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 castle of Otranto : a gothic story
Walpole, Horace 1717-1797
Ebook
This provocative and playful tale of medieval dynastic and sexual politics is regarded as the first-ever published gothic novel and has inspired authors from Stoker to Poe to Rowling
The mysteries of Udolpho : a romance
Radcliffe, Ann Ward 1764-1823
Paper Book
This was the most popular novel of Radcliffe's time and Radcliffe's portrayal of her heroine's inner life raised the Gothic romance to a new level. The atmosphere of fear and the gripping plot continue to thrill today. This is the story of the orphaned Emily St Aubert who finds herself separated...
Frankenstein
Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft 1797-1851
Paper Book
More than 200 years after it was first published, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein has stood the test of time as a gothic masterpiece-a classic work of horror that blurs the line between man and monster. "If I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear." For...
The fall of the house of Usher : and other tales
Poe, Edgar Allan 1809-1849
Paper Book
The celebrated master of the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe brought his nightmare imaginings to life in classic stories told in a signature style. This volume gathers together 14 of Poe's richest and most influential tales, including 'The Pit and the Pendulum', 'The Tell-Tale Heart', which Stephen King...
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
HarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics. 'All human beings, as we meet them, are commingled out of good and evil.' After taking an elixir created in his laboratory, mild mannered Dr Jekyll is transformed into the cruel and despicable...
The picture of Dorian Gray
Wilde, Oscar 1854-1900
Paper Book
Oscar Wilde's enduringly popular story of a beautiful and corrupt man and the portrait that reveals all his secrets-The Picture of Dorian Gray is a novel as flamboyant and controversial as its incomparable author. Entranced by the perfection of his recently painted...
Dracula
Stoker, Bram 1847-1912
Paper Book
Introducing the ultimate collector's edition of Dracula by Bram Stoker, the best-known vampire novel of all time, now in an exquisite special edition featuring sprayed edges and an introduction and appendices by renowned fantasy editor Marvin Kaye. The luxurious design and...
The phantom of the opera
Leroux, Gaston 1868-1927
Paper Book
The Phantom of the Opera, by Gaston Leroux, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the...
The call of Cthulhu and other weird stories
Lovecraft, H. P. (Howard Phillips) 1890-1937
Paper Book
A definitive collection of stories from the unrivaled master of twentieth-century horror in a Penguin Classics Deluxe edition with cover art by Travis Louie Frequently imitated and widely influential, Howard Philips Lovecraft reinvented the horror genre in the 1920s, discarding...
The haunting of Hill House
Jackson, Shirley 1916-1965
Paper Book
The greatest haunted house story ever written--the inspiration for the hit Netflix horror series! One of The Atlantic's Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years First published in 1959, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House has been...

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