the_creepy_victorian-era_dolls_that_slept_in_coffins_and_w)
Omg The Fear street books used to give me nightmares! 😂 But I had to read all of them anyway to see what happened!
I rarely read YA horror and am with you on watching the Winchester boys slay than read creepy things in books. The things I find the most horrorsome in books are plot twists and cliffhangers and my favorite ships being torn apart. These are what keep me up at night, not books about ghosts because I actually have a liking for ghosts. When you mentioned jam toast falling face down I was cringing so bad, especially when I thought about it falling face down on clothes!!! The Horror! And another horrific thing of the day is that Netflix is removing Supernatural on November 20th!!!! Whhhhhhhyyyyyy???!!!! I need my boys and angel in a trenchcoat!!!!
WINCHESTERS FOR THE WIN. I will never get tired of that TV series. 😍😍
And SAME. Why do we need to keep hating on ghosts? They can be cute! In a…dead way…
And omg jam is the true horror story. Although I actually dropped my toast this morning and it AMAZINGLY did not land jam side down. Am I a wizard? I think so.
NETFLIX???! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, NETFLIX?!? *SCREAMS*
Totally agree with the uninspiring covers, most of their designs are utterly drab. I do own a copy of ‘The Merciless’ though, and I have to say that even though the design itself is a bit simplistic, I adore the texture of the actual book! It kind of feels like a bible, which is pretty rad since it deals with god vs devil etc.
Sidenote, have you checked out some of the stories on reddit (reddit nosleep) or sixpenceee? The stories there creep me out, and if you like watching horror sixpenceee has a masterlist of things like that as well! One of my personal favourites is a movie about ‘goatman’ (I think), terrible acting but it terrified me for some reason.
Eeek, I’m so shallow about the covers BUT I CAN’T HELP IT THEY’RE SO BORING. Just like a sepia cover of a girl in a dress?? Sooooo what. *collapses in a heap* I NEED MORE INTERESTING COVERS, C’MON WORLD!😂 I’m glad The Merciless is good on the inside though! hehe. And no I’ve not read any stories on reddit, heheh. I barely ever read stories online because I prefer to ditch my computer when reading and read an actual book. But maybe I’ll get a chance to look some up!
The last piece of cake being gone is definitely a horror. Too scary to actually read a book about that.
I actually don’t read that much horror now that I think about it! I also have to agree that I think the characters in horror books can be so gullible and naïve. Honestly, I don’t want to read about a character complaining because they are terrified when they find out the house is haunted I mean, they walked in there in the first place. If it were me, I would’ve just walked past that house at first glance!
I’m hyperventilating just thinking about it. SOMEONE GET ME CAKE QUICKLY SO I CAN CALM MY SOUL.
Ahem.😂 And yesss, gullible and naive sums it up pretty accurately for me. I just really have no time for characters I don’t care about. Characters make the book, in my opinion!
Lovely post.
My country also doesn’t do Halloween!! We have our own sort of Halloween in February/March. You guys could celebrate with us or something.
I used to read a lot of Stephen King as a teen. I was a creepy teen.
Now I don’t. I got all soft and scaredy, like this:
https://media1.giphy.com/media/2xx76aWGM39zW/200.gif#6
However, I LOOOOOOOOVE haunted houses so much! There’s just something about it, like secret forts you build in childhood. I must be weird, but for me it’s like HAUNTED HOUSES ARE SAFER THAN NORMAL ONES. I don’t even get this, but now that I think about it, it’s what I feel like o_o
I wouldn’t read YA horrors though. I think the best horror is, you know, the serious kind. YA tends to concentrate on romance when it tries to be something else than YA. Not sure I’m wording it right though.
Don’t say you haven’t been terrified by a book before you try Stephen King though *goes to check Goodreads if Cait has read any*
Giant spider clowns out of other dimensions. Yeesh.
I do agree about the covers being super offensive though. Ha.
All that said though, I hate horror movies. Cause of the aforementioned reason:
https://media1.giphy.com/media/2xx76aWGM39zW/200.gif#6
But to other MORE IMPORTANT matters.
Cait.
Y U WRITE SO MANY POSTS THAT I CAN’T SLEEP.
[I have dedicated a Cait-specific tweet for that and you shall read about it on Twitter this evening]
As a revenge I have written a new blog post myself. I am more happy about this one than the last one. It has unicorns.
THAT KITTEN GIF IS TOO CUTE. THAT KITTEN MUST BE CUDDLED AND PROTECTED AND — oh wait, yes we were talking about books *nods* Back to the topic at hand, ahem.
Someone definitely needs to talk to Australia about how stupid it is to try and ride on the coattails of American holidays. SOON WE’LL BE DOING THANKSGIVING AND THAT’S JUST INSANE ARGH ARGH. (Okay, but to be fair, my family does thanksgiving because my sister is married to an American and my 3 niblings are all half American and I will join in on pumpkin pie of asked. BUT I DIGRESS. AGAIN. OMG.)
I don’t think all YA concentrates on romance? But I do think it has to keep things tamer, probably, for respect to younger audiences, which is probably why it doesn’t do anything for me. But even when I was a Smaller Bean (in age…I’m still small in height omg I never grow) I wasn’t scared by them either. AND NO I HAVEN’T READ STEPHAN KING. I SHOULD DO THAT SOMEDAY. And see if it changes my mind!!😂
A CAIT SPECIFIC TWEET?! Should I be worried or flattered??😂
I was going to send you to bed OMIGOD WHAT YOU DOIN’ UP AT DIS TIME, only then I realized I had Aussie time zones all wrong for, like, EVER.
THAT KITTEN, I KNOW ;_; I just want to enter the gif AND PROTECT IT. Can we please do it?
Niblings! Then we share that, cause my sister lives in America and also has American niblings for me, Which are always too far away.
My country doesn’t buy into the whole Halloween thing much. Own traditions and all. I think that’s a good thing too.
And I’m also like the tiniest person in the country. OMG, did we catch this from BOOKS? D:
Try “Pet Sematary” by Stephen King. Or better yet, “The Shining”. But you’ve probably seen the movie already.
Not all YA books concentrate on romance, but a lot misuse it. Main reason why I barely read any YA books. Most of the ones I’ve read have been poor in plot and overloaded on romance. Maybe I was just unlucky in my choices. However, it has kept me away from YA quite effectively.
I LOVE horror books! Though I admit, it doesn’t have to scare me, not if it makes me think.
I’m not sure that, in real life, most people would say no to playing with an ouji board. I mean, sure, we’ve all seen the films and heard the supposedly “real life” horror stories, but how many of us would dismiss it as just a game? Or give into our curiosity?
Two horror recommendations – Frozen Charlotte and The Dead House.
I actually have The Dead House!! I won it and I 100% plan to read it someday, hehe.😂 But yeah, I mean, of course people get curious! I was kind of being sarcastic with my list of “say no to”s hahah. 😉
I also don’t read YA horror. IT IS JUST NOT MY TYPE. The MAIN problem is that I never get scared. Never. Bring a skeleton, ghost, spirit whatever, I won’t be scared. SO NOT SORRY. I AM JUST STICKING TO MOVIES REALLY. Plus those covers. Me not a fan.
We are like TWINS in this! Anti-scared twins! Like, if there’s a creek outside my door IRL I will never leave the house again. If someone gets the brains splattered by a zombie-ghost-in-an-asylum in a book…I just…I don’t even care. *sigh* I’M A HEARTLESS BEAST SOMETIMES.
Oh my god I love this post! This is an interesting spin to this week’s top ten tuesday! I do love Japanese horror books though, they’re so good! This week I’m planning to read Ring by Koji Suzuki which was the basis for the movie The Ring.
Aww, thankyou!! I’m so glad some horror books work out for you!!
