Tag: Halloween

Popular M/M Horror Novels

"Interview with the Vampire" by Anne Rice

Anne Rice is both a best-selling author and the queen of horror novels. Not all her books have major gay characters but most do and her 11-book ‘Vampire Chronicles‘ series has been loved for decades.  The first book in the series, “Interview with the Vampire“, featuring the characters of Louis and Lestat, was made into the 1994 film starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt.

Poppy Z Brite is another popular writer of gay vampire fiction. Her first five novels – “Lost Souls“, “Drawing Blood“, “Wormwood“, “Exquisite Corpse“, “The Crow: The Lazarus Heart” and “Are You Loathsome Tonight” – are all horror novels. (Her latest two novels still feature m/m characters but aren’t horror.) The characters are often extremely dark, sometimes showing no conscience, so the books won’t be liked by everyone.

“Sacrament” by Clive Barker – a surreal gay horror novel by this best-selling author about a wildlife photographer who experiences strange visions while in a coma.

All Jordan L Hawk‘s novels tend to have a supernatural and horror element, particularly the ‘Widdershins‘ and ‘SPECTR‘ series. The plots are exciting and, at times, scary and the characters and romances are loveable. Anyone who has read a few of my articles will know that I’m a big fan of this author and I’d like to take this chance to once again recommend all her novels!

“A Reason to Believe” by Diana Copland – a detective has a shocking vision where a ghost leads him to her dead body. Confused by the experience, he turns to medium Kiernan Fitzpatrick. Passion grows as they investigate the murder together.

“IM” by Rick R Reed – a gay detective hunts for a serial killer who may not even be alive.

 

 

M/M Halloween: The Monster in the Bed

Luck in the Shadows cover‘Scary just got sexy’ is the tagline for the show, “Supernatural”, but certain monsters have always had an erotic side. From Dracula onwards, vampires have often been as sexy as they were dangerous. Werewolves, too, have a similar ethos, with early versions of the Red Riding Hood tale – such as Charles Perrault’s 17th century story ‘Le Petit Chaperon Rouge’ – having the wolf represent the Seducer who will lead sexually innocent girls astray.

freebooksarticle-hunter-of-demons-spectr1In the M/M world the supernatural creature is often one – or more – of the protagonists. Jordan L Hawk’s SPECTR series has a demon as a central character. Gray is powerful and dangerous but also irresistibly attractive to exorcist John Starkweather, the twist being that Gray exists in the body of a third protagonist, Caleb, so sometimes Gray has takes control of the body and the rest of the time he lies dormant with Caleb in control.

Melusine coverIn other M/M novels, the supernatural creature or monster is the obstacle stopping the heroes have their happy ending. In Lynn Flewelling’s Nightrunner books Alec and Seregil have to do battle with necromancers and a resurrected god. In “Melusine”, the first book in the series by Sarah Monette, Felix has dark magic performed on him that makes him see ghosts others can’t.

Coexistence_WebMonsters are also a theme in my Human Hybrids books: the cannibal wendigoes are the obvious monsters, but there are also hidden monsters pretending to be good people and those, like werewolf Brand, who have faced so much prejudice that they feel like monsters.

So why is it sexy to be afraid? Perhaps it has something to do with confronting the fear of being vulnerable during sex or, in first time sex, a fear of the unknown. Maybe we like to imagine ourselves having supernatural powers that help make us desirable to others. Perhaps it’s just an inexplicable allure of danger. Whatever the reason, novels that let us explore these contrasting feelings have an enduring appeal and I look forward to reading many more.