Snow on the ground.  Hot chocolate in steaming mugs.  Christmas lights twinkling on the tree.  Pick your song and cue the music (“Baby, it’s cold outside,”, “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,”), and sway… don’t forget to sway.  This scenario is as familiar as they come.  It represents the making of memories, the ones you call upon throughout the year to bring you joy, a sense of belonging, and love.  It is also the default scene for many Christmas horror movies and those of us who like that kind of thing get nostalgic just thinking of cold winter nights with a good slasher film on the TV.  Ah, the holidays.

If you’re looking for a good (and that’s a relative term, mind you) Christmas horror movie, check this list out.  It goes beyond Gremlins, A Christmas Carol (because… ghosts), and The Night Before Christmas, folks – they are must-see Christmas horror movies in their own right, but you knew that already.  So settle in, pour yourself a cup of hot chocolate, and pull the covers around you real tight… because everyone knows that the covers hide you from what’s lurking in the shadows, the thing waiting in the shadowy place just beyond the flickering lights on your Christmas tree… right?

Black Christmas – Don’t mess with girls in their sorority house… period.  The 1974 original stars Margot Kidder pre-Superman fame and is a slasher movie through and through.  Halloween may have put slasher movies on the map, but Black Christmas is the precursor in the genre.  Alert – there was a remake made in 2019.  There was also one made in 2006.  Compare and contrast, if you dare!

Silent Night, Deadly Night – The beginning of a franchise, Silent Night, Deadly Night might be the most recognizable title in the Christmas slasher genre.  A boy, traumatized at a young age, is triggered later in life to reenact his parents’ gruesome murders.  And then the bleeding commences. 

Krampus – Don’t believe in the spirit of Christmas?  You’d better get yourself in gear before Krampus comes to visit.  The antithesis of Santa Claus, Krampus punishes those who misbehave in the most terrifying of ways.  Kind of sheds new light on the lyrics of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”, doesn’t it?

Being a little spooked inside the confines of one’s own home is not relegated Halloween – stories of home invasions frightening us out of our sleep and hallucinations of flying animals attest to that (you know, ‘Twas the… I know you know).  So, give in.  Add a little Christmas fear with your Christmas cheer!

My gift to you…

I have never written a Christmas horror short story before… until now! Thanks to the folks at Snarled, this little beauty was animated for their Something Scary YouTube Channel. Check it out if you dare!

Give yourself a gift!

Treat yourself to some L. Marie Wood. There’s a scare out there for everyone… and a little romance too! Grab an ebook for your Kindle just in time for the holidays! Happy holidays, folks!

Until next time,

L. Marie