I’ve never really searched for horror based books unless everyone is raving about it. I don’t read much horror either because I also get frustrated about the lack of logical thinking in the characters. I’m also quite befuddled as to what is categorised as horror because to me, dying technological devices whilst frantically attempting to find chargers is my kind of horrific. Speaking to humans in general? Petrifying. I don’t even watch much horror but I’m definitely more of a watcher than reader of horror. Because the Winchesters exist on television. Fabulous list as always Cait 😀
ugh the illogical thinking is THE WORST right?!? I mean, c’mon. Why do they go poking around after the creepy sound…OF COURSE THEY’LL DIE. I find it hard to care when characters are stupid. *facepalm*
And I know right?! omg, most contemporaries are horrors in my opinion, like when the character loses their wifi or something I START FREAKING OUT ON THEIR BEHALF.😂
The Winchesters are a blessing to this universe. 😍
I actually do get scared and I don’t like it. why would you do that to yourself intentionally!? Movies are worse for me, because then I have the visuals burned into my mind … but I never really gave horror books a chance … don’t think I’m going to either 😅
Hehe, fair enough!! Horror movies do totally freak me out…well, like things like Supernatural or Stranger Things anyway. BUT I STILL LIKE THEM BECAUSE THERE’S NOTHING LIKE BEING PSYCHED OUT OF YOUR BRAIN SO YOU CAN’T SLEEP.
I don’t know. I am weird. I LOVED Stranger Things and I don’t mind Supernatural at all! (except that freaky clowns … clowns are just a big NO, NO)
I just can’t watch horror movies like Mirrors, House of Wax, The Conjuring and other things in that direction … I get super paranoid and see things were there’s nothing.
I’ve read a couple horror/thriller/paranormal YA books, and they were really good(I’ve read three.). One in particular scared me so much that I refused to go to sleep without my flashlight on.
Although I really agree with you: I would much rather watch Supernatural than read horror/thriller/paranormal books. I am only on episode 12 of season 1, so no spoilers. I sadly have to watch it at a very slow pace, because I don’t have a lot of time. But it’s already my favourite show. It trumps any other TV show I have ever watched.
Supernatural is everything. 😍😍 It creeped me out when I first started watching it, but apparently I get used to things really quick, but it hasn’t creeped me out since. And omg I’m not caught up on SPN right now. 🙈🙊 I need to catch up on S11 since they’re already airing S12. I LOVE THE SHOW BUT MY TBR KEEPS TAKING UP ALL MY TIME. *shrieks*
I completely agree with you about the lack of common sense in horror. I mean, who does that? Who runs upstairs when a killer is after you? It’s like all sense just goes out the window. Your post made me laugh out loud because so much of it is TRUTH. Great job!
I’m glad you enjoyed the post.😊 MY GOAL IS COMPLETE. EEEP! And yes, omg it’s so irritating when they just dump all common sense and run around screaming like headless chickens. How am I supposed to care when no one is being LOGICAL HERE?!?
Hey Cait! I came across your blog awhile back, but I haven’t really been able to go on here and shoot you a comment! I love your blog design! 🙂
Hope your day is fabulous!
With love and all joy,
Allie D.
http://www.alliesblogdesigns.blogspot.com
http://www.friendlovesatalltimes.blogspot.com
http://www.sincerelyallied.blogspot.com
http://www.spreadingmyjoy.blogspot.com
Aww, thank you Allie! I APPRECIATE THIS SO MUCH AND IT MAKES MY DAY. 😊😊😊
haha. NO. I don’t go LOOKING to get scared, thank you very much. I’m the one who’s scared of gollum, the dark, and the rooster. if I want to be scared, I’ll reread mokingjay or anoy my sister. I used to be scared of the things in star wars, but I LOVE star wars, so I got used to it. 😛 and my mom won’t let me watch the hunger games movies because yeah, watching it is scarier than reading it. XD
Most crazily, ~Olive
Watching is TOTALLY scarier than reading!! I’m glad you agree!😂 I don’t watch a whole lot of scary things because my brain goes haywire over them, but I do kind of like to be creeped out on occasion. 😉
I used to read a little horror, but not anymore. {Stephen King.}
I write paranormal adventures, but without any graphic sex or violence. I prefer a big dollop of whimsy with my monsters. 🙂
~Icky. 🙂
Paranormal is GREAT. I love it!! I write it a lot too, and generally I go for the creepy/whimsy side instead of the horror too…hororr is hard to write!😂
Ok so all these reasons are good but I have a recommendation and I’m going to make it because you are a gracious queen and will not chop my little head off. Right?
Anyway you should read Dan Wells serial killer series. It’s about a boy who doesn’t want to give into his psychopathy but then monsters move to town. And it makes you kind of like the monsters too. Also all the scary stuff is in your mind +stabbing. No Creepy houses.
OF COURSE I DON’T CHOP HEADS OFF. *nudges axe under the bed* I would never. *covers it up with blankets* I’m always lovely.
And ahh!! I’ve actually read I Am Not a Serial Killer! I LOVED IT. Very creepy. But I was lowkey disappointed it went paranormal when I was hoping for an honest-to-goodness serial killer. Hmm. I should finish the series though.😂
NO NO NO, no horror for me. I have never seen a horror movie, and find that paranormal is quite creepy enough thank you very much. I am reading Frankenstein for school right now though. I’ve actually never really celebrated Halloween and I have a day off (yes long weekend) for Diwali, the festival of lights (aka the opposite of Halloween) on that day anyway. I’m thinking about doing a ‘books that match diwali post. Yay or nay? Also I totally agree with alllll you points here. (except the covers, I quite liked some of those)
Hehe, horror is DEFINITELY not for everyone…which is why I don’t think it’s as well publicised?? Because it’s such a smaller niche??? But I DO love creepy books, and the creepier the better.
Just after reading your post I was scanning through amazon and found this https://www.amazon.com/Scare-Me-Sleep-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B01M0CL9Z1/ref=zg_bs_3511261011_f_10
What I think has happened with YA horror is that it has a lot of similarities with YA paranormal books that authors don’t cultivate the horror style of writing so therefore the horror aspect has lost its impact.
Oh that sounds probable about the horror vs paranormal. I ACCEPT THAT THEORY.😂
I don’t read a lot of horror, mostly because I’m VERY easily scared. I just finished reading As I Descended by Robin Talley, and I don’t even know whether that counts as horror, but it was the most terrifying book I’ve ever read. I like books that scare me a little bit, but those books don’t usually go anywhere NEAR horror levels of scariness!
Wow, wait, Robin Talley wrote a horror?!? I thought she wrote like NA contemporaries ahhha.😂 I’m curious now and I want to check it out!😂
Your Supernatural gifs give me so much life. <3
Also, I agree with so much of what you said! I mean, food is never enough in most books, like c'mon, these people maybe fighting villains but what did they have for breakfast? When was the last time they ate dessert? *eyes go big in terror* Do they even have dessert?? I don't know about you, but cake is severely underrated in YA. I mean, I don't read YA horror all that often but when I do, I VERY RARELY am okay with how it ends. I will forever choose watching a horror movie over reading it, then again, mainly I am just super weak and I can cover my eyes while watching a movie but can't with a book. #weakkkk
Having no dessert is the REAL horror story here anyway. *howls because life without desert is no life at all* And yaaas, I would rather choose a horror movie over book any day. I FEEL SO BAD FOR SAYING THAT BUT IT’S TRUE. I mean, just look at those Winchester boys. Need to watch them continually.😂
Great post, as always. I actually think I’ve never read YA horror–although I did read some Edgar Allen Poe once for school. I read the first couple pages of the Black Cat, thought “bleh, whatever”, and basically couldn’t sleep for three days. BUT I HAVE A STRONG IMAGINATION WHEN IT COMES TO BUILDINGS AND PEOPLE AND STUFF. So it was scary. Although I did like it. After I read it and wasn’t hiding behind the dog.
