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10 of the Scariest Books of All Time
Chilling tales of haunted mansions real-life serial killers vengeful vampires and more
Getty Images — some of the scariest reads around — including a 17th-century classic on witches, two true stories about elusive serial killers, and a Stephen King novel featuring vengeful creatures returning from the dead. Perfect for spooky season! Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson 1959
Penguin Random House Jackson breathes life into the architectural lead character — Hill House — a rambling haunted mansion that terrorizes three naive folks brought together by a researcher of the supernatural. Locked in each night by a couple of creepy caretakers, the guests are subjected to increasingly disturbing phenomena as the house reveals the evil at its heart. Lonely, single Eleanor is particularly vulnerable to the tricks, and treats, contained in the halls — or are the horrors just part of her active imagination? The Devil in the White City Murder Magic and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson 2003
Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio are planning a Hulu series based on this book (a finalist for a 2003 National Book Award), so now is the time to pick up this Gilded Age story of true-crime and architecture. Larson uncovers the mythic personalities behind the creation of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition (the White City), and the trials of erecting 200 temporary buildings for a crowd of 27 million people in Chicago. In the shadows lurked killer and con man H.H. Holmes, a devilish villain who had his own ambitious agenda for the fairgoers at his custom-designed “Murder Castle.” Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith 2010
Grand Central Publishing This not-quite-historically-accurate historical novel exposes the little-known side-hustle of the 16th U.S. president: vampire hunter. Grahame-Smith (who also penned Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) interprets a set of Lincoln’s secret diaries, recounting his quest to avenge his mother’s death after she was killed in a savage vampire attack at their log cabin. One by one, Lincoln hunts down and slaughters the vampires with his trusty ax. All roads lead to war when he discovers that their taste for blood (and unquenchable thirst for wealth) is tied up with the goals of the Confederacy. Entertainment Access curated AARP entertainment articles, essays, videos, films and more See more Entertainment offers > Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia 2020
Penguin Random House Moreno-Garcia reimagines the familiar tropes of the Gothic novel — family secrets, deteriorating mansions with whispering walls and damsels in distress — to create a vividly innovative story set in the high-society world of 1950s Mexico. A tale of love and betrayal with a fascinating and compelling heroine you can’t help rooting for, this deliciously dark book will draw you in from the start. Pet Sematary by Stephen King 1983
King has loads of scary books, but this horror story is among his most chilling. A family seeks rest and repose in a Maine farmhouse with a property bonus nobody finds in today’s real estate market: a cemetery for kids’ beloved animals. But beyond those pagan plots lies a more ominous, sour place, one where earthly rules don’t apply. After tragedy strikes, the grieving father tries his luck at bringing back those he loves, learning that sometimes it’s better for the dead to remain so. AARP NEWSLETTERS %{ newsLetterPromoText }% %{ description }% Subscribe . In this terrifying collection of local lore, he recounts a murky world rife with devils, wizards and wicked witches. Paranormal investigations revealed drumming poltergeists, a spirit woman exposing her murderers, and ghosts tugging at bedsheets in the dark of night. And it includes a pro tip from the past: Glanville shares the recipe for an enchanted witch bottle (made from household ingredients) to prevent visits from naughty apparitions. Christine Madrid French is a San Francisco–based historian of horror, haunted mansion, and the macabre. Her latest book is The Architecture of Suspense: The Built World in the Films of Alfred Hitchcock, uncovering the backstory of Hitchcock’s iconic architectural characters and their real-life doppelgängers in Psycho, The Birds, Rear Window, Vertigo and North by Northwest. MORE FROM AARP AARP NEWSLETTERS %{ newsLetterPromoText }% %{ description }% Subscribe AARP VALUE & MEMBER BENEFITS See more Restaurants offers > See more Travel Planning offers > See more Entertainment offers > See more Groceries offers > SAVE MONEY WITH THESE LIMITED-TIME OFFERS