Picked by Christopher Snow fans

Here are 100 books that Christopher Snow fans have personally recommended once you finish the Christopher Snow series. Book DNA is a community of authors and super-readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

Book cover of Odd Thomas

Chris Bauer Author Of I Heard You Paint Cowboys

From my list on quirky, unique characters.

Why am I passionate about this?

I love including social issues and controversial topics in my plots. I love underdogs and the downtrodden. I enjoy unique and quirky characters with excellent, appropriate, and sometimes noir-ish voices. Twists and major reveals in genre books and movies are also very important to me. I’m not a subject matter expert in much of anything I write about (thank goodness for the internet), except for one novel yet to be published, which is a major catharsis for me.

Chris' book list on quirky, unique characters

Chris Bauer Why Chris loves this book

I was overwhelmed by this crazy, lovable, frightening novel. It fit right in with my paranormal/horror bend when I read it many years ago, and it provoked my interest in writing a few titles in the genre.

It fits the unique, quirky character theme perfectly with a first person narrative by a young, charismatic fry cook-writer-memoirist named Odd (real name) Thomas with a sixth sense, able to see demons when they arrive just before tragedy occurs. Yowza. His accomplice is his girlfriend and love interest, aptly named Stormy, who is not similarly gifted and seems to have more common sense than Odd.

By Dean Koontz ,

Why should I read it?

11 authors picked Odd Thomas as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Meet Odd Thomas, the unassuming young hero of Dean Koontz’s dazzling New York Times bestseller, a gallant sentinel at the crossroads of life and death who offers up his heart in these pages and will forever capture yours.

“The dead don’t talk. I don’t know why.” But they do try to communicate, with a short-order cook in a small desert town serving as their reluctant confidant. Sometimes the silent souls who seek out Odd want justice. Occasionally their otherworldly tips help him prevent a crime. But this time it’s different.

A stranger comes to Pico Mundo, accompanied by a horde…


Book cover of Watchers

Peggy Webb Author Of Black Crow Cabin

From my list on books about crime that transcend the genre.

Why am I passionate about this?

I grew up on a small farm in Mississippi and discovered the wide world through a movable feast of books provided by the Bookmobile. The hayloft was my favorite reading spot. I could look across the lake to imagine myself in WWII Paris, the frozen tundras of Alaska, or anywhere beyond the pastures where Daddy’s cattle grazed. I fell in love with words when I was eight years old, a dreamer spinning stories inspired by the ones I read between the covers of my beloved books. I still love words and hear their music as they flow onto the pages of the thrillers I currently write.

Peggy's book list on books about crime that transcend the genre

Peggy Webb Why Peggy loves this book

I confess: I love the book because of the dog, Einstein. But I also love it because Koontz shines a spotlight on the downside and potential harm of technology and spins a classic tale of good versus evil.

I have never forgotten this book, and I read it on publication in 1987. The story is fascinating and different. But it stayed with me because of the quality of the writing and the unexpected use of magical realism. A dog who understands language? Wonderful. And he was a major character, another surprising bonus for me.

I’m a fan of Dean Koontz because his suspense novels always deliver a great story and always rise above the genre. 

By Dean Koontz ,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked Watchers as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The No.1 bestselling classic from Dean Koontz, the master of chilling suspense, that will thrill fans of Stephen King and the Odd Thomas series.

They escape from a secret government project: two mutant creatures, both changed utterly from the animals they once were. And no one who encounters them will ever be the same again.

A lonely widower, a ruthless assassin, a beautiful woman, a government agent.

Drawn together in a deadly hunt, all four are inexorably propelled towards a confrontation with an evil beyond human imagining.


Book cover of Intensity

Brett McKay Author Of The Intruders

From my list on warp your brain with shocks, twists, and horror.

Why am I passionate about this?

It wasn’t until high school when I read Stephen King’s Night Shift that illuminated the genre for me—horror. My first short story was The Dark Shadow, and it fit me like a glove. My writing is inspired by the books I like to read, as I’m sure it is with all writers, and I write characters that I know and in settings I am familiar with for authenticity. The years of experience have honed my craft, and my books are a culmination of my favorite things—supernatural horror, suspense, heart, drama, westerns, and action.

