Books which have frightened you to the extent you've had to stop reading.....

[sirmyk]

One of the stories in Everything's Eventual, 1408 is the name of it I think, caused me to stop reading a couple times and just lay in bed staring reminding myself fiction is called so for a reason. Then I became too disturbed by the Edvard Munch poster hanging on my wall. I swear those flowing brush strokes were too flowing that night.

1 + 4 + 0 + 8 = 13. I forgot all about that story; add it to my list.

 

[ions]

1 + 4 + 0 + 8 = 13. I forgot all about that story; add it to my list.

Oh yeah...He certainly likes doing that. Wolves of the Calla was full of it.

 

[StillILearn]

Then I became too disturbed by the Edvard Munch poster hanging on my wall. I swear those flowing brush strokes were too flowing that night.

You have The Scream hanging on your bedroom wall?

 

[ions]

You have The Scream hanging on your bedroom wall?

Yeah....It should have come down a long time ago but it's still there out of sentimentality more than any other reason.

 

[Bagpuss]

Although I didn't stop reading, and I wasn't scared in the true sense of the word, the book I found hardest to finish and which really disturbed me was 'A Child Called It' by Dave Pelzer.

The abuse he suffered made me feel quite faint at times, but at the same time I couldn't bear not to read it! It was compulsive.

 

[ruby]

Although I didn't stop reading, and I wasn't scared in the true sense of the word, the book I found hardest to finish and which really disturbed me was 'A Child Called It' by Dave Pelzer.

The abuse he suffered made me feel quite faint at times, but at the same time I couldn't bear not to read it! It was compulsive.

Bagpuss it was very compulsive reading and my heart was in my mouth many times,I can see were your coming from!

 

[nhunter]

I've never yet had to put a book down because it was too scary: on the contrary, I've often found that I'm not able to put a book down for that reason.

When I'm alone on a dark road at night, it's scenes from M. R. James that most often pop into my mind, unbidden and unwelcome. The school children's "treat" from Casting The Runes is a popular choice.

 

[Ronny]

At least with The Shining you knew that it was intended to be fiction. Strieber does everything in his power to convince you that these abductions are currently going on all around us. Do you know anybody who is frightened of animals (anything) with owl-like eyes? Ha! Subconsciously, they're remembering the trauma caused by years of having all these alien eyes trained upon them.

The Shining was a piece of cake compared to Communion.

Now that is scary and weird. This book would traumatize me for life.

 

[Library Potato]

Should we start another thread for this?

Although I didn't stop reading, and I wasn't scared in the true sense of the word, the book I found hardest to finish and which really disturbed me was

"Johnny Got His Gun" by Dalton Trumbo.

 

[MonkeyCatcher]

I'm tellin' ya.

"Strieber sought the help of a counselor/hypnotist, who did not accept the alien hypothesis. Eventually Strieber's wife was also hypnotized. The accounts both Striebers gave under hypnosis and the memories that surfaced after hynosis, as well as several witnesses to aspects of the visitations all corroborate that something abnormal occurred."
He writes about some persons being singled out in childhood (or before) for study by these aliens. I actually began to remember strange happenings from my own childhood -- strange noises and lost hours.

At present I'm way more scared by the behavior of those people -- but I digress...

That sounds like a really great book - that's going straight on my TBR list. Thanks for the heads-up

 

[Bluraven]

Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None (or, Ten Little Indians) frightened me so bad at times that I was paralyzed with fright! Mostly, its the thought of the "unknown killer among us" idea that terrifies me.

 

[Billy]

I have never actually had to put a book down from being too frightened to continue, but then again, I don't often read scary books. However, when I was a teenager I read Amityville Horror (sp?) and at one point I was at home alone. I had to go outside in order to keep reading because I was too scared to stay inside.

 

[WoundedThorns]

i'd love to come across a book that scared me that badly. it's the main reason i started reading books by Stephen King a few weeks ago.

i'll be sure to check out Hostage to the Devil by Father Malachi Martin then =P

i've certainly stopped watching documentarys on the history channel before. even the one on Gettysburg Ghosts creeped me out enough - i started to hear noises. i had to turn off the one about what "really happened to hitler". the images were graphic and it was about 2 oclock in the morning