Person
Stephen King's book recommendations
Key facts
- Stephen King has recommended or discussed 14 books on podcasts, as of October 2, 2026.
- Stephen King has talked about books on 1 podcast, as of October 2, 2026.
- Those books came up in 2 episodes, as of October 2, 2026.
- The 3 books Stephen King has mentioned in the most episodes, not counting Stephen King's own, as of October 2, 2026: Floating Dragon, And Then There Were None and Ghost Story.
- The latest episode with a book mention from Stephen King aired on October 2, 2026.
Updated
Stephen King’s most recommended books
- Floating Dragon by Peter Straub
- And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
- Ghost Story by Peter Straub
- Redheaded Peckerwood by Christian Patterson
- Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
- The Hero's Journey by Patricia Ferguson
- The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
- The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
Stephen Edwin King is an American author widely celebrated as the King of Horror for his iconic contributions to horror fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, fantasy, and mystery. In podcast discussions detailing his long-standing creative partnership with Peter Straub, King recommended Straub's novel Floating Dragon as his favorite work by the author. He explained that Straub's reading of Patricia Ferguson's The Hero's Journey and a photography book about Charles Starkweather titled Redheaded Peckerwood directly inspired the creation and development of their collaborative novel The Talisman. King also noted that reading Straub's Ghost Story helped him master Straub's distinct narrative voice. Discussing his own bibliography, King reflected on writing the Bill Hodges trilogy—comprising Mr. Mercedes, Finders Keepers, and End of Watch—and explained how stumbling upon the character Holly Gibney during the writing of the first book created a lasting fixture in his fiction. Finally, he compared narrative devices in his own writing to Daniel Defoe's classic novel Robinson Crusoe.
Books recommended by Stephen King
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Floating Dragon
Floating Dragon is an epic horror and suspense novel by Peter Straub that blends terrifying supernatural elements with the psychological decay of an affluent Connecticut suburb facing a devastating chemical disaster and an ancient evil.
Recommended“My favorite book of his is a long novel called Floating Dragon.”
Where to get it
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And Then There Were None
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie is a masterclass in suspense, following ten strangers lured to a remote island who are systematically murdered one by one.
Discussed“I was God smacked by the end of and and then there were none”
Where to get it
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Black House
Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub is a collaborative novel that follows up on their previous work by catching up with the protagonist Jack Sawyer as an adult.
Discussed“I just reread the Talisman and I'm holding off on black house which was the other Jack saw novel that we wrote”
Where to get it
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End of Watch
End of Watch by Stephen King is the final installment in the author's Bill Hodges detective trilogy centering on a retired police officer.
Discussed“and so in the other books in the trilogy I had no idea that this was going to be a Trilogy to begin with there's Mr Mercedes there's Finders Keepers and there's End of Watch”
Where to get it
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Finders Keepers
Discussed“and so in the other books in the trilogy I had no idea that this was going to be a Trilogy to begin with there's Mr Mercedes there's Finders Keepers and there's End of Watch”
Where to get it
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Ghost Story
Ghost Story by Peter Straub is a classic horror novel that follows a group of elderly men haunted by a terrifying secret from their past.
Discussed“Well, I read Ghost Story and some of his short fiction before I started to try and get his voice.”
Where to get it
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Mr. Mercedes
Mr.
Discussed“And so I wrote the book and in the course of it I really stumbled across this woman named Holly Gibney and she has become one of my favorite characters and if I hadn't written that first book Mr. Mercedes I never would have found her”
Where to get it
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Redheaded Peckerwood
Discussed“And finally Peter wrote me a letter and he said, "We really ought to do this." and he sent me a book called Redheaded Peckerwood and it was about Charles Starkweather, but it was a book of photographs.”
Where to get it
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Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe is a classic adventure novel about a castaway who spends decades on a remote tropical island facing isolation and survival challenges.
Discussed“It feels a little bit like uh you know in Robinson Crusoe where you know he's just got this ship that's floundering on the reef that he can go out and resupply at any time.”
Where to get it
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The Hero's Journey
Discussed“Well, Peter and I started with the talisman because he had read a book called The Hero's Journey, and there was certain ideas in there that he really liked.”
Where to get it
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The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie is a celebrated and deeply influential work of detective fiction renowned for its groundbreaking narrative structure.
Discussed“I love the books uh I was Gob smack by the end of the murder of Roger akroy”
Where to get it
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The Stand
Stephen King's monumental post-apocalyptic epic The Stand details the devastating sweep of a weaponized influenza strain that wipes out the vast majority of humanity, leaving survivors to choose sides in a final conflict between good and evil.
Discussed“I can remember in the stand I thought to myself I have too many characters doing too many things what am I going to do about that”
Where to get it
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The Talented Mr. Ripley
The Talented Mr.
Discussed“I think that it helps to have written books that are like The Talented Mr Ripley I loved everything Patricia heith did”
Where to get it
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The Talisman
The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub is a classic collaborative fantasy novel following a twelve-year-old boy named Jack Sawyer as he embarks on a perilous journey to save his dying mother.
Discussed“I just reread the Talisman and I'm holding off on black house which was the other Jack saw novel that we wrote”
Where to get it
Books by Stephen King
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Carrie
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Misery
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The Shining
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It
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The Gunslinger
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Pet Sematary
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The Green Mile
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The Dead Zone
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The Stand
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Cujo
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Firestarter
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The Drawing of the Three
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Bag of Bones
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Skeleton Crew
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Wizard and Glass
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A Torre Negra
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The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
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On Writing
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Needful Things
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Christine
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Finders Keepers
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Mr. Mercedes
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The Talisman
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Black House
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11/22/63
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End of Watch
Questions about Stephen King’s book recommendations
What book does Stephen King recommend most?
Floating Dragon by Peter Straub. Stephen King recommended it in 1 episode.
How many books has Stephen King recommended on podcasts?
We have found 14 books Stephen King recommended or discussed, across 2 episodes of 1 podcast. Ad reads and passing mentions are not counted.
What books are on Stephen King's reading list?
The books Stephen King has recommended most on podcasts are Floating Dragon by Peter Straub, And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie, Ghost Story by Peter Straub, Redheaded Peckerwood by Christian Patterson and Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. The full book list below has all 14.
What books has Stephen King written?
Carrie (1974), The Gunslinger (1976), The Shining (1977), Misery (1978), The Stand (1978), The Dead Zone (1979), Firestarter (1980), Cujo (1981), Pet Sematary (1983) and Christine (1983), among 26 in all.
What did Stephen King recommend on The Book Review?
Floating Dragon, And Then There Were None and Black House, among 14 books in all.
What is the latest book Stephen King recommended?
The Hero's Journey, discussed on The Book Review (2026-10-02).
People who recommend the same books
Appearances
| Episode | Podcast | Date | Books |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decades Later, Stephen King Is Finishing What He and Peter Straub Started | The Book Review | 2026-10-02 | 6 |
| Talking to Stephen King and September Books to Check Out | The Book Review | 2023-09-08 | 8 |
Other mentions (4: passing, ad reads, own books)
“Maybe James Dicki a little bit in Deliverance and To the White Sea.”
“Maybe James Dicki a little bit in Deliverance and To the White Sea.”
“and some of that is in 112263 as well well where there are real life people involved in the story”
“I can only think of Deliverance by James Dicky where he's got some of that sense”