If you are anything like us, you tend to try and find new stories to read during each season to get into the mood and this particularly goes for the Christmas season. Enter The Darkest Night. From some of the biggest names in horror comes an Advent calendar of short holiday horror stories perfect for the darkest nights of the year.

The Darkest Night was edited by award-winning author and anthologist Lindy Ryan and with contributions from masters of horror like Josh Malerman, Christopher Golden, and Clay McLeod Chapman and more! While the entire anthology is worth a read, we wanted to focus on a few of our favorite stories from The Darkest Night.

New York Times bestselling author Josh Malerman's tale, "Children Aren’t the Only Ones Who Know Where the Presents Are Hidden," intertwines eerie visuals, familial strife, authentic Yuletide terror, and a remarkable conclusion, delivering a chilling take on a not-so-merry Christmas. Honestly, this one had our mouth gaping and a few tears in our eyes.

"Mr. Butler" by Clay McLeod Chapman stands out for its distinctive creativity - featuring eerie ideas, a chilling atmosphere, and remarkable finesse. Chapman had some out-of-the-box thinking on this tale crafting a tale of terror using a cardboard box. Clay succeeds in delivering an impressive story that keeps you engaged.

Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon, both celebrated New York Times bestselling authors, weave a gripping narrative in "Wintry Blue" that gives us two perspectives as a monster is being created. The story thrusts us into an eerie tale of a family, a woman and a bizarre and fearsome being. This story flawlessly captures the essence of its characters' journeys, embedding the narrative with a mix of suspense and action that had us chilled. Completely terrifying, "Wintry Blue" is a testament to the talent of these two writers.

Nat Cassidy's "Nice" masterfully dances between uproarious hilarity and spine-chilling darkness. The tale takes a normal child's tradition and morphs it into a tale of child terror that had us say cussing out loud. The story was terrifying and unexpected with a startlingly grim conclusion that we could not see coming. The balance of dark comedy and horror was perfect for this holiday anthology. A truly frightening experience.

Immerse yourself in a seasonally chilling anthology teeming with unforgettable stories, all chilling to the bone. This anthology is an essential pick for horror readers looking for a horrific read this winter. Though each tale boasts its unique individuality, the commonality lies in their compelling conclusions. An truly enthralling read for this winter (or any season), it stands as a testament amazing talent in horror storytelling we have at the moment.

The list of authors include Josh Malerman, Clay McLeod Chapman, Gwendolyn Kiste, Tim Waggoner, Hailey Piper, Stephanie M. Wytovich, Lindy Ryan and Christopher Brooks, Eric LaRocca, M. Rickert, Lee Murray, Cynthia Pelayo, Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon, Kelsea Yu, Nat Cassidy, Tommy Hutson, Rachel Harrison, Kristi DeMeester, Sara Tantlinger, Darcy Coates, Jeff Strand, Mercedes M. Yardley, and Jamie Flanagan.

Legendary writer George C. Romero, son of the late George A. Romero, gives a wonderful introduction.

My thanks to Lindy Ryan, Crooked Lane books and Netgalley.
This was not as terrific as I was hoping for.
Truth is that I nearly d.n.f.'d this thing. So many wonderful authors that I figured this would be pretty damned good. Oops! I'm not going to say who I thought stunk, but I will say that some of the stinkiest came from established authors.
I do often wonder if some established authors send in their crap to lesser known editors and publishers. If so, then it was on full display here.
It did take me up until the forth or fifth story to even find something that I liked. And that's usually too late.
There are most certainly some really decent shorties here. There's just enough bad ones though that makes me give this anthology a middle of the road rating.

A collection of short winter horror stories to bring a little fright to the holiday season.

I would recommend picking this up if you are missing winter already and just want to cozy up against a fire and read frightening stories by some very talented authors.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC.

I loved this little collection of scary stories. The only part I didn't like about reading this was that I read it in the Spring instead of during the holiday season, because this is perfect for those cold winter nights. I absolutely loved every single story in this collection, and found myself unable to put the book down. The stories are all a perfect length that both maintains a hold of your attention throughout and still gives you a satisfying amount of details and closure at the end. The stories are all so unique, unlike any I have read before, and I read a lot of horror story anthologies. They all fit perfectly within the theme of holiday or wintery frights, and some even have a potent dark humor and wit woven in. They were all perfectly bizzarre and disturbing.

With 22 stories, it is difficult to pick a favorite. However, the stories I enjoyed the most were "The Buried Child," "Father's Last Christmas," "Carol of the Hells," "Nice," and "Egg Nog." The authors all have well-deserved track records in the horror story world and the stories are all beautifully written.

This was a joy to read, and I'm considering purchasing a copy of this book once it is published. Thank you to Lindy Ryan, Crooked Lane Books, and NetGalley for this ARC.

A horror-packed set of stories perfect for the dark and cold holiday season. I enjoyed a couple of the stories, but unfortunately a lot of them felt confusing and weird. I'm a staunch believer in less is more and I feel like there were too many very short stories crammed together instead of focusing on a smaller set of stories and making them longer. I think I personally would've enjoyed this anthology more if I had more time with each story. I still would recommend this to anyone who enjoys horror and is looking for something to pass the time during winter.

I’m all for new winter anthologies, especially featuring some of my favorite horror writers including Nat Cassidy, Clay McLeod Chapman, Darcy Coates, Rachel Harrison, and Josh Malerman. Most of these stories were fantastic and only a couple fell short. Surprisingly Jeff Strands story was hilarious and probably my favorite of the book.

I enjoyed this one. However I feel like I would have preffered to read this towards autumn/winter when the weathers more dark and gloomy, so it’s going into my reread pile! It’s definitely one for the dark nights!

