Scariest Tropes

Since Halloween was on Thursday, I just thought that I might share some of (what I think are) the scariest tropes. I hope you enjoy - it's kind of like reactions to every trope ever, actually! ;)

Possession: In all honesty, I just can't deal with possession books or movies. I read Bad Girls Don't Die when I was about twelve or so, and that book scared the bejeezus out of me. I shudder to even think of how I would respond to a movie with it! Ugh. *shudder*

Dolls: I can pin down the exact moment that I became afraid of dolls. We have porcelain dolls in our house. Obviously I'm not scared of those, but I was a camp counselor a year ago, for a church camp. Just so happens that one of the girls in my cabin was a severely depressed little girl. Big brown eyes, haunted and everything. She cried about very sad and philosophical stuff, that a child her age shouldn't be thinking about. I haven't even told you the worst part yet - she had a doll. A porcelain doll - one that she slept with, and dressed in different outfits. She went every where with it, and she told us all that her dead grandmother had given it to her. That doll's expression... was terrifying. And it wasn't always the same when you looked at it, I SWEAR. All of the counselors were terrified of that doll, myself included. And while this might seem like a silly thing, you weren't around this little girl. Depressed, slightly suicidal, and with the biggest haunted eyes you've ever seen. There was something wrong with that doll. This, this only, is why I'm terrified of dolls such as hers. The vibe around that thing was monstrous - it made you look over your shoulder, that's for sure. (By the way, this story is completely true. I am not making it up.)

Ghosties: I am not scared of this trope - I actually adore it! My favorite is the vengeful ghosts, such as Anna from  Anna Dressed in Blood or Naughty Jack from The Diviners. The ones who are creepy and crazy and have you looking out the windows in the dark. Love this trope!

Zombies: I'm also in love with the zombies trope! I want grisly, terrifying zombies, though. I don't want those wimpy ones that so often dominate literature. Can't even turn a doorknob. Meh. For zombie books, I prefer the ones that are full of gore. Yet, I tried watching The Walking Dead on Netflix the other day and wasn't a huge fan? It was only "okay" for me.

Insanity: I enjoy insanity too - for what it's worth. It's scary enough to keep anyone interested, and crazy enough that I usually can't figure what's going on until the very end. I am IN LOVE with the movie Shutter Island, and the Mara Dyer series does a good job with a main character who's pretty much insane.

What do you think? Do any of these tropes terrify/delight YOU?