My parents both love “campy” horror movies, the cheesier the better, but I’ve only seen a couple and they don’t really freak me out–so far. Of course, with Halloween around the corner–which I *do* celebrate because COSTUMES AND SKELETONS AND JACKOLANTERNS OH MY–I am going to a Halloween Teen Weekend this weekend, and I will be expected to watch a horror movie. Halloween Camp is awesome, but omg, I’d never actually watched a scary horror movie before, and last year we got Insidious. INSIDIOUS. Which is like the scariest movie out there EVER. And it had child possession. I am very overprotective of my little brother and all my little cousins, so when I see/read about bad things happening to kids, it messes with my head. That movie was a BAD IDEA. The old lady gave me nightmares for months I AM NOT KIDDING YOU. Ahem. It was kind of good, though. In a scary, terrifying, hiding-under-the-covers-this-year way.
Omg I’ve heard of Insidious but not see it…but child possession? YEAH THAT SOUNDS ENTIRELY CREEPY. WHO WANTS TO SLEEP AGAIN ANYWAY. LET’S JUST GET FREAKED OUT OF OUR BRAINS INSTEAD. *runs in circles hollering*
Yes! Why is there never any common sense? Why do they always run upstairs or into the basement? Why don’t they get the hell out of there as soon as they get a freaky vibe? It’s insane and infuriating. I would rather watch it then read it because at least you can get up, get yourself another chocolate bar and come back and you’ve missed most of the gore and/or stupidity, plus its over in a few hours.
And completely agree on the covers! They are so bland and boring?
Great list and you made me laugh a lot. Thanks
Rachel @ Paein-and-Ms4Tune
Oh oh so true!! I take snack breaks when characters are to stupid too..haha…or, like, hello instagram. (Honestly I’m the worst at watching movies because I end up just scrolling through instagram or pinterest instead because CHARACTERS MAKE SUCH DUMB DECISIONS SO OFTEN.)
I get scary easily, plus I tend to compensate the lack of visualization with the abundance of feelings. So, if the main character is having a panic attack… yep.. I tend to feel part of it.
Yeah, reality can be scary. Sometimes more than books.
Oh Oh, I have a real life horror story for you:
My book depository order was late to arrive so I went to check the order. By some mysterious glitch it mixed my home address with my sister’s building number. Meaning… IT. IS. LOST. I called the post office. They said no use without some weird code. I emailed book depository… They don’t have that code, because they don’t get traceable ID’s for free delivery. OOOOOHHH THE HORROR.
But worse part is still to come: “If delivery cannot be made the order should be returned to us as undeliverable within 5-10 weeks, although we cannot guarantee this. Once we have received the returned item, we will then be able to resend it to the correct address”
TEN WEEKS. TEN WEEKS. My poor babies will be lost for 10 weeks and then will travel again to Portugal for who knows how long to be on my grabby hands. And being held close to heart.
And now for the last scare before the end. The order in question has two books:
– The Darkest Part of The Forest by Holly Black
– This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab
Are you running away screaming in terror?
As for me, no amount of cake has settled my heart since I discovered the bad news. My heart is still bleeding for my babies.
P.S. WordPress thinks my TTT is missing. Here’s the link
I totally am DEAD INSIDE and have no feelings haha.😂 It takes me a lot to feel empathetic with characters, so I think that doesn’t help for me caring when they go into a haunted house AND TOTALLY ARE ABOUT TO ALL BE MURDERED. *growls at the characters instead* I’m a hopeless case.😂
omg that is a true horror story. BOOKS GOING MISSING IS THE WORST THING OF EVER. *cries for you* (I hope they arrive soon!)
I would love to be you Cait! My imagination is too active every little squeak I heard sounds like monsters trying to kill me! I admit, I am a scaredy cat. But hey, I also love to be scared! I don’t really read horror, but I’ve read some this month and SAY HER NAME really creeps me out! Remember you-know-who from the supernatural episode in the first season? (hint: 1×05) yeah it scarred me for life and this book just… *shudders* I actually really like THE MERCILESS cover? It’s just so simple and it’s a pentagram haha! And I wasn’t scared while watching STRANGER THINGS, but it’s definitely not the best idea to watch it while eating…
WAit wait who from Supernatural?!?😂 Sorry, I LOVE THAT SHOW TO DEATH (ahhah #punny) but I forget characters a lot. Do you mean Ruby? Lilith? Lilith was pretty awful. Ugh.
I loooove Stranger Things! The first episode creeped me out so bad, but then I just got used to it, I think. I NEED TO FINISH IT!!
Bloody Mary! I’m so sorry I’m just really afraid with her😂😂😂
I love horror, but hey, not everyone loves the same genres – that’s the beauty of books, there are enough to go around. I know the people in the book are making a huge mistake, but I like reading things and thinking “Hey, my life isn’t half bad…at least I don’t have to fight zombies in order to walk the dogs every day…” I think YA horror is becoming quite popular now – at least more so than before. I would recommend “The Dead House” by Dawn Kurtagich, “Blood and Salt” and “My Best Friend’s Exorcism.” “Stalking Jack the Ripper” seems to be getting a lot of hype too and although I own it, I haven’t read that one yet. I love adult horror better and will always be a Stephen King fan through and through. Although you give some VERY good reasons why horror isn’t your thing.
It’s so true! It’s glorious that books are subjective and that there’s such a huge variety of them. SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE. HUZZAH.
oh oh I want to read Stalking Jack the Ripper! Is it horror? I just thought it was historical-fiction/thriller?😂 And I’m sooo going to try The Dead House because I won it a few months back!
I CAN’T DO HORROR. I get so scared easily and if I watch a horror movie or read a horror book I also overthink everything and the next thing I know I AM VERY ANXIOUS ABOUT EVERYTHING. XD So I just avoid it completely haha!
THAT HONESTLY SEEMS VERY WISE. *nods* What’s the point of making ourselves unncessarily anxious if it makes problems for us, right?!
I just finished watching Stranger Things this weekend. That is definitely my limit, as far as horror goes, and I only watched that one because of all the fantastic wonderfulness that is 80s nostalgia.
I don’t read horror either, unless it is gothic horror, because it always sounds so cheesy! And I’m all about cheese, in moderation, but I just don’t have the love for blood, guts and gore…or like you said, stupid people doing stupid things, like spending the night in an old, derelict asylum, or buying a house that practically screams poltergeist!
Here’s my TTT: https://4thhouseontheleft.wordpress.com/2016/10/25/ttt-tuesday-halloween-freebie-witches/
I need to finish Stranger Things!! I have like 2 episodes to go and I just never seem to get to it, hehe. FAIL TO ME.😂
I will not touch horror with a ten-foot-stick!!! *pulls out eleven-foot stick and stick won’t touch horror*
I is a chicken. Like just no. I don’t like demons (which meant I skimmed so much of The Raven King and that was disappointing 🙁 ) and I don’t like creepy dolls and yeah, all that stuff. What really scares me is sticky stuff. Like honey. Melted plastic. Gum. Not hot glue, though. I was surprisingly okay with that. I will not watch Stranger Things (I have this really good friend who told me it was really good and then he explained that it was also really too creepy for me). There are episodes of Doctor Who I haven’t watching because they are too creepy.
So yes. No horror for me, pleases and thank yous. 😀
Waaah how can you skim THE RAVEN KING?!?! IT IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CREATURE OF THEM ALL. <33 Like I don't believe in paranormal things very much, but I still believe in demons/angels...just maybe not the forms that we imagine them to be in? Because bible and all that *nods* BUT ANYWAY DEMONS ARE CREEPY. And dolls are creepy too. I actually think dolls in general are creepy now. I used to always kind of half cover my dolls faces when they were sleeping when I was little because I didn't like them staring at me.😂 Okay...now I sound like a psycho. Ahem. I shal shush now.
