AustLit logo

AustLit

y separately published work icon After Dark series - publisher   children's   thriller   horror  
Issue Details: First known date: 1995... 1995 After Dark
The material on this page is available to AustLit subscribers. If you are a subscriber or are from a subscribing organisation, please log in to gain full access. To explore options for subscribing to this unique teaching, research, and publishing resource for Australian culture and storytelling, please contact us or find out more.

AbstractHistoryArchive Description

After Dark is a popular series of thrillers, some containing mild horror or supernatural content, written for older children by Australian and New Zealand authors. The books are extensively illustrated, and are targeted at reluctant readers, although their appeal has proved to be much wider. The series is edited by Gary Crew, who has also authored some of the books in the series. After Dark has also been published as a series in the United Kingdom by Franklin Watts. According to the Courier Mail (Brisbane), "All the stories [in the After Dark series] are strong, dramatic and chilling. They are rich in symbolism and meaning. They are well crafted and feature a range of story structures from simple narratives to complex multi-layered plots. After Dark offers the promise of heart-stopping, spine-tingling drama and it doesn't disappoint."

Notes

  • Many of these works were published in a series of the same name by Watts (New York and London).

Includes

1
y separately published work icon The Bent-Back Bridge Gary Crew , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1995 Z849600 1995 single work children's fiction children's adventure ‘Janet has no friends. No friends at all. So when Lola, the new girl in her class asks to meet her at the Bent-Back Bridge terminus after dark, she agrees. Janet would give anything to have a friend ... well, almost anything ...’ (Source: Back cover) Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1995
2
y separately published work icon The Barn Gary Crew , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1995 Z849609 1995 single work children's fiction children's adventure horror 'Carter Lawrance is cool. He's a city kid. His parents have just bought a run-down farm in the middle of nowhere, and Carter is not happy. Then he discovers the rotting barn in the swamp ... and the giant, white worms ... and the claw prints of the creature that feeds on them' (source: back cover). Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1995
3
y separately published work icon The Well Gary Crew , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z282719 1996 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Seth and Adam are identical twins, but no two boys could be more different. Adam is cheerful and sunny, Seth cold and morose. When the dark secret of the well in the pine forest lures them to their fate, who can tell which twin will prove the stronger?' (source: back cover). Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
4
y separately published work icon The Crow Peter Lawrance , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z833971 1996 single work children's fiction horror 'A group of teenagers are on a school wilderness camp at remote, and rugged, Clausen's Cove. They notice that there is a ring of stone fireplaces which seem to surround the camp behind a high, barbed-wire-topped fence. A local farmer warns them not to wander in the bush, beyond the ring of fireplaces at night, because there are hidden mine shafts and a pack of wild dogs roaming there. Sarah, who hates school camps, meets a local boy who tells her of a long-hidden murder and arranges to meet her at midnight, at a hut in the bush, to see the murder weapon, a sickle. At this fateful assignation, under a sickle moon, she realises too late the meaning of the fireplaces and the wild dogs...'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
5
y separately published work icon The Stray Cat Steven Paulsen , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z833974 1996 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Nathan and his mother have not long moved into an old farmhouse when a strange, ugly cat wanders in, much to the fury of their dog, Zane. The cat seems to have lived there before, and won't be discouraged. After a while, strange events begin to happen...' (Source: bookseller's website). Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
6
y separately published work icon The Giant Spiders Stephen Measday , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z921540 1996 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Toy spiders, assembled by children in a town, come to life and go out feeding.' The Source subscription database. Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
7
y separately published work icon The Mouth Carmel Bird , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z204480 1996 single work short story young adult 'The story of the aftermath of a teenage girl's suicide. Her story is revealed in her diary, left for her former best friend instead of a suicide note. This reveals the girl's low self-esteem and obsessive crush on a teacher, whose accidental drowning she blames on herself, and so she takes her own life...Jade knows that her best friend, Fern, has died. Yet she can hear Fern tapping on the window every night - what is Fern's ghost trying to tell her?'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
8
y separately published work icon The Carriers Jonathan Harlen , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z833977 1996 single work children's fiction children's horror Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
9
y separately published work icon The Island Michael O'Hara , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z839621 1996 single work children's fiction horror When four boys are stranded on an island the youngest and most bullied somehow finds the strength to save some of the group from violent death as the natural world takes revenge for previous acts of cruelty.
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
10
y separately published work icon The Pipe James Moloney , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z833564 1996 single work children's fiction children's thriller 'There's something about the stormwater drain that draws the skateboarder in. "Don't go in there," the local kids warn, but those smooth concrete walls, curving away into the darkness, are the ultimate challenge.'
Source: National Library catalogue
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
11
y separately published work icon The Red Shoes Isobelle Carmody , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996 Z847690 1996 single work children's 'When Amerie was four, her mother vanished. Just before her eighth birthday, Amerie finds a mysterious gift hidden at the back of the bookshelf. The clues she finds in it send her on a search which leads her to the forbidden attic and a dangerous secret.... '
Source: Trove
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1996
12
