Hey Adam; I just read “Clown In A Cornfield” and I’ve got to say man, you REALLY nailed the twist at the end of the book, I actually screamed. “YOU GOTTA BE F%#! KIDDING ME !” It actually blew me away, now I’m hunting for more books after finishing the full Stephen King Catalogue, and I just wanted to take the time to say this, as a reader of only SK and others, you are an absolute star my friend, first Horror novel I’ve enjoyed that wasn’t written by King. “Just a drop of Baypen”
I still prefer My Best Friend's Exorcism to We Sold Our Souls and SBCGtSV, but I just finished Southern Book Club and it was still a very compelling read
Phew, plenty of things to recommend from the last decade plus a few years. I will try to keep it at one per author (with most of these, there is more great stuff to read from them), but this is some of the best stuff I have read in recent years from contemporary horror authors: * Iain Reid - Foe * Tom Piccirilli - Nightjack * Greg Gifune - Children of Chaos * Jac Jemc - The Grip of It * Kealan Patrick Burke - Blanky (Novella) * Jon Bassoff - The Incurables * C.V. Hunt - Ritualistic Human Sacrifice * Laird Barron - The Light is the Darkness * Gabino Iglesias - Zero Saints * Alan Ryker - Dream of the Serpent * Thomas Ligotti - My Work Is Not Yet Done And if you like it a bit more straight up with less meta stuff, try: * Michael McBride - Snowblind * Tim Curran - Skin Medicine Thanks for the recommendation on "The Good House". Kind of missed out on this and will go seek it.
Things I've read this year that I thought were fantastic included BROKEN MONSTERS by Lauren Beukes, A LUSH AND SEETHING HELL by John Hornor Jacobs, THE CHANGELING by Victor LaValle, I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS by Iain Reid, and FEVER DREAM by Samanta Schweblin. Currently I'm reading THE DEEP by Alma Katsu and the new Grady Hendrix, and I'm digging both. (I also read VIDEO NIGHT recently and really dug it.)
Perfect timing for this video, I haven't read horror in a few months and was just wondering what to pick up next in the genre! Cheers for the recommendations 👍
I randomly clicked on this video when looking for recommendations and when I saw your room I was like: “huh, he has the books from that horror author I just started reading”...) then stopped myself and grabbed the book I’m reading (The Con Season) and of course I realised it was you! 😂 I’m really enjoying the book so far anyway. Just thought I’d leave this comment because it was a funny coincidence. Subscribed 😄
One of my favorite recent reads (not a new book but new to me) was Scott Smith’s The Ruins. I also expected to hate The Institute but could not put it down
I’ve been watching your RU-vid videos almost since day one, finally got around to ordering your books. I just went ahead and bought all of them. I started with Video Night and was genuinely surprised by how good it was, can’t wait to start The Summer Job!
Video Night happens to be my favorite of his! Summer Job was great fun and his execution really kept you wanting to keep reading. Con Season should be the next one up for you to read. It’s so different and not only horror but twisted and a bit funny and just fantastic! I still have a couple more of his to get but those three so far have not been disappointing. He is hands down my favorite new author I met at a convention in Massachusetts and will continue following his career and recommending.
Lisa Lucania thanks so much for the suggest, I’ll definitely add that one to the top! I ended up starting The Good House after this video, I already had it in my To-be-read stack so it was just the motivation I needed to pick it up.
I really enjoyed ‘The twisted ones’ and ‘the hollow places’ by T. Kingfisher. Both are really fun, well written and genuinely creepy at some points. Also The only good Indian’s is a definite must read! Glad to see it get some love.
I recently read The Forever House by Tim Waggoner and it was a lot of fun. Would also highly recommend Whispers in the Dark by Laurel Hightower and True Crime by Samantha Kolesnik. I'm really looking forward to reading Clown in a Cornfield.
Omg Brad Proctor! I by chance saw your comment re: The Forever House a few weeks ago and decided to check it out. I had just finished reading "The Turn of a Key" by Ruth Ware and guess that I'm on a haunted/weird house vibe at the moment. I just finished The Forever House and loved it!!! It was so creepy and your comments in your video are spot on. I think that it has a Vivarium (a new indie movie) vibe about it as well. Thank you for the recommendation and thank you Adam for doing these videos and providing this forum!
