Terrifying Tales for Young Readers: HWA Unveils 'Scaring and Daring' Middle-Grade Anthology

Classic stories are reimagined with a horror twist in this new anthology from the Horror Writers Association, now available.

COLUMBUS, OH, UNITED STATES, August 15, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Just when you thought it was safe to revisit your favorite childhood tales, the Horror Writers Association (HWA) delivers a spine-tingling twist with its upcoming middle-grade anthology, “Scaring and Daring.” Edited by HWA member Eric J. Guignard, the collection features eerie retellings of some of literature’s most beloved stories, transformed into nightmares fit for fearless young readers.

In “Scaring and Daring,” top horror and dark fiction authors from HWA reimagine familiar classics—from Captain Hook’s run-in with dark magic, to Cinderella’s grim fate, to Sherlock Holmes encountering graveyard spirits. Each story explores the sinister side of timeless adventures, turning some “happily ever afters” into “happily never afters.”

Featuring contributions from HWA members, the anthology includes:

• “Hook and the Hand of Fate” by Teel James Glenn and Maxwell I. Gold (from “Peter Pan”)

• “What We Found Beneath Mount Etna” by Lisa Morton (from “Journey to the Center of the Earth”)

• “Prince Badi az-Zaman and the Ogress Fattan” by Tanvir Ahmed (from “One Thousand and One Nights”)

• “The Hound of the Basking Villas” by Kelley Armstrong (from “The Hound of the Baskervilles”)

• “The Lost Musketeer” by Maurice Broaddus (from “The Three Musketeers”)

• “The Secret (Thing in the) Garden” by Delilah S. Dawson (from “The Secret Garden”)

• “The Shadows in the Rock” by Joe R. Lansdale (from “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”)

• “A Lucky Find” by Kristi Petersen Schoonover (from “Moby-Dick”)

• “The Boy of La Mancha Rides a Ghost Horse” by Carlos Hernandez (from “Don Quixote,” or “El Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha”)

• “The Glass Slipper” by Sherrilyn Kenyon (from “Cinderella”)

• “Wolf in the Mirror” by Sarwat Chadda (from “The Jungle Book”)

• “Vessel Eaters” by Ai Jiang (from “The Ballad of Mulan”)

• “Freckle and Hide” by Jonathan Maberry (from “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”)

• “Out on a Limb” by Nancy Holder (from “Pollyanna”)

• “The Gruelmaster” by Nathan Carson (from “Oliver Twist”)

With cover art by Denis Zilber, this anthology invites middle-grade readers—and adults with a love of the macabre—to re-enter childhood literature through a darker lens.

“Scaring and Daring” is available through major retailers including:

• HarperCollins: Buy now
• Amazon: Buy on Amazon
• Barnes & Noble: Buy at B&N

About the Horror Writers Association

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) is a nonprofit organization of writers and publishing professionals around the world, dedicated to promoting dark literature and the interests of those who write it. Founded in the late 1980s, it now has more than 2,000 members around the world and is the oldest, most respected professional organization for creators of horror fiction. The HWA encourages public interest in and appreciation of horror and dark fantasy literature and hosts an annual professional conference, StokerCon. HWA is also dedicated to recognizing and promoting diversity in the horror genre and practices a strict anti-harassment policy at all its events. Learn more on the HWA website.

Desiree Duffy
Black Chateau
PR@BlackChateauEnterprises.com
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