Defy the Dark

The seventeen original stories in Defy the Dark, an eerie, mind-bending YA anthology, could only take place in darkness.

Open the pages and discover: A creepy guy who stares too long. The secrets of the core of the earth. Dreams of other people’s lives. A girl who goes mad in the darkness. Monsters in Bavaria. A generational spaceship where night doesn’t exist. And other mysteries and oddities.

The contributors to the enthralling collection are: Sarah Rees Brennan, Tessa Gratton, Rachel Hawkins, Christine Johnson, Valerie Kemp, Malinda Lo, Myra McEntire, Saundra Mitchell, Sarah Ockler, Jackson Pearce, Aprilynne Pike, Dia Reeves, Beth Revis, Carrie Ryan, Jon Skovron, Courtney Summers, and Kate Espy, winner of the Defy the Dark new author contest.

Inspired by Stephen King’s thought that a short story is “a kiss in the dark from a stranger,” this anthology delivers seventeen unforgettable encounters:

• YA Thriller: Follow a girl who discovers her ex-boyfriend is a sleepwalker… and decides to follow him into the night.
• Dystopian Sci-Fi: In a society that sorts people by their genetics, one girl’s body might be her destiny—or her downfall.
• Urban Fantasy: Ride the mysterious night trolley to the dark side of the moon, where cacklers and blood grackles are only the beginning of a town’s monstrous secrets.
• Haunting Ghost Stories: A Halloween prank in a haunted house turns terrifyingly real when a bloody message appears on the wall, meant just for you.

In the dark, nothing—and nowhere— is off-limits, and anything can happen. Saundra Mitchell presents original stories of the dangers, possibilities, and hopes born of darkness by . . .

Sarah Rees Brennan
Kate Espey
Tessa Gratton
Rachel Hawkins
Christine Johnson
Valerie Kemp
Malinda Lo
Myra Mcentire
Saundra Mitchell
Sarah Ockler
Jackson Pearce
Aprilynne Pike
Dia Reeves
Beth Revis
Carrie Ryan
Jon Skovron
Courtney Summers

Sixteen darkly alluring stories relate horrid and extraordinary events that can occur only in the absence of light. Each uniquely eerie, goose bump-raising tale confidently journeys into the unknown, and almost every one has a thread of teen romance. This thick volume should conjure the heebie-jeebies for even the most experienced of supernatural connoisseurs. - Kirkus Reviews

The menace of darkness in these stories is...more campfire shivers than real danger, but that’s precisely the appeal. - ALA Booklist

The collection’s range of genres, from science fiction to vampire stories to realism, gives it broad appeal. - Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

With contributions that range from frightening to romantic, action-driven to lyrical, there should be something here for everyone. - School Library Journal