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My favorite thing in books is creeping horror. The slow realization that everything is not okay. They don't even have to be horror books. You're just reading along, and the story's atmosphere keeps getting darker and darker. It's like a slow-motion train wreck. You know that something bad is going to happen, but you don't know how bad or when it's going to strike.
Yeah. That's what we're talking about today. Here are 10 darkly atmospheric books that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Best Dark Books
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Adult Historical Horror
After receiving a frantic letter from her newlywed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. She’s not sure what she will find—her cousin’s husband, a handsome Englishman, is a stranger, and Noemí knows little about the region.
Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemí’s dreams with visions of blood and doom.
Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness.
And Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind.
Why I recommend it: A woman heads out to the wilderness and discovers that her cousin is trapped in a haunted house with a creepy family who is using her for nefarious purposes. How can you resist that plot? I read the majority of the novel in one night because I love the creepy imagery and the quick way the family secrets unravel. I have a feeling this book will become a classic that's forced upon college students 50 years from now.
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The Picture Of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Adult Classic
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Adult Literary Fiction
Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality they slip gradually from obsession to corruption and betrayal, and at last—inexorably—into evil.
Why I recommend it: The characters are psychopaths who use their money and connections to get away with anything. That seems very relevant to modern times. The writing is brilliant. The author brings the characters' privileged world to life and gets the reader to feel (a tiny bit) sorry for some of them.
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Daughter Of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor
Young Adult Fantasy
Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages—not all of them human—and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.
When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?
Why I recommend it: If I had to give an award for best plot twists, this novel would get it. I've read thousands of books in my life. None of them have shocked me as many times as this one. That's all I want to say because you need to read it for yourself!
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The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert
Young Adult Fantasy
Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice's life on the road, always a step ahead of the uncanny bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice's grandmother, the reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood, Alice learns how bad her luck can really get: Her mother is stolen away—by a figure who claims to come from the Hinterland, the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: "Stay away from the Hazel Wood."
Alice has long steered clear of her grandmother's cultish fans. But now she has no choice but to ally with classmate Ellery Finch, a Hinterland superfan who may have his own reasons for wanting to help her. To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began and where she might find out how her own story went so wrong.
Why I recommend it: I enjoyed the heck out of this Alice in Wonderland retelling. If you like Seanan McGuire’s Every Heart A Doorway, you need to check out this series. The Hazel Wood is a darkly compelling mystery with tons of twists. Also, best of all, it's creepy.
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Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Adult Mystery
So the second Mrs. Maxim de Winter remembered the chilling events that led her down the turning drive, past the beeches, to the isolated gray stone manse on the windswept Cornish coast. With a husband she barely knew, the young bride arrived at this immense estate, only to be inexorably drawn into the life of the first Mrs. de Winter, the beautiful Rebecca, dead but never forgotten, her suite of rooms never touched, her clothes ready to be worn, her servant—the sinister Mrs. Danvers—still loyal. And as an eerie presentiment of evil tightened around her heart, the second Mrs. de Winter began her search for the real fate of Rebecca.
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Adult Dystopia
Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She may leave the home of the Commander and his wife once a day to walk to food markets whose signs are now pictures instead of words because women are no longer allowed to read. She must lie on her back once a month and pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred and the other Handmaids are valued only if their ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she lived and made love with her husband, Luke; when she played with and protected her daughter; when she had a job, money of her own, and access to knowledge. But all of that is gone now . . .
Why I recommend it: Have you ever loved a book so much that you can’t talk about it? You just scream incoherently and hope everybody understands? That’s me with this book. I read it for the first time when I was in my late teens or early twenties, and it blew my mind. It’s intricately structured and beautifully written. It’s both insightful satire and horrifying dystopia. It was written 30+ years ago, but it feels timeless because it’s still eerily relevant. It’s about environmental damage, religious extremism, dictatorships, and women’s rights. Those are all issues you encounter on news sites every day.
If you don’t want to read the original version of this novel, there’s a brilliant graphic novel adaptation.
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Leave The World Behind by Rumaan Alam
Adult Literary Fiction
Amanda and Clay head out to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a vacation: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City, quality time with their teenage son and daughter, and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they've rented for the week. But a late-night knock on the door breaks the spell. Ruth and G. H. are an older black couple—it's their house, and they've arrived in a panic. They bring the news that a sudden blackout has swept the city. But in this rural area—with the TV and internet now down, and no cell phone service—it's hard to know what to believe.
Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple—and vice versa? What happened back in New York? Is the vacation home, isolated from civilization, a truly safe place for their families? And are they safe from one another?
Why I recommend it: This novel has no plot or character development; just scary vibes. I know that sounds like a bad thing, but I couldn't stop reading. I like the vibes! They're extremely unsettling. I suspect this is one of the most realistic apocalypse stories I've read. If all of humanity's communication systems go down, we won't know why strange things are happening. We'll just have guesses and paranoia. This book will make you tense.
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The Terror by Dan Simmons
Heartbreaker: Stories by Maryse Meijer
Adult Short Story Collection
In her debut story collection, Heartbreaker, Maryse Meijer, flashlight in hand, goes deep into the darkest rooms of the psyche. With gorgeously restrained and exacting prose that packs a cumulatively devastating punch, she unapologetically unmasks the violence we are willing to perform upon one another in the name of love and loneliness and the unremitting desire to survive.
Why I recommend it: This might be the most disturbing short story collection I've ever read. I think my reaction to every story was, "Oh, that's nasty."
The characters in this collection are all using each other. They either don't understand or don't care that they're being used. I guess it's a commentary on loneliness? People are so desperate for love that they'll put up with abuse.In this collection, there's an arsonist who falls in love with a forest fire, a feral child who commits crimes while her adopted father praises her, a murderer who brings his victims back to life so he can torment them again, and a teenage bully who gives porn to her mentally disabled classmate to find out what will happen. It's all very unsettling.
Great list! I've read a bunch of these and agree that they are very atmospheric and unsettling.
ReplyDeleteI love atmospheric but dark gives me nightmares! 😱 ~Carol @ ReadingLadies
ReplyDeleteI'm not much for horror but darkly atmospheric I can still do :) I did really love Daughter of Smoke and Bone!
ReplyDeleteI'd really like to read the Terror one of these days.
ReplyDeleteGreat list! The covers are very intriguing and spooky. Happy Tuesday!
ReplyDeleteInteresting topic. I don't tend to read dark books. I think the closest I got were books by Moira Fowley-Doyle. She writes some moody stuff.
ReplyDeleteGreat list, Aj. I have not read Mexican Gothic or The Hand Maid's Tale, but I want to. Just need to fit them in. Thanks for sharing and for visiting my blog.
ReplyDeleteRebecca is the only book on this list that I've read; it's so good!! I was just as hooked the second time I read it as the first. I really want to read Daughter of Smoke and Bone. I'd heard of The Hazel Wood, but I didn't realize it was an Alice in Wonderland retelling, so I'll have to read it now!
ReplyDeleteI'm not big on straight horror, but I love "atmospheric and unsettling"! Great list. I've read enough of these to know that I'll probably like the others as well.
ReplyDeleteWell, you've sure convinced me to read Daughter of Smoke and Bone! Definitely agree with Mexican Gothic and Handmaid's Tale, too. I also very much want to read The Terror and Leave the World Behind!
ReplyDelete