Classic works of horror

Why does horror literature attract some readers so much? What is it about dark and spooky things that so captures a reader's mind? That is a question that even a best-selling horror writer will be hard-pressed to answer.
Horror was long seen as a genre that was close to trash or even lower than that. Though a seminal novel of horror like Bram Stoker's Dracula was long regarded as a classic piece of writing, horror never got the respect it deserved till the advent of Stephen King in the mid-1970s. King, almost overnight, changed the rules of the game and made horror fiction a genre to reckon with. Many writers followed in his wake with varying degrees of success.
Let us have a look at some of the best books and stories of the genre. Of course, the list will have to be restricted to the ones I have read so far ... First, the Top 11 (in chronological order), as I can't seem to make up my mind as to which of these to leave out to make the list a Top 10 one!
1. Dracula by Bram Stoker
Any listing of horror fiction will have to start with this classic tale of the vampire count. The narrative is told through diary entries, letters and other innovative methods but even now, many decades after it was first published, the story of the blood-thirsty Count Dracula is a gripping read. This gothic tale inspired a host of vampire stories and Count Dracula has gone on to become one of the most famous characters of fiction.
2. The Haunting of Hill House (1959) by Shirley Jackson
The mother of all haunted-house novels and a highly influential work. However, I was not all that impressed by this book and for me, the definitive Shirley Jackson horror work remains her macabre short story, The Lottery (1948).
3. Psycho (1959) by Robert Bloch
Bloch is one of the finest writers I have ever read and this short novel was easily his best work. Norman Bates became, like Dracula, an unforgettable fictional character. Alfred Hitchcock added to the story's fame through his memorable movie adaptation in 1960. Sadly, Bloch is an author who is hardly remembered these days.
4. Rosemary's Baby (1967) by Ira Levin
This is a horrifying tale of satanism and the occult set smack in the middle of New York city. The movie adaptation by Roman Polanski added to the reputation of the original book. Rosemary's Baby is so beautifully written that it is one of the books in this list that can be easily described as "unputdownable". Levin's sequel to his best novel, Son of Rosemary was, however, atrocious and proved that lightning never strikes twice!
5. The Stepford Wives (1972) by Ira Levin
Not as well-known as Rosemary's Baby but this novel, in my opinion, comes almost close to the former for its sheer story-telling quality. It's just over a 100 pages long but is far more effective than novels that are hundreds of pages long. Levin hits his creative peak with this superb tale that mixes horror and social satire with devastating effect.
6. 'Salem's Lot (1975) by Stephen King
The "King of Horror" decided to make his second novel a study of vampirism in a small American town. It was his own homage to Dracula . The result was a horror classic, a novel that King himself would never better in his many novels after that.
7. The Shining (1977) by Stephen King
Arguably King's most famous horror novel. It became even more famous when Stanley Kubrick adapted it for the big screen in 1979 with Jack Nicholson in the lead role. In some ways, it is an old-fashioned tale of a haunted building (to be more precise, a hotel). A must-read for fans of the genre.
8. The House Next Door (1978) by Anne Rivers Siddons
Siddons, a writer of romance novels set in the American deep south, tried her hand at the horror genre just once early on in her career and the result was this gem of a book. Here, interestingly, the house is haunted, of course, but the difference from the traditional approach is that the haunted house is not an old one where unspeakable crimes have happened in the past. Rather, this is a house that is newly built but it still harbours an evil, malignant presence that affects all who come in contact with it.
9. The Woman in Black (1983) by Susan Hill
Easily the best ghost story I have read so far. It has every ingredient of a classic spooky tale - great writing, a heavy atmosphere where one can imagine great tragedies happening, all the props of a ghost story (haunted house, a marshy, desolate environment, things that go bump in the night, a local tragedy), and a shattering twist at the very end. The edition I read had just 130+ pages, showing that you don't have to write millions of words to tell a memorable tale.
10. The Ring (1991) by Koji Suzuki
Suzuki is Asia's answer to Stephen King and The Ring was his major contribution to the horror genre. The book's fame was cemented in the West when Hollywood adapted it for the big screen. But the film version did not do justice to the original novel. The writing style is not that great but it is still a distinctive story.
11. A Simple Plan (1993) by Scott Smith
Smith has written just two novels in his comparative short career so far but this debut novel was an immediate attention-catcher. It has a deceptively simple premise but, like Levin's and Bloch's best works, the writing style is precise and calibrated. A chilling and brilliant piece of work.

Honourable mentions (in no particular order):

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
The Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney
The Rats by James Herbert
A Kiss Before Dying by Ira Levin
Pet Sematary by Stephen King
Misery by Stephen King
The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
The Ruins by Scott Smith