Why do so many people love horror stories? One answer may be in a quote by Stephen King, one of the most prolific writers of horror stories and often called “King of Horror.”
“We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones,” King once said.
Although I love scary movies and have seen some of King’s stories adapted as movies, I sometimes find his books too scary for me. But he is so popular, his books just fly off the shelf.
So, why are these and other scary books so popular? Perhaps because they are a distraction from the problems of everyday life. Horror stories help us confront our fears, traumas, and anxieties and see that although those things are real, they can, in fact, be overcome. So, grab one of these new and scary books and find your comfortable chair to escape into a fantastic other world.
1. HOLLY by Stephen King
We can’t start this collection of scary books without the latest from Stephen King. Holly Gibney has appeared in several previous King books as a somewhat minor character, but she has now transformed from a shy recluse into a partner in a detective agency, Finders Keepers. Called on to help find a missing person, she stumbles upon an elderly couple — academics, no less — who have been abducting young people for years and hiding them in cages in their basement. I’m not giving anything away because we find this out at the very beginning, but what exactly are they doing? Oh, the horror of them.
2. LONE WOMEN by Victor LaValle
As if being a single female homesteader in Montana in the early 1900s doesn’t sound hard enough, add to it dragging around an enormous steamer trunk that carries secrets that bring harm to whoever dares to open it. Adelaide Henry carries a secret sin that killed her parents, and she is now trying to find her way to a new life among other “lone women” who take advantage of the government’s offer of free land for those who can tame it. These women find not only sisterhood but horror in the unforgiving landscape of early 20th-century America.
3. WHALEFALL by David Kraus
Swallowed-by-whale stories are not new — think of Jonah in the Bible and Geppetto in “Pinocchio.” When I found this book, my first thought was “ick.” Then I wanted to know how plausible such a thing is. I read an interview with author David Kraus, who did quite a bit of research to find out if it is actually possible for someone to be swallowed whole by a whale and not chewed up. So, in this “lost in space” story — in this case, a giant sperm whale’s inside — we follow Jay Gardiner on his quest to the Pacific Ocean to find the remains of his father, who died by suicide. Jay knows he is on a difficult mission, but he feels this is the only way he can get past his grief and guilt over his father’s death. Things start out well on the dive until Jay is caught up in the tenacles of a giant squid. They soon get worse after the arrival of the whale, which is ready to feed. When Jay is sucked into the first of the whale’s four stomachs, he knows he only has an hour before he runs out of oxygen.
4. HOW TO SELL A HAUNTED HOUSE by Grady Hendrix
When you get to a certain point in life, you may be confronted with handling your parents’ estate and the many possessions they collected over a lifetime, as well as the family home. Well, what if your dear childhood home is in fact haunted? Louise finds herself in this situation after her parents die suddenly in a car accident. Not only did her mother have all the “stuff” she acquired over decades, but she also had hundreds of dolls that she never wanted to get rid of. When Louise returns to the home in Charleston, she is confronted by her estranged brother, Matt, who is trying to cheat her out of her inheritance. If all that is not enough, the house and the “ghosts” it hosts don’t want to let Louise go. Author Hendrix said, “And what are ghosts, but things left behind after someone dies?”
5. DON’T LET HER STAY by Nicola Sanders
If you liked “The Bad Seed” many years ago, this is the book for you. I read it and still can’t forget it. In Sanders’ book, Joanne has recently married Richard and they have a baby, Evie. They have just moved into a new house when Chloe, Richard’s adult daughter from a previous marriage, suddenly decides to visit them on her break from school. She has not been in touch with her father for several years, which might be a foreshadowing of bad things to come. Around her dad, Chloe is sweetness and light. But Joanne quickly notices another side to Chloe and begins to fear for her safety. She doesn’t want to leave baby Evie alone with Chloe and is afraid to say anything to Richard, who is just happy his estranged daughter is back in his life. What do you do when no one believes you when you know something very bad is about to happen? “The Bad Seed” may be a classic of this genre, but this one will keep you up at night with the twists and turns all the way to the amazing ending.
6. PARANORMAL NORTH CAROLINA by Joanna Nunez
Local writer Joanna Nunez has traveled around North Carolina searching its haunted locations and looking into their history. Our rich history of wars, conflicts, settlers, Native Americans, and local unrest make for some good ghost stories. Gathering stories from the first-hand experiences of the staff, visitors and paranormal investigators, Nunez tells us what to look for in these locations and maybe even in your own home. Is there something to see aboard the Battleship North Carolina? Is there something haunting Biltmore Estate? Is Blackbeard’s ghost haunting his home in Beaufort? Who knew that a “Pink Lady” haunted the Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville? Come meet author Nunez on Oc. 29 at a book-signing at City Center Gallery & Books. Right before Halloween, no less.
