Simon Bestwick is an accomplished author of horror novels, hailing from England. Recognized as one of the top modern British horror authors by Ramsey Campbell, Bestwick has written a number of highly regarded works, such as "The Faceless," "Tide of Souls," "Pictures of the Dark," "A Hazy Shade of Winter," "Angels of the Silences," and "Let Drink to the Dead." His writing is celebrated for its ability to evoke fear and unease, making him a standout figure in contemporary horror literature.
Born in Wolverhampton in 1974, Bestwick has held a variety of jobs throughout his life, including work as a fast food operative, drama teacher, and training administrator. These diverse experiences have likely informed his writing, providing him with a wealth of material to draw upon in creating his characters and settings. In addition to his novels, Bestwick is also a prolific writer of short fiction, with his work appearing in numerous magazines and anthologies, including "Nasty Piece of Work," "All Hallows," "Darkness Rising," "Extremes 5," and "Beneath the Ground."
According to the Guardian, Bestwick is a "brilliant" writer, while Campbell has praised him as "among the most important writers of contemporary British horror." Despite this high praise, Bestwick remains humble, joking that his mother has described him as "completely lacking in common sense." Born and raised in Wolverhampton, Bestwick later moved to Manchester before settling in Merseyside, where he currently resides with his partner. When he's not writing, Bestwick enjoys pursuing a variety of interests, including walking, films, literature, and music, as well as indulging in good food and the occasional pint. He is also addicted to tea, Pepsi Max, and semicolons, giving him a unique perspective and voice in the world of horror fiction.
Black Road Books
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
Hell's Ditch
2015
2
Devil's Highway
2016
3
Wolf's Hill
2018
Standalone Novels
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
The Faceless
2012
2
The Feast of All Souls
2016
3
A Different Kind of Light
2021
4
Devils Of London
2021
5
Black Mountain
2021
Short Stories/Novellas
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
The Narrows
2008
2
Dermot
2011
3
Breakwater
2018
4
Roth-Steyr
2020
5
Jaeger
2024
Collections
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
A Hazy Shade Of Winter
2004
2
Pictures of the Dark
2009
3
Let's Drink To The Dead
2012
4
The Condemned
2013
5
Judgement Call / Along the Long Road
2018
6
And Cannot Come Again
2019
Chapter Books
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
Angels of the Silences
2011
The Black Books of Horror Books
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
The Black Book of Horror
2007
2
The Black Book of Horror (By: D.F. Lewis, Paul Finch, Mark Samuels, Gary McMahon, David A. Sutton, Gary Fry, John Llewellyn Probert, David A. Riley, Charles Black, Daniel McGachey, David Conyers, Steve Goodwin, John Kenneth Dunham, Franklin Marsh, Frank Nicholas, Roger B. Pile, Sean Parker)
2007
3
The Third Black Book of Horror
2008
4
The Third Black Book of Horror (By: Steve Lockley, Paul Finch, Joel Lane, Gary McMahon, Gary Fry, John Llewellyn Probert, David A. Riley, Paul Lewis, Charles Black, Craig Herbertson, Mike Chinn, Franklin Marsh, Frank Nicholas, Sean Parker, Julia Lufford, Rog, John Mains, Christine Mortimer)
2008
5
The Fifth Black Book of Horror
2009
6
The Fifth Black Book of Horror (By: Paul Finch, John Llewellyn Probert, David A. Riley, Reggie Oliver, Charles Black, Rosalie Parker, Anna Taborska, David Williamson, Craig Herbertson, Ian C. Strachan, Marcus Gold, Richard Staines, Raymond Vaughn)
2009
7
The Eighth Black Book of Horror (By: Paul Finch, Mark Samuels, Gary Fry, John Llewellyn Probert, David A. Riley, Stephen Bacon, Tina Rath, Reggie Oliver, Charles Black, Marion Pitman, Anna Taborska, Thana Niveau, David Williamson, Kate Farrell, Tony Rath)