STRANGER THINGS IS REALLY GOOD AND FREAKED ME OUT.
I DIDN’T WANT TO SKIM IT BUT… *SNIFF* 🙁
Oh I believe in angels and demons too. I don’t like reading about either, though, demons moreso than angels.
When I was little, I had this thing called a Pet Net. It was a lot like a hammock that was hung up in a corner of my bedroom and you set dolls and stuffed animals in it. I was so scared of my toys coming alive when I was little and that thing was right across from my bed! XD (Every now and then, I still freak out about dolls at night, but usually I’m scared of something else first and that doesn’t help.) XD
I pretty much did the opposite of this post for my Top Ten Tuesday. I’ve never been scared by a book, but I like horror. For YA horror, you should check out Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick. It’s not scary, but it’s delightfully odd.
Oh oh I love Marcus Sedgewick. I WILL DO THIS!
I love reason 8! My friend and I are now laughing and having a discussion about the true horrors in our lives as well.
AHHH THIS MAKES ME HAPPY. *hi five* for our priorities on what counts as “Horror”. 😂
#2: YES YES YES. Why are they all idiots?? O_O
Also, always move to Tuscany instead! (I’m actually reading a time-dimensional-traveling awesome series (Bright Empires series by Stephen R. Lawhead) in which there is Tuscany — as well as Egypt, Stone Age, modern London, medieval Prague, etc. *nods* This is actually really cool to see you talk about it (shush, mentioning-in-passing is totally talking about it… >.>) when I’m reading about it. ^_^
#5: I am one of those sane people. XD Okay, so you don’t like horror because it doesn’t scare you, and I don’t like horror because I do and/or it’s gross and/or I HATE ZOMBIES UGH. -_- Zombies and horror and dystopian and heavy-romance-for-the-sake-of-heavy-romance are like the only genres I’m no about.
#8: Anytime somebody used “it’s not real” as an excuse I back away slowly because WHEN I’M READING A BOOK IT’S REAL. XD Ahem. I mean, my fantasy books for instance. They’re totally real in their world, so #whynot. However your list of real horrors like phone conversations/bookmail damaging is glorious yus, so much horror.
True, watching Supernatural is creepier than some things…
Basically I don’t read horror either, YA or otherwise, so I can’t really weigh in. XD
I just DON’T GET why people don’t think about the situations they get into in horror books?! IT’S SO PAINFUL IT’S HARD TO CARE WHEN THEY FALL INTO AN ASLYUM AND GET EATEN BY A GHOST. Wait. I am very coldhearted. 😂 #mybad
OH and I totally mentioned Tuscany JUST FOR YOU.😂 I actually just like saying the word hahhah. Yes. I am that shallow. It’s a problem really.
Aww, no zombies? Okay, I admit, there are a few zombie books that DID legit freak me out. The Girl with All the Gifts had some seriously creeptastic moments (and I want to see the movie) also the movie of World War Z was…wow. But I barely ever watch movies *sigh* My TBR likes to control my life see. 😉
(hey I don’t read very much horror AT ALL and yet I just managed to write a nearly 2K post on it. This is my life. I CAN’T SHUT UP APPARENTLY. Even on topics I know nothing about.😂)
Watching over reading for me too! Aside from the occasional Stephen King and all Agatha Christie (which aren’t even categorized YA), I’m not sure I’ve ever read much horror/creeptastic stuff!
I think it’s like you said here, the genre has become SUPER cliche! And, I apologize, but the characters seem to lack in the personality and brains department. xD
Painting haunted houses yellow and offering that li’l demon dessert would be on my to-read list definitely!!
Eeep, yes, I think the cliches and predictability is a bit of a problem? Like if I read a horror before knowing all the cliches, maaaaybe it would’ve been scary? MAYBE?😂 And I should probably try a Stephan King before I give up on horror completely hahaha.
I usually like to watch horror, too. Like you said, I could watch the Winchesters all day. I have read some decent YA horror with the best in a while being Shutter by Courtney Alameda. Both The Call (if you like Holly Black) and The Fall (if you have any interest in Poe) were quite good as well.
Oh I actually have The Call on my TBR!! I should get to it, right?! I loooove Holly Black.
Confession: I’ve never been scared by a book either. That is, until I read The Screaming Staircase. It’s about teenage ghostbusters basically, and I read it all in one day, no problem, all was alright with the world. UNTIL I WENT TO BED. One of the scenes involved the mc laying in bed trying to get to sleep, and she mentally notes that her pile of laundry is getting big and she should take care of that in the morning… And then she realizes IT’S NOT LAUNDRY THAT’S MAKING IT BIG. It was a super creeptastic scene where she’s trying to escape the ghost with no equipment and all that good time stuff. It was the middle of the day when I read the scene; I didn’t even think twice about it… Until I went to bed. In the dark. And the next day’s clothes are waiting for me, draped across the chair. It didn’t matter how much I told myself it wasn’t real – that teensy little voice kept whispering deep in my soul “but what if it is?” and “this is creepy…” Until I was thoroughly freaked out. I lost a might of sleep over that, the first night. I couldn’t relax. And it was literally a good week/two weeks before I could go to bed without a shudder and forced “don’t think about it, don’t think about it. Think about balloons and fluffy pink elephants and circles and anything but ghosts….”
MY IMAGINATION IS LIKE THAT TOO! And everyone’s like, “oh, Kat, you write so well! YOU HAVE AN AMAZING IMAGINATION!” And… No. I can weave elaborate plots with lots of backstabbing and betrayal, double-crossing and multi-layered schemes, BUT I CANNOT TELL YOU WHAT CHARACTERS LOOK LIKE. It’s a lot like trying to remember someone’s face from a dream. I know I HAVE seen it, it’s not a blank empty space for the face like a Nazgul, I just can’t tell you what’s there exactly. I might be able to tell you “He has black hair” but only because that’s what the words said was there. Eeevverry once in a grrrreaaaat long while, I’ll have ONE CHARACTER or, more frequently, ONE FEATURE of ONE CHARACTER that I can picture quite specifically, as if I’d actually seen/met them irl. But this is rare. Let’s just face it that I am a cucumber that can no more picture settings or characters than I can spell metamorphosis backwards in five seconds.
Oooh, I officially want to read The Screaming Staircase. MAYBE IT MIGHT FREAK ME OUT TOO AND THEN I’LL HAVE FOUND THE PERFECT HORROR?!??! *hopes hard* *feels kind of of weird hoping to be terrified* ….ahem.
And I’m so actually VERY glad we both fail for the imaginations. *hi fives* It’s so weird, though, right?!? Like I can barely tell you what things look like without pinterest.😂 Sometimes I get VAGUE visions, but usually I have to have pinterest to cement things for me. hahahahahahah….oh dear. And finding character faces is SO HARD because I (A) never know what to look for, and (B) never remember when I write it anyway.😂 #fail
I don’t read much horror but I think that’s because it’s so rare to find a horror book. Although I can’t say that it’s particularly to my taste either – I don’t watch horror films because I just don’t like them. Although I LOVED Final Destination, that was a pretty epic movie, but it didn’t necessarily scare me? So IDK. I prefer contemporary, always.
Totally fair!! I think horror is a pretty small niche of people who really like it?? Probably why we don’t see it everywhere?
I don’t read or watch a lot of horror either! I prefer funny or kooky scary, not outright HORROR. I can also handle kind of creepy, like Stranger Things (aah, soo good) or Supernatural. When I was in high school I did watch a lot of horror but then I realized that all my favorite characters were dying and I didn’t like it… so then I started reading fantasy books and guess what? My favorite characters often still die! The horror, it never stops.
