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Horror

In this section you will find over 3.861 exciting and thrilling books about Horror. At Tales we have all types of good Horror books for each individual to enjoy, whether you want some of the classics, new or children’s horror books. We all need a little scare in our lives, to learn how to deal with the real world and acknowledge the fact that it is indeed okay to be scared. Scary stories also teach kids that Monsters are terrifying, but at the same time they’ll have an understanding of scary situations, and learn how to cope with them. Take a chance and let the mystery begin here.
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  • Save 11%
    by Charlie Higson
    £7.99

    It all comes to an end in the final book in The Enemy seriesThe sickness struck everyone over fourteen.First it twisted their minds.Next it ravaged their bodies.Now they roam the streets -Crazed and hungrySickos swarm the streets of London. Gathered in the centre of the city, they lie in wait. The survivors have one final epic battle to overcome. Together they must work out a plan of attack and end the grown-ups reign of terror before it's too late.The end is coming.

  • Save 11%
    by Charlie Higson
    £7.99

    HE DOESN'T KNOW IT BUT DOGNUT IS ABOUT TO SET OFF A CHAIN OF EVENTS THAT WILL AFFECT EVERY KID IN THE CITY.The sickness struck everyone over the age of fourteen.Mothers and fathers, older brothers, sisters and best friends. No one escaped its touch. And now children across London are being hunted by ferocious grown-ups . . .they're hungry. They're bloodthirsty. And they aren't giving up.DogNut and the rest of his crew want to find their lost friends, and set off on a deadly mission from the Tower of London to Buckingham Palace and beyond, as the sickos lie in wait. But who are their friends and who is the enemy in this changed world?

  • by Shirley Hughes
    £6.99

    The eerie old house gives Jim and Arthur the creeps - a really horrible witch must live there! But somehow they can't keep away, even when a mysterious white face appears at the window.

  • by James Preller
    £7.99

    When Liam's family moves into a creepy old house in a strange new town, he immediately feels like something is wrong. It's as if the house is trying to tell him something, and whatever it is it's something really bad. Dad thinks Liam's just missing his dead mother, but when Liam and his sister summon a terrifying spirit through the bathroom mirror, the battle with the house becomes a life-or-death situation. Can the kids persuade Dad to listen to them before it's too late? Scary Tales are books packed with spine-tingling illustrations and stories that will chill your blood. Come on in . . . if you dare

  • by James Preller
    £7.99

    Enter the world of Samantha Carver, an ordinary kid who loves amusement parks, the smell of popcorn and the joyful terror of a heart-pounding ride. Sam's got a ticket in her pocket for a very special ride. Soon Sam, along with a boy named Andy, will be screaming for their lives. Scary Tales are books packed with spine-tingling illustrations and stories that will chill your blood. Come on in . . . if you dare

  • by Dawn Kurtagich
    £7.99

    A spine-chilling psychological thriller from stunning talent and author of The Dead House, Dawn Kurtagich. Sinister and creepily atmospheric, Dawn's second YA title is sure to grip fans of Stephen King, Kendare Blake and Juno Dawson.When sisters Silla and Nori escape London and their abusive father, Aunt Cath's country house feels like a safe haven. But slowly, ever so slowly, things begin to unravel. Aunt Cath locks herself in the attic and spends day and night pacing. Every day the forbidden surrounding forest inches slowly towards the house. A mysterious boy appears, offering friendship. And Nori claims that a man watches them from the dark forest - a man with no eyes, who creeps ever closer. . .

  • by Bethany Griffin
    £7.99

    Madeline and her twin brother Roderick have the Usher name, the Usher house - and the Usher disease. Something is wrong with the family's blood - and it seems to have spread to the house itself. Sometimes Madeline even thinks that the house is alive... When Roderick is sent away to school, the house seems to want revenge on the one member of the Usher family left behind: Madeline herself.A gorgeous, eerie, darkly Gothic tale, THE FALL is guaranteed to intrigue and enthrall its readers, winning legions of new fans for the talented Bethany Griffin. Perfect for fans of Laini Taylor, Becca Fitzpatrick and Cassandra Clare.

  • Save 10%
    by Holly Black
    £8.99

    Coldtown is dangerous. A prison for the damned and those who party with them. The stunning new YA novel from the bestselling author of THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES, Holly Black. TRUE BLOOD for teens!Tana lives in a world where walled cities called Coldtowns exist. In them, quarantined monsters and humans mingle in a decadently bloody mix of predator and prey. It's an eternal party, shown on TV 24 hours a day - gorgeous, glamorous, deadly! Because, once you pass through Coldtown's gates, you can never leave...A wholly original story of rage and revenge, love and loathing from bestselling author, Holly Black. Fans of TRUE BLOOD will love this dark and sexy tale.

