Short historical fiction. What happens to the "primitive" or "primal" art from Africa? The prices of African art are fueled by strange prejudices. In this story about Benin, a hero from the 1930s escapes oblivion and finds a home.This is a short story (2000 words) about a boy from the Edo group of Benin (now Nigeria) who enters the British Army in the 1930s. He gets promoted to the rank of sergeant and celebrates by having his statue made. But for the following generations, working for the British is not cool anymore: all the discourse is about independence. Soldiers like that young boy are forgotten, both in Britain and in their own country. Their statues get melted by the thousands.Nobody cares, and even the Edo language slowly disappears. Views: 539
The story of Pacorus, a prince of the Parthian Empire who is captured by the Romans and sent to Italy to live out the rest of his days as a slave. But fate intervenes and he is freed by a gang of runaway gladiators led by a man named Spartacus. This is the epic tale of the Spartacus slave revolt, as told by the man who fought by his side.This is the story of Pacorus, a prince of the Parthian Empire. When the two mighty empires of Parthia and Rome clash, Pacorus and his warriors are captured and sent to Italy in chains. Landing in Italy near Mount Vesuvius, they are set to endure a living hell in the fields under the overseer's whip. But fate intervenes and they are freed during an attack on the camp of their Roman captors by Spartacus and his followers. Pacorus accepts the offer of Spartacus to raise a force of horsemen to fight with him against the Romans. Thus begins the epic tale of the Spartacus slave revolt, as told by the friend and cavalry general of the slave leader, a tale of love, war, savagery, honour and the eternal quest for freedom. Views: 539
An Adventist teen who finds herself pregnant. She is soon faces the threat of an imposed abortion which she does not believe in, and which she swears will not take place, darkness envelopes her until she finds an unexpected friend in her aging next door neighbor. She flees to a home for girls and finds her life work as she encounters a beaten and bruised teen who is to be her roommate.Bobby Lorman is a High School freshman, and bully-bait. His struggle to cope is compounded with guilt when his chief bully forces him to commit a crime. He must keep his transgression secret to avoid disappointment from his parents and prosecution from the authorities. His religious faith is tried as he seeks God's forgiveness, but can't bring himself to confess to people. When he is sent for the summer to his aunt and uncle's bed-and-breakfast near Natchez, Mississippi, he is introduced to an ancient wisdom that could help him. But to follow this new path he must face new bullies, religious censure from the community, and the ghosts that haunt a local Indian mound. Views: 538
Previously published as part of The New Dead: A Zombie Anthology.In Weaponized, the frightening and altogether too real story of an undercover reporter sent to investigate a mysterious new branch of the U.S. military.Praise for THE NEW DEAD:"Provocative, haunting, and genuinely unsettling... This powerful anthology shines a bright and unflinching light on the fears of death, decay, and loss that underpin America's longstanding obsession with the undead."- Publishers Weekly Starred Review Views: 538
VAMPIRE FOR HIRE
Raylene Pendle (AKA Cheshire Red), a vampire and world-renowned thief, doesn’t usually hang with her own kind. She’s too busy stealing priceless art and rare jewels. But when the infuriatingly charming Ian Stott asks for help, Raylene finds him impossible to resist—even though Ian doesn’t want precious artifacts. He wants her to retrieve missing government files—documents that deal with the secret biological experiments that left Ian blind. What Raylene doesn’t bargain for is a case that takes her from the wilds of Minneapolis to the mean streets of Atlanta. And with a psychotic, power-hungry scientist on her trail, a kick-ass drag queen on her side, and Men in Black popping up at the most inconvenient moments, the case proves to be one hell of a ride.
