Pet Sematary by Stephen King

Having discovered Stephen King’s horror novels in high school, I spent countless nights sleeping with the lights on after reading his latest tale. Funny what tricks noises and shadows can play in your head in the dark.

 King’s stories have an uncanny power to tap into what scares us most, and Pet Sematary is no exception. Set in a small Maine town, the novel delves into our darkest fears around death and loss. And even if the premise is otherworldly, the scenes and characters feel terrifyingly real.

 When the Halloween season arrives in New England, there’s no better time to discover, or rediscover, this 1983 classic. Just be sure to sleep with the lights on. —Heather Marcus, Yankee senior photo editor

When Dr. Louis Creed takes a new job and moves his family to the idyllic rural town of Ludlow, Maine, this new beginning seems too good to be true. Despite Ludlow’s tranquility, an undercurrent of danger exists here. Those trucks on the road outside the Creed’s beautiful old home travel by just a little too quickly, for one thing…as is evidenced by the makeshift graveyard in the nearby woods where generations of children have buried their beloved pets. Then there are the warnings to Louis both real and from the depths of his nightmares that he should not venture beyond the borders of this little graveyard where another burial ground lures with seductive promises and ungodly temptations. A blood-chilling truth is hidden there—one more terrifying than death itself, and hideously more powerful. As Louis is about to discover for himself sometimes, dead is better…

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Scribner
• Paperback
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 416 pages
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.2 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.31 x 1 x 8.25 inches