Top 5 Horror Reads

My favorite genre of books, graphic novels, manga, etc. is always horror or science fiction! I think it's a real talent if you can creep me out just by reading a story or looking at drawings. That's why, I feel like it's only appropriate at this time of year to list some of my favorites!

The Walking Dead

Rick Grimes, shot in the line of duty, awakes from a coma to find that he is now in the middle of an apocalyptic world surround by zombies! He meets many friendly, and not so friendly faces along his journey to survive in this new world and he soon discovers that the living dead aren't the biggest problem he has to face.

I'm sure all of you are familiar or at least have heard of the hit TV show, The Walking Dead. It's definitely one of my top TV shows as well as one of my top graphic novels. The writer is Robert Kirkman who also works on the show. Although the television series is much different than the novel, it loosely follows it and it does follow the same characters. One of the more popular characters in the show, Daryl, actually isn't included in the novel at all! The novel is much farther ahead than the TV series as well but reading it won't really spoil anything for you!

Uzumaki

Uzumaki takes place in a small town on the coast of Japan. The main character, Kirie Goshima, starts to notice how the residents of the town are starting to become fixated on spirals and how it's affecting them to such lengths that make them go crazy because they become so obsessed. 

This manga is written and illustrated by Junji Ito. I actually did an in-depth review of Uzumaki here! Just simply explaining this manga really does it no justice. You can't understand how creepy and well written/illustrated it is until you see it or read it in person. It really is a one of a kind story that I am completely in love with. It's so haunting and unique.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Scary Stories is a 3-book series by Alvin Schwartz that contains many scary stories (obviously!) with creepy illustrations. I actually didn't know how popular these books were until rather recently! I remember when I was younger I found one at a thrift store and read the whole book in one sitting. I thought it was so scary and captivating. I eventually collected them all and I still read them once in awhile today! Some of the stories are pretty far fetched but I definitely think that they all are very unique and the illustrations just add that extra kick to the story-telling. I grew up around these and they were always the scariest books I owned growing up. 

I really think if you haven't checked them out you really should! They are quite interesting and I'm pretty sure you could get them for very cheap now!

Edgar Allan Poe

Now for one of the most classic horror writers known! I own a lot of his books and poetry and I just really find they are the perfect books to settle down and read on a rainy, October day. His well known stories include "The Tell-Tale Heart", "The Raven", and "The Pit and the Pendulum". If you want a horror story that isn't as fast paced and terrifying as some, I would really recommend some of his. 

Today is actually the anniversary of his death, what a weird coincidence! 

Goosebumps

This is a major step back into my elementary school days! I used to be obsessed with Goosebumps books, as many kids were. I loved how there were so many different stories and at my young age I always thought they were so scary! Of course looking back now they don't seem nearly as intimidating! I actually found my stash from when I was younger not too long ago so I've been going through them lately and it brought back a ton of memories. I feel like this is such a classic series for so many kids growing up!