@@latoyagray3667 that's awesome! I'm really glad that you enjoyed it. Not to self promote but I have quite a bit of indie and small press horror reviews on my channel if you are looking for other recommendations.
Loved Andy Davidson’s Vampire debut novel “In the Valley of the Sun “ . looking forward to “Boatmans Daughter “ . Jeremy Shipps’ oddball “ Atrocities” , and Craig L Gidney’s “ Spectral hue “ . For Scares : Elizabeth Hand’s Creepy faerie tale “ Wildling Halls “, and Michael Marshall Smith’s “ Bad Things “ .
I'm a huge fan of horror books , movies and everything scary ...... you chapter stacks and possessed by horror are the only 3 channels I trust when it comes to horror . hope u keep doing horror books n movie related videos :)
I'm envious of your Arrow video collection. (Well, your whole collection to be honest. ) I saw Clown in a Conrnfield on someone's recommendations and now, having seen your video and your enthusiasm for horror, I'll definitely be checking it out.
Hey Adam, I just finished 'The First One You Expect' and rated it 5 stars on Amazon UK. Loved it, wished it went on longer. I also just finished southern book club. I felt a little bored half way through but it picked up at the end. I hated the manipulative husband.
Asylum and escape from asylum by Madeleine Roux. The only book that has actually relatively frightened me. (It’s a series with more books I haven’t read, I read them out of order but don’t worry, they still made sense since it was a time line span)
I just found this channel because of the Paperbacks from Hell video. Looking at your videos, it seems that a lot of the ones about books have much higher view counts...which is good!
I read all of Tremblay's books and all of Hendrix's books. But I would say the singularly creepiest and most original horror novel I've read in recent memory is HEX by Thomas Olde Heuvelt. Just gripping and unique. Overwhelming dread and unlike anything else. I will say that the "no holds barred" climactic last 80 or so pages were very disappointing compared to everything that came before, but in retrospect it's still one of the best horror novels I have ever read anyway.
Jeff Granstrom Oh, I forgot I read that last year as well. I agree that book ending up being a lot better than I went into thinking it would. I’m always onboard when something “different” is done and this book was something new and kept me reading in about two sittings to finish it.
Pre-ordered Clown in a Cornfield for Kindle! Can't wait! I've read the T. Due book, and I don't remember loving it that much; maybe I should revisit it now that I'm older and not wiser. Have you read any Angela Carter? The Bloody Chamber is amazing.
@@AdamCesare I hope you love it as much as I do! Shared your video with a friend who needed some recs and told her you haven't steered us wrong yet. :)
Your novellas Tribesmen and Video Night have been big time comfort reading highlights from quarantine life! Also Nightblood by T. Chris Martindale in the Paperbacks from Hell series was a blast.
Grady Hendrix’s has become one of my new fave Authors. I’ve loved his work so far and just picked up The Southerners Guide to slaying a Vampires. I will have to pick up The Clown in the Cornfield, next. I like your recommendations.
I was very patiently waiting for your book recommendation!!👀 lol i ordered The return definitely sounds intriguing and Grady Hendrix is amazing!! Have you read The Hunger by Alma katsu, The Ruins by Scott Smith, n Kill Creek Scott Thomas, these r few i read very recently n enjoyed. Definitely picked some from your recommendation for my next order.. thanks awesome review 👻
Corona got me in a kinda reading mood in the last couple of months...I picked up a good haul of horror novels and finished six of them by now: Nick Cutter´s The Troop & The Deep, Paul Tremblay´s Ghosts, Devil´s Rock & Cabin and Burke´s Kin. Kin was pretty interesting but I totally fell in love with Cutter and Tremblay...all very strong reads and I can´t wait to start with Survivor Song and Little Heaven. Now I´m halfway through Grady´s Southern Bookclub which is a great read either!
Paul Tremblays survivor song was amazing. All his books are though so that wasnt a surprise! I'd say Paul Tremblay, ania ahlborn, Keenan Patrick Burke and Robert mcammon are prob safe bets for anyone just starting who want to fall in love with the genre.