DNF-ed on page 67.

none of the stories were really clicking with me and seemed quite haphazerdly thrown together. besides all being vaguely set in winter, and the occasional mention of snow, nothing really seemed to fit together or revolve around a central theme.

i feel like winter lends itself very well to horror as a season, but the stories really needed stronger elements to form a coherent book.

really should've stopped reading this one at 'cold as ice' because that one just felt like a hate crime.

I’m all for new winter anthologies, especially featuring some of my favorite horror writers including Nat Cassidy, Clay McLeod Chapman, Darcy Coates, Rachel Harrison, and Josh Malerman. Most of these stories were fantastic and only a couple fell short. Surprisingly Jeff Strands story was hilarious and probably my favorite of the book.

This book comes out in September, just in time for the holiday season! Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC.

Varying quality but it’s overall high, I actually think this would be a good seasonal read for horror fans. I love the incorporation of poetry that got me in a soft spot deep down.

Thank you for this ARC! This was a blast to read!

My favorite stories were by Josh Malerman, Darcy Coates, Gwendolyn Kiste, and Jamie Flanagan.

There are others I liked and some I found unnecessarily gross more than spooky, but that’s just something I’m not personally into. That’s what makes this book of short scary stories so brilliant, there’s a range of stories for everybody’s tastes!

Will definitely recommend this and probably buy a physical copy on release day because the cover art is strangely satisfying to look at!

Loved it! Was a little worried I wouldn’t be able to get into it because it’s, you know, warm outside. But it made me feel like I needed a hot chocolate. I enjoyed every single story! That’s really rare for me with short story books. I always end up liking a couple, and then wanting to skip the rest after I start them. Thaw by Rachel Harrison was my favorite! <3

This collection was packed with some great authors and it was interesting to read their take on winter horror. As usual with collections, there were a lot of hit or misses and unfortunately, the majority just weren't for me.
My favorites were definitely Darcy Coates and Jeff Strands' stories. But please do give it a chance, there's a ton of variety and different takes so there's bound to be a story you will enjoy.
Thank you so much to #Netgalley and #CrookedLaneBooks for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Horror stories are my favorite but want to know what my absolute favorite is…dark winter horror anthologies with so many of my favorite authors! That’s right!!! This book was packed with so many good spooky gems…22 😱 to be exact! I think I loved every single one of them and don’t even ask me to choose a favorite. Loved them all honestly! You’ll be thinking about these stories long after you’ve read them.

Take your time, open up the book and read one or two or more curled up in a cozy chair with a warm drink! I love setting these out on my coffee table for some evening reading. This needs to be on your TBR!! Even in summer—it’s a good time for a good ghostly story around the campfire right?!

I really enjoyed the way this collection used the winter elements for the horror. It had everything that I was looking for and enjoyed how each stories worked overall. The authors did a great job in making it suspenseful and was engaged with what was happening.

The Good:
I had marked 9 stories with 5 star reviews, and 3 stories with 4 star reviews, that's 12 stories that I found to be pretty good reads. My favorite: BEING NICE by Jeff Strand. My 2nd favorite: Mr. Butler by Clay M. Chapman. Common theme between the two : Humor mixed into the horror.

The Bad:
The other half of the book was just ok. The first two stories of the book, I couldn't stand. They were in the 2nd person, the authors trying to put the reader into the story and it failed horribly. I hate when authors constrain their readers. Our small brains automatically go against the motions you have set forth for us in your story. How can you assume the reader's actions?? Bah...this was frustrating to read.

There were 2-3 other stories that I felt weren't even horror. There was a story that I gave 4 stars to because I enjoyed it (the writing was excellent, it held my attention) but it wasn't horror. I don't think that 'suspense' and 'psychological drama' is horror, and not in these stories anyway. The themes between the stories varied greatly from mythical creatures to gothic horror to modern psychological horror to office drama (??)

Short story collections are always a mixed bag but this one was actually pretty strong overall. Some really good talent here. I was surprised, though, to see a story from the editor as one of the selections!

Anyway, my favorites were "I Hope This Finds You Well" by Eric LaRocca (definitely my favorite thing l've read of his,) "Mr. Butler" by Clay McLeod Chapman, "Eggnog" by Kristi DeMeester and "Threads of Epiphany" by Sara Tantlinger.

What a marvellous wintery horror story collection! I really enjoyed reading this and flew through the stories. The 22 stories are centred around Christmas horror and boy do they deliver. I especially love this as I tend to celebrate a horror themed Christmas and am looking forward to bringing this book out every year and sharing some stories. I wasn’t aware of some authors and funnily enough their stories I loved slightly more than some familiar horror and thriller writers! Also some of my favourite horror authors were part of the collection which was a pleasant surprise.
There’s something for everyone in this book and I love the way it shows how different authors can get together with a common theme and create individual works. The editor did a wonderful job correlating this collection. I’m not going to rate each story individually as I believe it is meant to be devoured as a whole and as a whole I adore this collection. The introduction by George C. Romero is a perfect way to enter this wintery horror world of author's. I can picture them all around a fire roasting marshmallows in a snow laced forest telling their stories. What a marvellous feeling to get from a book. Definitely 5 stars from me now and every future Christmas!

Thankyou to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the Arc

The Darkest Night is a well-rounded compendium of winter themed horror. Not all the stories land, but there’s something for every horror fan here.

Brilliant and terrifying short stories.!This is a defining top-of-the-line collection for horror lovers. I've read several of these authors previously, however I've also found some new ones I'll be seeking out. Well done!