History DarkerAndEdgier / Literature

* ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings''. It was a DarkerAndEdgier sequel to ''Literature/TheHobbit'' due to a mixture of CerebusSyndrome, TheMoorcockEffect of retconning the Shire into ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'' setting, and Tolkien's increasing dissatisfaction with fantasy being marketed to children.

* ''LightNovel/ASimpleSurvey'' is a two-part series. The first part, ''A Simple Survey'', is mainly a collection of bizarre short stories with no apparent underlying theme. The second, ''A Simple Monitoring'', is also a collection of short stories... that are all games in which the losers (if they survive) are executed.

* The ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'' books are horror stories starring preteen children who get into many types of macabre predicaments. However, special mention goes to ''Welcome To Dead House'', ''Stay Out of the Basement'', ''A Night in Terror Tower'', ''The Headless Ghost'', and ''I Live in Your Basement'', all of which are far darker and gorier than many of the other novels of the series. The 2000s series takes this to a much more gruesome level as well.

* ''Literature/ThePowerOfFive'' was pretty dark from the very start, but ''Oblivion'' is notably even [[UpToEleven moreso]].

* Creator/RickRiordan's other series, ''Literature/MagnusChaseAndTheGodsOfAsgard'' is much, much darker than his standard fantasy fare, including the aforementioned PJO and THO series. While those series and ''Literature/TheKaneChronicles'', even with their darker stories, mostly keep low on profanities, MCGA isn't shy from having curses and (mild) profanities from being thrown, including "damn", "hell", "gosh", etc. Then there's the fact that, [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascension]] aside, the main protagonist is disposed in a heavily horrific manner ([[spoiler: being ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice, with a gaping hole in his abdomen]]) And it's still a certifiably ''children's'' series.

* The ''Literature/HarryPotter'' books tended to get darker as they went along, which was no accident. Rowling set out to write a series that would grow up with its audience, and it was published over a decade -- so the same 10-year-olds expected to read ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone Philosopher's Stone]]'' were expected to be about 20 when they read ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows Deathly Hallows]]'', and ready for more mature fare. Naturally, this was entirely lost on a lot of concerned parents, leading to oodles of FanDumb and WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids. It started with a noticeable difference between the ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone first]]'' ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets two]]'' books and ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban The Prisoner of Azkaban]]'', which continued through ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire The Goblet of Fire]]'' and ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix The Order of the Phoenix]]'', which were much grittier.

** Among the stories from ''Literature/TheTalesOfBeedleTheBard'', "The Warlock's Hairy Heart" is grittier than the rest. Dumbledore [[LampshadeHanging comments]] that many a parent wouldn't read this particular story until their offspring are considered mature enough to handle it, citing one such author who contributes [[FreudianExcuse overhearing the story before being mature enough as one of her motives to becoming an]] InUniverse BluenoseBowdlerizer later in life (ironically, said author was never able to sweeten "The Warlock's Hairy Heart" to her satisfaction).

* The ''Literature/{{Gone}}'' books. Each book seems to get progressively darker, except for ''Lies'', which was about on the same level as ''Hunger''. Not that it started out on a light note, though. ''Fear'' is this on a very literal level.
* ''The California Diaries'' series, compared to ''Literature/TheBabySittersClub''. However, the use of this trope surprisingly didn't come off as cheesy or overdone. It allowed for more character development and exploration of realistic adolescent themes, like depression, drifting away from childhood friends, and (arguably) closeted homosexuality.