From the Trade Paperback edition. Views: 538
Robert William Chambers (May 26, 1865 – December 16, 1933) was an American artist and fiction writer, best known for his book of short stories entitled The King in Yellow, published in 1895.He was born in Brooklyn, New York, to William P. Chambers (1827–1911), a corporate and bankruptcy lawyer, and Caroline Smith Boughton (1842-1913). His parents met when Caroline was twelve years old and William P. was interning with her father, Joseph Boughton, a prominent corporate lawyer. Eventually the two formed the law firm of Chambers and Boughton which continued to prosper even after Joseph's death in 1861. Robert's great-grandfather, William Chambers (birth unknown), a lieutenant in the British Royal Navy, was married to Amelia Saunders,(1765-1822), the great grand daughter of Tobias Saunders, of Westerly, Rhode Island. The couple moved from Westerly, to Greenfield, Massachusetts and then to Galway, New York, where their son, also William Chambers, (1798-1874) was born. The second William graduated from Union College at the age of 18, and then went to a college in Boston, where he studied to be a doctor. Upon graduating, he and his wife, Eliza P. Allen (1793-1880), a direct descendant of Roger Williams, the founder of Providence, Rhode Island were among the first settlers of Broadalbin, New York. His brother was architect Walter Boughton Chambers. Robert was first educated at the Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, and then entered the Art Students' League at around the age of twenty, where the artist Charles Dana Gibson was his fellow student. Chambers studied at the École des Beaux-Arts, and at Académie Julian, in Paris from 1886 to 1893, and his work was displayed at the Salon as early as 1889. On his return to New York, he succeeded in selling his illustrations to Life, Truth, and Vogue magazines. Then, for reasons unclear, he devoted his time to writing, producing his first novel, In the Quarter (written in 1887 in Munich). His most famous, and perhaps most meritorious, effort is The King in Yellow, a collection of Art Nouveau short stories published in 1895. This included several famous weird short stories which are connected by the theme of a fictitious drama of the same title, which drives those who read it insane.E. F. Bleiler described The King in Yellow as one of the most important works of American supernatural fiction.It was also strongly admired by H. P. Lovecraft and his circle. Chambers returned to the weird genre in his later short story collections The Maker of Moons, The Mystery of Choice and The Tree of Heaven, but none earned him as much success as The King in Yellow. Some of Chambers's work contains elements of science fiction, such as In Search of the Unknown and Police!!!, about a zoologist who encounters monsters. Chambers later turned to writing romantic fiction to earn a living. According to some estimates, Chambers had one of the most successful literary careers of his period, his later novels selling well and a handful achieving best-seller status. Many of his works were also serialized in magazines. His novel The Man They Hanged was about Captain Kidd, and argued that Kidd was not a pirate, and had been made a scapegoat by the British government.During World War I he wrote war adventure novels and war stories, some of which showed a strong return to his old weird style, such as "Marooned" in Barbarians (1917). After 1924 he devoted himself solely to writing historical fiction.Chambers for several years made Broadalbin, New York, his summer home. Some of his novels touch upon colonial life in Broadalbin and Johnstown.On July 12, 1898, he married Elsa Vaughn Moller (1882–1939). They had a son, Robert Edward Stuart Chambers (who sometimes used the name Robert Husted Chambers).Robert W. Chambers died on December 16, 1933, after having undergone intestinal surgery three days earlier. Views: 538
Ivy and Hyacinth are faced with a problem when they find out what they really are.Hot lead flew, and blood flowed freely in 1859. The Cheyenne were raiding. When outlaws gunned down two sleepy cowpokes, and rode off with a thousand Texas longhorns, their main problem was what to do with the slow-moving cattle. Johnnie Bell’s problem lay in getting them back. The army couldn’t help — they had the marauding Indians to deal with. Texas Rangers had no jurisdiction once the cattle were over the border, and other settlers had their own homes and herds to guard. Luckily for Johnnie, he had two Comanche friends with points to prove, and along the way he met up with a feisty widow woman, who had lost both husband and herd to the self-same rustlers. Views: 538