Brett's book list on warp your brain with shocks, twists, and horror

Brett McKay Why Brett loves this book

When this book caused me to pull over, park, and listen to the last hour, making me late to my work appointment, I knew I was reading (listening) to the most intense, suspenseful, tightly written novel.

As much as I love horror and the supernatural, none of it thrills me unless it is accompanied by suspense, and no one cranks them out better than Koontz.

By Dean Koontz ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Intensity as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

If you delight in the suspense of Stephen King and Harlan Coben, you'll love Intensity - a classic thriller by Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz.

Edgler Vess is a sociopath intent on murder. He lives for one purpose only: to satisfy all appetites as they arise, seeking ever more outrageous experience. To live with intensity.

When he attacks her friend, Laura, Chyna Shepherd is saved by the instincts developed during a dark and turbulent childhood. Not knowing Laura is already dead, Chyna follows, hoping to save her friend, as Vess carries her body to his…


Book cover of The Bad Place

Brett McKay Author Of The Intruders

From my list on warp your brain with shocks, twists, and horror.

Why am I passionate about this?

It wasn’t until high school when I read Stephen King’s Night Shift that illuminated the genre for me—horror. My first short story was The Dark Shadow, and it fit me like a glove. My writing is inspired by the books I like to read, as I’m sure it is with all writers, and I write characters that I know and in settings I am familiar with for authenticity. The years of experience have honed my craft, and my books are a culmination of my favorite things—supernatural horror, suspense, heart, drama, westerns, and action.

Brett's book list on warp your brain with shocks, twists, and horror

Brett McKay Why Brett loves this book

This book had me at the main character hiring a private eye to follow him because he is waking up in a different location each morning with no memory of how he got there but his pockets are filled with diamonds.

This story delved into the madness of psychos while also plummeting me into other worlds and satisfying my hunger for supernatural elements. I couldn’t love this book more. 

By Dean Koontz ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Bad Place as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Frank Pollard awakens in an alley, knowing nothing but his name and that he is in danger. Over the next few days he develops a fear of sleep because when he wakes he finds blood on his hands and bizarre and terrifying objects in his pockets. Distraught and desperate, Frank begs husband-and wife detective team Bobby and Julie Dakota to get to the bottom of his mysterious, amnesiac fugues. It seems a simple job, but they are drawn into ever-darkening realms where they encounter the nightmare, hate-filled figure stalking Frank. And their lives are threatened, as is that of Julie's…


Book cover of Storm Front

Patrick Kanouse Author Of The Shattered Bull

From my list on Chicago as a main character.

Why am I passionate about this?

Growing up in Indiana and Illinois meant that Chicago has always been, for me, the city—the place where people went to make a name for themselves and took the world by storm. From my local Carnegie Library, I read voraciously across genres—history, science, literature. They transported me out of my small town—across the universe sometimes. I learned that setting in fiction was for me a major feature of my enjoyment, and Chicago was where I set my own mystery series. These books, when I read them, explored that grand metropolis—and brought Chicago to life on and off the page. I hope you enjoy these books as much as I have.

Patrick's book list on Chicago as a main character

Patrick Kanouse Why Patrick loves this book

When I first encountered Harry Dresden, a professional wizard solving a double homicide in Chicago, I was instantly hooked by its noir, fantasy, and traditional mystery with dollops of humor. This novel—the first in The Dresden File series—kept me engaged the entire time with a fast-moving plot and interesting characters.

I could see in my mind’s eye Chicago’s skyscrapers and their reflection in Lake Michigan as Harry dug deeper into the crimes and the supernatural world. This was my first urban fantasy read, and Butcher’s ability to blend a private investigator story with the supernatural ensured it was not my last.

By Jim Butcher ,

Why should I read it?

