News
Now is the Perfect Time to Binge these 5 Awesome Horror Book Series
Horror fans around the world are wearing out their streaming subscriptions right now, and we here at iHorror have been doing our best to help by posting lists of the best streaming content on Amazon, Hulu, Tubi, and more.
But what do you do when you’ve seen everything a million times and what you haven’t seen just doesn’t appeal to you?
Well, dear readers, it’s time to break out the books. You guys remember those, right?
The truth is, while TV and movies are certainly binge-able, there are some amazing horror book series out there that are just as terrifying and engrossing that all but demand to be read in succession.
And, since a lot of us are stuck at home right now, it’s the perfect time to pick up a book or 12 and immerse yourself in their haunting landscapes.
The Dark Tower Series
Stephen King’s epic cross-world series follows Roland Deschain–a gunslinger and the last descendant of his world’s version of King Arthur–on his quest to find the fabled Dark Tower, a nexus point of all known universes.
The fascinating thing about the Dark Tower series of books is that they tie many of King’s other novels together. Throughout the series, you’ll find references to It, The Stand, The Shining, Cell, and so many more.
The world King created for this series is absolutely tangible with its own religions, language, and enough epic showdowns between Good and Evil to put even the most jaded reader on the edge of their seat.
If you think Randall Flagg aka The Man in Black aka The Dark Man is bad, you must meet the Crimson King.
The Vampire Chronicles and Lives of the Mayfair Witches
This is a two for one from author Anne Rice that I’ve combined because they are both epic and they eventually intersect.
Listen, I love Anne Rice and I’m not arguing with anyone about whether her books are horror or not. Wildly romantic, beautifully researched and written, and without question filled with terrifying moments, Rice has created some of the most vivid literary worlds in any genre of the last 40 years.
In The Vampire Chronicles, Rice introduces us to immortal blood drinkers beginning with 1976’s Interview with the Vampire. Some are good and some are most definitely bad, but every single one of them has an incredibly engrossing story to tell, and quite frankly, Lestat de Lioncourt is arguably the most famous literary vampire since Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
Then there are the Mayfairs, hereditary witches with remarkable powers and whose epic family history–related in The Witching Hour, the first book in the trilogy–is astonishing. If jealous spirits, unearthly beings, powerful women, and family intrigue are your thing, then the Lives of the Mayfair Witches should be on your reading list.
Necroscope
Brian Lumley’s Necroscope was all the rage when I was hitting high school in the early 90s.
Harry Keogh is a necroscope meaning he can speak to the dead, but this is simply the tip of the iceberg for Harry as he grows and learns to expand his psychic abilities, allowing him to teleport from one place to another instantaneously, connect with the minds of others, and the ability to resurrect the dead.
He becomes an agent for a British ESP agency, and eventually finds himself in a battle with vampires invading our world.
What is so interesting looking back, is how politically relevant Lumley’s books were at the time highlighting conflict between the real-life British and Soviet governments while wrapping them in stories of the vampires and psychic abilities.
They are, of course, skewed toward the British side of life, but that’s to be expected as Lumley, himself, is British. Ultimately, this dates some of the work, but the horror book series is still a fascinating read that I highly recommend.
The Books of Blood
Clive Barker’s Books of Blood may be the single greatest collection of short fiction in contemporary horror literature.
Published over the course of two years, each volume contained a handful of stories, several of which have been adapted into film. It was in the Books of Blood that Candyman was born. They gave us the cult favorites Lord of Illusions and Rawhead Rex, and more recently The Midnight Meat Train and Book of Blood.
It all begins with a framing story in the first volume about a young man named Simon who pretends to be a psychic medium. Hired by a researcher to investigate what is supposed to be a particularly haunted house, Simon begins faking visions but soon finds himself attacked by the spirits who pass through the home en masse.
They carve the stories of their lives into his skin making him a living chronicle, and he becomes the book of blood. The premise, then, was that the stories found within the six volumes were copied directly from Simon’s skin.
The stories in the collection are often downright terrifying and have earned a lofty place in horror history.
The Scary Tales Series
What if, when Prince Charming kissed Snow White, she woke up as a zombie rather than a cute princess ready to get hitched?
This is the way Rob E. Boley’s Scary Tales series begins.
Set in a land filled with magic both dark and light, Boley takes classic fairy tales and mashes them together with classic Universal monsters to create something entirely original that has to be read to be believed.
It’s an incredible genre-bending adventure that often takes those fairy tales we’ve become accustomed to seeing through Disney-tinted glasses and returns them to the terrifying horror stories they once were.
There are currently seven volumes in the series with three more planned for release in 2021.
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Movies
Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed
The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.
Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.
The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.
Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”
Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.
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News
Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween
Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.
The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.
“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.
Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.
The prize also includes:
An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings
A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear
A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room
A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course
The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II
Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two
“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”
Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.
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Movies
’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power
Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.
Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.
Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.
There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.
The original film followed Jim (Cillian Murphy) who wakes from a coma to find that London is currently dealing with a zombie outbreak.
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