  • by Alan Gibbons
    £7.99

    The gun is the coward's fist. The gun is power.Alex and Ethan are growing up on an estate where there are just two choices: sport or crime. Ethan is selected for a football training programme in the US, his chance to escape the gangs that terrorise his neighbourhood. But Alex is drawn into an explosive feud with a gun at its heart.In this gripping and absorbing real life thriller, Alan Gibbons explores the complex issue of gun crime, and the far reaching consequences it can have.

  • Save 14%
    by Diana Hendry
    £9.49

    When Henry finds a strange baby hidden among the flowers in Aunt Agatha's garden, it looks like another adventure is in store - especially when little Sweetheart sprouts antennae! But when a host of ghostly women begin to haunt 131 Ballantyre Road, all desperate to catch a glimpse of the baby, Henry and his new friend Rosie know this is a job for the magical, marvellous Harvey Angell.Henry's extraordinary friend quickly realizes that Sweetheart isn't from this world - she's from the future, and she needs to get back home before it's too late. That means a breathtakingly dangerous trip through time for Harvey Angell . . .

  • - Book 1
    by Julian Sedgwick
    £7.99

    A powerful teen thriller with echoes of J G Ballard's Empire of the Sun and Miracles of Life ...Obsessed with martial arts and ghost stories, Ruby is part of a gang of Chinese and ex-pat children who hide out in ruined White Cloud Temple. But the world of Shanghai in the late 1920s is driven with danger: disease, crime, espionage and revolution are sweeping the streets. And since the death of her younger brother Thomas, Ruby is stalked by another anxiety and fear. Faced with a series of local hauntings, and armed with a lucky bookshop find - The Almanac of Distant Realms - Ruby forms the Shanghai Ghost Club to hunt down restless spirits. When best friend Faye is kidnapped by the Green Hand, Ruby must trust a mysterious stranger - and face her worst fears - in order to save her friends, and her own life. And in the ensuing fight she will catch a glimpse of the one spirit she has longed to see ...The secrets that Ruby's father and friends have kept from her are coming back to haunt them all.

  • Save 11%
    by Lauren Oliver & H C Chester
    £7.99

    The book is about, among other things: the strongest boy in the world, a talking cockatoo, a faulty mind reader, a beautiful bearded lady and a nervous magician, an old museum, and a shrunken head.Blessed with extraordinary abilities, orphans Philippa, Sam, and Thomas have grown up happily in Dumfrey's Dime Museum of Freaks, Oddities, and Wonders. Philippa is a powerful mentalist, Sam is the world's strongest boy, and Thomas can squeeze himself into a space no bigger than a bread box. The children live happily with museum owner Mr. Dumfrey, alongside other misfits. But when a fourth child, Max, a knife-thrower, joins the group, it sets off an unforgettable chain of events.When the museum's Amazonian shrunken head is stolen, the four are determined to get it back. But their search leads them to a series of murders and an explosive secret about their pasts.

  • by Cliff McNish
    £6.99

    When her gran dies, Jess inherits Twigs - a talking cockatoo! Huge and hilarious, Twigs is Jess's best friend and, now she's starting at a new school, Jess needs a friend more than ever. But - Squawwwwk! - Twigs is noisy, and he's pushing Jess's dad to breaking point. Jess promised her gran she'd take care of Twigs, but can she make the new friends she needs to save the bird she loves? A heartwarming new story about the power of friendship from the author of GOING HOME, Cliff McNish.

  • Save 10%
    by Frances Hardinge
    £8.99

    Cuckoo Song by Frances Hardinge, the Costa Award-winning author of The Lie Tree, is a fantastically eerie and beautifully written novel, and was shortlisted for the prestigious Carnegie Medal.The first things to shift were the doll's eyes, the beautiful grey-green glass eyes. Slowly they swivelled, until their gaze was resting on Triss's face. Then the tiny mouth moved, opened to speak. 'What are you doing here?' It was uttered in tones of outrage and surprise, and in a voice as cold and musical as the clinking of cups. 'Who do you think you are? This is my family.' When Triss wakes up after an accident, she knows that something is very wrong. She is insatiably hungry; her sister seems scared of her and her parents whisper behind closed doors. She looks through her diary to try to remember, but the pages have been ripped out.Soon Triss discovers that what happened to her is more strange and terrible than she could ever have imagined, and that she is quite literally not herself. In a quest to find the truth she must travel into the terrifying Underbelly of the city to meet a twisted architect who has dark designs on her family - before it's too late . . .'Everyone should read Frances Hardinge. Everyone. Right now' - Patrick Ness, author of A Monster Calls.