* ''Literature/IShallWearMidnight'' is much, MUCH darker than any previous Tiffany book, involving teenage pregnancy, domestic violence and the [[NightmareFuel Cunning Man]], a truly terrifying AnthropomorphicPersonification of violent persecution of "outsiders".
* Diana Gabaldon's ''Lord John Grey'' series, historical mysteries concerning a secondary character from her main set of historicals, come across as an attempt to be both DarkerAndEdgier and HotterAndSexier, using the seedy aspects of the protagonist's forbidden love affairs, him being gay and the setting being the 18th century, for all the shock they're worth. They may or may not have managed it. (Her main books are themselves essentially Darker and Edgier versions of the 'roguish Scots in kilts' type of historical romance, though significantly better written- there's still smoldering glances, kilts, time travels and duels, but the male love interest's the one who suffers all the traumatic [[RapeAsDrama villain-initiated rape scenes]] and Gabaldon doesn't hold back on the gore or inequality much.)
* ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' and its sequel, ''Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus'' take a darker turn with every book released. The first indication of a dark turn is during the third book, ''The Titan's Curse'', which sees [[spoiler: a 12-year-old suffering a CruelAndUnusualDeath.]] And it's ''almost'' swept aside, with only minor repercussions that got resolved in the next book. The sequel series, though, takes the cake, what with featuring DysfunctionJunction plaguing the ''entire'' main cast, with the exception of Percy himself, who's really a lucky bastard among the demigods by having GoodParents who take care of him, and even he has to endure being separated from his friends for half a year.
* Creator/RickRiordan's other series, ''Literature/MagnusChaseAndTheGodsOfAsgard'' is much, much darker than his standard fantasy fare, including the aforementioned PJO and THO series. While those series and ''Literature/TheKaneChronicles'', even with their darker stories, mostly keep low on profanities, MCGA isn't shy from having curses and (mild) profanities from being thrown, including "damn", "hell", "gosh", etc. Then there's the fact that, [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascension]] aside, the main protagonist is disposed in a heavily horrific manner ([[spoiler: being ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice, with a gaping hole in his abdomen]]) And it's still a certifiably ''children's'' series.
* ''Literature/TheWickedYears'' and ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz''. ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' is a fluffy, heartwarming story of a few friends in a magical country (albeit with a lot of FamilyUnfriendlyViolence). ''Literature/{{Wicked}}'', the novel, doesn't go more than a few pages without some swear word or mention of sex, or just sex. Creator/GregoryMaguire had a pretty dirty mind... there is a lot of weird romance in it, like Elphaba's father and mother were both in love with the same man, Elphaba's roommate was in love with her (but married a older rich guy, who all Gelphie shippers insist is an abusive ass), Elphaba's guy friend and his friend may have had a hint of romance... it never ends. And yet this isn't the [[FracturedFairyTale actual thrust of the plot]]. [[spoiler: The Wizard is a tyrant, using a secret police and assassination to suppress dissension and many ethnic groups. Conscious, sapient Animals are sent to farms and stripped of their rights, resulting in many Animals going into hiding. Elphaba herself is willing to commit murder to help her cause, and works for what can only be called a terrorist group at one point. Her mentor, Doctor Dillamond, is brutally murdered for coming close to proving the minor point that Animals (the sapient kind) and animals (the normal kind) and humans are made from the same stuff. Religious tensions between Tick-tokism (straw-man science), Lurline (straw man paganism), and the Unionists worshiping the Unnamed God tears apart society. The Wizard's projects come at severe cost in life, such as the destruction of the Quadlings' country for ruby mines. Racism between humans - especially towards Winkies and Quadlings, is common (though Munchkinlanders of means always "marry into height)." The land is caught in a terrible drought. The Yellow Brick Road and Emerald City are both wasteful boondoggles. Witch sex is hardly the 'darker and edgier' in Wicked.]]