Hi Adam. I love your channel and can't get enough of your videos. Now I want to pre-order your latest book but it's only available in hardcover in Canada. I apologize in advance for the stupid question but is there a reason American books(except comics) are first released in hardcover ? I am a native french speaker and in France and french speaking countries the books are generally released in soft covers first and than later in a smaller soft cover format (we call them pocket books). I prefer my comic books in hardcovers but i find hardcovers impractical for novels or essays as i generally prefer to carry around my books so i can read them anywhere. Not to mention hardcovers take too much bookshelf space . (unfortunately i hate ebooks).
My recent favourite read is Remains by Andrew Cull. It is among the scariest books I’ve ever read! It’s a slow burn but when it takes off, oh my gosh... I recommend it to everyone ☺️ I just got the new Grady Hendrix today and am really excited to read it. Would love to see more book videos!
I was about to recommend the book I just finished. Great characters, great twists, action packed and couldnt put it down. I guess you have heard of it....Clowns in the Cornfield!!! Loved it!!
The Return by Rachel Harrison sounds really interesting. I'll have to check that one out 👍 I've recently finished Strange Weather by Joe Hill, which I found to be a bit of a mixed bag. I enjoyed it overall though. Growing things by Paul Tremblay quickly became one of my favourite books last year. The dog walker story still creeps me out 😂
Paul Tremblay is AMAZING but i'd say that both the Cabin at the end of the World, and ESPECIALLY Head Full of Ghosts, are better than Growing things. Head Full of Ghosts is THE scariest book I've read (tied with that time I was 12 years old and read Pet Semetary for the first time). Thanks for the recommendations, keep it up!
My favorite Horror Novel I read in this past year (I'm writing in June 2021), was actually your book, "Clown in a Cornfield". I finished it in two sittings, and it's one of my favorite slashers. I normally don't like YA, even though I'm in the age group for it. But in this, the characters felt real and not like caricatures, and your villains were really interesting.
Just saw before recording this that it hit the NYT bestseller list! It's a hit! Very cool for horror, in general, to have such a great book do well, widely.
I really enjoyed The Downside trilogy by S. L. Grey, book 1 is The Mall, book 2 is The Ward and the final one is The New Girl. Not particularly scary, but creepy, strange and very enjoyable
I have a review going up today for THE SOUTHERN BOOK CLUB'S GUIDE TO SLAYING VAMPIRES. I looooooved it and gave it five stars, but I did have some issues with it. Anything that Stephen Graham Jones writes is an automatic read for me so I'm really looking forward to getting ahold of MONGRELS. MAPPING THE INTERIOR was stellar but I think THE ONLY GOOD INDIANS is the scariest thing I've ever read.
best horror i’ve read this past year or so: -Birdman + The Treatment (sequel) by Mo Hayder. picked it up on a whim, part detective part thriller all good. -Sharp Objects + Dark Places by Gillian Flynn. had heard of Gone Girl but only picked that up after these two (have yet to read it). both are quite good, i like her style and both are very well paced. -Lying In Wait by Liz Nugent. this book is just all sorts of crazy and i would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for something new. currently ive just started In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, after that i’ve got some Jack Ketchum i’m going to dive into. ive a good stock of horror to read under a tall tree this summer 😁
Hello from Northern Ireland. How can you find out if a book was released on Hardcover? Do u know if Brian Evenson - Last days was ever released on hardcover?
I’m glad I just came across your chanel. I’ve been very bored with the books I’ve read lately and crave really scary horrific books. Is there anything like Texas chainsaw or the Devils rejects movies in the form of books? Real, psychopaths and gore?
Jack Ketchum’s THE LOST or OFF SEASON. Pretty much anything Edward Lee or Richard Laymon. Nicole Cushing’s MR. SUICIDE. Wrath James White’s SUCCULENT PREY. Plenty of extreme horror books and authors out there to give you that gore, Lacey.
Thanks so much, Ludwig! Will have to check out IT WILL JUST BE US. That other one you mentioned also sounds good! (Thanks so much for the lovely review.)
I just barely finished asylum by Madeline Roux.I absolutely loved it it was totally creepy with those vintage pictures. It’s about this guy named Dan who joins her college prep course in New Hampshire and the dormitory he staying in used to be and all the Salem I’m not gonna give you anymore you’re just gonna have to read it Adam
I'm really liking Those Across The River by Christopher Buehlman, I'm half way in. I recently read Bethany's Sin by Robert R. McCammon and Twilight Eyes by Dean Koontz, both of which were very good.