  • by Alex Shearer
    £7.99

    'You'll be sorry when I'm dead.' That's what Harry said to his sister, before the incident with the lorry. And now he is just that - dead. And he wishes more than anything that he hadn't said it. He wishes he could say sorry. And say goodbye to everyone he left behind - his mum, his dad, his best friend Pete, even Jelly Donkins, the class bully. Now he's on the Other Side, waiting to move on to the Great Blue Yonder. But he doesn't know how to get there - until he meets Arthur, a small boy in a top hat, who's been dead for years, who helps him say goodbye...

  • by Darren Shan
    £7.99

    The tenth part of the Saga of Darren Shan - one boy's terrifying journey from human to half-vampire to Vampire Prince."e;If you step through after Harkat, you might never come back. Is your friend worth such an enormous risk?"e;A terrifying new world, a deadly new challenge for Darren Shan, the Vampire Prince.Darren and Harkat face monstrous obstacles on their desperate quest to the Lake of Souls. Will they survive their savage journey? And what awaits them in the murky waters of the dead? Be careful what you fish for...

  • by Darren Shan
    £7.99

    The twelfth part of the Saga of Darren Shan - one boy's terrifying journey from human to half-vampire to Vampire Prince.Showdown! The Hunters must face Steve Leopard, to fight for control of the night. Will Steve emerge victorious and wipe out the vampire clan? Or will the Hunters prevail? An added problem for Darren is that if the vampire triumph, he is destined to become the Lord of the Shadows and destroy humanity!!! Is he cursed by fate, or is there some way to trick Destiny?Find out in the action-packed, mind-bending, twisting, long-awaited conclusion to The Saga of Darren Shan!

  • Save 17%
    by Maureen Johnson
    £9.99

    When madness stalks the streets of London, no one is safe...There's a creepy new terror haunting modern-day London.Fresh from defeating a Jack the Ripper killer, Rory must put her new-found hunting skills to the test before all hell breaks loose...But enemies are not always who you expect them to be and crazy times call for crazy solutions. A thrilling teen mystery.

  • by Rodman Philbrick & Lynn Harnett
    £12.99

    A haunted house continues its quest for vengeance on two young children After surviving the wrath of the house that wants them dead, Jason and his four-year-old sister, Sally, face a new challengea week without their mom and dad. When their parents are called away to deal with a work crisis, they are left with Katie, a seventeen-year-old babysitter. Katie doesn't believe in spirits, but that doesn't matter to Bobby, the ghost of the child who was murdered here. Bobby has become closer than ever to Sallyin fact, he now possesses her. And his hatred of babysitters and desire for vengeance will leave Jason, Sally, and Katie in even more danger than before.The Horroris the second book of the chilling House on Cherry Street trilogy from prolific wife-and-husband coauthors Lynn Harnett and Rodman Philbrick, the Newbery Honor Awardwinning author of Freak the Mighty.

  • by John Bellairs
    £12.99

    A ';spooky[,] spine-tingling' time travel adventure that takes a boy and his eccentric professor friend to the mysterious Byzantine Empire (Publishers Weekly)... [Description] Johnny Dixon is worried about Professor Childermass. The professor has always been an odd duck, but lately his behavior has been positively bizarre. He's been talking to himself and stalking down the street with his collar turned up and his hat over his eyes, and now he won't return Johnny's calls. Johnny's afraid that the professor's old age is starting to get to him, but he will soon find it's something far more amazingand far more dangerous. The professor has discovered a trolley that can carry them five hundred years back in time, to the last days of the Byzantine Empire. In the dark and winding streets of Constantinople, he and Johnny confront crusaders, mystics, and thieves as they attempt to save the ancient empire from destruction at the hands of the advancing Turkish armies. Created by the award-winning author of The House with a Clock in Its Walls, Johnny Dixon is one of the most charming young heroes in literaturea spunky, bespectacled young man whose curiosity often gets him into troubleand his ';wonderfully warming friendship with cantankerous old Professor Childermass makes them an endearing detective team' (The New York Times).