After a brutal murder in the small town of Harvington, the victim is identified.A local girl that went missing three days previously has been found and the suspect is the violent boyfriend, the only problem is he can not be found.It is upto DI Kenny Black to crack the case and bring justice.Betrayed - Alternate Ending gives Brook the chance to retaliate against her antagonists from the popular novel Betrayed. This is not a stand-alone publication, but starts at Chapter 49 of the novel Betrayed and then takes the tale in a new direction, with an entirely different ending. Written especially for readers of Betrayed, this alternate ending explodes with drama and suspense, and contains scenes not included in the original novel. To understand and appreciate Betrayed - Alternate Ending, the original novel must be read beforehand. Summary: After being abused for several days, Brook escapes into the snowy wilderness, where her captors assume she will perish. Then their victim shows up on the news months later, very much alive. They don't intend for her to stay that way. "I loved the original novel, but the alternate ending blew me away!" ~Randi Canning, Reviewer Views: 538
Cody Forester plans to become a doctor. Instead, he becomes a werewolf.The first time Cody shows fang and fur, his parents ship him off to podunkville to live with his black sheep uncle. His revised career choice is social hermit. As the new kid, he makes more enemies than friends. His high school teachers label him a troublemaker. The whole town hates him.Except Brittany. She's beautiful, with her eyes painted black and her lips dark purple. When Brittany discovers his secret, she tries to cure him using crystals, candles, and magic potions. Cody falls head-over-tails in love—but he can never tell her. Girls like her aren't for him. He's the amazing wolf boy. Astound your family and mystify your friends.While Cody moons over Brittany, a murderous pack of lycanthropes howl into town. They want Cody to join them. When he refuses, they kidnap Brittany and threaten to kill her at moonrise. Cody must master his untried superpowers or the girl he loves dies. Can he... Views: 537
Reverend Samuel (Preach)
Preston is a full-time Christian evangelist traveling the country preaching the
gospel of Jesus Christ. But Preach is on a mission — a mission to re-create the
martyrdom of the original apostles of Jesus Christ. To his family he is father
and grandfather. To the Christian world, he is a dedicated man of God. But to
FBI agents Duncan Morris, Lynn Keller, and George Benjamin, he is a serial
killer they must stop before he can kill again.
“A
chilling suspense novel with gripping characters and a plot that reaches into
the depths of good and evil. Some of Jim Laughter’s best writing.”
Charles
W. Sasser, author of THE DETACHMENT DELTA and OSS COMMANDO series.
“Laughter
weaves a unique blend of plot and characters that will keep you reading to the
end…believer or not.”
Nancy
Robinson Masters, MasAir Publications, Inc.
“In The
Apostle Murders, Jim Laughter penned a chilling account of an eccentric,
misguided sociopath on an unholy mission.”
Bob Avey, author of Beneath a Buried House
Views: 537
A chance meeting in the night has Lisa wondering if her intuition has taken time off. Oozing charm and mystery, Carlo has her intrigued from the first moment. But once her intuition finally kicks in it might be a little too late for her heart to recover.In this supplementary short story to the Viator Legacy Series, Erin Lausten delves deeper into the mystery that surrounds Carlo, a character with more secrets than a prowling cat. A chance meeting in the night has Lisa wondering if her intuition has taken time off. Oozing charm and mystery, Carlo has her intrigued from the first moment. But once her intuition finally kicks in, it might be a little too late for her heart to recover Views: 537
A collection of poems written from the heart - the experiences, the joys and sometimes even the dark side of love.After years of nothing but grueling training and the desperate dance of death that is the life of an acolyte Arbiter, D’Arden Tal has been named an apprentice. He has been assigned to learn from Havox Khaine, one of the greatest Masters in living memory.For two years they have traveled across the known world, and now they enter a tiny kingdom on the edge of nowhere. Rumors abound that the monarch of this kingdom is insane, and has created a demented puppet court… of the dead.D’Arden must learn what it truly means to be an Arbiter, as he makes his first real confrontation with the horrors of corruption. Something much worse lurks within the shadows of the king’s mind than simple madness, and D’Arden will find reason to call him…The Corpse King.With this novelette, welcome to the world of Eisengoth: a dark fantasy realm ruled by insane gods, and the setting for ELEGY: Book One of the Arbiter Codex. Heroic fantasy for fans of Conan (Robert E. Howard), Kane (Karl Edward Wagner) or Geralt of Rivia, The Witcher (Andrzej Sapkowski) with a Lovecraftian-horror flair.Now including a 2,000-word sample of ELEGY: Book One of the Arbiter Codex! Views: 537