y separately published work icon The Half Dead Garry Disher , Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z842115 1997 single work children's fiction children's horror 'The shadow of the Black Hall broods over the City of the Half Dead - a place where almost all the men and boys have lost a hand, an arm, a leg in mysterious accidents - or are they accidents? Reny, a teenage loner living rough, stumbles upon the Hall's grisly secrets... A tale of grim horror'.
Source: Dust jacket (http://www.middlemiss.org/ Sighted 08/05/2012)
 Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
13
y separately published work icon The Wombat King Philip Neilsen , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z205075 1997 single work novella young adult Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
14
y separately published work icon The Intruder Rowena Cory Daniells , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z921548 1997 single work children's fiction children's horror 'As an experienced babysitter, Taryn thinks she's prepared for anything, until she meets Serendipity, a four year old with a genius IQ and a lethal imagination. A terrifying tale of telepathic powers.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
15
y separately published work icon The Tunnel Matthew Condon , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z847693 1997 single work children's fiction children's horror Lulu and Jack move to the country with their parents. Bored, Jack wanders the countryside. He discovers an abandoned tunnel which is the home of strange phenomena.
'Come play, come play, the ghostly children's voices echo through the stillness of the rainforest. Though Jack has been warned not to answer, something draws him closer and closer to the band of souls.'
Source: Publisher's blurb
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
16
y separately published work icon The Peppercorn Tree Sheryl Gardner , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z205887 1997 single work novel young adult horror 'High up in the old Peppercorn tree three young girls invent scary stories, but one becomes horribly real.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
17
y separately published work icon The Ghost of Love Street Venero Armanno , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z206296 1997 single work novella young adult horror 'Sam is a skateboarder with a heart full of pain. He desperately misses Samantha, his beautiful girlfriend, who is no longer in this world. Or is she? On the anniversary of her murder, when Sam visits her old house in Love Street, does he really expect to find her again? Will he give her that final kiss he's dreamed about and set them both free? A ghost story for street-wise kids.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
18
y separately published work icon The Bats Gavin Warner , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z833980 1997 single work children's fiction children's horror Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
19
y separately published work icon The Rings Jenny Pausacker , Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z833983 1997 single work novella young adult horror 'Mary and Alice and Sarah vowed to be friends forever, but it didn't quite work out that way. And if something like that happened to your best friend, wouldn't you want revenge too? A story of real-life horror from leading young adult author Jenny Pausacker and international award-winning illustrator Gregory Rogers.'
Soure: Bookseller's website
 Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
20
y separately published work icon The Twist in the Tale Ruth Starke , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z245345 1997 single work novella young adult horror 'A school project on ageing has Gemma worried about how old her parents are looking, until she discovers a recipe for eternal youth. But when her experiments start going wrong, she learns that the secret of living forever can extract a price.'
Source: Publisher's blurb
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
21
y separately published work icon The Vampires Cameron W. Rogers , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z935519 1997 single work children's fiction children's horror Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
22
y separately published work icon The Lie Philip Neilsen , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z113217 1997 single work novella young adult 'Edward tells a lie that even he begins to believe. After all, what matters is that all the kids at school think he's a hero. But only at the bridge will the truth come out, and making the wrong choice could be fatal.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
23
y separately published work icon The Doll Janine Burke , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z833986 1997 single work children's fiction children's 'Caroline's family inherited a mysterious, old-fashioned doll. Soon after it arrives, Caroline's mother becomes deathly sick. Then the doll starts popping up in some very odd places. Caroline thinks that the doll is out to get her mom. Could a little doll be evil?'
Source: Stone Arch Books website http://www.capstonepub.com/product/9781598898583 (Sighted 03/05/2012)
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
24
y separately published work icon The Silver Eyes Jackie French , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997 Z113320 1997 single work novella young adult horror 'Did Dusty Biggins, who shot any animal that moved , commit suicide? Did Bernie Marshall, known for his cruelty to dogs, cut his throat with a broken bottle later that week? Patrick, the strange, quiet new boy in town whose only friend is a stray dog, seems to know a lot about suicide...'
Source: Publisher's blurb
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1997
25
y separately published work icon The Goddess Robin Klein , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z834301 1998 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Mattie and Joel are uneasy in their new step sister/​brother relationship, and when they move to a new house they suffer a terrible fate from a peculiar old rag doll which they find.'
Source: Trove
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
26
y separately published work icon The Cannibal Virus Sue Robinson , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z921553 1998 single work children's fiction children's horror 'How can an ordinary history assignment turn into a life-threatening encounter with cannibal convicts? And how can an ordinary computer carry a man-eating virus? Just ask Stuart, who was unlucky enough to find out.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
27
y separately published work icon The Ghost of Deadman's Beach Venero Armanno , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z192241 1998 single work novella young adult 'What did Jodie feel as she jogged on Deadman's Beach that winter's morning? Was it only the stinging bite of the wind-whipped sand? And why did the wildly foaming sea seem to call: You will fail. Yes, you will fail. Who can answer? If not Jodie herself, then perhaps the ghost of Deadman's Beach? A story of the tragic consequences of lost love.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
