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" Creepy stories are as old as mankind, and the really good ones will continue to frighten generations to come. We&amp;#039;re looking back through the scariest books of the past two centuries \u2013 from chilling Gothic classics to post-apocalyptic tales of caution. These terrifying tomes leave readers restless, never quite sure where fiction ends and reality begins. Scroll through the master list below, and you&amp;#039;re guaranteed to stumble across a new nightmare in no time at all. 1800 - 1849  Grimms&amp;#039; Fairy Tales by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (1812) Also known as &amp;quot;Where Disney Gets Their Story Ideas,&amp;quot; these original fairy tales are far darker than their animated counterparts. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (1818) One of the most popular and horrifying tales of all time, Frankenstein was the product of a competition amongst other greats (including Lord Byron and Percy Shelley) of who could write the best horror story. Nightmare Abbey by Thomas Love Peacock (1818) Creepy mansion, suspicious characters with even weirder names, and ghosts\u2014this book has everything you could ever want in a Gothic horror novel. The Vampyre by John William Polidori (1819) Often viewed as the original vampire romance novel, this book follows the destruction and death Lord Ruthven\u2014a charming vampire\u2014causes everywhere he goes. The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe (1839) All of Poe&amp;#039;s poems are scary, but this short story in particular\u2014about a crumbling house whose inhabitants are riddled with anxiety\u2014will give you chills. 1850-1899  The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson (1886) This impactful book is the definition of a split personality disorder. Dr. Jerkyll is good, and Mr. Hyde is bad\u2014who will prevail? The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1890) Narcissistic Dorian Gray wants to stay youthful forever, and instead of aging himself, he has a painting in the attic do it for him. But everything comes with a price. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1892) A haunting book about women&amp;#039;s mental and physical health, the novel follows the narrator&amp;#039;s decent in psychosis as she is forced to &amp;#039;recover&amp;#039; after the birth of her child in a room covered in tattered yellow wallpaper. Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897) One of the most widely recognized epistolary novels, Dracula tells the story of a vampire who moves from Transylvania to London in search of new blood. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James (1898) There are many schools of thought on what this gothic ghost story novella truly means, but regardless, it&amp;#039;s a frightening tale of a governess who sees the ghosts of two people she knows to be dead. 1900 - 1949   The Complete Fiction of H.P. Lovecraft by H.P. Lovecraft (1917-1935) Lovecraft gained fame after his death for his influential works of horror fiction. His short novel, The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, and his short stories, &amp;quot;The Call of Cthulhu&amp;quot; and &amp;quot;At the Mountains of Madness&amp;quot; are great places to start. We by Yevgeny Zamyatin (1924) Originally published in Russia, We is a dystopian novel and follows characters who have names over numbers and who live in a constant state of routine in a terrifyingly oppressive government. The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell (1924) The hunter is hunted in this scary short story that takes place on an isolated island in the Caribbean. It&amp;#039;s a truly spine-chilling tale inspired by big-game hunting in the 1920s. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (1938) If your husband&amp;#039;s former wife died under mysterious circumstances, you&amp;#039;d probably be paranoid, too. This frightening Gothic novel tells the story will have you questioning everything around you. The Lottery by Shirley Jackson (1948) This short story first published in The New Yorker takes place in a small town that observes a ritual called &amp;quot;the lottery.&amp;quot; But this lottery isn&amp;#039;t one you want to win. 1950s   Lord of the Flies by William Golding (1954) What happens when children are stranded on an island? Sheer and utter chaos, with deadly consequences. I Am Legend by Richard Matheson (1954) An influential work of zombie and vampire fiction, Robert Neville is the sole survivor of a pandemic to which he is immune. He attempts to determine the scientific cause of the disease in this grim world. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (1959) Searching for evidence of the existence of the supernatural, Dr. Montague invites several people who have past experience with paranormal events. But no one is prepared for the startling hold the house has on its inhabitants. Psycho by Robert Bloch (1959) A creepy hotel, split-personality disorders, and a very unhealthy relationship between mother and son are just a few of the highly disturbing pieces of this novel\u2014and what made it such a wildly popular Hitchcock adaptation. 