You've Seen The Horror Movie, Now Read The Book It's Based On!
Is the book better than the movie? Find out!
Horror Books That Became Movies
With Halloween on its way, it's the time of year when people begin watching horror movies in earnest. Many of the best horror movies that have come out over the years are adapted from amazing books! If you're anything like me, you grew up watching these movies, but if you want a real scare, you'll give these books later developed into movies a shot!
What's awesome about horror books is they are a totally different experience than horror movies. You're able to get into the characters' heads, feel the horror they feel, creating a truly terrifying experience!
These 10 books are all worthwhile reads--check them out before Halloween!
1. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House was originally published in 1959 and has since become a horror classic. Over the years, the books have been developed into two movies, a hit Netflix TV show, and a play. The book follows four people who get recruited by Dr. Montague to help capture evidence of paranormal activity. The four experience activity as the ghosts begin to roam.
Get The Haunting of Hill House here.
2. The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty
William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist is inspired by a true story and is about a movie actress' daughter, eleven-year-old Regan, who gets possessed by a demon. As Regan begins to decline, her mother seeks outside help, eventually seeking out a Jesuit priest experiencing a crisis in his faith for an exorcism.
3. Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin
Rosemary's Baby is one of the most beloved horror movies of all time, and the book it's based on is incredible source material. It follows a woman named Rosemary Woodhouse and her husband Guy who move into an apartment building that has an "ominous reputation." Rosemary has always wanted children, but Guy wanted to put it off until he made it as an actor. He books a Broadway role and Rosemary discovers she's pregnant. While Rosemary becomes more and more isolated, she finds her neighbors are not who they seem.
4. Psycho by Robert Bloch
Based on the true story of killer and grave robber Ed Gein, Psycho is about Norman Bates and his Mother who own a motel together. A woman named Mary is on the run checks into the Bates Motel and promptly disappears. When a private investigator looking into the disappearance also vanishes, Mary's sister and boyfriend team up to find out what happened, uncovering the shocking truth of the Bates Motel.
5. The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
FBI trainee Clarice Starling is tasked with assisting in the in the capture of serial killer Buffalo Bill, asked to visit Dr. Hannibal Lector at a high-security facility. A former psychiatrist, the FBI wants his assistance in catching the serial killer because of the deep understanding Hannibal has with the killer. And Clarice.
Get The Silence of the Lambs here.
6. Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
In Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park, scientists have discovered a way to bring dinosaurs back from extinction and a man named John Hammond decides to turn the deadly creatures into a theme park attraction. After investors begin backing out after a series of strange accidents, several experts, along with Hammond's two grandchildren, are brought to the island with catastrophic results.
7. 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King
Writer Ben Mears returns to his childhood home in Jerusalem's Lot after twenty-five years, moving to an old mansion. He hopes the house will give him the inspiration for his new book. After two young boys enter the woods, only one boy returns and soon begins infecting people in town, throwing Jerusalem's Lot into vampiric chaos.
8. Jaws by Peter Benchley
After a tourist is killed by a great white shark, her body washing up on shore, the police chief wants the beaches closed. However, the mayor denies the request because it's the height of tourist season. Then more and more people are killed, including someone sent kill the shark. Three men head head out to sea to take down the deadly shark, changing the town forever.
9. Ring by Koji Suzuki
The book that sparked The Ring film franchise is about a videotape that kills after one week of being watched. Four teens die of heart failure after watching the video and Asakawa, journalist and uncle to one of the teens, is drawn into the mystery, attempting to put an end to it all before more lives are taken.
10. The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson
Along with a few other books on the list, The Amityville Horror is inspired by actual events. A year after Ronald DeFeo took the lives of his entire family, George and Kathleen Lutz move into the house. A priest is called in to cleanse the house, hearing a voice telling him to leave. After he flees, he develops a fever and stigmata appears on his hands. At first, the Lutz family doesn't notice anything strange, but it doesn't take long before they do.
Get The Amityville Horror here.
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