* Another Gregory Maguire novel, ''Literature/MirrorMirror'', about Literature/SnowWhite has lots of kink. (Menstruation ''does not work that way!'')
* Creator/NeilGaiman gave Snow White a similar treatment in his short story "Snow, Glass, Apples."
* The ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'' books are horror stories starring preteen children who get into many types of macabre predicaments. However, special mention goes to ''Welcome To Dead House'', ''Stay Out of the Basement'', ''A Night in Terror Tower'', ''The Headless Ghost'', and ''I Live in Your Basement'', all of which are far darker and gorier than many of the other novels of the series. The 2000s series takes this to a much more gruesome level as well.
** Creator/RLStine followed up ''Goosebumps'' with ''Literature/TheNightmareRoom'' which was generally darker, featuring books like ''Don't Forget Me!'' and ''They Call Me Creature'' that had a more somber tone, less humor, and far gorier content.
* The ''Literature/HarryPotter'' books tended to get darker as they went along, which was no accident. Rowling set out to write a series that would grow up with its audience, and it was published over a decade -- so the same 10-year-olds expected to read ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone Philosopher's Stone]]'' were expected to be about 20 when they read ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows Deathly Hallows]]'', and ready for more mature fare. Naturally, this was entirely lost on a lot of concerned parents, leading to oodles of FanDumb and WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids. It started with a noticeable difference between the ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone first]]'' ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets two]]'' books and ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban The Prisoner of Azkaban]]'', which continued through ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire The Goblet of Fire]]'' and ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix The Order of the Phoenix]]'', which were much grittier.
** The UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance and UsefulNotes/NintendoDS games based on The Goblet of Fire and The Order of the Phoenix were both rated E for Everyone, despite the films they were based on being much grittier than the films based on Philosopher's/Sorcerer's Stone and The Chamber of Secrets. Only the DS games based on [[Film/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows The Deathly Hallows]] were rated E10+.
** Among the stories from ''Literature/TheTalesOfBeedleTheBard'', "The Warlock's Hairy Heart" is grittier than the rest. Dumbledore [[LampshadeHanging comments]] that many a parent wouldn't read this particular story until their offspring are considered mature enough to handle it, citing one such author who contributes [[FreudianExcuse overhearing the story before being mature enough as one of her motives to becoming an]] InUniverse BluenoseBowdlerizer later in life (ironically, said author was never able to sweeten "The Warlock's Hairy Heart" to her satisfaction).
* Many of the poems in ''Literature/SongsOfExperience'' are darker counterparts to poems in ''Literature/SongsOfInnocence'', for example "THE Chimney Sweeper" to "The Chimney Sweeper", "Infant Sorrow" to "Infant Joy", and both "The Human Abstract" and the cut poem "A DIVINE IMAGE" to "The Divine Image".
* After the success of her second novel ''Literature/{{Pride and Prejudice}}'', Creator/JaneAusten wrote to her sister Cassandra that she felt it was "too light, and bright, and sparkling" and planned to write something different next time. The result was her most realistic and controversial novel, ''Literature/MansfieldPark''.
* ''Literature/WickedLovely'' was, on its own, dark, due to being an UrbanFantasy novel about TheFairFolk. Ink Exchange was [[RapeAsBackstory much]], [[InterplayOfSexAndViolence much]], ''[[DrugsAreBad much]]'' more so. Then came fragile eternity, the [[LighterAndSofter Lightest and Softest]] of the series. Then came Radiant Shadows, which was similar in tone to Ink Exchange, with the additions of [[spoiler:Tish]] being KilledOffForReal, and [[spoiler:Irial]] being wounded to the extent that he'll die within a fortnight. So, it's DarkerAndEdgier And Deader.
* ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings''. It was a DarkerAndEdgier sequel to ''Literature/TheHobbit'' due to a mixture of CerebusSyndrome, TheMoorcockEffect of retconning the Shire into ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'' setting, and Tolkien's increasing dissatisfaction with fantasy being marketed to children.

