Consistently entertaining horror

  With Stephen King and Dean Koontz constantly stealing from each other, and King being pretty much off his game of late, I was thrilled when I discovered horror writer Bentley Little.
  I've read most of Little's books and find him original and entertaining. His books can be somewhat formulaic, but I always find myself engrossed in and grossed out by his stories. Most people either like horror or they don't. If you don't, you won't like these books. They can be over the top with the gore and pretty heavy on the supernatural, but if you just like a good, creepy read, and a little humor to boot, these books will do the trick.
  Here are a few of my favorites:
  "Dispatch" follows Jason Hanford through childhood into adulthood as he discovers the power of the written word. He has a talent for writing letters, and does so voraciously. He complains to fast-food corporations and gets free food. He complains to amusement park officials and gets free passes. He wages a letter-to-the-editor campaign in an effort to fight city hall -- and wins. As he grows up, he realizes the darkness behind his writing and the deadly costs of his gift, getting sucked into a reality where the world is manipulated by the use of the pen.
  "The Resort" is packed with extra gore. Lowell Thurman takes his family on vacation to a ritzy spa in the Arizona desert (all of Little's books are set in the West). The spa turns out to be anything but relaxing. The employees are strange and some of the guests perverse. Bodies float in the pools and violence explodes on the basketball court. Lowell and his family must do all they can to uncover the secrets of the resort and find a way to escape its terrors.
  "The Store" not only is creepy but is also funny as this Wal-Mart-from-hell retail store takes over a small Arizona town. Bill Davis suspects something evil is going on at the store, but can't seem to stop its influence as it spreads over the town like a plague. Once his own daughters are lured into taking jobs at The Store, Bill decides to fight the chain and risks losing his own soul to its darkness.
  In "The Association" Little takes on the dreaded home owner's association. Barry and Maureen Welch move into a gated community with high hopes of living the American Dream. They get more than they bargained for though with an HOA that dictates every aspect of life and spies on its residents, and you don't even want to know what happens if you don't pay your fees on time.
  Some people find Little's books ridiculous, there is an armless, legless man named Stumpy in "The Association," but I enjoy the author's mix of humor and terror. So until King gets out of his rut, go into a state of suspended disbelief and give Little a try.