My 5 Hidden Horror Gems
As someone who sees the same titles recycled over and over on this subreddit, I wanted to post about a few books I found refreshing and exciting to read. All of these books have exceptional writing and thoughtful world-building. I tried to keep this as spoiler-free as possible.
If you’re a r/horrorlit veteran, feel free to add to the list with your own hidden gems!
***
- "Incarnate" by Richard Thomas
Appeals to: lovers of arctic horror, monster horror, dimensional horror, weird horror, and Native American ritualism
Brief Synopsis & Review: This short novel follows the tale of an Inuit sin-eater in a remote Alaskan community, devouring and "rebirthing" the spiritual monsters of his dying neighbors. There's a sense of isolation, darkness and despair as the "long night" arrives in the arctic circle, bringing with it a rift into a nightmare dimension. The book is broken up into three sections with shifting character perspectives. Arguably the middle of the book is the most fascinating, as we plunge INTO the nightmarish desert hellscape overrun by monsters. It feels like a brutal fever dream.
The writing is sublime throughout the entire book. Thomas really pens some touching and beautiful descriptive passages. The author did his due diligence in researching life in the Inuit outskirts. But in the end, it's the fascinating nature of these monsters as an allegory for our sins that lingers with you most.
Weirdness: 9/10
Pace: 8/10
Special notes: There is Darwinian dog-eat-dog monster cruelty in this story (although clearly written to serve a narrative purpose.) If you're skittish about any type of "animal" harm, skip this book.
(Edited to update small details)
***
- "To Rouse Leviathan" by Matt Cardin
Appeals to: fans of intellectual horror, cosmic horror, psychological horror, and Christian religious horror; fans of existential horror
Brief Synopsis & Review: Cardin brings to force his credentials as a religious scholar and student of nihilist horror in this collection of short stories. The writing is slow and pendantic, at times feeling like a lecture or a sermon. But there is real nightmare fuel in these stories. Thomas Ligotti's influence is everywhere. This is the kind of book that creates a worldview that becomes hard to "unsee" after you experience it. Cardin combines body horror and cosmic horror in a new mythos that sees life as a diseased state, and our bodies in constant decay. The continuous references to Biblical passages and Christian theology was exhilirating and horrifying to me (I'm a former Christian, now turned atheist).
Weirdness: 7/10
Pace: 5/10
Special notes: The stories are dense and move slowly with heady concepts. Think John Langan. Think Thomas Ligotti. This is cerebral horror with an especially horrifying familiarity to Christian readers. This book will not appeal to readers who hate flowery and overwriten prose, or for those looking for big finales.
***
- "Gateways to Abomination" by Matthew Bartlett
Appeals to: fans of ghoulish, dark and graphic horror; fans of creepy and disgusting; those looking for something Metal; mind-melting
Brief Synopsis & Review: These are short, nightmare-fueled vignettes of the bizarre and macabre taking place in a small town in Massachusetts. The story is very loose and hard to follow, it flows like a fever dream. Here is the author's own cover synopsis...
"Bizarre radio broadcasts luring dissolute souls into the dark woods of Western Massachusetts. Sinister old men in topcoats gathered at corners and in playgrounds. A long-dead sorcerer returning to obscene life in the form of an old buck goat. Welcome to Leeds, Massachusetts, where the drowned walk, where winged leeches blast angry static, where black magic casts a shadow over a cringing populace. You've tuned in to WXXT. The fracture in the stanchion. The drop of blood in your morning milk. The viper in the veins of the Pioneer Valley."
Weirdness: 10/10
Pace: 10/10
Special notes: Not for the faint of heart. This felt like one of those trippy late-night Adult Swim cartoons. You'll have absolutely no idea what's coming on the next page.
***
- "Rovers" by Richard Lange
Appeals to: those looking for a modern twist on vampire fiction; lovers of American desert horror; those wanting a "road" story with a brutal kick
Brief Synopsis & Review: This is a must-read for fans of a well-crafted vampire story. Set in the 1970s, the novel follows two “rovers,” or vagabond vampires, as they travel the deserts of the American West and cross paths with a vampire biker gang. The novel’s two protagonists draw inevitable comparison to Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, which may be one of the reasons I love this story so much. The chapters alternate POV among different characters, which keeps the writing fresh. The first half of the novel is a bit of a slow burn, but the second half escalates quickly and brutally.
Weirdness: 8/10
Pace: 8/10
Special notes: None...other than to acknowledge that I really loved this book. For me, a character-driven novel with a dark heart and splashes of the supernatural is perfection.
***
- "Leech" by Hiron Ennes
Appeals to: lovers of gothic horror, steampunk; fantasy worldbuilding; detective stories; highly creative story structures
Brief Synopsis & Review: It's hard to imagine any book will ever come close to achieving what Ennes did with this story. The beautiful worldbuilding, post-acocalpytic and crumbling ruins, and the unique characters--both human and robot--will swallow you into this universe. The story follows a medical doctor dispatched to a remote barony to investigate the death of another doctor. There is a strange parasite spreading through the town, a clever leech concealed within its hosts that feels reminescent of "The Thing." The narration is told from the unique perspective of a hive-mind of alien parasites, who themselves have commandereed humanity for their own purposes.
Weirdness: 9/10
Pace: 5/10
Special notes: The plot pace moves very slowly in this book, and don't expect a lot of violence or disgusting monsters. This is more of an immersive environmental experience. This is slow gothic horror re-invented in the most creative fashion imaginable.