A fantastic premise and deep, life-like characters inhabiting a small city in the US propel one of King’s greatest novels. King has thought very carefully about how the plot will unwind and produces a masterpiece of gripping fiction. Under The Dome cements his reputation as a master storyteller.

This book is best read before seeing Kubrick’s film; comparisons can’t help but be made, and it makes elements of the book so absurd it’s almost comical. Film aside, the story is deeply disturbing. The reader feels unsure of what is going on. Genuinely frightening and full of suspense.

Autobiography from the horror writer. Handles his early life and career, skirting over the cocaine and alcohol addiction during which he wrote a whole book, Cujo. Editing, drafting and common sense advice for aspiring writers: always take a book to read with you and write at least 1000 words a day.