28
y separately published work icon The Playground Shaun Tan , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z834364 1998 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Gavin is obsessed with hunting for treasure with his metal detector. He finds the perfect spot, a huge, sandy playground. Then he meets a bunch of kids who have a mysterious treasure hunt of their own. Gavin gets the feeling they want him to stay forever.'
Source: Stone Arch Books website Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
29
y separately published work icon The Snake Man James Moloney , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z834454 1998 single work children's fiction children's horror Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
30
y separately published work icon The Spirited Boy Libby Hathorn , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z834406 1998 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Carlos is tortured as is his mother and sister, by the scorn and control of the powerful Pablo, his grandfather. When Pablo dies it seems he continues to exert control even from the grave. That is until Carlos decides there is a gruesome way to get even and at last be free.'
Source: Author's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
31
y separately published work icon The Crescent Moon Jonathan Harlen , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z804402 1998 single work children's fiction children's horror 'A group of teenagers are on a school wilderness camp at remote, and rugged, Clausen's Cove. They notice that there is a ring of stone fireplaces which seem to surround the camp behind a high, barbed-wire-topped fence. A local farmer warns them not to wander in the bush, beyond the ring of fireplaces at night, because there are hidden mine shafts and a pack of wild dogs roaming there. Sarah, who hates school camps, meets a local boy who tells her of a long-hidden murder and arranges to meet her at midnight, at a hut in the bush, to see the murder weapon, a sickle. At this fateful assignation, under a sickle moon, she realises too late the meaning of the fireplaces and the wild dogs...'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
32
y separately published work icon The Fort Gary Crew , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998 Z915271 1998 single work children's fiction children's horror 'On an island off the northern Australian coast, a concrete gun emplacement has been built on the cliff top to repel Japanese forces during World War II. Now deserted, the fort has become a favourite play area for local children. But when a Japanese boy, Hiro, comes to live on the island, fear and prejudice provoke a new and deadly game.'
Source: Fantastic Fiction website (Sighted 03/05/2012)
'Hiro, a lonely and artistic Japanese boy, comes to live on Thursday Island. Local bullies force him to take part in their war games, but how can Hiro defend himself when his only weapons are a paintbrush and paper?'
Source: Trove
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1998
33
The Grandstand Gary Crew , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z847969 1999 single work children's fiction children's horror
— Appears in: The Puppet [and] The Hicksville Horror [and] The Grandstand 2002; 'A retired policeman is telling his grandchildren the "real life" horror story of "Dicky" Dingle. "Dicky" was the groundsman at a small bush school, none too bright and lamed by polio - a sitting duck for some of the nastier children, who make his life a misery. Unbeknown to the children, "Dicky" plans a horrible revenge on his tormentors.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999
34
y separately published work icon The Darkroom Gerard Ross , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z834823 1999 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Annie's father was a forensic photographer. Before he died, he told Annie that his camera could look into people's souls. Since his death, Annie's world has changed in every way. Now the holidays drag, her little brother is a pest, and her mother is always busy. Annie ventures back into the darkroom, but is she ready to discover the dark secrets that await her there?'
Source: Fantastic Fiction website http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/ (Sighted 03/05/2012)
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999
35
The Puppet Ian Bone , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z848120 1999 single work children's fiction children's horror
— Appears in: The Puppet [and] The Hicksville Horror [and] The Grandstand 2002; 'Tim barely knows his father, but he's spending the day at his dad's workplace. The set of the TV show "Dr. Riddle" seems normal at first, but it becomes clear that something strange is going on. The star of the show is just a puppet, so why does the puppet master treat it like a real boy?' (Source: Google Books). Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999
36
y separately published work icon The Millstone Michael O'Hara , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z835135 1999 single work children's fiction children's horror 'Kasha and her father's new wife Jill, who Kasha and her mother call "That Woman", are exploring underground caves when a large rock falls and is about to seal the passage where Jill had gone ahead, unless Kasha holds it back. Will she resist the urge to get rid of "That Woman" for ever - and even if she wants to, how long can she hold on?'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999
37
The Hicksville Horror Nette Hilton , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z835129 1999 single work children's fiction children's horror
— Appears in: The Puppet [and] The Hicksville Horror [and] The Grandstand 2002; 'A young boy starts at yet another new school, in yet another hick town. He is soon confronted by the school arch-bully, Wedge, and his cat-eating dog, Meataxe. When Meataxe kills the boy's beloved cat, Socksie, he sets out for revenge, aided by the mysterious Madame Enilef.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999
38
y separately published work icon The Bell of Germelshausen Eleanor Nilsson , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z835138 1999 single work children's Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999
39
y separately published work icon The Bread of Heaven Gary Crew , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z848182 1999 single work children's fiction children's horror Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999
40
y separately published work icon The Landlord Isobelle Carmody , Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999 Z848191 1999 single work children's fiction children's horror 'When a mysterious entrepreneur known simply as the Landlord takes over a derelict theatre, Abel and his strange and brilliant friend Egon are fascinated by its transformation into an Ultimate Entertainment Centre. Abel begins to see sinister changes happening around the town yet Egon sees nothing beyond the glamour.'
Source: Bookseller's website
 Port Melbourne : Lothian , 1999