** They were even Darker before the Grimm brothers got a hold of them too.

** At one point, Harry implicitly uses this trope when he needs to get himself past a truly horrifying thing he saw with his Sight. He reminds himself of all the darker and edgier (and painfully beautiful) things he's seen, and eventually can deal with this as just the next in a long line of darker and edgier increments. For those who haven't read the books, anything seen with a Wizard's Sight is unforgettable - they can never see it with any less clarity for the rest of their very long lives.

* Creator/JimButcher's other series ''Literature/CodexAlera'' does this as the series progresses. In the first novel, we have Tavi undergoing a personal challenge. By the end, there is a empire-wide war going on against [[spoiler:the Vord]] where the very existence of the empire is threatened.
* Weirdly enough, the Cambridge Latin Course textbooks. The first book were mostly just fairly light-hearted stories about Caecilius and his family, all of whom come across as genuinely nice people... until the last chapter, when Vesuvius erupts, [[{{Tear Jerker}} killing almost the entire cast (even the dog!)]] The next book moves to Roman Britain, where a new main character, Salvius, is introduced. In his very first story, he [[KickTheDog executes one of his slaves for the heinous crime of being too sick to work]], and things mostly go downhill from there. The final book ends with Salvius being taken to court for fraud and attempting to commit suicide to keep his honour intact.
** Caecilius was a real person, and he ''did'' probably die in either the eruption of Vesuvius or an earlier earthquake. They had to stay true to history if they wanted to use someone who had actually lived...
* The ''Literature/StarShardsChronicles'' trilogy starts out with some fairly dark horror themes, but stays PG-13. The final book, however, turns up the sex-and-profanity dial quite a bit.
* A series of original novels based upon the ''Franchise/TombRaider'' games was published in the mid-2000s. While the games themselves had become darker and edgier over time, the novels fully recast Lara as a killer more than an explorer and archeologist. One novel, ''The Man of Bronze'', is particularly violent, with Lara describing in first person how she mercilessly kills a group of thugs (in the process recalling how she once killed a man [[KissOfDeath while kissing him]]). Later, she attempts to kill a man in cold blood for apparently no other reason than he was painting a sexy portrait of her (she is unsuccessful).
* Literature/{{Stuck}} starts off fair enough, though in its final episode the themes get darker and there's a bit more violence and black humor. Not surprising, considering that [[spoiler: the main characters become fugitives.]]
* The Cinderella adaptation ''Sunny Ella'' casts Cinderella as a deluded murderer and Rapunzel as a soulless half-vampire.
* ''The Literature/NancyDrew Files'' and ''Literature/TheHardyBoys Casefiles'' spin-offs weren't really an attempt to go Darker and Edgier, but a switch to a new publisher removed most of their previous roadblocks, namely NeverSayDie, NoHuggingNoKissing, and the like (however, they were an attempt to skew ''older,'' hoping that maybe young readers might graduate up to them after aging out of the original series intended demographic.) In doing so, they also got better written as a side effect, and fans of both series consider them some of the better books in their respective franchises.
* ''Darke'' of the ''Literature/SeptimusHeap'' series is noticeably darker than the preceding books, what with the existence of the Castle being on play and lots of people dying in the end.
* Being a ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' series, ''Literature/GauntsGhosts'' was never sunshine and rainbows, but starting with ''The Guns of Tanith'' things got noticeably more brutal and grim, with beloved characters dying off, the battles getting even more desperate. Compare series starter ''First & Only'' with book 8, ''Traitor General'', and you could almost be forgiven for thinking you were reading two entirely different series.

* ''Cahills vs. Vespers'', the second series of ''Literature/The39Clues'', takes some noticeable liberties with language, violence, and romantic relationships as compared to its preceding series.
* A number of later takes on the Franchise/CthulhuMythos suffer from this. Granted, [[Creator/HPLovecraft Lovecraft]]'s original work is already not exactly kid-friendly...but it's certainly also not relentless doom and gloom about the imminent {{end of the world as we know it}}, and the number of characters who actually die or {{go mad from the revelation}} in his works (an aspect that's sometimes played up to the point of {{Flanderization}}) can be considered almost ''conservative'' by horror standards.
* With its relentlessly dark tone, heavily implied sex, constant violence, and creatures, [[Literature/{{Reckless}} The Mirrorworld Series]] is not your average children's novel.

