Hailed as one of the most important horror novels of all time—and perhaps the greatest “haunted house” story ever written—Shirley Jackson’s masterpiece The Haunting of Hill House is a classic horror novel for the ages. The psychological dread throughout the novel grows on the reader, slowly inciting a creeping dread that makes one’s skin crawl.

Today’s media simply doesn’t have what Jackson portrayed in her novel. We’re bombarded with blood and guts, images of monsters, demons, killers wearing masks, whatever—rather than allowed to fear what we simply cannot see.

I’ve heard from many readers of Hill House who claim that the book didn’t scare them in the least; some even say it shouldn’t be classified as horror. In one way, they’re right; rather than generic horror, Hill House has a class of its own in a more terrifying category.

However, if they’re not scared, I say that readers are desensitized by constant image after image being hurled at them from the latest “horror” blockbusters, and that instead of digesting the darkness of Hill House, they slam through so quickly that they miss integral parts of the story.

While I’m reluctant to compare Jackson to films like Cloverfield or The Blair Witch Project, I’d like to do so here for a reason; those films, and this book, were both successful for what they create—sheer terror based on things you cannot even see. They also have in common the death of the protagonist, but not in a heroic way; none of the characters’ deaths makes the world a better place at all. We simply see them succumb to death and madness.

Jackson, I would argue, is far more effective, portraying the gradually more and more insane Eleanor and her ghostly encounters—as well as those of her housemates—so eerily, disturbingly, that if allowed to really absorb the material, one cannot help but be afraid. If Hill House doesn’t scare you, I really think you skimmed the material rather than really read it.

If you think you know Hill House because you’ve seen either of The Haunting films, please don’t disregard the book. It’s far more frightening than either film (though both are enjoyable for different reasons; the second is a very, very loose adaptation but it still has make-you-jump parts).

I’d recommend Hill House—as well as any Jackson piece—for anyone wanting a good psychological scare. They just don’t make them like that anymore. Of course, if you do run across something that qualifies, I’d love to hear about it!