11-02-2026 Kerry E.B. Black Binges Books! Voting edition

The Politics of Horror

It’s the first week of November. Here in the US, that means it’s time to vote. It’s a right and a privilege to share in the shaping of the nation, even if our influence is small.

Now, don’t worry. This isn’t a “get out to vote” ad. (Though all eligible voters should voice their opinions by doing so.) I promise, this article is horror-related. 

By its very nature, writing is political - intentionally or not. All creators, including authors, respond and react to life around them, sometimes without even realizing the influence exerted on their creation. Readers glean and refine messages and interpretations, giving a work of any art a life of its own. And yes, political climate is a strong influence. That’s why historians, academics, and even reviewers rightly consider the time period in which a work was created when seeking to understand it.

So, with the convergence of the time of the year (voting season) and our site’s propensity for and appreciation of horror, let’s look at some genre books where the political leaning is not veiled.

Dread State, released in 2016-2017 and edited by Eugene Johnson and Michael Paul Gonzalez, acknowledged it was ‘An Anthology of Political Horror.’ It showcased stories of voting booths, indoctrination, the internet, and campaigns, told by writers such as William F. Nolan, John Palisano, Jason V. and Sunni K. Brock, Hillary Lyon, and Sarah Langan. It even included a reprint of “The Pedestrian” from Ray Bradbury. My personal favorite from the collection, though, is “The Fool on the Hill,” a post-apocalyptic work by Lisa Morton. Go into this anthology knowing most of these speculative stories have a definite political leaning and bias, and leave entertained. With its introduction by Jeff Strand, this Crystal Lake publication concludes with an afterword by David Wellington  

The Voting Dead Project by Bill Smith (2023) has a shady organization using psychics to call up the spirits of Confederate soldiers to manipulate elections. 1980’s The Hell Candidate was written by Graham Masterson under his pseudonym, Thomas Luke. In it, a presidential contender makes an unholy pact.  

H.P. Lovecraft, problematic for so many reasons, including xenophobia, racism, and homophobia, has ironically inspired a number of artistic reinterpretations, proving art truly can transcend the artist. Some of note are Matt Ruff’s 2016 series, Lovecraft Country (Adapted into an HBO television series in the year of the lockdown, 2020), Victor LeValle’s excellent 2016 novella, The Ballad of Black Tom, and Ruthanna Emrys’ 2017  Innsmouth Legacy Series. These artists and others transform the hateful aspects of Lovecraft’s storytelling into newly imagined horrors.

Tanarive Due’s The Reformatory (2023) - and in fact, her entire body of work! - shines lights on injustice in the American system. Another author who does a great job at telling horror through a political insight is Stephen Graham Jones. Joe Lansdale delves into racial inequality in his novels, too. 

With the lethal injection debacle of 30 September, 2026 in Tennessee, Gretchen McNeil’s 2018 YA novel, #MurderTrending, seems an appropriate recommendation, with its live-streamed executions of convicted criminals housed on Alcatraz 2.0. Suzanne Collins’ highly successful, YA dystopian series, The Hunger Games (2008), is experiencing renewed popularity with the release of prequels and new films in the franchise.  

In truth, the Politics of horror could be an entire book on its own, so this little article is, by necessity, a pale overview. These are just a few of the many excellent, topical horror books available, and these only centered on the US. (There’s a whole world of inequality and political dirty dealing explored in the pages of adroit authors, but that will have to be a topic for another day.) 

What are some horror novels involving politics you recommend?

And don’t forget. Get out and vote!

Kerry E.B. Black, crazy cat mom of felines named for great authors and nearly grown children who are not, writes an eclectic collection of tales from an itty, bitty house (which is for sale, if you’re interested) outside of the city of steel, three rivers, and zombies. This author of two paranormal thrillers (Awakening at Equinox and Spring of Spirits), four collections of short scares (Herd of Nightmares, Carousel of Nightmares, Nightmares on Holidays, and Fairy Herds and Mythscapes), two poetry collections (Poetic Nightmares and Witches in the Air) and a pseudo-historical novella (Wolves at Bay) is a member of the HWA.

Please follow her social media, including her website https://www.KerryEBBlack.com