* The ''Literature/AlexRider'' series was always reasonably dark when it needed to be, but it started to become far more emotionally brutal by the fifth book, ''Scorpia'' where it's [[spoiler: revealed (and then subverted) that Alex's father was an assassin working for a criminal organisation (Scorpia), and was killed by Mrs Jones, a character who was reasonably close and caring to Alex. Even further, this almost sways Alex into becoming a killer himself, to the point where - after he agrees to join Scorpia - he actually visits Mrs Jones' flat with a gun to assassinate her!]]
** As the series progresses, it becomes less quippier and starts to focus more on how [=MI6=] forcing Alex into missions is affecting him personally. As each book passes, it has a further emotional impact on Alex's life, slowly affecting his school life and his interaction with friends. The book ''Crocodile Tears'' even ends with [[spoiler: Alex and Jack contemplating about his future in hospital (after Alex is badly burned following his final encounter with Desmond Mc-Cain).]]
** The ninth - and from 2011 to 2017, the [[DownerEnding final]] book in the series ''Scorpia Rising'' is by far the darkest, most emotional, and most violent of them all.
*** From the start of the novel to the finish, Alex is [[spoiler: being led into a trap by his enemies who are constantly watching him and manipulating him. Everything that Alex and [=MI6=] think they're doing right is unknowingly all part of Scorpia's master plan, so the villains have Alex in their clutches before the mission even begins!]]
*** In a misunderstanding, Alex is captured by the CIA who interrogate him about things he genuinely doesn't know about. When he can't answer their questions, they try to force the non-existent answers from him - by torturing him using [[WaterTorture waterboarding]]! It's only the timely arrival of Joe Byrne that saves him!
*** Two of the book's multiple villains consist of; [[spoiler: Julius Grief, an old enemy from the second book with a particularly personal hatred towards Alex; and Abdul-Aziz al-Razim, a sadistic, emotionless scientist who ''tortures innocent people for the sake of creating a measurement system for pain''. When Alex is forced into their clutches, Razim performs a nightmarish torture experiment on him, using Alex's best friend and caregiver, Jack Starbright as bait. Alex is forced to watch as Julius and Razim purposefully lure Jack into a vehicle full of explosives, which Julius detonates, apparently killing Jack and emotionally crippling Alex for the remainder of the book.]] This is without a doubt, the darkest and most painful moment to read in the entire series.
*** Still not enough? When Alex finally confronts [[spoiler: Julius near the end of the book, he is instinctively forced to fatally shoot him in self defense - the only time Alex has ever purposefully used a gun to kill someone in the series. It doesn't help that Julius Grief was surgically altered to be a literal carbon copy of Alex's appearance, making it appear to Alex as though he shot himself (and is supposed to be a metaphor for Alex killing a darker part of himself "that should never have been born", in the words of Mrs Jones).]]
*** Almost as if to add insult to multiple injuries, it's revealed at the very end of the book that [[spoiler: Alan Blunt, the head of [=MI6=], actually staged the attack on Alex near the start of the book to simply get him out of school and go on the ill-fated mission to Cairo. Poor Alex can't trust anyone - even those who claim to be on "his side"! It's also important to note that the attack on Alex ''was at his own school'', nearly killing Alex and injuring his friend, Tom.]]
*** Understandably, by the end of ''Scorpia Rising'', [[spoiler: Alex is broken, traumatized and changed, a mere shadow of who he was at the start of the series in ''Stormbreaker''. The book ends with him heading off to the USA for a better life, away from the memories of his past.]] Keep in mind that for readers of the series from 2011 to 2017, this was initially supposed to be the [[DownerEnding final book in the series]]! However the newer books, ''Never Say Die'' in 2017 and the still-unreleased ''Nightshade'', are appearing to veer back to the original spirit and tone of the first four books.

* The ''Literature/BekaCooper'' trilogy of Creator/TamoraPierce's Literature/TortallUniverse has a less clear-cut morality than the previous series, with the good guys forced to [[TheNeedsOfTheMany pick and choose]] which injustice to fight because they don't always have the resources. The poverty-ridden neighborhoods Beka walks her beat in are full of everyday cruelty, evictions and murder and brawls, with its residents somewhat ConditionedToAcceptHorror. The cops employ actual torturers, slavery is legal, and there's no ImprobableInfantSurvival. It's mentioned that at least five Dogs (cops) a year commit suicide because the place grinds their soul down so much.
* ''Literature/{{The Ties That Bind|Hayes}}'' by Rob J. Hayes describes ''itself'' as a GrimDark SwordAndSorcery novel. Played with as it's fairly squarely in the genre, albeit very-very cynical.