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

First known date: 1995
    • Port Melbourne, South Melbourne - Port Melbourne area, Melbourne - Inner South, Melbourne, Victoria,: Lothian , 1995-1999 .
VIEW PUBLICATION DETAILS FOR ALL VERSIONS ()

Works about this Work

S-C-A-R-I-N-G the Children Kyla Ward , 1997 single work criticism
— Appears in: Viewpoint : On Books for Young Adults , Autumn vol. 5 no. 1 1997; (p. 6-10)
Untitled Helen Woodall , 1996 single work review
— Appears in: Reading Time : The Journal of the Children's Book Council of Australia , November vol. 40 no. 4 1996; (p. 27)
— Review of After Dark 1995 series - publisher
The 'After Dark' Series William Norris , 1996 single work review
— Appears in: Viewpoint : On Books for Young Adults , Summer vol. 4 no. 4 1996; (p. 16-17)
— Review of After Dark 1995 series - publisher
Untitled Helen Woodall , 1996 single work review
— Appears in: Reading Time : The Journal of the Children's Book Council of Australia , November vol. 40 no. 4 1996; (p. 27)
— Review of After Dark 1995 series - publisher
The 'After Dark' Series William Norris , 1996 single work review
— Appears in: Viewpoint : On Books for Young Adults , Summer vol. 4 no. 4 1996; (p. 16-17)
— Review of After Dark 1995 series - publisher
S-C-A-R-I-N-G the Children Kyla Ward , 1997 single work criticism
— Appears in: Viewpoint : On Books for Young Adults , Autumn vol. 5 no. 1 1997; (p. 6-10)
VIEW ALL WORKS ABOUT (3)
Last amended 18 Mar 2024 15:10:09
Subjects:
Newspapers:
    Powered by Trove
    X