House of Hades (Fighting Fantasy, No 10)

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Summary: A frighteningly good gamebook
Review: ... So begins your adventure in House of Hades, Steve Jackon's excellent Fighting Fantasy horror gamebook. The entire adventure has you trying to survive the horrors of this vile mansion, desperate to find a way out. However, not all that you encounter will be evil... The gamebook is well written, with many encounters that are delightfully scary; so much so that there is a "FEAR" score to keep track of. Each time you get frightened, you add points to your fear score. If it reaches a certain amount (one roll of a die plus 6, determined before you begin), then you are frightened to death, and the adventure is over. All in all, House of Hades is one of the better Fighting Fantasy gamebooks. The ending even provides a surprise twist.

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Summary: Read "House of Hades" for a different kind of scare
Review: Of all the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, House of Hades is unique in two main ways. First of all, it takes place in the present time and "real" world: no dragons to fight or spaceships to fly. Second, it is based on genuinely creepy stuff ala "Amityville Horror" and "The Exorcist": grotesque demons, fanatic cultists and dark rituals. The plot and story itself are scary: putting it in a gamebook with you in the middle elevates it to another level! Don't read this one alone, even with the lights on!