* Some books in ''Literature/TheFairyChronicles'' have darker subject matter than others, going from a mission to restore laughter to a mission to stop every creature on Earth from becoming extinct.
* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': The whole series is pretty dark to begin with, but the series finale, ''Mockingjay'', is much [[BlackAndGrayMorality more hopeless]] than even the first two.
* ''Literature/TheKharkanasTrilogy'': Due to the much reduced amount of comedic relief compared to its main series, the ''Literature/MalazanBookOfTheFallen'', and the — per WordOfGod intentional — Shakespearean slant of the story, the prequel trilogy's heavy themes and horrible things that happen leave no time to catch a breath. It also dials up the UnreliableNarrator and use of InMediasRes compared to the main series, which already is known for both.

* All of the installments of ''Literature/TheAnderssons'' by Solveig Olsson-Hultgren touch some social injustices and other tougher issues. Nevertheless though, "Skärvor av kristall" takes the cake with its portrayal of domestic abuse, suicide, antisemitism and an upcoming second world war.
* The thriller ''Literature/MasterOfTheWorld'' is often held up as an example of how Creator/JulesVerne, in his later years, became more and more pessimistic about humanity's use of science and technology.
* ''Literature/APearlForMyMistress'' was supposed to be this in relation to popular period dramas a lá ''Series/DowntonAbbey''. It deals with economic problems, unsavory politics and racist attitudes of the "glamorous" 1930s in a more forthright fashion.

* The Literature/DoctorWhoNewAdventures novel series (1991-7), initially conceived as the main ''Doctor Who'' continuity following the 1989 cancellation of the TV series, is one of the most notoriously Darker and Edgier sub-sections of the Franchise/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverse, concentrating on and intensifying the theme (introduced in the last two TV seasons) of the Seventh Doctor as a ruthless big-picture ManipulativeBastard who callously uses everyone around him as tools, including his closest friends, causing them genuine suffering and, when they work things out, outrage and disgust. There's an essay in which Kate Orman, one of the regular writers on the line, talks about researching domestic abuse in order to realistically depict it in a novel, as her most defining experience of what the series was about.
* While not exactly grimdark, the ''Literature/HowToTrainYourDragon'' series gets darker as it progresses, starting with a silly, lighthearted adventure and ending with some incredibly grim and hopeless situations including [[spoiler: war, grievous injury, and the depiction of a child being tortured.]]
* ''Literature/WhatTheHellDidIJustReadANovelOfCosmicHorror'': John and Dave have already spent two books as irreverent losers whose lives are perpetually complicated by CosmicHorror. This book continues the trend of showing the great toll this lifestyle takes on them. Dave now has clinical depression and John is addicted to hard drugs.

* ''{{Literature/Redwall}}'':
** According to this '''SPOILER LADEN''' [[http://redwall.wikia.com/wiki/News:%22Doomwyte%22_-_Reviewed_by_the_Redwall_Wiki Review]] of ''Doomwyte'', the series went this way with the later novels.
** ''Outcast of Redwall'' has a more mature and tragic tone than what came before it. The BigBad, Swartt Sixclaw, is a disturbingly realistic sociopath whose only motive is to kill the book's hero for {{revenge}}, because the latter wounded him escaping enslavement. Much of the focus is on how Sunflash and Veil both had their lives ruined by Swartt's actions. Sunflash's need for revenge makes it impossible for him to have a normal life, and in the end [[spoiler: he loses his best friend Skarlath]]. Veil's storyline shows how his life was ruined by Swartt abandoning him, and Bryony's mission to bring him back ends with Veil [[spoiler: dying in her arms after taking a hit for her]].
** If any of the later books, ''Rakkety Tam''. The book itself isn't exactly darker or edgier (since the series already has loads of FamilyUnfriendlyViolence), but the BigBad is. He and his army are all cannibalistic and (relatively) competent villains. But like every other Redwall book, the amount of [[SacrificialLion Sacrificial Lions]] only ranges between one and five, and the book still has a rather light-hearted feeling to it.
* ''Literature/TheMouseWatch'', a SpinOff of ''WesternAnimation/ChipNDaleRescueRangers'', is this compared to both the original cartoon and competing children's book series such as ''Literature/GeronimoStilton''. Some scenes are surprisingly intense, and the [[FunWIthAcronyms R.A.T.S.]] villains are scarier and more threatening than the likes of Fat Cat or Norton Nimnul. In particular, BigBad Dr. Thornpaw is a rat who became a {{Cyborg}} MadScientist after [[BeingTorturedMakesYouEvil being subjected]] to horrific AnimalTesting. He's willing to kill or maim anyone to get what he wants, whether animal or human, adult or [[WouldHurtAChild child]].

