Don’t Turn Out the Lights: A Tribute to Alvin Schwartz's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

Written by Jonathan Maberry, R.L. Stine, Amy Lukavics and 16 more

Narrated by Adam Verner and Hillary Huber

Featuring stories from R.L. Stine and Madeleine Roux, this middle grade horror anthology, curated by New York Times bestselling author and master of macabre Jonathan Maberry, is a chilling tribute to Alvin Schwartz’s Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

Flesh-hungry ogres? Brains full of spiders? Haunted houses you can’t escape? This collection of 35 terrifying stories from the Horror Writers Association has it all, including ghastly illustrations from Iris Compiet that will absolutely chill readers to the bone.

So turn off your lamps, click on your flashlights, and prepare—if you dare—to be utterly spooked!

The complete list of writers: Linda D. Addison, Courtney Alameda, Jonathan Auxier, Gary A. Braunbeck, Z Brewer, Aric Cushing, John Dixon, Tananarive Due, Jamie Ford, Kami Garcia, Christopher Golden, Tonya Hurley, Catherine Jordan, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Alethea Kontis, N.R. Lambert, Laurent Linn, Amy Lukavics, Barry Lyga, D.J. MacHale, Josh Malerman, James A. Moore, Michael Northrop, Micol Ostow, Joanna Parypinksi, Brendan Reichs, Madeleine Roux, R.L. Stine, Margaret Stohl, Gaby Triana, Luis Alberto Urrea, Rosario Urrea, Kim Ventrella, Sheri White, T.J. Wooldridge, Brenna Yovanoff

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Sep 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9780063028197

Jonathan Maberry

Jonathan Maberry is a New York Times bestselling and five-time Bram Stoker Award–winning author, anthology editor, comic book writer, executive producer, and writing teacher. He is the creator of V Wars (Netflix) and Rot & Ruin (Alcon Entertainment). His books have been sold to more than two dozen countries. To learn more about Jonathan, visit him online at jonathanmaberry.

Reviews for Don’t Turn Out the Lights

[irenecole · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"He reaches for me and I'm sure he plans to pull out my intestines and wear them like a scarf, but instead he pats my head."

When my son was in middle school I bought him the set of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. After he read them I did too. Don't Turn Out The Lights is exactly the kind of story collection that I would have bought for him when he was younger and that he would still keep on his book case now that he is grown. Whether you have kids or are a kid at heart these stories are a spooky journey into otherworldly realms, sometimes with a moral to the story, such as being careful what you wish for in Jingle Jangle. One of my absolute favorites was "The Neighbor" when a lonely boy finds a playmate but all is not as it seems. Some reveal some hidden dangers in social media or text messages from strangers such as in The House On The Hill or the even more terrifying "Tag You're It" where a boy has a creepy social media stalker from which there is no escape. I also loved that each story has a spine tingling illustration. This was such a fun read and for me it was like a trip down memory lane and something brand new all rolled in to one.

4 out of 5 stars
I received an advance copy for review.

[acargile-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a 2021 Lone Star novel. It's a tribute to the famous Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.I should say that I hate horror. I hated the Scary Stories. If you like silly, "scary" stories, and especially if you like all of the Scary Story books that are ALWAYS checked out, you'll definitely want to read this book. There are 35 stories--yes, I read them all. I don't know why. I could have just told y'all what they were like and read a few. I was determined to finish. I think the book will be checked out constantly. Most of the stories are pretty short. I don't recall many stories being more than ten-ish pages. Some were as short as four pages. The authors are famous teen and YA authors: R. L. Stine, Courtney Alameda, and Margaret Stohl--just to name a few. If you are having a slumber party and want fun, stilly, "scary" stories, you'll want to check this out of the library.