Horror subgenres
66 ways into horror. Each guide explains what defines the subgenre, what sets it apart from its neighbours and which books to start with.
A
- Alien Horror As fiction goes, aliens are typically extraterrestrial beings from other galaxies. They are often far more advanced in knowledge about…
- Animal Horror Animal Horror is the subgenre encapsulating stories about animals that run rampant. The animals in these stories are vicious. This is any…
- Apocalyptic Horror Apocalyptic Horror deals with the end of civilization. A potential catastrophe is often responsible for the apocalypse in stories. The…
B
C
- Cannibalism Horror Cannibalism or anthropophagy is the act of humans eating the flesh or internal organs of other human beings. Cannibalism is a cultural norm…
- Children's Horror This subgenre encapsulates horror books written for younger audiences. Horror isn't reserved for just adults. A notable example would be…
- Comedic Horror Comedic Horror blends elements of horror and comedy into one genre. It is a form of black comedy. Sarcasm and satire are two key components…
- Comic Horror For those who like a little laughter with their terror, comic horror is for you. This subgenre combines elements of both horror and comedy.…
- Creature Horror Creature horror, also sometimes referred to as monster horror, are stories of the struggles of human protagonists against some sort of…
- Creepy Kid Horror These books feature young characters. The characters are either children or teenagers. The children/teenagers can be victims like in the…
- Crime Horror The crime horror subgenre, also sometimes known as the thriller subgenre, is more suspenseful than scary. A mashup of mystery, suspense,…
- Cross-Genre Horror Cross-genre horror, also frequently referred to as slipstream, are tales which bend genre definitions, but still contain some elements of…
- Cthulhu Mythos Also known as Lovecraftian. Cthulhu Mythos is fiction inspired by H.P. Lovecraft and the fictional deities he created. To better understand…
- Cutting Edge Horror Cutting edge horror defies definition, but most often, the subgenre is characterized by the fact that it is "cutting edge". Typically, what…
D
- Dark Erotica (Erotic Horror) Alternatively known as Erotic Horror. Sensual or sexual imagery are combined with horrific overtones or story elements to craft Dark…
- Dark Fantasy Dark Fantasy is a type of horror story in which the human race is terrorized by evil forces beyond the understanding of the human brain. In…
- Dark Fiction While not necessarily a horror subgenre, dark fiction concerns itself with many of the same themes and elements of horror fiction. Themes…
- Dark Mystery Similar to dark suspense, dark comedy, and dark fiction in general, dark mystery, or noir as it is also known, is a mystery with themes and…
- Dark Suspense Horror Action packed thrills with chills around every corner. This is just a taste of what you will get in the genre known as dark suspense. Dark…
E
- English Gothic Horror English Gothic refers to the pseudo-medieval buildings in which a lot of the stories were set in. Before Gothic became a subgenre, the term…
- Erotic Horror Erotic horror is the blending of two endlessly fascinating subjects: sex and scares. Each of these entices the reader to look closer, while…
- Extreme Horror Extreme horror, also known as hardcore horror or splatterpunk, is the goriest, most violent, most sexual, bloodiest scare you can find!…
F
- Fabulist Horror To understand what fabulist horror is, we first need to have a clear definition of the term fabulist. Traditionally, fabulist was defined…
- Fairy Tale Horror As its name suggests, fairy tale horror is a subgenre which features retellings of classic fairy tales that are much more violent and…
G
- Ghost Horror Ghosts have homes too, and they don't like intruders. They also make terrible house guests. This is not so much a subgenre of horror as it…
- Giant Monster Horror Horror books that feature giant monsters, usually acting as antagonists.