26 authors picked Storm Front as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In the first novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Dresden Files series, Harry Dresden’s investigation of a grisly double murder pulls him into the darkest depths of magical Chicago…

As a professional wizard, Harry Dresden knows firsthand that the “everyday” world is actually full of strange and magical things—and most of them don’t play well with humans. And those that do enjoy playing with humans far too much. He also knows he’s the best at what he does. Technically, he’s the only at what he does. But even though Harry is the only game in town, business—to put…


Book cover of The Shadow Fabric

Miranda Kate Author Of Dead Lake

From my list on horror and feeding your horror habit.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a writer who writes across genres, but everything has a dark edge. As a reader, I want to be able to relate, engage, and connect in some way to the characters and story, but as I come from an abusive childhood, that means they can’t be light and fluffy; there has to be something off-kilter and warped because that reflects how my life has been. In my own writing, I try to do the same and create something that is emotive and real while still allowing the reader to escape. I originate from Surrey, in the south of England, but I have lived in the Netherlands since 2002.

Miranda's book list on horror and feeding your horror habit

Miranda Kate Why Miranda loves this book

As an indie author, I’m always interested in what other fellow authors are writing, so when I befriended Mark Cassell, I wanted to read his work. The Shadow Fabric made me a fan of his writing, and now I read everything he publishes.

With this book, Mark has established what he calls the Shadow Fabric Mythos, which means he’s written more novellas and short stories along the same theme: an ethereal darkness that takes over people, sucking the life out of them and giving a whole new meaning to the term ‘getting stitched’.

Again we have paranormal darkness, which I enjoy as a reader. And with Mark’s writing, he gives a chilly and yet urgent feel to it. You know what is coming, but you can’t look away. My kind of horror.

By Mark Cassell ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Shadow Fabric as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Leo remembers little of his past. Desperate for a new life, he snatches up the first job to come along. On his second day, he witnesses a murder, and the Shadow Fabric – a malevolent force that controls the darkness – takes the body and vanishes with it.

Determined to get answers, Leo has no idea where to turn. Revelations come in the most unlikely places, and secrets of witchcraft and ancient artefacts unfold. In particular, a device used in the 17th century to extract evil from witches proves key to his discoveries. With these truths long hidden from humankind,…


Book cover of Weaveworld

Ryan Leslie Author Of The Between

From my list on portal fantasy that will take you to hidden worlds.

Why am I passionate about this?

I grew up addicted to portal stories, where fantastical lands full of magic and adventure are accessible from our mundane world if you just know where to look. Stories like The Neverending Story, Labyrinth, Alice in Wonderland, and The Chronicles of Narnia. My first novel, The Between, is a portal story like those but written more for adults–at least, for adults who are still young at heart. If you, too, like to daydream about slipping from your work cubicle into someplace strange and weird–and perhaps a little dangerous–here are books I think you might love.

Ryan's book list on portal fantasy that will take you to hidden worlds

Ryan Leslie Why Ryan loves this book

That antique rug on the floor over there. What if a secret world is hidden within its countless knots and dyed threads? What if a fraying corner lets lose a creature trapped within? What if you step on it just so… and slip into a hidden world?

I read Weaveworld back in high school, shortly after it came out. It was my first Clive Barker novel and first adult, Alice in Wonderland-style, hidden world novel. I picked it up on a whim, and that whim changed the course of my life in many ways. I began writing in my spare time, inspired by Barker’s brilliant twists of words and by his surreal and haunting worlds.

By Clive Barker ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Weaveworld as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Originally published in 1988. Set in contemporary England, two friends discover a secret magical world and are drawn into a battle between good and evil. From the author of EVERVILLE.


Book cover of Nobody True

Miranda Kate Author Of Dead Lake

From my list on horror and feeding your horror habit.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a writer who writes across genres, but everything has a dark edge. As a reader, I want to be able to relate, engage, and connect in some way to the characters and story, but as I come from an abusive childhood, that means they can’t be light and fluffy; there has to be something off-kilter and warped because that reflects how my life has been. In my own writing, I try to do the same and create something that is emotive and real while still allowing the reader to escape. I originate from Surrey, in the south of England, but I have lived in the Netherlands since 2002.

Miranda's book list on horror and feeding your horror habit

Miranda Kate Why Miranda loves this book

This book was like a comeback for James Herbert as a horror author.