Not a new book but A Good and Happy Child is something that impressed me so much which doesn’t happen often. It is from 2007 I believe and way more than a typical horror. (Not gory but a different type of horror and gets into your head. Amazing) Broken Monsters by Lauren Beukes stands apart as well. Looking forward to her new one but it keeps getting pushed back.
I've recently discovered your channel and now it's one of my favourites! I always get great recomendations (though most of them hasen't been lunched in my country...)
Experimental Film by Gemma Files. I love how the story is structured. It kept me interested in the story even if a lot of it is 'just' background info that you need later. But it's not boring, so many books make this the boring part...I also loved the protagonist. She felt so human.
Some of the best horror I've read recently have been the short story collections The Houseguest by Amparo Davila and Song For the Unraveling of the World by Brian Evenson. I guess they'd both fall under the tag "literary horror," and are as creepy and unsettling as any classic weird fiction.
Currently reading SLASH by Hunter Shea, and I’ve got ROO by Alan Baxter next. Best 2020 title I’ve read so far is THOSE WHO GO FORTH by Curtis M. Lawson.
I’ve been trying to find a horror book for my english class, we’re doing an independent book project and i really want to pick something good up for it. (I want to do an art piece for the final project) It needs to fit into my lexile range (i hate that so much tbh) and I just found your channel. Time to see if any of them fit in my lexile range 😅😅😅
It's been a while since I read a good horror book. I did enjoy The Outsider and The Whisper Man, not horror, but great thrillers. I did really enjoy the Netflix series Haunting of Hill House. Can't wait to read Horrorstor. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy Southern Book Club like you did. But glad you loved it 🙂
Best horror book this year: The Auctioneer. I really enjoyed this video. Can you tell me the name of the Tremblay story that is set up like a heist? I really appreciate it. Also, looking forward to getting a copy of Clown in the Cornfield today.
The Tremblay heist story is called “The Getaway”. Thought it was awesome. And thank you so much for checking out, Clown in a Cornfield. Hope you enjoy it.
You have a great channel!! Can you make a video regarding books similar to the movie the ninth gate. Also, can you make review about Dan Simmons works and whether you recommend reading him?
I read the Hendrix yesterday and just want to shoutout the husband from the 1st Annabelle who when his wife told him about all the crazy @$&?! that was going didn’t make the finger to the ear twirly motion and start staying later at the office while simultaneously starting an affair with his secretary......no, he said I BELIEVE YOU. Lol I was so frustrated with all the men in Grady’s book. But where Annabelle fails, Grady does not. He does not kill off the singular POC supporting character. Which was nice. Best horror book I’ve read in the past six months- John Langan’s Sefira and Other Betrayals-1 novella and 6 short stories. Here I am months later and some of those characters will still pop into my head. Always enjoy your videos.
Not new but currently reading The Watcher by Charles Maclean and it is pretty horrifying. Probably not a horror book but one of my favorite books ever is Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson.
Yes! I listened to the audiobook in a singe day, and when that scene came up the sun was setting and I remember sitting down just because I had to ground myself.
You should check out this great ghost story, The fire in fortitude! By Melissa Scott, It blew my mind, part two had me up all night, it is a complete page turner, you should check it out. The legend of Beebledosh is about to take the world by storm.
I thoroughly enjoyed SOUTHERN BOOK CLUB as a reader. Great book. As a filmmaker always thinking about how I’d adapt something, I have to be honest, without spoiling it here, the climactic ending disappointed me.
I *strongly* disagree! That’s my favorite chapter in the book! I was alternately cackling and on edge. I *do* agree that it’s not meant to be overwhelmingly cinematic. But to me that’s a feature, not a bug. Hendrix leaning into some of the advantages prose has over film.
Adam Cesare Don’t get me wrong. I love love love that chapter of the book! I just feel like, again without spoilers, where the protagonist of the whole story is when it finally comes to an end, yeah it’s not very cinematic.
Read We sold our souls and loved it and i also liked The Institute! The latest horror book I read was Ritual by Graham Masterton, quite disturbing and marvelous! The next ones to read are The Return and My Best Friend's Exorcism and of course another Graham Masteron one, Ghost Music.
I was thinking of getting audiobook... Do you recommend the subscription? I feel like 15$ a month for just one book seems very expensive and limited access...
