Horror is having a moment in the spotlight (shadows?) like never before. No longer sidelined as cheap, gory thrills for cult fanatics, new horror books and films are eagerly anticipated and critically dissected as we adorn our lawns with the latest spooky status symbols, 12-foot skeletons. Perhaps the world is simply becoming a scarier place, and art is mirroring life.
But diehard fans of the genre know that horror is always relevant. After all, what scares us—whether tangible and rooted in reality, like grief and mortality, or in the unknown and unexplainable, as with specters and ghouls—is worth exploring. When we are brave enough to confront our inner demons and deepest terrors, we come to understand ourselves and each other a little more.
This list encompasses the full spectrum of what horror can be—campfire-worthy tales, stomach-churning gore, and incisive social commentary. The classics are accounted for, but it also spotlights more recent titles than you might find on our other Audible Essentials lists, because that’s the nature of the genre—it is as perennial as it is ever-evolving, conjuring whatever frights most haunt our collective consciousness. Each title does have one thing in common: It makes for devilishly good listening. So cut the lights and press play—if you dare.
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