  • by John Bellairs
    £10.49

    A young hero and his professor friend set out to save a priest from a ghost, in this novel by the author of The House with a Clock in Its Walls Aside from the eccentric Professor Childermass, young sleuth Johnny Dixon's best friend may be Father Higgins, the kindly priest at the local church. When Higgins is transferred to the congregation in the tiny town of Rocks Village, Johnny and the professor are afraid they won't see their old friend ever again. But they'll be reuniting with Father Higgins sooner than they thinkand the thing that brings them together will be positively out of this world. No sooner has Father Higgins moved than he begins seeing a ghost lurking around the church. The apparition is a young girl who never speaks, but has a habit of leaving cryptic notes around Higgins's house. When Higgins disappears, Johnny and the professor follow his trail, embarking on a haunting quest that will lead them all the way to England. In The Secret of the Underground Room, this multimillion-selling, Edgar Awardwinning author offers a good old-fashioned ghost story packed with adventure and suspense.

  • by John Bellairs
    £12.49

    In a thrilling adventure, a young sleuth and his professor friend are challenged to solve a riddle and win a fortune Professor Roderick Childermass may be the strangest person Johnny Dixon has ever met, but compared to his brother Peregrine, the professor is practically normal. Peregrine is a born trickster, and when he knows his death is near, he sends a letter promising the professor his entire $10,000,000 estateassuming he can solve one final riddle. The professor feels that his brother is mocking him from beyond the grave. If Peregrine were alive, he says, he'd kill him. To crack the puzzle and claim the fortune, Johnny and the professor head north to the wild countryside of far-off Maine. They'll find that the riddle is the least of their problems. To inherit the money, the professor must stay alive until the end of the summer, and since everyone in Maine seems to want Peregrine's heir dead, survival will be no easy task. From the author of the Lewis Barnavelt novels, including The House with a Clock in Its Walls, the Johnny Dixon series is full of fun, adventure, and supernatural chills, along with ';believable and likable characters' who are a delight to spend time with (The New York Times).

  • by Brad Strickland & John Bellairs
    £12.49

    A young sleuth and his professor friend fight voodoo, black magic, and a hungry zombie horde... The drum is small, no bigger than a plastic cup, and decorated with sun-bleached bones. It is a token from the island of St. Ives, whose voodoo cults are infamous around the world, and it is one of the most dangerous objects Johnny Dixon has ever held. When he raps the little drum, the wind howls, and an explosion rocks the house. There are more surprises to come. An inquisitive young man, Johnny has tangled with all manner of supernatural beasts along with his friend Professor Childermass, and now they will confront the living dead. The drum summons up a whirlwind of black magic and throws one of the professor's colleagues into a strange trance. To rescue him, Johnny and the professor must defeat an evil sorceress, and send her zombies back to where they belong. From the author of the Lewis Barnavelt novels, including The House with a Clock in Its Walls, the Johnny Dixon series is full of fun, adventure, and supernatural chills, along with ';believable and likable characters' who are a delight to spend time with (The New York Times).

  • by John Bellairs & Brad Strickland
    £12.49

    In a Massachusetts town, an evil wizard is about to come back from the dead and a young hero must fight to stop him... In the days of the Salem witch trials, the sleepy hamlet of Duston Heights had just one practitioner of the dark arts: the notorious necromancer Esdrias Blackleach. As the fever for witch hunting reached its terrible peak, Blackleach was accused of using powerful black magic against his fellow townsfolk. But just before he could be brought to trial, he dropped dead, escaping justice forever. Or so it seemed... Fast forward to the 1950s, the inquisitive young sleuth Johnny Dixon and his mentor Professor Childermass are getting ready to donate a box of Blackleach artifacts to the local museum when a descendant of the sorcerer shows up and attempts to steal his ancestor's wooden hand. He has a fiendish plan to raise the old necromancer from the dead, and only Johnny and the professor can stop him and make the town safe from black magic forever. The Johnny Dixon stories, from the award-winning author of The House with a Clock in Its Walls, have been acclaimed for their ';believable and likable characters' (The New York Times) and ';spine-tingling' supernatural adventure (Publishers Weekly).

  • by Brad Strickland & John Bellairs
    £12.49

    A young man fights to save his father from a spirit's curse in the epic finale to a series starring ';a terrific hero' (The New York Times) The sea is calm, the air is fresh, and the bobbing boat feels like a living creature underneath Johnny Dixon's feet. Johnny hardly ever sees his father, who trains Air Force pilots in Colorado, and their annual Florida fishing trip is the highlight of his year. They're on their way back to Duston Heights, Massachusetts, where Johnny lives with his grandparents, when a visit to a fortune-teller puts a terrible fright into Johnny. Inside the seer's crystal ball, he sees a grinning ghost who cackles out a fearsome message: ';The universe shall be mine!' Johnny tries to forget what he saw, but when he and his father return to Duston Heights, his dad falls into a coma, and Johnny is certain that the ghost is to blame. With the help of his old friend Professor Childermass, Johnny will defeat the smirking ghoulor never see his father again. The Johnny Dixon series, from the author of The House with a Clock in Its Walls, is full of fun, adventure, and supernatural chills, along with ';believable and likable characters' who are a delight to spend time with (The New York Times).

