Well, there is this guy....

http://murderpedia.org/male.G/images/g/gacy/gacy350.jpg

King was really scary in the beginning and when reading the stuff during those times. Horror has come so far since that his stuff hasn't kept up as well. Clive Barker totally stole his crown.

I've read King's first two books. Not scary. When I was in my late teens there were a couple scenes from Salem's Lot that were creepy, but never actually scary.

Can you let me know a few books you found genuinely scary?

The Turn of the Screw and bits of The Exorcist. That's about it for me.

None. Lovecraft and Poe have great atmosphere, but they are not scary. This is the **** that keeps me up at night and makes me scared to go outside and smoke a cigarette.

http://www.musicbanter.com/media/866...lovecraft.html

Ever read Ghost Story by Peter Straub. That's the only book that, after reading a brief section, I got goosebumps up and down my back. Hell House has some pretty scary parts. Same with Straub's Koko. The Haunting of Hill House has some pretty terrifying moments. Same with The Colour out of Space.

Read King's Pet Semetary only about a month after my first kid was born and it scared the crap out of me.

I try really hard to put myself inside of the character's heads when I'm reading fiction so maybe that helps a bit.

You didn't ask me, but I thought Dan Simmons' Summer of Nights was scarier than it should have been. I don't really read or watch horror, so maybe that's why it got to me.

I thought both Carrion Comfort and Song of Kali were better than Summer of Night's but ya, it's a great story.

I've only read that one. My brother gave it to me because he'd bought a new copy in better condition, so I figured I might as well read it. That part where that kid gets run over by the combine haunted me for at least a week!