Compiled by Xtina Marie, this heart-stopping conglomeration of terror represents the coming together of a whole bunch of the finest independent horror authors writing today.

School’s out for summer, and these dads are ready to ship their kids off to camp. Not just because their kids are monsters - whose aren’t? - but because they’re ready for some alone time to let their hair down and their fangs out. You see, not only are the kids monsters - their dads are, too. Even the most dangerous of creatures has a soft spot. These bad, dangerous dads love their kids to death, but they need romance.

Acclaimed author Maiya Williams has written and produced several children’s television programs, including Rugrats and The PJ’s. When their mother dies suddenly, 13-year-old Rowan and 11-year-old Nina move in with their aunts. Soon after, Rowan and Nina begin to suspect their aunts possess psychic powers. With friends in tow, the two siblings embark on an adventure through time to discover the origins of their aunts’ strange powers. Kevin Free’s playful narration perfectly suits this mysterious tale.

Imagine going to bed with mousy brown locks and waking up with a headful of supernova scarlet. It's a hot new look for me - literally, because it bursts into flames whenever I'm threatened. My magical makeover is all Gary's fault. I knew there was something off from the moment he transferred to my school. Go figure. He's a wizard with a trust fund and an inferiority complex. Now, thanks to him, I've graduated from high school bullies to supernatural terrors and that's not all. Fate has chosen me to face the legendary vampire destined to destroy the world. 

After an exhausting trek through seven hells, all Lazarus wants is to kick back and relax through the holidays. Unfortunately, the supernatural has other plans. Three murder-suicides in as many weeks has New Orleans on edge. The killers? All family men, loving fathers, and wizards. Two is a coincidence, but three is a pattern Lazarus can't ignore, especially since he fits the profile. Something is driving these men insane and making them murder their beloved families. Something that strikes only at night and leaves only nightmares behind.

Six months ago, Ava Black fell from her Queen Bee status. Once she ruled the halls of her high school without mercy, crushing her enemies and stepping on anyone who dared stand in her way. Now, amongst the peasants, she does everything she can to avoid her former friends, mainly Frankie the new reigning Queen, who now bullies her relentlessly.

I’ve just got out of prison and I’m running from my MC, so my stepsister’s best friend has agreed to drive me across the country. Summer’s my ride. That’s all. But she captivates me, and I don’t have a damn clue why. She’s a distraction I can’t afford. Is it because I’ve been told she’s forbidden? Is it because she’s preppy and freakin’ beautiful, so not a part of my world? With every mile of our trip, every spark of connection, she seems to inch closer to me. The temptation is too much to resist.

Addiction starts like a sweet lullaby sung by a trusted loved one. It washes away the pains of the day and wraps you in the warmness of the womb where nothing hurts and every dream is possible. Yet soon enough, this warm state of bliss becomes a cold shiver, the ecstasy and dreams become nightmares, yet we can't stop listening to the lullaby. We crave to hear the siren song as it rips us apart.

Joseph Moore, choir director for the First Baptist Church of Lenora, Nebraska, has secrets of his own. Terrible, lonely secrets. One that involves natural human desire. One that calls forth powers he cannot begin to understand. Both with the potential to destroy him and those he loves. Now the world is changing. The darkness, the shadows, the ghosts, are closing in — and Joseph and his lover, Kevin, are being stalked by a merciless demon, hell-bent on possession. 

Unaware and captured. Those were the words that summed up my life. I never knew my parents, let alone that I was some menace to society...a half-breed. Not only am I trying to navigate my newly found identity, but now I'm torn between a handsome guard and a dangerously sexy inmate. I'd rather die than conform to what all the others want, and that's exactly what I'm afraid may happen.

The Piper clan emigrated from Scotland and founded the town of Santo Verde, California. The Gothic Victorian estate built there has housed the family for generations and has also become home to an ancient evil forever linked to the Piper name. Now a widower with two children of his own, Rick has returned home to build a new life. He wants to believe the greenjacks don't exist, that they were a figment of his own childish fears and the vicious torment he suffered at the hands of his brother. 

Wes might be all I have at the moment, good or bad. He's as wild as ever, and I know it's my fault. He's not made for love, and I'm not made to be pushed around. Together, it's explosive - in more ways than one. And when I set my sights on revenge, I have to keep it close to my heart. 

A year ago, I woke in the morgue with a note in my hand telling me that I’m a vampire. I need blood or I’ll start killing people. Lucky for me, Justin has been sneaking into my bedroom and feeding me blood for a year, and the only price I have to pay for it is putting up with his cruel snipes and my unwanted feelings for him. I just can’t figure out why he keeps coming back. But all that changes when I’m offered a full-ride scholarship to Justin’s mysterious school, the elite Blackburn Academy, where I might finally learn about vampires. About myself.

What do you do when you find out you’re not who you always thought you were and your whole world gets flipped upside down? Ariel Kimber stumbles into a world she didn’t know existed, a world of magic and nothing is as it seems. Thankfully, she has the guys to guide her, to hold her hand along the way, and she is going to need a whole lot of hand-holding.  

Get four complete stories in Frank Kurns: Tales of the Underworld: You Don't Touch John's Cousin, Bitch's Night Out, Bitch's Night Out, and Challenges.