2011
8
The Eighth Black Book of Horror
2011
9
The Ninth Black Book of Horror (With: Paul Finch, Gary Fry, John Llewellyn Probert, David A. Riley, Tom Johnstone, Charles Black, Marion Pitman, Anna Taborska, Thana Niveau, David Williamson, Craig Herbertson, Kate Farrell, Sam Dawson, Gary Power, John Forth, Marc Lyth)
2012
10
The Ninth Black Book of Horror
2012
11
The Tenth Black Book of Horror (By: Paul Finch, David A. Sutton, John Llewellyn Probert, Charles Black, Andrea Janes)
2013
12
The Tenth Black Book of Horror
2013
Black Shuck Shadows Books
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
Tales of New Mexico
2017
2
Tales of New Mexico (By: Joseph D'Lacey)
2017
3
Unquiet Waters (By: Thana Niveau)
2017
4
Unquiet Waters
2017
5
The Life Cycle (By: Paul Kane)
2017
6
The Life Cycle
2017
7
The Death of Boys
2018
8
The Death of Boys (By: Gary Fry)
2018
9
Broken on the Inside (By: Phil Sloman)
2018
10
Broken on the Inside
2018
11
The Martledge Variations (By: Simon Unsworth)
2018
12
The Martledge Variations
2018
13
The Spirits of Christmas
2019
14
Singing Back the Dark
2018
15
Winter Freits
2019
16
The Spirits of Christmas (By: Paul Kane)
2019
17
Winter Freits (By: Andrew Barker)
2019
18
The Dead
2019
19
The Dead (By: Paul Kane)
2019
20
The Forest of Dead Children
2019
21
The Forest of Dead Children (By: Andrew Hook)
2019
22
At Home in the Shadows
2019
23
Suffer Little Children
2019
24
At Home in the Shadows (By: Gary McMahon)
2019
25
Suffer Little Children (By: Penny Jones)
2019
26
Shadowcats
2019
27
The Cat Sitter
2019
28
Shadowcats (By: Anna Taborska)
2019
29
The Cat Sitter (By: Anna Taborska)
2019
30
Flowers of War
2019
31
Uneasy Beginnings
2020
32
Flowers of War (By: Mark Howard Jones)
2019
33
Three Mothers, One Father
2020
34
Green Fingers (By: Dan Coxon)
2020
35
Uneasy Beginnings (By: Simon Kurt Unsworth)
2020
36
Green Fingers
2020
37
Three Mothers, One Father (By: Sean Hogan)
2020
38
The Adventures of Mr Polkington
2020
39
Voices
2020
40
The Adventures of Mr Polkington (By: Tina Rath)
2020
41
Voices (By: Kit Power)
2020
42
The Watcher in the Woods
2020
43
The Watcher in the Woods (By: Charlotte Bond)
2020
44
Nine Ghosts
2021
Dark Minds Books
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
Slaughter Beach
2015
2
Slaughter Beach (By: Benedict J. Jones)
2015
3
What They Find in the Woods
2016
4
What They Find in the Woods (By: Gary Fry)
2016
5
Kids (By: Paul M. Feeney)
2016
6
Kids
2016
7
Ruin (By: Rich Hawkins)
2016
8
Ruin
2016
9
Naming the Bones (By: Laura Mauro)
2017
10
Naming the Bones
2017
11
Winter Holiday (By: Chad A. Clark)
2018
12
Winter Holiday
2018
13
A Love Like Blood
2019
Tomes of the Dead Books
#
Title
Year
Goodreads
Amazon
1
Death Hulk (By: Matthew Sprange)
2006
2
Tomes of the Dead: Anno Mortis
2008
3
I, Zombie
2008
4
The Words of Their Roaring (By: Matthew Smith)
2007
5
Tomes of the Dead
2009
6
The Devil's Plague (By: Mark Beynon)
2007
7
Anno Mortis (By: Rebecca Levene)
2008
8
Tomes of the Dead: Hungry Hearts
2009
9
I, Zombie (By: Al Ewing)
2008
10
Stronghold
2010
11
Empire of Salt
2010
12
Way of the Barefoot Zombie (By: Jasper Bark)
2009
13
Tide of Souls
2009
14
The Best of Tomes of the Dead Vol. 1.
2010
15
Best of the Tomes of the Dead Vol. 2
2011
16
Hungry Hearts (By: Gary McMahon)
2009
17
Stronghold ( By: Paul Finch)
2010
18
Brain-Eating Britain: Three Bone-Crunching Tales of Zombies in Broken Britain
2013
19
Empire of Salt ( By: Weston Ochse)
2010
20
The Lazarus Conundrum
2015
21
Viking Dead (By: Toby Venables)
2011
22
Brain-Eating Britain (With: Gary McMahon, Matthew Smith)
2013
23
The Secret Zombie History of the World (By: Paul Finch, Matthew Sprange, Toby Venables)
2013
24
Dead Stop (By: Mark Clapham)
2014
25
The Lazarus Conundrum (By: Paul Starkey)
2015
26
The Death and Life of Schneider Wrack (By: Nate Crowley)