6 Spooktacular Malaysian Horror Books To Keep You Wide Awake At Night

Synopsis:
13 boys gather and tell tales at night around a campfire about a headless ghost that returns as a grim reaper, a bird-like creature, a vengeful were-tiger, and a murderous vampire. 

As the storytelling session ends, the boys realise that they started out with only 12 people.

Read this if you're into:
- Paranormal entities
- Malaysian folklore
- Twist endings

Synopsis:
In this book, look out for stories like 'Red Balloon', which tells the story of a ghost of a young girl who asks for help from the residents or passers-by near a playground to uncover the truth of her death.

In 'Joe Moth', the protagonist listens to the disturbing conversation between two children on an airplane, and in 'The Specialist's Cat', a girl makes a deal with the devil to protect herself and her mother from an abusive father.

Read this if you're into:
- Rural Malay horror
- Modern/contemporary settings
- Double-twist endings

Synopsis:
Scream to the Shadows features five different themes like 'The Occult World' and 'Fragmented Minds'.

The controversial story of 'The Rape of Martha Teoh' tells of a returning ghost of an abusive husband; in 'Ladiah', a mysterious maid uses black magic to seduce her boss, and '44 Cemetery Road' tells an evil tale of the undead.

Read this if you're into:
- Gothic horror
- Graphic descriptions
- Revenge tales

Synopsis:
The book boasts that it is "not for the squeamish".

Stories vary from a killer going on a rampage to avenge his uncle, a cannibal who wants to be loved, and a person taking the new highway back home only to discover there are strange things lurking on the highway.

Read this if you're into:
- Gore
- Cannibalism
- Visceral imagery

Synopsis:
If you like traditional Malaysian horror, this book is full of it. In 'Heirloom', the main character tries to get rid of a toyol and loses everything in the process and 'Restless' tells the depressing story of a girl who always repeats the same dream of walking on an empty road and sleepwalks herself into danger in the real world.

'An Umbrella Exit' is set on a train during the Hungry Ghost Festival while 'Hard As Nails' is a fresh take on a very old story of a pontianak and a bomoh who removes her curse.

Read this if you're into:
- Classic Malay ghosts
- Malaysian horror tropes

Synopsis:
This book contains 12 stories of depravity such as 'Psychotic', about a young waitress who is kidnapped in a dark alley by a serial rapist.

In 'One If By Land' a prisoner investigates what is causing his inmates to drop dead before he is next, in 'A Grave Error', a man wakes up in pitch-black darkness, only to find out he is trapped inside his own coffin.

Read this if you're into:
- Shocking twists
- Sadistic crimes
- The dark side of human nature