STRANGER THINGS AND SUPERNATURAL ARE BOTH AMAZING.!! And I love their horror-styel. Like ST totally creeped me out in the first episode, but then I got into the hang of things and it wasn’t that scary after that.😂 Eleven is so precious. <3 SAM AND DEAN ARE ALSO PRECIOUS.
And omg what is it with favourite characters dying all the time?! I think they do it to spite us. *stamps foot dramatically*
I don’t read YA horror, or just horror in general. I feel like it isn’t as fun as watching, because you can’t have something scary pop out at you unexpectedly. I read at my own pace and horror just seems slow to me in book form. I really love horror movies though. Have you ever seen Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, it an awesome movie. The only person who will watch it with me is my mom, my brother and sister say it is too much. Also I think you are just oblivious to YA horror. I feel like it pops up everywhere, and I just ignore it. Like there is a Madness so Discreet, all of the Madeline Roux books, and I think Cynthia Hand as a series that is a bunch of Edgar Allen Poe retelling’s. I did read The Fall and I was not impressed. I do want to read the Madman’s Daughter series, it sounds interesting and has been on my TBR list for years. I don’t think I get scared that easily. When I was younger yeah, I was a scaredy cat. But I have 3 brothers and they used to try and make me jump all the time when I was younger (they were mean, especially my twin brother my mom had to make him stop scaring me). Do you like horror movies, I don’t get scared very easily but The Conjuring is the only scary movie that freaks me out. I love the Ouija movies though. I want to mess with a Ouija board, just to see, but then again I have a very small belief in ghosts. In the movie Annabelle the baby’s name is Leah, and I thought that was crazy. I don’t hear of very many other Leah’s.
So true! And the dramatic music that comes with watching horror = half the experience honestly.😂 And nope I haven’t seen Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark! I SHALL GOOGLE IT AND SEE WHAT IT’S ABOUT! oh but I have read Aslyum by Madeline Roux and it was cool but not that creepy. Like, I mean, set a school in an aslyum?!? It’s all a bit predictable heh.
I was actually pretty terrified of things when I was a Small Bean too. I definitely recall this movie about Jack in the Beanstalk that freaked me out so much I DID NOT SLEEP FOR WEEKS. I think I was about 10?!?? I can’t look at Jack and the Beanstalk the same way anymore.😂 SO APPARENTLY I LOST MY INNOCENCE THEN AND NOW I AM HARDCORE. Ahem.
I have to disagree with you a teensy bit because the cover for The Madman’s Daughter is GORGEOUS!! But honestly I feel the same about YA horror not being at all scary. I’m rarely scared by horror and even less by YA. Awesome list today! 😀
Fair enough!! 😂 Different cover tastes do play into this, hehe…and I’m such a cover snob! I suppose I like colourful covers better?? So that’s a problem since horror tends to be all those sepia tones. But yaaas, it’s just not really that scary. NOT LIKE MOVIES. Movies creep me out all the time.😂
Well I was going to tell you to read The Diviners but… Ouija boards and ghosties
are the central theme! It does have some creepy people and murders though, so you might like it! I don’t read much horror either, but that’s because I have an overactive imagination and will spend the week after reading it having to psych myself up to stand in front of a mirror or, in the case of The Diviners, associating whistling with events that I won’t disclose incase you read it…
I have read The Diviners!😂 And unfortunately was not scared at all hahah.
I don’t read a lot of horror, I have enjoyed some, but I tend to prefer eerie, creepy books as opposed to scary ones. I totally get what you mean about enjoying watching something but not necessarily reading it, I love rom-coms but I am so picky about romance in books and never read straight up romance novels. Most people think I’m weird for that, so I’m glad to see someone else who doesn’t like one thing in books but likes it in TV and movies.
Eeep, me too!! I like creepy faerie books and stuff like that, but I don’t really consider that horror. But then, what even is considered horror? I DON’T KNOW. I SHOULD GOOGLE. <-- clearly answer to everything And I'm glad I'm not alone in actually preferring the tv/movies to books for this one.😂 *hi fives*
I get freaked out by books and shows easily b/c I have a vivid imagination, and get overly stimulated by movies so I tend to avoid horror. On the other hand, I love creepy non-horror, so….?
Ooh, lucky you that you’ve got a good imagination for horror!! I think that’d so help with the creep factor, right?!
i don’t read horror. but dark just really isn’t my thing. And my parents might get worried.
On the other hand I have read some book that might be horror, but never really thought about it. But they were scary, really scary. So I have read some horror. T’was kind of deep stuff about the world. I mean reading a story in which people embrace complete relativisim and lack of morals is pretty scary, especially when there’s a simulation that is constantly changing. You can’t think when you have no firs reference point. So both deep and terrifying. Anyway, enough of that.
On the side of writing about scary everyday things, I recently read a Facebook post asking for four word scary stories. Comments included: The chocolate was gone.
Now that’s really scary.
Or how about this: The kids were quiet.
Sometimes I do wonder what actually classifies as “horror” anyway, right?!? I mean, I’ve read some seriously disturbing dystopians and zombie books, buuuut..they don’t seem like horror unless there’s a haunted house/asylum and people going crazy with dark dead stuff and all that.😂 But the genre IS probably bigger than that!!
Dude. The chocolate was GONE?!?! WHAT KIND OF TRAUMA ARE YOU BRINGING INTO MY LIFE. *hyperventilates*
BUT CAIT… *whispers* The Madman’s Daughter is actually really good!
But I completely agree – I’m the same way. The lack of common sense and logic in horror stories definitely makes them difficult to enjoy at times. And I agree about the watching vs. reading aspect – for whatever reason things are much scarier in movies and TV than in books.
Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous post! <3
Oh goodie I’m glad you agree about the movies vs books for this too.😂 I FELT LIKE A BAD BOOKWORM FOR ADMITTING IT. But I’m not alone. *comes to stand next to you* And omg I shall read The Madman’s Daughter someday. BECAUSE OF YOU. 😀 I trust you!
I used to get really freaked by scary books but now I love them. I’m thinking mainly of the real, this could happen to you stuff. Not haunted houses or anything like that – though I do like some of those type of stories too!
Oh, and have you seen The Merciless in person? I love the feel of the book more than the actual cover.
I haven’t seen the Merciless in person, but like, I would maybe read it someday?! WHO CAN KNOW. I shouldn’t be so cover judgy anyway.😂
I keep meaning to read more horror, but as you mentioned… it’s just not shoved in our faces as much! Every October I try to make a point to read solely horror and it rarely ever works out for me. Horror movies though! GIMME THEM ALL.
If you haven’t seen it, you should definitely watch Hush. The main character is deaf-mute and someone is trying to kill her. It’s on Netflix and I think you’ll like it. 😀
Astrid
http://www.astridkaniele.com
Yesssss. It’s a problem right?! I’m trying to read all the books I hear everyone scream about, so if they don’t come across THEN HOW DO I KNOW THEY EXIST. Oh I haven’t heard of Hush!! I shall look it up. 😀
I can’t really think of too many YA horror books off the top of my head, so I’d go with the assumption that it’s a relatively small market. There have been some haunting type books out lately (Diary of a Haunting, The Haunting of Sunshine Girl), but they haven’t been especially good in my opinion. I think Sunshine Girl got 2/3 Stars from me. They don’t have a lot of the follow through I’d like to see and the characters are dumb as bricks. #2 Common Sense – WHERE IS IT?! Just once I’d like a horror book with a smart person who sees all the cliches running around and does something about them intelligently!
