Misery by Stephen King. I creating a story that is both horrific and profound is a remarkable accomplishment. Stephen King uses this kidnapped and tortured novelist to say so much about the craft. I love the insights on writing and storytelling that abound in this terrifying book.

Annie Wilkes makes a truly scary villain, yet we grow attached to her in some ways.

King dedicates the perfect amount of time for contemplation interspersed between the scenes of torture and abuse inflicted upon the main character.

Axes, blowtorches, and rat traps make this book exciting, but the more subtle elements of the plot make it truly one of a kind. I will forever remember reading the excerpts from the manuscript that Paul Sheldon is forced to write on a broken typewriter; the letter “n” is filled in continuously in handwritten scrawl because the key is missing from the typewriter. Amazing work!