To celebrate Halloween, we've put our heads together to compile a list of the 50 most terrifying fictional characters ever (metaphorically - no one has been decapitated, we promise) .
The famous monsters that inspire countless costumes at this time of year - your Draculas and your Frankensteins - are included of course, but did either of them scare their way to number 1?
They're competing with character from all sorts of novels, from the worst creations of 'chick-lit' to seemingly innocuous children's fiction cuddlies. Fear, after all, is a subjective business.
Click through the gallery below - running from 50 to one - to find out what made our top ten.