I did a Top 10 Stephen King Books on My TBR if you’d fancy taking a look at that when you’ve got a chance. 🙂
I think I saw a book trailer for Sunshine Girl and just trotted away laughing because it seemed like an episode of Supernatural AND I’VE BEEN THERE. SEEN THAT. NOT IMPRESSED AFTER THE FIRST TIME. I think there are only a few horror tropes, and that’s a problem, because there’s not much spice you can add after a while??? Because those cliches…*HEADDESKS*
Oh my god, that’s what this was missing! It totally needed an appearance by the Winchesters!
I REALLLY agree with this. I am so bad with horror/thrillers/whatever the heck “Halloween” books are. Like, same as you, they simply don’t scare me. And I can’t suspend my beliefs either. I am all like, Darwinism on these characters- if you’re so dumb that you went in the dilapidated creepy shack, then maybe you lack the common sense to be alive anyway. #NoSympathy. A few of them HAVE worked for me- like Blood and Salt- but it didn’t scare me, I just liked the story. And I kiiind of like the pink cover of The Merciless, but only because I think it is textured in person? So… yeah, I agree with you. And if I ever DO find one that scares me, I will definitely alert you ASAP because maybe it will scare you too? And then that author clearly wins.
Omg this makes me laugh.😂 Which, coincidentally, horror books make me laugh too (or toss them across the room whilst howling. Either/or). BUT YES. SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST. I mean, if you’re dumb enough to go to school in an asylum then don’t come crying to me when your teacher gets demon possessed and your study partner is dead or whatever. It’s obviously going to happen.
Definitely alert me. Maybe scream “BOOO!” at me as our code signal that you’ve found a scary book.
We don’t even do horror. It doesn’t matter what form it’s in, we refuse to read/watch anything that could be anyway horrific…although we stupidly requested an illustrated book that’s for children and possibly horrifying? We’d tell you more about it, but we’ve had it on our phone for weeks and have only made roughly 70 pages of progress….we’re easily scared.
Anyway. Moving on.
You’re number seven on this list did a wonderful job to shine a light on those dreadful horror book covers. They’re so awful. Why would anyone buy them? (Don’t they have book vanity?) If publishers can give us beautifully designed book covers for fantasy and sci-fi and a whole bunch of other genres one would think they’d make more of an effort with horror.
Which brings us to another point that you made.
Just how popular is the genre really? We don’t recommended young adult horror in our local bookshop and we never hear of it on the blogosphere. It’s almost non-existent to us and just for clarification purposes we need to mention that we’re not Gremlins. We have not been fed after midnight which is, of course, fortunate for you.
We’re soul destroying demons with more than a hint of godliness in our veins 🙂
Eeep, you are easily scared!!😂 Which is totally cool, hehe. Mostly everyone in my family avoids horror COMPLETELY and like, I like it?? But it does keep me up so I don’t watch it very often. BUT THE COVERS ARE SUCH A DYING SHAME ON THESE BOOKS. I mean, I guess they can’t be “pretty”…but who looks at a sepia photo of a girl in a black dress and feels compelled to pick up the book?! Not me.
Oh but c’mon now. Most gremlins would deny being gremlins. HOW CAN I TRUST YOU.
It is sooooo true that there aren’t enough YA horrors around. Good ones, anyway (I’ve never been scared by a horror book yet. Movies on the other hand…).
I think we must rectify this immediately.
Oh yes, excellent goal plan. I shall write a book about horror phone calls and be a bestseller at dawn.
LMAO at plucking eyebrows being horror, because I can totally relate. I hate pain, but I also want the perfect brows, yet I can’t bring myself to go under the tweezer more than once a month because ouch.
I LOVE horror movies (meaning I love hiding behind my hands/take off my glasses to render myself blind while watching them). But for some reason I can’t seem to get into horror books? Like you, my imagination just can’t conjure up enough life to be scared by words (what why am I admitting this as a blogger, woes be to my site)
EYEBROWS ARE THE TRUE HORROR STORY. Omg. Try being 1/4 Italian and having all that nice (not) Italian hair that likes to grow and eyebrows who’d rather be jungles than behave. MY LIFE IS SO HARD SERIOUSLY. *throws self pity party*
I think our imaginations are part of the problem with horror books here, right?!? It’s just so HARD to conjure up something creepy enough!! And heyyyy I admitted to it as a writer, so we can both go to the corner of shame together.😂
I disagree, if it ain’t worth reading it ain’t worth watching. Plus I believe that YA authors need to be more willing to scare instead of just playing around
Really?! Okay then, haha. I will stick to watching and loving horror and not reading it.
if it ain’t scary in words it ain’t scary anywhere XD
take stephen king for example
Agree to disagree I guess!
I am not a horror person at all, Like LOTR scared me (And let’s not talk about the hobbit) Zootopia was about my creepiness goals. So in other words, I haven’t really read horror. Unless Unwind counts (that was scary, dude) or The Girl With All the Gifts (again, scary, but sooooo good #reccomendx1000) Also, I feel you with the Halloween thing! In NZ, I went to like this ‘festival of light’ to combat the ‘evilness ‘ of halloween aka christians being like ‘spookiness is bad but we want a party too’ . And here some people do stuff for it, but not me because it’s just not my thing. Mainly like an excuse to make more money. And OMG yes phone calls are like the scariest things ever. Also the holoclaust, terrorism, poverty and climate change. Anyway these are all ‘great’ reasons not to read horror and I’m down with all of them.
Zootopia was creepy?! Omg.😂 not that I’ve seen it, so I probably can’t comment, but hehehhehe. Ahem. 😉 UNWIND TRAUMATISED ME….but is it horror? And I LOVED The Girl With All the Gifts, but I always just shelved that as zombies/apocalypse so it didn’t occur to me it could be horror? See…I don’t even know what the genre is.😂 #fail
i watched zootopia it was creepy for a five year old maybe… it does have its suspense moments.
“It’s haunted. Let’s move to Tuscany instead.” <—- I've pretty much learned that I'm not allowed to read your posts while eating or drinking because I cackle so much.
I do love horror, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of actual horror books in YA. I grew up reading Stephen King and Dean Koontz and there's nothing like that here… My go to YA horror is pretty much anything from Gretchen McNeil. Not all of her books are horror, but they're all murdery and the like. Possess is especially creepy.
I hope you find something you enjoy!!
THIS PLEASES ME GREATLY.😂
So I should probably try some adult horror before I give up on the genre, right?!? I’ve not read a Stephan King yet! I KNOW. THE SHAME. And I’ve seen the Gretchen McNeil books around but haven’t read yet. *adds them to the endless tbr* I SHALL FIX ALL OF THIS EVENTUALLY.
YES I find it odd that I love watching horror TV shows like Stranger Things (yay!) but then stay away from the horror books. There are definitely some creepy covers out there, like Creeper Man and Shutter, and I’m sure I wouldn’t be too creeped out by them, but I rather stay safe than sorry hahah.
And you’re right, I don’t hear too much hype about horror in YA. Which is sad because maybe they’re just underrated and I’m not hearing about them? Also do Australians not celebrate Halloween? Or is it just you? Because I feel like I would do anything for candy hahah.
STRANGER THINGS TOTALLY CREEPED ME OUT. Well, the first episode, and then I got used to it.😂 Eleven is too precious. Someone please demand I go watch the last two episodes omg. There’s ONLY LIKE 8 and yet I haven’t finished it yet.😂
Oh I do love the cover of Shutter!! Horror can do it right sometimes. *nods*
Hahah, I did say at the beginning of the posts it’s just me who doesn’t do Halloween. 😉
Shhh. Hahaha. I didn’t know Halloween was..well….I’m not actually sure who celebrates Halloween besides the US and Canada. Is it the world?
The UK celebrates it I think?? I DON’T EVEN KNOW. I assume people in the northern hemisphere for whom it is Fall/Autumn, right?!😂
I’ve read a few books that could be considered horror, I guess, but I find that really jumping out of your skin requires a movie version. Book events can’t physically startle you like movie events can!
