Terrifying tomes

SW reads Halloween horrors

Tatat Bunnag

People everywhere seem to love scary stories. Some like to be told ghost stories late at night, while others get a kick out of horror movies. Still others prefer to curl up under the blankets with a spooky novel, especially around the time of Halloween.

For those who plan to spend the night of October 31 scaring themselves silly with a good book, Student Weekly takes a look at five thrilling reads that are guaranteed to give you the creeps.

It (1986)
Author: Stephen King

Stephen King is well-known as the master of horror writing, and along with his novels The Stand and The Shining, It is generally considered one of his masterpieces.

It is about seven children in a small town that is hit by horrifying murders. The kids grow up and move away, but none of them can escape the nightmare of their home town.

It is a truly frightening read and is highly recommended for horror fans.

I Am Legend (1954)
Author: Richard Matheson

Most people are probably familiar with the recent movie of the same, starring the amiable Will Smith. But while the movie was certainly popular, many believe that it doesn’t come close to the scary power of the original novel, first published in 1954.

The thrilling story is about a man who has to deal with the apparent end of the world and a legion of deadly vampires.

The Books of Magic: The Invitation (2003)
Author: Carla Jablonski

Several years before the first Harry Potter book was published, The Books of Magic comic series introduced a British boy named Timothy Hunter, who wears thick eyeglasses, has a pet owl, and explores a strange new world of magic and future destiny.

This book is the first of six novels based on the series. Though often compared to the Harry Potter books, Hunter's adventures are decidedly darker and more mysterious than Harry’s.

The Exorcist (1971)
Peter Blatty

As well as becoming one of the best-selling horror novels ever, The Exorcist was also made into a terrifying hit horror movie in 1973. The spine-tingling story is about Regan, an 11-year-old daughter of a famous actress, who apparently becomes possessed by a demon.

The Exorcist stands the test of time as an exciting, good versus evil novel which introduced some of the most iconic horror imagery of all time.

Ga (The Crow) (1984)
Author: Wanich Jarungkit-anant

The Crow is a short story taken from Soi Diew Kan (In the Same Soi), a book by prolific Thai author Wanich Jarungkit-anant that won the SEA Write Award in 1984.

This spooky tale is about a man who hears about the death of his childhood friends, one after another. The friends all had one thing in common — an uncanny childhood memory of a crow that they accidentally killed when a prank went too far. The horror begins when the man sees the same crow, all these years later, perched silently outside his apartment window.