Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2015 Edition | 2015 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 2 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2010 Edition | 2010 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 3 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2011 Edition | 2011 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 4 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy and Horror, 2012 Edition | 2012 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 5 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2016 Edition | 2016 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 6 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2017 Edition | 2017 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 7 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2014 Edition | 2014 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 8 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2018 Edition | 2018 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 9 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2013 Edition | 2013 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 10 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, 2019 Edition | 2020 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 11 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Volume 1 | 2020 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 12 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Volume 2 | 2021 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 13 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy and Horror, Volume 3 | 2022 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 14 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Volume 4 | 2023 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
| 15 | The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Volume 5 | 2024 | Nathan Ballingrud | Buy |
Nathan Ballingrud’s stories appear in 15 volumes of The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy & Horror annual anthology series, spanning from the 2010 edition through Volume 5 (2024). His regular inclusion in these best-of compilations reflects his standing as one of contemporary horror’s most respected short fiction writers.
The series was edited by Paula Guran and has used both year-based and volume-based numbering over its run. The shift from edition numbering (2010 Edition, 2011 Edition, etc.) to volume numbering (Volume 1, Volume 2, etc.) happened around 2020. Ballingrud appears in editions under both naming conventions, which speaks to the length of his involvement.
These anthologies overlap somewhat with the Best Horror of the Year series but cast a wider net by including dark fantasy alongside pure horror. For readers who want a broader selection of dark fiction, these volumes offer a good complement to the Datlow-edited horror annuals.