* The ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'' books are horror stories starring preteen children who get into many types of macabre predicaments. However, special mention goes to''Welcome To Dead House'', ''Stay Out of the Basement'', ''A Night in Terror Tower'', ''The Headless Ghost'', and ''I Live in Your Basement'', all of which are far darker and gorier than many of the other novels of the series. The 2000s series takes this to a much more gruesome level as well.

* Although the ''Franchise/StarWars'' films had their share of dark and edgy moments (Han and Leia's respective torture scenes, Anakin being burned alive, the death of Shmi, the death of Owen and Beru ect), the ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' books still manage to get even darker and edgier. There's a lot more torture and gruesome death and bloody war, especially with ''Literature/NewJediOrder'', which was DarkerAndEdgier than some of the previous novels. The next two series, ''Literature/LegacyOfTheForce'' and ''Literature/FateOfTheJedi'' continue the trend, as do some of the comics.

* The ''Literature/BekaCooper'' trilogy of Creator/TamoraPierce's Literature/TortallUniverse has a less clear-cut morality than the previous series, with the good guys forced to [[TheNeedsOfTheMany pick and choose]] which injustice to fight because they don't always have the resources. The poverty-ridden neighborhoods Beka walks her beat in are full of everyday cruelty, evictions and murder and brawls, with its residents somewhat ConditionedToAcceptHorror. The cops employ actual torturers, slavery is legal, and there's no InfantImmortality. It's mentioned that at least five Dogs (cops) a year commit suicide because the place grinds their soul down so much.

* ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' and its sequel, ''Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus'' take a darker turn with every book released. The first indication of a dark turn is during the third book, ''The Titan's Curse'', which sees [[spoiler: a 12-year-old suffering a CruelAndUnusualDeath.]] And it's ''almost'' swept aside, with only minor repercussions that got resolved in the next book. The sequel series, though, takes the cake, what with featuring DysfunctionJunction plaguing the ''entire'' main cast, with the exception of Percy himself, who's really a lucky bastard among the demigods by having GoodParents who take care of him, and even he has to endure being separated from his friends for half a year. The ninth book, ''The House of Hades'', in particular, features what might be an extreme taboo to be featured in a children's book: [[spoiler: homosexuality.]] It's ''not'' PlayedForLaughs.

* ''Literature/OracleOfTao'' versus the [[VideoGame/OracleOfTao video game version]]. To be fair, this is the same author of both, but it's a matter of AdaptationExpansion. The setting is the same, but when describing the worldbuilding, there is more description of politics and religion. While the video game was pretty weird on its own, the book reads almost like a mix of Creator/AynRand and VideoGame/Mother3. Also, unlike the video game, the book doesn't adhere to the same standards for sex and violence.

* The ''Literature/ProvostsDog'' trilogy of Creator/TamoraPierce's Literature/TortallUniverse has a less clear-cut morality than the previous series, with the good guys forced to [[TheNeedsOfTheMany pick and choose]] which injustice to fight because they don't always have the resources. The poverty-ridden neighborhoods Beka walks her beat in are full of everyday cruelty, evictions and murder and brawls, with its residents somewhat ConditionedToAcceptHorror. The cops employ actual torturers, slavery is legal, and there's no InfantImmortality. It's mentioned that at least five Dogs (cops) a year commit suicide because the place grinds their soul down so much.

* ''[[Literature/RobJHayesTheTiesThatBind The Ties That Bind]]'' by Rob J. Hayes describes ''itself'' as a GrimDark SwordAndSorcery novel. Played with as it's fairly squarely in the genre, albeit very-very cynical.

* ''Literature/ThePearlandtheCarnelian'' was supposed to be this in relation to popular period dramas a lá ''Series/DowntonAbbey''. It deals with economic problems, unsavory politics and racist attitudes of the "glamorous" 1930s in a more forthright fashion.