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Ranker: The Scariest Horror Books of All Time

"The greatest horror books of all time are books that make the hair on the back of your neck stand up just from the rustle of turning the pages. These scary horror novels are books you don't want to read at night (or by yourself) because they're just a little too scary. Many of these scary books have been turned into the scariest movies ever made, while others are too frightening to be imagined in real life."
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avg. score: 33 of 186 (18%)
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The Exorcist (William Peter Blatty)
The Exorcist
1
William Peter Blatty
Salem's Lot (Stephen King)
Salem's Lot
2
Stephen King
It (Stephen King)
It
3
Stephen King
Pet Semetary (Stephen King)
Pet Semetary
4
Stephen King
The Shining (Stephen King)
The Shining
5
Stephen King
The Silence of the Lambs (Thomas Harris)
The Silence of the Lambs
6
Thomas Harris
The Stories and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe
The Stories and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe
7
The Haunting of Hill House (Shirley Jackson)
The Haunting of Hill House
8
Shirley Jackson
The Stand (Stephen King)
The Stand
9
Stephen King
Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe (Edgar Allan Poe)
Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe
10
Edgar Allan Poe
Misery (Stephen King)
Misery
11
Stephen King
Rosemary's Baby (Ira Levin)
Rosemary's Baby
12
Ira Levin
Psycho (Robert Bloch)
Psycho
13
Robert Bloch
Something Wicked This Way Comes (Ray Bradbury)
Something Wicked This Way Comes
14
Ray Bradbury
Night Shift (Stephen King)
Night Shift
15
Stephen King
Dracula (Bram Stoker)
Dracula
16
Bram Stoker
Hell House (Richard Marheson)
Hell House
17
Richard Marheson
The Amityville Horror (Jay Anson)
The Amityville Horror
18
Jay Anson
Carrie (Stephen King)
Carrie
19
Stephen King
The Dunwich Horror
The Dunwich Horror
20
The Call of Cthulhu & Other Weird Stories (H.P Lovecraft)
The Call of Cthulhu & Other Weird Stories
21
H.P Lovecraft
Omnibus 1: At the Mountain of Madness (H.P. Lovecraft)
Omnibus 1: At the Mountain of Madness
22
H.P. Lovecraft
Needful Things (Stephen King)
Needful Things
23
Stephen King
I Am Legend (Richard Matheson)
I Am Legend
24
Richard Matheson
Skeleton Crew (Stephen King)
Skeleton Crew
25
Stephen King
Ghost Story (Peter Straub)
Ghost Story
26
Peter Straub
Jaws (Peter Benchley)
Jaws
27
Peter Benchley
The Watchers (Dean Koontz)
The Watchers
28
Dean Koontz
Books of Blood (Clive Barker)
Books of Blood
29
Clive Barker
The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings (Edgar Allan Poe)
The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings
30
Edgar Allan Poe
Swan Song (Robert R. McCammon)
Swan Song
31
Robert R. McCammon
The Fog (James Herbert)
The Fog
32
James Herbert
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson)
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
33
Robert Louis Stevenson
Red Dragon (Thomas Harris)
Red Dragon
34
Thomas Harris
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Washington Irving)
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
35
Washington Irving
The Picture of Dorian Gray (Oscar Wilde)
The Picture of Dorian Gray
36
Oscar Wilde
The Turn of the Screw (Henry James)
The Turn of the Screw
37
Henry James
Frankenstein (Mary Shelley)
Frankenstein
38
Mary Shelley
Nightmares and Dreamscapes (Stephen King)
Nightmares and Dreamscapes
39
Stephen King
Phantoms (Dean R.Koontz)
Phantoms
40
Dean R.Koontz
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