October is the month for it. Whether you are a longtime comic reader or someone who has never picked one up, horror comics are one of the best corners of the medium. These four books are my picks for where to begin, and none of them require any homework.
American Vampire (DC Compact Edition)
Scott Snyder and Stephen King took the vampire and made it scary again. The twist is the setting: this vampire mythology plays out across American history, from the Old West to Prohibition to World War II to 1950s Hollywood. King himself wrote one of the storylines, so the horror pedigree is real. The series won the Eisner for Best New Series, and the DC Compact Edition keeps it cheap and portable. Easy way in.
Locke & Key Vol. 1 (IDW Classic Collection)
Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez built a haunted-house murder mystery around three kids who move into their family estate after their father's murder. The house has keys that open literal doors, like one that turns you into a ghost. Everything pays off: Hill plots like a novelist, and the keys you meet early come back with real weight later. It won the Eisner for Best Writer and the British Fantasy Award for Best Graphic Novel, it is a complete story with an actual ending, and if you watched the Netflix show, the comic is darker and better.
The Goon: Bunch of Old Crap Vol. 1
Eric Powell's horror comedy follows a hulking mob enforcer and his foul-mouthed kid sidekick as they fight zombies, fishmen, and apes in a monster-plagued 1930s town. It sounds ridiculous because it is, but it lands real emotion. Powell's rubbery, expressive art sells both the scares and the slapstick. It has won five Eisners and the International Horror Guild Award, and it is the pick for anyone who wants horror without nightmares.
Batman: The Cult (from DC's Finest: A Death in the Family)
Jim Starlin and Bernie Wrightson made the definitive horror Batman. Deacon Blackfire builds a cult in Gotham's sewers, and Batman gets beaten, drugged, and brainwashed. This is Batman at his most broken and most human, drawn by the co-creator of Swamp Thing in full gothic nightmare mode. It won the 1988 Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Award for Favorite Limited Series, which means actual readers voted it the best miniseries of its year. One self-contained story, no continuity required.
Where to go from here?
Pick the one that sounds like you and start there. All four are on the shelf at Alter Ego Comics, and if you want a personalized recommendation, come in and ask. Matching readers with the right book is the best part of the job.