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The Dark Descent Books in Order
Below you'll find the complete list of The Dark Descent books in publication order. This is generally the recommended reading order for the series.
Reading order verified: April 2026
Quick Answer
What order should I read the The Dark Descent series? Start with "50 Great Short Stories" (1952) and follow publication order through all 25 books.
The complete The Dark Descent reading order is listed below in publication sequence.
Publication Order
50 Great Short Stories
1952
50 Great American Short Stories
1963
Volume I: The Color of Evil
1987
Christmas Ghosts
1988
Tales of the Occult
1989
The Short Story: 30 Masterpieces
1992
100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories
1993
The Oxford Book of Modern Fairy Tales
1993
Florida Stories
1993
The Screaming Skull
1994
Thrillers
1994
Bodies of the Dead & Other Great American Ghost Stories
1995
40 Short Stories: A Portable Anthology
2000
Bound for Evil: Curious Tales of Books Gone Bad
2008
The Wesleyan Anthology of Science Fiction
2010
The Best Horror Short Stories 1800-1849
2010
The Best Ghost Stories 1800-1849
2011
Simply Witchcraft's Best Short Stories Volume I
2013
Mesaerion
2013
Damned Yankees
2017
The Token and Atlantic Souvenir
2018
The Weird Fiction Collection #1
2018
American Midnight
2019
Witchcraft Classics
2023
The Dover Anthology of Classic Christmas Stories
2023
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