  • by Adam Gidwitz
    £7.99

    What really happened when Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water? Well, yes, Jack did break his crown and, yes, Jill did come tumbling after. BUT, they also went on a quest to find a looking glass, which really turned out to be a quest to find themselves. They challenged giants to an eating competition and were captured by goblins. Did they ever find the looking glass? Well, you'll just have to read this book and find out.

  • by Adam Wallace
    £9.49

    Adam Wallace, new York Times Bestselling Author, presents six tales of horror for children that are so scary, so terrifying, so unbelievably horrifying ... the children will run out of the room screaming in terror ... or they will burst out laughing!!!

  • by Bernadette M Welch
    £17.49

    When Gram took Corrie and me to a paranormal supply shop to get new cell phones, it was our first clue that our lives were about to change. That, and the wizards.The second was Holly. We met her at our summer "mystical arts" classes and, right away, we knew she was trouble. Holly cut out every day, to search for a priceless treasure that her grandfather had lost at the school years ago. With her crinkled-up old map, she moved around campus like a ghost, and had even found a creepy place called "the haunted hallway," when we finally located her. Holly was hunting alright, inside one of the haunted murals!By the time we figured out the truth about Holly's grandfather and the dark magic that guarded his secret hiding place, we were all in deep trouble. Holly was searching for the treasure in a forbidden crypt, and everyone, including the Light-bearers, was out looking for her. I was alone, sitting inside that awful mural, clutching the final clue and watching in horror as, suddenly, the whole illusion started bursting apart, like a sugar crush in a Candy Crush game! And I was stuck in the game...

  • - Act II
    by Robert J S T McCartney & Albert J Debusschere
    £25.99

  • - Katie is lonely - but who is the strange girl she befriends?
    by Webber Beryl
    £7.99

The Horror Genre
Horror is a cultural genre that is meant to scare, shock and repulse its audience. An important thing to remember about this type of genre is that it elicits a dreadful sense in the reader through frightening and terrifying themes, situations and descriptive images. When we read a horror book, everything is important, such as the storyline, characters and the whole atmosphere. It is meant to provoke and shock the reader with its exploration of the unknown. The depreciating value that horror has, will help us understand why something is indeed scary. Look at it this way, once you see the monster come into the light, and you see it for what it truly is, it will help you to be less afraid. This genre also has several sub-genres, some of them consist of; Gothic, Science fiction, Survival, Occult, Dark fantasy, Paranormal, etc. Each has its own distinct characteristics. 

Classic Horror books
If we think about some of the popular classic horror books, the first author that will pop up is most likely the gothic writer Edgar Allan Poe. The gothic novel is a subgenre under horror that specifically has a focus on death, originated in the 18th century and is mastered by him. In the 19th and 20th century the horror writers focused on something completely different, such as tales involving occult ideas, and the popular books Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Dracula by Bram Stoker came into the picture and still kept their relevance today. Frankenstein is a classic story about a scientist who accidentally creates a monster when his experiment goes horribly wrong. And Dracula is a gothic novel about a vampyre who has a desire to spread the undead curse to as many mortal humans as possible. These two popular stories are well known worldwide and they will never lose their relevance, no matter how old they get. That is the magic of being a classic.  

New Horror books
As for the newer horror books, 2019-2021 had been some epic years for horror fiction. It is an ever-evolving genre and so many new voices blossomed. Most of the popular horror stories today involve crime writing, especially serial killers, slashers, and the ghost of the past. Something about newly written gothic stories that take place in the Victorian-era is so thrilling to read about, here we find books like the Stalking Jack the Ripper series by Kerri Maniscalo. The author incorporates themes of equality and social justice which takes the mystery of the infamous murderer to a whole new level. The main character Audrey Rose, eschews polite society for the very scandalous pastime of learning burgeoning science of forensic medicine. While she spends her time being captivated by science, there’s a serial killer on the loose. There’s nothing more thrilling and entertaining than reading about an inspiring heroine who solves mystery crimes. 
Children’s horror books are also important to address. Here we find Nightmares by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller, where the younger audience can explore dark territory but at the same time be comforted. It is a book that’ll reassure you how to overcome the power of fear. The main character Charlie’s and his friends’ adventure in the Netherworld is harrowing, because they’re in constant danger, but together they try to face their fears and conquer their nightmares. 

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