Classic horror

Novels that not only define horror but also explore deep psychological and existential themes, making them timeless reads that have left a lasting impact on the genre.

Updated October 21, 2024
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The mysteries of Udolpho
Radcliffe, Ann Ward
Paper Book
Trapped in a gloomy medieval fortress, an orphaned heroine battles the devious schemes of her guardians as well as her own pensive visions and melancholy fancies. Generations of readers have thrilled to this famous Gothic tale from 1794 and its hypnotic pre-Freudian exploration of the psyche.
Frankenstein, or, The modern Prometheus
Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft
Paper Book
The world's most famous work of horror fiction: a devastating exploration of the limits of human creativity. Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read Mary Shelley's timeless gothic novel presents the epic battle between man and...
Washington Irving's The legend of Sleepy Hollow and other stories
Irving, Washington 1783-1859
Paper Book
From the "Father of the American Short Story" comes a classic collection of well-loved tales sure to chill the faint of heart and thrill the brave-hearted. Ride with the headless horseman as he makes his rounds through "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," soon to be a major motion picture starring Johnny...
The fall of the house of Usher : and other tales
Poe, Edgar Allan
Paper Book
The celebrated master of the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe brought his nightmare visions to vivid dramatic life in his classic stories. Now this Signet Classic edition gathers together fourteen of his darkest and richest tales, including "The Pit and the Pendulum," an unforgettable reimagining of...
Carmilla
Le Fanu, Joseph Sheridan 1814-1873
Paper Book
A beautiful gift edition of this cult classic female vampire story, which predated and greatly influenced Dracula.
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Stevenson, Robert Louis 1850-1894
Paper Book
In September of 1884, Robert Louis Stevenson, then in his mid-thirties, moved with his family to Bournemouth, a resort on the southern coast of England, where in the brief span of 23 months he revised A Child's Garden of Verses and wrote the novels Kidnapped and The Strange...
The picture of Dorian Gray
Wilde, Oscar 1854-1900
Paper Book
An astounding novel of decadence, debauchery, and secrecy from one of Ireland's greatest writers. Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read Enthralled by his own exquisite portrait, Dorian Gray makes a Faustian bargain to sell...
The yellow wall-paper, and other stories
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins
Paper Book
Charlotte Perkins Gilman was America's leading feminist intellectual of the early twentieth century. The Yellow Wallpaper and Other Stories makes available the fullest selection ever printed of her short fiction, featuring the pioneering feminist masterpiece of the title, her stories contemporary...
The great god Pan and other horror stories
Machen, Arthur 1863-1947
Paper Book
Something pushed out from the body there on the floor, and stretched forth a slimy, wavering tentacle...Perhaps no figure better embodies the transition from the Gothic tradition to modern horror than Arthur Machen. In the final decade of the nineteenth century, the Welsh writer produced a seminal...
Dracula
Stoker, Bram
Paper Book
The phantom of the opera
Leroux, Gaston 1868-1927
Paper Book
A sparkling new translation of the novel that inspired the most popular stage musical of all time. Rumors abound that a ghost stalks the dark passages and cellars of the Paris Opera House. No one has actually seen this Phantom, but Christine Daaé, a beautiful and talented young...
The call of Cthulhu and other weird stories
Lovecraft, H. P.
Paper Book
A definitive collection of stories from the unrivaled master of twentieth-century horror "I think it is beyond doubt that H. P. Lovecraft has yet to be surpassed as the twentieth century's greatest practitioner of the classic horror tale." -Stephen King Frequently...
The haunting of Hill House
Jackson, Shirley 1916-1965
Paper Book
First published in 1959, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror. It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House- Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a 'haunting...

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