Acquired Taste

BRAM STOKER AWARD FINALIST
PASTE MAGAZINE MOST ANTICIPATED HORROR BOOKS FALL 2025
BARNES AND NOBLE BEST BOOKS TO READ FOR HALLOWEEN


Few writers are as dependably, delightfully depraved as Clay McLeod Chapman, and few pleasures remain in this world like being terrorized by his words. Please don’t start charging us a subscription fee, Clay–with stories like these, it’d be impossible to say no!—Nat Cassidy, author of When the Wolf Comes Home and Mary


Daring and dread-inducing, creepy and clever, Clay McLeod Chapman defines contemporary horror. He holds a magnifying glass to everything we want to turn away from and forces us to look, and to look closely—Rachel Harrison, USA Today Bestselling author of So Thirsty and Black Sheep


Clay McLeod Chapman is a true master of horror.—CJ Leede, author of Maeve Fly and American Rapture


Masterful. Each individual story in ACQUIRED TASTE is instantly iconic, with sharp prose, dark humor, and situations that feel inexplicably real. This deserves to be talked about in the same breath as King’s NIGHT SHIFT and other such classics.—Sam Rebelein, Bram Stoker Award Nominated author of EDENVILLE and GALLOWAY’S GOSPEL


An absolute blast of a collection, full of unforgettable imagery packed into tightly crafted, page-turning gems of short fiction.—Paste Magazine


My favorite quasi-Kingian book is “Acquired Taste: Chilling Stories,” by Clay McLeod Chapman, whose excellent shorts recall the winking audacity of King’s stories.—Chicago Tribune


Acquired Taste… will gross you out, make you laugh and get under your skin in the best kind of way. There’s a story in here for everybody, perfect for the spooky season and beyond.—Page Six


From scary to unsettling to just plain satiric, ACQUIRED TASTE shows Clay McLeod Chapman using his unique voice to cover horrific moments and thoughts that reflect on both the hidden and overt things in the modern world around us.—BookReporter


Twisted, tender, deranged, Chapman has a singular voice that is strange and weird and beautiful, and does not falter throughout… it is a privilege to be a horror reader who exists at the same time [he] is writing.—FanFiAddict


If you’re already a fan of Chapman’s writing, “Acquired Taste” is a must-own. If you’re new to his work, it’s the perfect jumping-off point. —Macabre Daily


Chapman excels in taking something familiar and twisting it to show that there are horrors beyond belief in ordinary places.—Library Journal, starred review


Clay McLeod Chapman takes our hand through a guided tour of his delightfully twisted imagination. An imagination that cooks up recipes from politics, addiction, paranoia, and youth to satisfy the unique palates of horror readers. —The Horror Lounge


A literary punch to the heart—New York Times on Stay on the Line


A modern horror maestro—Dread Central