Top 10 Horror Fiction: 2011

American Vampire
By Jennifer Armintrout

On his way to a vampire party in New York, Graf McDonald takes a wrong turn and ends up in Penance, Ohio, which one can enter but not leave; urban fantasy author Armintrout, best known for her Black Ties series, offers a traditional horror story that will be welcomed by fans of the genre.

Dust
By Joan Frances Turner

The author has taken the familiar zombie clichés and given them a good shake, creating a new zombie mythology that is smart, scary, and viscerally real.

Full Dark, No Stars
By Stephen King

King begins his afterword by stating, “The stories in this book are harsh.” The man ain’t whistlin’ Dixie. Rarely has he gone this dark, but to say there are no stars here is crazy.

Ghost Story
By Jim Butcher

Harry Dresden’s back for another adventure battling forces far greater than himself—business as usual for Chicago’s favorite wizard; except this time he has a bit of a handicap: he’s dead, and he’s been sent back to solve the mystery of his murder.

The Glass Demon
By Helen Grant

With its fascinating information on medieval folklore, unique setting, and increasingly claustrophobic sense of terror, this is an exhilarating page-turner that offers a cerebral blend of horror and mystery.

I Don’t Want to Kill You
By Dan Wells

Horror and fantasy fans of all ages, especially those who get a kick out of Jeff Lindsay’s Dexter novels, should embrace this third and, perhaps, final novel about John Wayne Cleaver.

Jane and the Damned
By Janet Mullany

Mullany rewrites history in more ways than one in this novel, which sets up Jane Austen as a vampire. A fast-paced adventure for those who don’t mind the vampire craze impinging upon historical events and beloved authors.

Stories from the Plague Years
By Michael Marano

With an expansive vocabulary, a tenacious commitment to poetic prose, and a willingness to follow whatever discursive paths his whim takes, Marano is an acquired taste—but without doubt possessed of a unique talent.

The White Devil
By Justin Evans

Readers of this thoroughly upsetting horror-mystery hybrid will find their nightmares imprinted with several unshakable images; smart, scary, sexy, and gorgeously written to boot.

The Zombie Autopsies: Secret Notebooks from the Apocalypse
By Steven C. Schlozman

While medical professionals may get a few laughs from Schlozman’s meticulous faux scientific research, the target audience—horror fans and zombie enthusiasts—will be pleased.

Feature by Brad Hooper, first published August, 2011 on Booklist.

Photo credit: by David Sky.