I’d always been an avid reader of his, but at some point, his writing seemed to lose its way; the endings didn’t quite deliver anymore, and his style chopped and changed. But this book had everything that worked for me as a reader: dark, gruesome horror with a paranormal twist.

The concept of astral projection and the ‘what if’’ should your body be murdered while you were away; I loved the exploration of this through the character's eyes – and what he found when he hunted down his murderer. It’s chilling and horrific, yet also in some ways heartbreaking, not only for the main character but for the murderer too. I was gripped all the way through.

By James Herbert ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Nobody True as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

What happens when you lose your body?

Jim True knows. He has returned from an out-of-body experience to find he has been brutally murdered and his body mutilated. No one can see him, no one can hear him, no one, except his killer, knows he still exists. Freed from his body, True embarks on a quest to find his killer and discover why and how he has managed to survive.

As he closes in on his murderer, True discovers that even the very people he loved and trusted have betrayed him. He meets his killer, a strange and sinister figure…


Book cover of The Talisman

Sally Altass Author Of The Witch Laws: Book One of The Moon Magic Chronicles

From my list on fantasy sweeping you into a beautiful, scary world.

Why am I passionate about this?

When I read, I’m not just seeing the words on a page; I’m escaping into the world crafted by the author. Since I was a child, I’ve always been a lover of fantasy – it was an escape for me to slip between the pages and be a part of the world inside them. Especially if they were beautiful and filled with hidden danger. I wanted to have my heart pound out of my chest, to have the thrill of magic, wonder, and fear. Now, I try to write those types of worlds; because of the books which inspired me. I only hope you love them as much as I do. 

Sally's book list on fantasy sweeping you into a beautiful, scary world

Sally Altass Why Sally loves this book

This is possibly one of the least well-known Stephen King books out there, and it is most definitely underrated. 

It’s the tale of Jack Sawyer, a twelve-year-old boy who must cross the country to find The Talisman; a magical artifact that has the power to save his mother’s life from the terminal cancer that is ravaging her body. 

But, Morgan Sloat is also chasing the Talisman, in the hopes that he can rule both our world, and the idyllic (and terrifying) Territories, where Jack is the born-again prince.

An all-encompassing portal, two-world fantasy adventure, this is a book that shaped my reading tastes from the age of 13, when I first read it.  And it’s one I go back to, time and time again.

By Stephen King , Peter Straub ,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked The Talisman as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Twelve-year-old Jack Sawyer braves the mysterious dangers of the Territories, a surreal parallel world, in his quest--across the United States-for the Talisman, the only hope for his dying mother and for his own survival.


Book cover of The House at the End of the World

Evan Purcell Author Of Followed by Fear

From my list on women on the run.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve written an equal amount of horror and romance, including books, podcasts, and screenplays. I love both genres equally, but I’m most drawn to stories that strike a nice balance between the two. Danger makes the romance less cheesy, and romance gives the thriller side more meaning. As an ESL teacher who has worked everywhere, from Bhutan to Zanzibar, I also love discovering new places. Some of my favorite books take their characters to new locations, forcing them to discover the hidden dangers and pleasant surprises that every place has to offer.

Evan's book list on women on the run

Evan Purcell Why Evan loves this book

As always, Dean Koontz uses short, propulsive chapters and tons of dangling questions to make his long novels feel short.

This book is definitely the most exciting of his more recent work, focusing on a woman on the run from a mysterious, tragic past who takes refuge on a tiny island with just as many secrets as she has.

I love how Koontz raises the stakes with each short chapter, withholding answers until he slaps you across the face with them. 

By Dean Koontz ,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked The House at the End of the World as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Soon no one on Earth will have a place to hide in this novel about fears known and unknown by #1 New York Times bestselling master of suspense Dean Koontz.

In retreat from a devastating loss and crushing injustice, Katie lives alone in a fortresslike stone house on Jacob's Ladder island. Once a rising star in the art world, she finds refuge in her painting.

The neighboring island of Ringrock houses a secret: a government research facility. And now two agents have arrived on Jacob's Ladder in search of someone-or something-they refuse to identify. Although an air of menace hangs…