1960s   Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury (1962) Does the idea of a traveling carnival freak you out? Perhaps it should. Teens Jim and Will explore the carnival that has just come to town, and meet the sinister Mr. Dark\u2014who lures carnival-goers into serving him. The Collector by John Fowles (1965) A very disturbing and lonely man is obsessed with art student Miranda Grey. So obsessed that he decides to kidnap her. Loosely based on Shakespeare&amp;#039;s The Tempest, this one will rattle you. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (1966) While it may be the only work of non-fiction on this list, Capote&amp;#039;s account of the 1959 Herbert Clutter family murders reads like a novel. This detailed and horrifying book is best read with the lights on. Rosemary&amp;#039;s Baby by Ira Levin (1967) Though they were warned about their new residence&amp;#039;s disturbing history of witchcraft and murder, Guy and Rosemary are unfazed. Until, that is, they discover it to be true. This classic story of horror is a must-read for fans of the genre. 1970s   The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty (1971) Inspired by a 1949 case of demonic possession, the highly disturbing tale follows the possession of a young girl and the exorcism performed by two priests in order to free her from the demon. Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon (1973) Adjusting to a new town can be rough. But it doesn&amp;#039;t help when the townspeople have frightening rituals that put your own family in danger. Requiem For a Dream by Hubert Selby Jr. (1978) Four New Yorkers try and pursue their dreams, but instead form crippling drug habits. It&amp;#039;s a scarily real tale of caution about the effects of drug abuse. 1980s   Pet Sematary by Stephen King (1983) Sure, any of Stephen King&amp;#039;s novels could have made this list\u2014but this one really renders us horrified. This chilling book involves death and reincarnation, revealing that once people come back from the dead they&amp;#039;re never quite the same\u2026 The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris (1988) Cannibal serial killer Hannibal Lecter is one of the most frightening characters in the horror genre. And though he&amp;#039;s safely locked away in a mental institution during this book, we never quite feel safe from his grasp. Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon (1987)  A devastating look at what could have happened if the United States and the Soviet Union were still at odds, and every other country destroyed each other, Swan Song is a terrifying post-apocalyptic novel. Dawn by Octavia E. Butler (1987) Another &amp;#039;what if&amp;#039; novel, this book takes place after Earth is left uninhabitable by nuclear war. A few survivors are picked up by an alien race, the Oankali, and are conflicted between their loyalty to the human race and their desire to survive. 1990s   American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis (1991) Manhattan businessman and serial killer, Patrick Bateman, is an incredibly disturbing character. Try not to cringe as his crimes becomes more and more graphic. Summer of Night by Dan Simmons (1991) As terrifying events begin to unfold in the Old Central School, including corpses coming to life, five pre-teens must defeat them before they destroy the town. The Cipher by Kathe Koja (1991) Nicholas and Nakota discover a strange black hole in their storage room floor. But regardless of if they want to see what&amp;#039;s down there or not \u2026 the frightening presence of something else might not give them the choice. 2000s   House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski (2000) This intriguing and freaky novel, told by many\u2013somewhat unreliable\u2013narrators is about a house whose internal dimensions seem to grow, while its exterior dimensions stay the same. We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver (2003) Written from the perspective of the killer&amp;#039;s mother, the book is about a fictional school massacre and coming to terms with the murders he committed. It&amp;#039;s frightening and heartbreaking all at the same time, especially in the wake of true events. The Ruins by Scott Smith (2006) Tourists in Mexico venture near a Mayan village, where things quickly go from bad to worse as members of their party are killed by poisonous, seemingly manipulative vines. It&amp;#039;ll make you think twice about your next vacation\u2026 Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill (2007) Judas is a collector of morbid memorabilia and thinks he&amp;#039;s hit the jackpot when he purchases a suit with an old man&amp;#039;s spirit attached to it. Little does he know, the old man is out for revenge\u2026and will stop at nothing until Jude and those around him are dead. 2010s  The Ritual by Adam Nevill (2011) Old college friends reunite for a hiking retreat through the Swedish Forests, but as they get lost they realize that something is intent on ensuring they never make it out alive. Penpal by Dathan Auerbach (2012) Haunted by the bizarre and tragic occurrences in his past, a man investigates in hopes of understanding what really happened. It&amp;#039;s impossible to forget and will leave you searching for answers of your own. Broken Monsters by Lauren Beukes (2014) A monster is on the loose, leaving disturbing crime scenes\u2014like a boy and deer somehow fused together\u2014in its wake. This suspenseful and chilling tale is truly gripping.   From: The Lineup "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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