- Graphic Novel Horror As its suggests, graphic novel horror is a subgenre of horror fiction that starts off life as a comic book, or a webcomic. However, there…
H
- Haunted House Horror Much like vampire horror and zombie horror have grown out of the creature horror subgenre because so many stories of these types of…
- Haunting Horror Haunting horror is just as its name suggests, scary stories about people who are dealing with some sort of supernatural force that is drawn…
- Historical Horror Historical horror is simply a horror story with a historical setting. The historical setting can contain sites found in legitimate history…
- Holocaust Horror As the name would suggest, holocaust horror will involve a horrific tragedy in which millions of people are killed. Often, this subgenre…
M
- Man Made Horror Mad scientists and post-apocalyptic wastelands are common tropes in the subgenre of man made horror. Here, you will find no ghosts or…
- Media Tie-In Horror Your favorite characters and stories from the big and small screens get new life in this subgenre. Most frequently, media tie-in horror…
- Mind Control Mind Control is the horror subgenre where the ultimate threat is mind control. This leaves the victim with an inability to think…
- Mythic Fiction Horror To understand mythic fiction horror, the reader must first be familiar with mythic fiction. Mythic fiction is any modern story that has its…
N
- Neo-Noir Horror Neo-Noir is defined as “new-black,” from the Greek “neo” for new, and the French “noir” for black. Neo-Noir is contemporary dark fiction…
- Noir Horror Noir is horror's hardboiled cousin. Noir, meaning black in French, is a subgenre of mystery that explores gritty, urban landscapes with a…
- Nuclear Holocaust Horror This subgenre involves themes closely related to the apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic subgenres. These stories occur during or after a…
P
- Post-Apocalyptic Horror Post-Apocalyptic horror focuses on the dread of the protagonist's situation. In this subgenre, the stories' time-frame take place after a…
- Psychic Abilities Horror Also known as paranormal horror, psychic abilities horror is a subgenre where typically human characters display powerful supernatural or…
- Psychological Horror Psychological horror exposes the fears that lurk in the human psyche. These can range from common emotional and psychological weaknesses to…
R
- Rampant Animal Horror Nothing is more scary than the forces of nature, and in rampant animal horror, nature's fury is unleashed on human protagonists in the form…
- Rampant Technology Horror When machines rise up to wreak havoc, rampant technology horror is created. A subgenre of man made horror that is often associated with…
- Religious Horror Religious horror is more commonly known as Christian horror, and that may seem like a bit of an oxymoron, given that most religions, and…
S
- Satanic Bargain Horror A subgenre of satanic horror that was popular enough to get its own subgenre, satanic bargain horror is filled with tales of human…
- Satanic Horror Satanic horror is similar to haunting, supernatural, or creature horror in that a supernatural monster is plaguing human protagonists. In…
- Sci-fi Horror Horror that is peppered with Science Fiction elements. This subgenre blends the two larger genres. Elements such as aliens, robots, and…
- Serial Killer Horror Serial killer horror is a subgenre of crime horror with elements of psychological horror thrown in. There is a degree of fascination with…
- Slasher Horror Slasher is a very popular horror film subgenre, but it is also a term used to describe books of the same nature. Slasher Horror often…
- Southern Gothic Horror In short, the Southern Gothic subgenre is literature that is set in the American South. Also a subgenre of Gothic fiction. A few adjectives…
- Splatterpunk The antithesis of soft horror. This subgenre is also referred to as grindhouse, visceral, slasher or extreme horror. Splatterpunk can be…
- Supernatural Horror This subgenre is somewhat broad. It can contain anything creepy that isn't found in reality. Examples would be ghosts, demons, zombies,…
- Surreal Horror Surreal horror is quite literally the stuff of nightmares. Logic and reason are abandoned in this subgenre for the truly bizarre and often,…
V
- Vampire Horror Vampires are reanimated corpses. They survive by drinking the blood of their living victims. They use their fangs to pierce the skin of…
- Visceral Horror Much like its extreme and splatterpunk cousins, visceral horror is disturbing, bloody, and gut-wrenching. Nothing is left to the…
- Voodoo Horror Like religious or occult horror, voodoo horror takes aspects from a particular religion to create its scares. In this case, that religion…
W
- Weird Fiction Weird tales are stories that explore the eerie in everyday life. Themes such as loneliness, the self, and a feeling of existing outside the…
- Werewolf Horror Werewolf horror is not so much a subgenre as it is a story element.
- Western Horror Western Horror is a cross-genre. As you can guess from the title, the subgenre blends elements of the Western genre with Horror. A majority…
- Witch Horror The witch story has always been popular in horror fiction. Tales of dark magic users dealing with the devil or casting curses on their…