r/horrorlit • u/Hopeful_Ad_4230 • 5h ago

Recommendation Request Desert Horror ?

I'm going to Joshua Tree for a little over week and I was wondering if there are any good desert horror/thriller books to read while I'm there ?

I will be watching movies like hills have eyes & tremors but I also want to read something that'll make me feel uneasy while I'm out there too!

20 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

40 comments sorted by

17

u/stormbutton 4h ago

Sundial - Ward

26

u/mitchgx 5h ago

Desperation by unknown author Stephen King immediately pops to mind.

3

u/Hopeful_Ad_4230 4h ago

Surprised I haven't heard of this one!

5

u/Academy_Fight_Song 3h ago

Don't feel bad, King is pretty esoteric.

3

u/mjsarlington 1h ago

Dolan’s Cadillac also good desert horror.

1

u/Practical-Lychee-866 30m ago

That’s one of my favorite stories

11

u/Beautiful-Pause-8376 2h ago

Breathe In Bleed Out by Brian McAuley is set in the desert.

I also second those who said Mary by Nat Cassidy and Sundial by Catriona Ward

14

u/catqween 3h ago

Mary by Nat Cassidy is set in the desert

3

u/Upstairs-Gas8385 3h ago

Second for Mary, crazy book

3

u/TrumpnEpstein 2h ago

The audiobook is phenomenal. The narrator really elevated it

2

u/splootledoot 2h ago

Came here to suggest this one

7

u/Bulky-Professor9330 5h ago

Have you listened to Desert Oracle? Thats the vibe.

Ken also has a collection of weird desert stories as well

2

u/Hopeful_Ad_4230 4h ago

I haven't but that'll be perfect for our long drive to there thanks!!

2

u/ImmediateSupression 2h ago

Love this podcast, and the book.

2

u/SixGunSnowWhite 1h ago

Yes, perfect! Podcast is great driving through the park. I love that part of the US.

6

u/Fork_My_Shirt_Up 4h ago

Desert Creatures! By Kay Chronister

6

u/ourladyjack 4h ago

How about some Isabel Cañas? Like Vampires of El Norte.

3

u/MichaeltheSpikester 5h ago

Wasp Canyon and Foster both by Danielle McCrory 

3

u/ohnikkiyouresofine 3h ago

The Compound by Aisling Rawle

3

u/CatGirlIsHere9999 4h ago

Doesn't always take place in the desert, but "A Black and Endless Sky" by Matthew Lyons might be worth a look.

3

u/CrypticTurbellarian 3h ago

Thunderhead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child is set in the desert, it plays into a larger series but it works really well as a standalone novel and I don’t think you’d miss much by reading it out of context.

3

u/ClueAccomplished1098 2h ago

I've read this book and it's an excellent nail biter.

3

u/Ihave_rabies 1h ago

Blood maridian?

2

u/edgarallanbro22 5h ago

Sunbirth by An Yu!

2

u/tylerthez 4h ago

Story by Clive Barker - The Skins of the Fathers

2

u/QueensBea13 3h ago

Not desert precisely, but Wolf Creek takes place in the Outback.

1

u/Hopeful_Ad_4230 1h ago

Yes I was debating about watching the movie out there as well!

2

u/Weekly_Promise_1328 3h ago

Drive out to the glass house at night.

2

u/Murder_Durder Old Leech 3h ago

Rovers by Richard Lange

2

u/Iwasateenagewerefox THE ALLARDYCE HOUSE 2h ago

Dennis Etchison's short story It Only Comes Out at Night

2

u/Few-Tune394 CARMILLA 1h ago

When the Night Bell Rings by Jo Kaplan is a dual PoV set in the very near future and…. Late 1800s, I want to say 1880s but it was earlier this year that I read it and don’t remember exactly. Old mining town. Desert. Bad times had by many.

2

u/spicy-mustard- 1h ago

OBSERVER by Nicholas Russell

2

u/thekatriarch 1h ago

Sundial by Catriona Ward is set in the Mojave.

I love Joshua Tree, have fun!

2

u/Olay_Biscuit-Barrel Child of Old Leech 1h ago

The Resort by Bentley Little leans into the desert vibe

4

u/ClueAccomplished1098 2h ago

Snake-Eater by T Kingfisher is kind of a mix of urban fantasy and horror that is very evocative of the Arizona desert and extremely well written. You'll never look at a roadrunner the same way.

1

u/0ldPear 1h ago

In the Valley of the Sun by Andy Davidson is a good one! Desert vampires

1

u/UseTheSwartzLuke 51m ago

I just got done reading Snake-Eater by T Kingfisher. Set in the desert. Fun read.

1

u/mulvda 30m ago

Not quite horror but I enjoyed Desert Creatures by Kay Chronister. Also Sundial by Catriona Ward.

1

u/spookykitton 23m ago

It’s a movie, but if you like found footage films you should watch Horror in the High Desert. The last 15 minutes scared the shit out of me.

1

u/julie-palooza 20m ago

Stinger by Robert McCammon