Led Astray: The Best of Kelley Armstrong

With her signature twists and turns, #1 New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong (Otherworld, Cainsville, Darkest Powers, Age of Legends) always gives a fresh spin on city-dwelling vampires, werewolves, and zombies. She is equally exciting when traveling further afield, to a post-apocalyptic fortress, a superstitious village, a supernatural brothel, and even feudal Japan.

Here is the first time that urban fantasy, young adult, mystery, and crime author Kelley Armstrong has had her stories collected from the Otherworld and beyond. From humorous to heart-stopping, and including two original tales, Led Astray showcases Armstrong at her versatile best.

Contents:

Rakshashi (standalone)
Kat (Darkest Powers universe, non-series narrator)
A Haunted House of Her Own (standalone)
Learning Curve (Otherworld universe, Zoe)
The Screams of Dragons (Cainsville universe, non-series narrator)
The Kitsune’s Nine Tales (Age of Legends universe, non-series narrator)
Last Stand (standalone)
Bamboozled (Otherworld universe, non-series narrator)
Branded (Otherworld universe, non-series narrator)
The List (Otherworld universe, Zoe)
Young Bloods (Otherworld universe, non-series narrator)
The Door (standalone, original to this collection)
Dead Flowers by a Roadside (standalone)
Suffer the Children (standalone)
The Collector (standalone)
Gabriel’s Gargoyles (Cainsville universe, Gabriel)
Harbinger (standalone)
V Plates (Otherworld universe, Nick)
Life Sentence (Otherworld universe, non-series narrator)
Plan B (standalone)
The Hunt (Cainsville universe, non-series narrator)
Dead to Me (standalone)
Devil May Care (Cainsville universe, Patrick, original to this collection)

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Fantasy Short Stories

Release date: September 9, 2015

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Kelley Armstrong

Few writers navigate the shadows between the supernatural and the psychological quite like Kelley Armstrong. From the haunting forests of Bitten to the chilling revelations of The Masked Truth, her stories don’t just ask you to suspend disbelief—they dare you to believe in something darker, something just beyond the veil of the everyday. Her books aren't designed merely to entertain; they are invitations to worlds where secrets breed monsters and survival often depends on trust that’s always a little too fragile.

Born and raised in Ontario, Canada, Armstrong didn’t follow a straight path into the literary world. Her early years saw her immersed in computer programming, a world of logic and structure that contrasts sharply with the instinct-driven storytelling she would later become known for. But it’s that contrast—precision meeting chaos—that now defines much of her work. Whether she’s crafting tense psychological thrillers or building layered fantasy universes, she grounds every twist and revelation in characters that feel vividly, often uncomfortably, real.

Armstrong first made waves with her Women of the Otherworld series, a genre-blending urban fantasy saga that challenged traditional narratives about power, femininity, and identity. Readers were introduced to Elena Michaels, the only known female werewolf, in a narrative that mixed horror with introspection and action with emotional complexity. The series’ success was more than commercial—it helped shape the urban fantasy landscape for a generation of readers and writers.

Her storytelling has since evolved across genres and age groups. The Darkest Powers and Darkness Rising trilogies brought her signature mix of suspense and the supernatural to young adult audiences, while her Rockton mysteries—set in a hidden town off the grid—blend thriller, isolation horror, and emotional intimacy with unsettling ease. No matter the setting, her themes remain consistent: trust under pressure, identity in flux, and the tension between instinct and reason.

Kelley Armstrong’s longevity as a bestselling author isn't rooted in formulas or trends. It's in her ability to listen—to her characters, to her readers, to the fear that simmers under the surface of everyday life. With over thirty novels translated worldwide and a loyal readership spanning genres and generations, she continues to write stories that linger long after the final page, often when the lights are off and the house is quiet.

Because in a Kelley Armstrong novel, the monsters are never just make-believe. They're reflections. They're questions. And sometimes, they’re waiting just outside the door.