Now, I know you’ve read horror because you liked Unwind. (Yes, I’d call that horror, based on that one scene.)
But for other suggestions… Hmm… Well, there’s a book I read years ago called Draw the Dark by Ilsa J. Bick that was kind of interesting (and sort of similar to books like Marianne Dreams by Catherine Storr and Coraline by Neil Gaiman, though the latter two are more for kids and not as scary). For good YA horror, I’d say give Stephen King’s Carrie a try. Yes, Carrie. It’s not technically YA (I don’t even know if they classed books as YA back when it was written), but it’s about a teenager with scary powers and abuse and bullying and lots of blood, and it’s still pretty relevant for today’s audience. Plus, you’ll probably be able to knock it out in an afternoon because it’s really short. 🙂
So true! And I think the suspense with music/setting in movies is just better equipped to leave you shaking in your boots.😂 But wait, you’d call Unwind horror?? I kind of did at first but then….OH I DON’T KNOW. DYSTOPIAN IS A WEIRD GENRE SOMETIME. That did totally freak me out!! But I read it so long ago I honestly don’t know if I’ve been properly scared by a book since then?!
I shall take note of all these suggestions though!! I really should try a Stephan King…just because how can I be a bookworm but not have read anything by him!? Carrie sounds awesome. 😀
NOT THE PHONE CALL. ANYTHING BUT THAT. And I like vampires (I might be one, still trying to figure that out). I agree with you, I rarely get scared reading horror books, Sometimes they will creep me out, but I’m never scared. I guess that’s why I usually only read them around Halloween.
PHONE CALLS ARE THE TRUEST HORROR STORIES IN THE WORLD AND SHOULD BE BANISHED. *screams*
Oh and yes! I’d agree with the “I’m creeped out but not scared” feeling, because I get that on occasion. *nods* The only book I’ve EVER been really scared by was some little one about a curse that made you go mad that I read when I was like 10.😂 Since then? NOTHING.
I don’t blame you honestly. The only YA horror I want to read is the Merciless because it’s supposedly a cult twist on Mean Girls and I’m absolute trash for that. But like other horror is so ??? I read Darkness Unto Devils and the “horror” was laughable honestly. Like everything you said you don’t like happened and on one hand I feel bad for laughing and on the other it’s like why???
My favorite “YA” (can you even call it that?) horror is the Fear Street books and Caroline B. Cooney. But who needs YA horror anyway when you have creepy pastas that make you scared to have the lights off at night haha
It is definitely a bad sign when one would rather LAUGH at the “horrifying” moments than be scared.😂 And that’s me generally omg! IT’S A PROBLEM. Have you ever read any Point Horror books??? They’re so so soooo not scary.
Hahaha omg the gif with the cat, I’m dead. Beautiful. But yes! I don’t really get Halloween. Mum weirdly bought a pumpkin this year and I believe it’s the first time I’ve actually seen one like it. Why on earth do people even need entire pumpkins – no wonder Cinderella rode one to the ball, geez.
Also, I have recommendations for Ye. Personally, I don’t read horror – I have an incredibly active imagination which means I get scared in 6/10 YA stories because someone does something ever so slightly scary – AND SUDDENLY, I THINK, THERE MUST BE SOMEONE UNDER MY BED BECAUSE SCARY = INTRUDER. Clearly. But yes, recommendations. Have you read The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield? It’s not “horror” it’s “mystery/thriller”, a genre I find myself increasingly fond of. It probably won’t scare you but I feel like it’ll tickle your fancy muchly so (plus there’s an excellence diagnosis by a doctor who tells someone how healthy/sick they are by referencing classic novels . . . You’ll have to read it to understand). I won’t mention The Girl on the Train because you’ve read that right? RIGHT, CAIT?? (You will die of how clever it is…also don’t watch the movie I’ve heard it’s shit).
Secondly! I read a book called The Medium by CJ Archer and it was pretty decent, and had a friendly and weirdly attractive ghost in it. I’m very curious to see how that relationship progresses in the future. AND, I totally got creeped out from Libya Bray’s A Great and Terrible Beauty, only to start reading The Diviners and freak out to the nth degree. *shudders*
Finally, who indeed does design horror covers. It’s like putting a chastity belt on the book. I ain’t touching that ugly thing with a ten foot pole, no sir!
I would make a horrible Cinderella because I would’ve just eaten the pumpkin to be honest. Do you know what’s delicious? PUMPKIN SOUP. PUMPKIN BROWNIES. PUMPKIN PIE. PUMPKIN SCONES. I don’t get all this carving nonsense. Let’s eat omg.
Ahem, anyway. BACK TO THE TOPIC AT HAND!! And nope I haven’t even heard of The Thirteenth Tale. WHICH SURPRISES NO ONE. 😂 I tell you, I know nothing about horror! I’ve had a terrible introduction and that is to say: non existent.😂 AND NO I HAVEN’T READ THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN BECAUSE I HEARD IT WAS BORING. Should I fix that? (Isn’t that thriller though?)
I have read The Diviners though. And…wasn’t scared at all.😂
Please do give The Girl on the Train a try!! I’ve suddenly seem a bunch of mixed reviews on it, but truth be told I’d call it the best thriller I’ve ever read. SO GET READING. And also please make sure you add The Thirteenth Tale to your TBR (you can thank me later).
AS IF THE DIVINERS DIDN’T FREAK YOU OUT. I mean, it’s not “scary” but eurgh, some of those bodies.
NO HONEST THE DIVINERS DID NOTHING FOR ME AT ALL. I’m like a coldhearted monster actually.😂 And obviously have a terrible imagination because I was creeped out by the bodies…now lemme watch a show with a creepy body count and, excuse me universe I need to have a breakdown.
Number 8 is pretty much perfect. Thank you for this, Cait! 🙂
I’m glad you liked it! 🎉
I totally get it! IT’s SO hard to get scared reading a book for me. I do love horror occasionally even though I’m a huge wuss, but books don’t often scare me that much. Guess I like the visuals movies & such provide. BUT there is one book that scared the everloving poop out of me and that is The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich. *shudders and hides under warm fluffy blankets*
Yess, the movies just provide a better visual (plus scary music) that can totally creep me out. I GET FREAKED IN MOVIES VERY FAST. But only for a short time?!? Like for sTranger Things, I was terrified in the first episode and then…it’s getting creepier but I’m not reacting anymore. 😂
I don’t read horror at all because I like to sleep. 🙂
Sounds fair! Sleep can be nice.😂
YA Horror fiction may not be scary to you Cake, because your an adult already, but look at it from a young adults prospective (aka, teens), we find new and fresh things scary, Frankenstein and Count Dracula are things of the past, now we have Twilight and The Zombie Apocalypse that are scary to us, the old school monsters, oh noses, lemme get my pitch fork and torches to chase them with a mob, new monsters, somebody call the SWAT team we have to blow this town up. You see Cake? Times have changed.
I wasn’t scared by YA horror when I was a teen either though…(And wait, Twilight was scary?? Wut now.)
Hahahaha, no Cait, Twilight wasn’t scary at all (or at least I don’t think so, I never personally read them) but it’s just to prove the point that we’re interested in other things now XD
AHHH OKAY I GET YOU!!😂 Sorry for misunderstanding that bit of your comment, haha.
I’ve never read YA horror. I think the main reason is because I’m just scared and creeped out by such things. I read books before I sleep and I just want to be able to sleep at night please.
Also, I see what you mean by the covers. Yeah.
The covers are a travesty to humankind honestly. *DRAMATIC SIGH* 😂
I don’t do horror. At all. Mainly because I’m a scaredy cat and my anxiety issues cause me to have an overactive imagination so even if I’m not scared WHILE I’m watching because it’s ridiculous or whaveter, I WILL be scared AFTER. Forget the ridiculousness. And focus on: OMG I’M GOING TO DIE.
