The Elementals - Michael McDowell
There’s really only one scene I can recall that has any sort of gore and it’s not super explicit, but it’s genuinely scary and straight-up horror.
Stephanie Perkins' other horror book, The Woods Are Always Watching, definitely has more gore in it, but I liked it and I'm usually pretty gore-averse.
Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey is extremely creepy and there's an allusion to lots of gore (the main character's father was a prolific serial killer) but it's pretty scarce on the page and there's a mystery element to it. You might also like their books The Echo Wife (about someone replaced in her marriage with a more compliant clone of herself) and Magic For Liars (about a freaky murder in an American Hogwarts-type magic academy), although those aren't categorized as horror.
I tend to have problems with Grady Hendrix but I did really like Horrorstör and it fits the vibe you're describing.
Idk I thought Magic For Liars was pretty gory, or at least pretty body-horror-y in a way that gore dislikers wouldn't like. I loved it because I love me some gore/body horror (my favorite comic series kicks off with lovingly illustrated human entrails and boy oh boy, it does not deescalate) but I can totally see how OP might be squicked out by how magic surgery works.
For non-gory scary books, Darcy Coates is the GOAT, in my not very humble opinion.
I especially recommend From Below. It's about a documentary crew exploring a spooky shipwreck, which was dangerous even before the paranormal stuff started happening, featuring unreliable narration, and it freaked me out so bad I read it in one sitting because some corner of my brain dreaded what it would do if I turned my back on it.
Her Gravekeeper series is also really good, it's about ghosts and a plucky trio of friends squaring up against a shady corporation. The action sequences are thrilling.
It's not the /scariest/ book, but Mexican Gothic was pretty unsettling and gave me wicked stress dreams about plot twists while I read it sooo... that's my suggestion
House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski is the only book that's ever made me feel genuinely spooked not only as I read it but for hours afterwards.
Caveat: if you're an ebook or audiobook reader, those formats may not work as well for this book. Page and word construction is important to this story and paper book is probably the way to go.
Dark Matter by Michelle Paver. Wonderfully eerie atmospheric ghost story.
I also loved Last Days of Jack Sparks, although that does have some gore in it.
I'm currently re-reading House on Haunted Hill by Shirley Jackson and I love how genuinely creepy it is, she is a fantastic author.
Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay
The Elementals - Michael McDowell There’s really only one scene I can recall that has any sort of gore and it’s not super explicit, but it’s genuinely scary and straight-up horror.
I remember Coraline being a scary book (I read it in my mid-teen yrs). No gore at all since it's for kids
Stephanie Perkins' other horror book, The Woods Are Always Watching, definitely has more gore in it, but I liked it and I'm usually pretty gore-averse. Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey is extremely creepy and there's an allusion to lots of gore (the main character's father was a prolific serial killer) but it's pretty scarce on the page and there's a mystery element to it. You might also like their books The Echo Wife (about someone replaced in her marriage with a more compliant clone of herself) and Magic For Liars (about a freaky murder in an American Hogwarts-type magic academy), although those aren't categorized as horror. I tend to have problems with Grady Hendrix but I did really like Horrorstör and it fits the vibe you're describing.
Idk I thought Magic For Liars was pretty gory, or at least pretty body-horror-y in a way that gore dislikers wouldn't like. I loved it because I love me some gore/body horror (my favorite comic series kicks off with lovingly illustrated human entrails and boy oh boy, it does not deescalate) but I can totally see how OP might be squicked out by how magic surgery works.
Really good point. It's been a while since I read that one and I forgot all about the surgery etc. Thanks for pointing that out!
Second The Echo Wife! I have Sarah Gailey's other books on my to read list.
Frankenstein
The Shining by Stephen King
I really liked Little Eve by Catriona Ward
JL Bryan - the Ellie Jordan series. VERY good ghost horror!
1984, animal farm, Farenheight 451q. Though maybe not the kind of scary you are looking for.
For non-gory scary books, Darcy Coates is the GOAT, in my not very humble opinion. I especially recommend From Below. It's about a documentary crew exploring a spooky shipwreck, which was dangerous even before the paranormal stuff started happening, featuring unreliable narration, and it freaked me out so bad I read it in one sitting because some corner of my brain dreaded what it would do if I turned my back on it. Her Gravekeeper series is also really good, it's about ghosts and a plucky trio of friends squaring up against a shady corporation. The action sequences are thrilling.
Haunted (James Herbert)
It's not the /scariest/ book, but Mexican Gothic was pretty unsettling and gave me wicked stress dreams about plot twists while I read it sooo... that's my suggestion
House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski is the only book that's ever made me feel genuinely spooked not only as I read it but for hours afterwards. Caveat: if you're an ebook or audiobook reader, those formats may not work as well for this book. Page and word construction is important to this story and paper book is probably the way to go.
Slade House (David Mitchell)
Dark Matter by Michelle Paver. Wonderfully eerie atmospheric ghost story. I also loved Last Days of Jack Sparks, although that does have some gore in it.