Kealan Patrick Burke

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Kealan Patrick Burke

Goodreads Author


Born
in Waterford, Ireland
Website

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Influences
Stephen King, Charles L. Grant, Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, Fr ...more

Member Since
June 2025

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Hailed by Booklist as “one of the most clever and original talents in contemporary horror,” Kealan Patrick Burke was born and raised in Ireland and emigrated to the United States a few weeks before 9/11.

Since then, he has written six novels, among them the popular southern gothic Kin, and over two hundred short stories and novellas, many of which are in various stages of development for film/TV.

In 2005, Burke won the Bram Stoker Award for his coming-of-age novella The Turtle Boy, the first book in the acclaimed Timmy Quinn series.

As editor, he helmed the anthologies Night Visions 12, Taverns of the Dead, and Quietly Now, a tribute anthology to one of Burke’s influences, the late Charles L. Grant.

More recently, he wrote the screenplays fo
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Playing Favorites

I’m often asked by readers and interviewers which book of mine is my favorite, and it’s never an easy question to answer. To my mind, the best book will always be the one I’m writing in the moment, my previous efforts fond memories in the rearview. But this is also not entirely true. As time goes by, I realize I’m more partial to some of my books than others, whether because they exist as perfect

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Published on June 08, 2026 07:44
Average rating: 3.72 · 63,867 ratings · 11,307 reviews · 199 distinct worksSimilar authors
Sour Candy

3.59 avg rating — 26,683 ratings — published 2015 — 16 editions
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Kin

3.88 avg rating — 5,694 ratings — published 2011 — 16 editions
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The Turtle Boy (Timmy Quinn...

3.62 avg rating — 4,690 ratings — published 2004 — 11 editions
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Blanky

3.73 avg rating — 3,272 ratings — published 2017 — 5 editions
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Dead Leaves: 9 Tales from t...

3.56 avg rating — 2,026 ratings — published 2011 — 7 editions
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The House on Abigail Lane

3.83 avg rating — 1,847 ratings — published 2020 — 3 editions
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Jack & Jill

3.95 avg rating — 1,199 ratings — published 2013 — 10 editions
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The Tent

3.74 avg rating — 1,255 ratings — published 2013 — 4 editions
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Dead of Winter

3.91 avg rating — 1,107 ratings — published 2010 — 3 editions
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Guests

3.99 avg rating — 1,000 ratings — published 2022 — 10 editions
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A Violent Masterp...
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Kealan’s Recent Updates

Kealan Patrick Burke wrote a new blog post

Playing Favorites

I’m often asked by readers and interviewers which book of mine is my favorite, and it’s never an easy question to answer. To my mind, the best book wi Read more of this blog post »
Kealan Burke is on page 70 of 384 of A Violent Masterpiece
A Violent Masterpiece by Jordan Harper
A Violent Masterpiece
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It Came from Neverland by Cynthia Pelayo
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Wretch by Eric LaRocca
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Tillinghast by Clare Cavenagh
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Crone by Keith Rosson
Crone
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Carry Me to My Grave by Christopher Golden
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Something of a Calling by Zoje Stage
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Quotes by Kealan Patrick Burke  (?)
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“Horror itself is a bit of a bullied genre, the antagonist being literary snobbery and public misconception. And I think good horror tackles our darkest fears, whatever they may be. It takes us into the minds of the victims, explores the threats, disseminates fear, studies how it changes us. It pulls back the curtain on the ugly underbelly of society, tears away the masks the monsters wear out in the world, shows us the potential truth of the human condition. Horror is truth, unflinching and honest. Not everybody wants to see that, but good horror ensures that it's there to be seen.”
Kealan Patrick Burke

“Finch was his own country, the government unstable, the population volatile.”
Kealan Patrick Burke, Kin

“Living is hard; Death is easy. And there are no answers on either side.”
Kealan Patrick Burke, Kin

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