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In the age of technology we are living in things can get creepy fast. Sometimes it seems like we are living in George Orwell’s 1984 with all of the Ring doorbell cameras and AirTags tracking our every move. While these pieces of tech have made life easier in many ways, there is a darker side to technology. These seven SciFi horror books bring some of your worst fears to life.
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
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You may have seen I Am Legend, the 2007 SciFi movie starring Will Smith. It was loosely based on Richard Matheson’s 1954 novel of the same name. The book follows Robert Neville in Los Angeles in 1976. Robert could potentially be the last human alive following the outbreak of a pandemic. In the novel, everyone has been turned into a vampire. While they are sleeping during the day, Robert goes out and tries to kill as many of them as he can. At night, the main character barricades himself in his fortress of a home and drinks.
Over time, Robert conducts various experiments to see if there is a way to improve the condition of his friends, family, and neighbors who were impacted by this disease. Eventually, he learns that the condition has been caused by a bacterium that he is immune to. The true horror in this novel is about what life, and technology, have forced Robert to do. For most of the novel he is totally alone, forced to commit barbaric slaughter on a daily basis just to survive, hanging on to a life that he does not really want to live anymore. It is easy to see how this could make someone’s worse pandemic nightmares come true.
The Taking by Dean Koontz
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Dean Koontz is a well-known writer who focuses on thrillers. The Taking is a suspenseful tale about a couple and their neighbors who have to fight for survival at the end of the world. Molly and Neil Sloan are the main characters. They wake up one day to a heavy downpour on their roof and news of extreme weather events occurring all over the world. Their area soon loses contact with the outside world and a thick fog transforms it into a ghost town. It becomes apparent that once the thick fog descended on the town everyone was being hunted by something.
The Sloans and their neighbors band together to face whatever it is. Molly, Neil, and the eight children they rescued are all living together in a house. Eventually, Molly decides to write a book for her soon-to-be-born son or daughter. The tale is definitely a testament to how technology has a hold on everyone. As people are shut out from the world, it quickly becomes apparent how much we rely on devices to stay afloat.
Joyland by Stephen King
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Stephen King is one of the most famous horror writers in the world. He has written over 65 novels throughout his career and among them is Joyland. This book follows a college student, Devin Jones, who works at an amusement park in North Carolina in 1973. Devin starts to make friends with several of the other new hires, including two characters Tom and Erin. He finds that his talent at the amusement park is entertaining kids as Howie the Happy Hound.
Technology comes into play when Devin is faced with the afterlife. He is faced with the legacy of the murder of a young woman (Linda Gray) and the fate of a dying child. Soon, he is forced to consider what comes after death as he is confronted by supernatural things.
After World by Debbie Urbanski
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Debbie Urbanski takes a look at how artificial intelligence is changing the world in After World. In this book, an AI is tasked with the job of writing a novel. It gives a timely perspective of a dystopian world where humanity has become sterilized by viruses and faces extinction. The world seems like it is on the brink of ecological collapse. The AI narrator begins to ask questions and search for answers about what will become of the human race.
After World takes AI head-on and acknowledges it for what it is: a piece of technology that might completely change the world. For readers, it could be a glimpse into the future. What might happen to us decades, or even centuries, in the future?
Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky
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Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky is another novel that looks closely at AI and robots. In the book, readers learn that these machines could be capable of murder when a robot named UnCharles kills his master. After killing him, the robot tries to go on a journey to find its purpose in life. Of course, in a world this advanced, humans are struggling and ecosystems have completely changed. However, the focus remains on UnCharles and his journey. Service Model explores the meaning of free will and self-purpose in this technological horror story.
The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy
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Benjamin Percy’s novel The Dark Net takes a look at an evil sitting right in front of most of us each day. You might assume that the book is about the unknown dark corners of the internet where you can find horrors. Instead, Percy focuses on the dark corners of the internet that are known. In the novel, Lela is a reporter writing for The Oregonian. Her niece, Hannah, installs The Mirage onto her computer. The technology offers a sense of sight beneath the surface of web pages. What it finds is a spiritual realm where evil has always resided. While Lela finally has the story of a lifetime to report on, she is also faced with evil forces looking to destroy her.
The Glare by Margot Harrison
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Speaking of the dark web, The Glare by Margot Harrison is another great read in this vein. Hedda is the main character. She’s a teenager who has spent 10 years without any kind of technology while living on an isolated ranch with her mother. The Glare refers to the glow of the screens Hedda comes into contact with once she gets away from the ranch. It also refers to an FPS game hosted on the dark web that has a death game woven into the various levels. Playing the game could lead to your permanent death in the real world. In the end, The Glare takes a look at how technology has the potential to hurt rather than help in many cases.
If you are looking for a SciFi horror book to add to your list, you’d do good to read any of these listed. Each one has some undertones of technology and how it could possibly change our lives, and not for the better.
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Drew Blankenship is a former Porsche technician who writes and develops content full-time. He lives in North Carolina, where he enjoys spending time with his wife and two children. While Drew no longer gets his hands dirty modifying Porsches, he still loves motorsport and avidly watches Formula 1.
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