Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Scary Books I'll Never Read

Have I told you that I don't do scary? 

Here are some scary books I'm too afraid to read.

I'd never read Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Even the cover creeps me out.

I didn't try Gone Girl either. I knew that book would give me nightmares.



Anything by Stephen King. Even if Stephen King came out with a nice little children's book about puppies, I wouldn't read it. I'd be too scared to read anything with his name on the cover.


I read Robert R. McCammon's amazing book, Boy's Life, years and years ago and it's stuck with me as one of the best books I've ever read. I'd never have opened it if I'd known McCammon writes mostly horror.

I had these three books at my elementary library in Houston and they were constantly checked out. I was curious about them and tried the first story in book one. It's called The Big Toe. I couldn't read past the title. Terrifying.

No true crime for me. No way Jose.

This is the scariest book I keep in my primary school library. The third story is horrifying. It's called The Green Ribbon. Don't read it. Trust me on this.



Do you like scary books? Have you read any of these? Am I missing out?




Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list that one of our bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

29 comments:

  1. Curiously I don't like scary either, but every now & again I have to go there!

    I've read so many Stephen King's - some more than once - somehow he has become (almost) fun scary or perhaps nostalgic scary for me - weird huh?

    I've watched so many movies and TV shows from behind a pillow & B19 and B16 don't like watching scary shows with me cause when I scream, they get scared too! From me; not the show!

    Well done for getting through your reading life with so few scary books - there are so many other nice fabulous books to read instead!

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  2. I don't mind a little scary... but I don't do horror :)

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  3. I like mysteries and suspense but I'm not really down for horror. Unless it's written by Shirley Jackson!

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  4. Me too! Yesterday, I book talked "Coraline" and told the kids I hadn't read it and would never read it, but, if they did scary, they might like it.

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  5. I kinda want to read Gone Girl for all the twistiness, but haven't yet. And Miss Peregrine's always looks real creepy t me too, even though I know it's a YA- must be the cover and the black and white photos, I don't know! :)

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  6. I don't read scary books either, though I did go through a big Stephen King phase in college. Probably won't get to the rest of this list ;-)

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  7. Miss Peregrine's is more creepy than scary. Gone Girl wasn't scary at all. It's more of a "who-dun-it." Pet Sematary IS very scary and on my list. Both The Shining and Swan Song are on my TBR mountain.

    Here's my Top Ten Tuesday:
    http://darlenesbooknook.blogspot.ca/2016/10/favourite-horrorscary-books.html

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  8. Too funny! My TTT today is about Scary Stories to Read in the Dark. :D

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  9. Okay so Ms. Peregrin's Home for Peculiar Children is a little misleading lol. It's not as scary as the cover lets on; however, the books you have listed under Stephen King creep me out haha. I love them but the definitely are creepy.

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  10. I love this list!!! Naturally, everyone's read Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, but I had a visceral, gut-reaction shudder to reading the title In a Dark, Dark Room. "The Green Ribbon" is seriously the worst of them all... I'm 23 years old, and still can't stand ribbon choker necklaces because of that story!!

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  11. I'm trying to read some more scary books, but I rarely do. I haven't read any of these yet :)

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  12. I've read Gone Girl but the others I'm with you 100%.

    I read King's Carrie when I was in high school, not realizing he writes horror until the book was nearly done and such horrendous things were happening. The only other book of his that I would even look at is 11/23/63 - and I had to be reassured many times that it wasn't horror before I'd go there.

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  13. I'm a chicken too when it's comes to scary (I don't do horror movies/novels though I am trying to branch out in the later) Gone Girl isn't scary like the other in my opinion, it's more of a thriller-y book. The cover of Miss Peregrine's creeps me out too! Great list.

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  14. I read Gone Girl which is fiction but I've been too scared to go near Helter Skelter. Those true crime stories about serial killers would be a no-go for me.

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  15. The only one I've read from your list is Gone Girl, but I definitely wouldn't count it as scary at all! It's really just more of a mystery. Great list :D

    Here are my Top Ten!

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  16. I didn't find Gone Girl scary. The last one I read by Lemaitre, Blood Wedding, I found very scary, not for the violent crime scenes (there's a few), but for the psychology behind the characters. Sorry, I can't say more;-) The ultimate message is resilience, but to get there, oh my!!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGomjp6ZKAo

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  17. The older I get, the less I enjoy scary books. Of those listed, I have read Gone Girl (which was intense, but not scary in a horror scary sort of way), The Shining (oh, so scary!!!!), Swan Song (very much like Stephen King's The Stand, both of which are scary! And, I loved Boy's Life and want to read it again someday), and Helter Skelter (which I read at far too young as a teenager and it gave me nightmares for a long, long time). I stay away from horror, but I do enjoy a good thriller. Just finished Behind Closed Doors, which was intense, but not scary (although I did hold my breath during the last few chapters...). Great list, Deb!

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  18. I remember the Scary Story books and I know I've read The Big Toe but I remember nothing other than the title. Miss Peregrine is more weird than bizarre but that cover is definitely creepy!

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  19. Helter Skelter was freaking scary!!! And OMG those Scary Stories book scared me SO bad at sleepovers when I was growing up. But Miss Peregrine's isn't scary or creepy. I thought it was going to be, but I was disappointed. It's a very mild book, so don't let the cool looking cover mislead you :)

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  20. I really want to read Miss Peregrine, but the movie shorts don't do much for me. I read Helter Skelter way back when. I don't mind crime, mystery thriller stuff, I've never really been a horror fan and I think I've completely outgrown it now. That Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark- a week ago I'd never heard of it, and now I've seen it three places this week! I saw the movie of Gone Girl, it had a good plot twist, but then some ridiculous stuff at the end, and it only annoyed me.

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  21. I can handle some types of suspense and dark twistiness, but not outright horror. I've read bit and pieces of the less-horrorific King, but would never even look at the ones you have above. I read Boy's Life too, and didn't know he wrote horror either! And BIG nope on the true crime. Just--icky. And scary. And not meant for others' entertainment. My students mostly LOVE horror and are always asking, "Do you have any books that are REALLY scary, not just, like, there's something in the woods?"

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  22. There are some truly dark books out there, and I see why a number of these titles feature on your list - especially Stephen King! I think the images within Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children are more creepy than the story itself though.

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  23. I have read almost every book you had on your "do not read" list. But you will never catch me in a scary movie!

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  24. *shudder* All of Stephen King's book are, as I understand that, the ultimate in CREEPY! I did just pick up Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children because the movie trailer interested me. But whether or not that'll be a good choice, only time will tell.

    Thanks so much for visiting Finding Wonderland, Deb. :)

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  25. I feel the same way about right down scary. I would urge you to try Gone Girl though. It really isn't very scary, it's more about twisted personalities and manipulation. I quite liked it, even though I normally avoid buzz books like the plague.

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