Oddly, I can do Supernatural though. But that’s cause it has cute guys and lots of soul crushing feels LMFAO
That sounds fair. *nods* Anxiety is kind like that. I always end up obsessing over things after even if I’m not really “scared” I’m just….OVERTHINKING SO BAD. LIKE WHAT IS THIS.
Supernatural is everything though. <3 All the scariness is cancelled out by very nice looking hunters. #win
I think you’re right that there’s not a ton of YA horror out there to begin with, and reading horror in a book is just not particularly scary. And the covers. I never really thought about it, but horror covers do not in any way call to me. No wonder I never pick those books up!
I’m such a cover snob that like 89% of the reason I pick up half of my reads is because of covers.😂 And I HAVE seen cool creeptastic covers…like The Lie Tree? I don’t know what genre that is but the cover is FREAKY and awesome with that rotting apple. And Fiendish looks awesome too. But all these girls in long sepia dresses? Eh. Don’t even care.😂
Ironically, my mom is sitting next to me right now, reading The Lie Tree, which we picked up at BEA based solely on the cover. Solely.
OMG SERIOUSLY?!?!? That is the weirdest and best coincidence ever.😂😂😂
I don’t do horror or too scary either. Just… no, not in books or movies. I’m fine while I’m reading or watching but I get very vivid nightmares
My TTT List
Because seeing is sooooo different to reading right!? I won’t get freaked out at all over a book, but movie = LEMME OVERTHINK THIS FOR 9 YEARS.
I don’t read much YA horror either. I just find them too over the top sometimes! However, I started reading AND THE TREES CREPT IN by Dawn Kurtagich, and it has a particularly horrifying scene involving a snake and a bathroom *shudders*
ooh, I want to read that one!! I also need to read The Dead House.😂 I’M SO BEHIND ON ALL THINGS HORROR HONESTLY.
I like a bit of YA horror, it’s more just the intensity though because it’s not typically frightening at all. Anna Dressed in Blood is one I really loved, Halloween is such a non festival here isn’t it. In all my years, I’ve never seen a house being decorated and I can count the number of trick or treaters that have knocked on our door on one hand. I like that we haven’t succumbed to all the US traditions here, pity about all the Instagram posts with little pumpkins though 😀
I was going to read Anna Dressed in Blood but the first chapter was ripping-off Supernatural so hard I abandoned ship.😂 BUT OMG WHAT IS IT WITH AUSTRALIA AND TRYING TO MAKE HALLOWEEN HAPPEN??? It annoys me so much. Like we have displays in our shops with pumpkins and leaves??? IT’s spring, peoples. SPRING. Do a display of magpies swooping and killing the local populace just out to try and walk their dogs *sobs*
We have a few trick or treaters around here but our driveway is like descending Everest and that discourages most people. Hahaha. Ahem. But the kids show up with huge shopping bags and NOT EVEN IN CUSTOMES, LIKE WHAT IS THIS? BEGGING?
(I have a lot of feelings about halloween apparently. I should probably sit down.)
(Little pumpkins, however, are adorable.) (To eat.)
I’ve never read YA horror because I’ve never heard of a good one. Also, I don’t seek out horrors because I’m not friend with that genre. The only somewhat horrorish book I’ve read was Lockwood and co. which sometimes was pretty scary but then again it’s MG, right? Gosh, I was scared by MG book? What am I, five? 😀 I don’t watch horrors either because I’m too easily scared which frustrates me because I WANT to watch horrors but I cannot watch them alone. But I agree with you completely, reading about Dean and Sam wouldn’t be as awesome as watching them kill all those monsters. 😀
I really want to read Lockwood and Co!! But omg have you read Coraline?!? THAT was sufficiently creepy and that was MG.😂 Apparently the little kids are just tougher at taking it than the adults hahaha. *goes to cry in the corner*
THE THINGS THAT YOU LISTED ARE THE TRUE HORRORS IN LIFE O.O
THEY ARE. IT’S SO TRUE. PLEASE SOMEONE DON’T LEAVE ME ALONE WITH A PHONE I CAN’T HANDLE IT.
Nah, not pathetic. Horror books can easily be formulaic (same as romance) and it’s fun to read something that will surprise us. Also, a lot of times, they are just gross. Seriously.
Yesss, they are definitely formulatic! For me, that’s kind of my feelings towards dystopian too these days?! I guess fantasy has just so much more room to explore!
I have The Merciless and Blood and Salt but have never picked them up. *nods* I am not into YA horror, too, but if it overwhelms me, then I might pick up. Eh? *nods* AND YEAH RIGHT. *nods* HORROW IS BETTER WHEN WATCHED, NOT READ. *nods*
HORROR IS JUST DEFINITELY BETTER WATCHD. If something jumps out of the screen at me, I will so be freaked.😂
I guess my favorite YA horror title was Anna Dressed in Blood. Otherwise, I agree that there isn’t much YA horror. And what there is generally seems to have covers with girls in white nightgown-y dresses. (Anna too. Yep.)
As a general rule, I think that horror works better in movies. I think Stephen King has an amazing horror-writer imagination but I still think the movies based on his books are scarier than the books themselves.
Thanks so much for stopping by, Cait. Always a treat to see your comment 🙂 Jen @ YA Romantics
These girls in their dresses (and usually in sepia or something) are just not scary enough.😂 But I should probably try a Stephan King before I quit on the genre right?!? I kind of want to know if a book could properly scare me!
After reading this, I am thoroughly convinced that you could write a stunning YA Horror.
I’m not good with horror at all… Seriously. I get so freaked out watching slightly creepy movies that I don’t even want to THINK about what would happen if I read it… *shivers*
Bahah, thankyou! I think…😂 I mean, I have thought about writing a horror, but I haven’t read enough so I don’t think I’m qualified!!
You are right, YA Horror is hard to find. The only one I can recall reading is Anna Dressed In Blood. I really liked it, but not because it was scary. I loved the characters and the plot. I dd not, however, like the sequel and set it aside, but I have promised people I will give it another try. I didn’t realize The Call was Horror. I tried to read scary books for Halloween, but it didn’t work out. I liked sime of them, but they didn’t scare me. In fact I don’t know if I can even be scared anymore. Scary movies don’t even scare me now. Ha ha!
It’s hard being scared by books/movies right?!? If someone wants to scare me, like ask me to go clothes shopping alone or something. OR ANSWER THE PHONE. 😂 I just don’t really get terrified by paranormal axe murderers? I think Supernatural cured me.😂
Answering the phone! Yes! I have my phone set to only ring for friends and family. All the rest go to voice mail which I don’t listen to. Ha ha.
I can’t recall reading a horror book. Unless Frankenstein counts? I wasn’t scared when reading it, but overthinking some of the themes can be disturbing. Apparently, some people do get chilled when reading it though, which I don’t understand exactly. So what do I know? I’m in this fiction writing class, and some of the students have been writing horror short stories. I’ve never found them terrifying though. Disturbing sometimes, yeah. Definitely gross at other times. But not, you know, horrifying. They were all good stories, but I was never overtly chilled. I agree with all your points though. Horror is very cliched. I don’t even read horror and I know half the cliches. It also relies on its cliches (as I’ve learned through the advice given to those students writing horror). And, as you said, the characters are just. . . stupid.
The only thing I disagree with is sleep. I like my sleep, while alive. Please and thank you. XD
Real talk: The Madman’s Daugther was actually pretty dang good, despite the crappy cover. Not scary, but definitely dark. NOW IF ONLY I COULD READ THE REST OF THE SERIES.
I think there was a subtle reference to your own book here. ;DDD
And the list of real horrors here is golden. Also THAT ADORABLE CAT GIF, AWWWWWW. *hugs scared cat*