It's time to turn out the light and step into the darkness as: ...a robber learns that there's more to Hell than the devil... ...a woman discovers a painting's frightening secret......an old woman finds a terrifying afterlife......an apocalypse survivor is trapped between the world he can't leave behind and the one he's so desperate to find......a young man learns of true darkness...This collection of five flash fiction stories invites you to turn off the lights and step into the darkness as . . .. . . a robber finds out that there's more to Hell than the devil and pitchforks . . . . . . a young woman is about to stumble on a painting's dark secret . . . . . . an old woman is about to see that the afterlife isn't everything she thought it would be . . .. . . a man trying to survive as the world teeters on an apocalypse is trapped between the world he can't leave behind and the one he's so desperate to find . . .. . . a young man is about realize that everyone has a darker side and that dark side is always hungry . . . Views: 440
Since his debut, Nil Nil, won the Forward Prize for Best First Collection in 1993, Don Paterson has lit up the poetry scene in the U.K. His dazzling, intensely lyric and luminous verse has delighted readers ever since, and won many awards along the way. God's Gift Women took the T. S. Eliot Prize in 1997, Landing Light won it again in 2003 and the Whitbread Award besides, and Rain (2009), his most recent collection, won the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry. This selection, drawn from twenty years of work, is made by the author himself and includes not only those poems from his four single volumes, but his thrilling and original adaptations of the poems of Antonio Machado and Rainer Maria Rilke. For any readers unfamiliar with Don Paterson's work, this Selected Poems offers the perfect introduction to this most captivating of writers; and for fans, an essential gathering from a master craftsman. Views: 440
Amanabiefori’s dreams are shattered when he is captured and sold into slavery in America. He plans an escape back to his hometown, Africa, for his freedom and “Love” Igoni. His plan is jeopardized when Igoni sets foot in America in search of him. Does everything work out as she planned or are they trapped forever? What did she actually mean when she said she couldn’t live without him?In this tale of comedy, mystery and the battle of the sexes, cheating-heart Hamish has finally driven his wife Elizabeth out of her senses. She has fled into the crypt of her ancestral home, convinced that she's the ghost of the Green Lady, whose spectral footsteps stalk the dark passages of Brackley Castle. But Hamish's friend Max isn't so sure. He suspects Elizabeth has a trick or two up her sleeve, especially as she's being aided and abetted by her clever, bewitching cousin Mina. Armed with only cunning and charm, who will see it through the night when the ghostly Green Lady walks? Views: 440
Twice winner of the Miles Franklin Award and an Officer of the Order of Australia for his contribution to Australian literature, Christopher Koch returns with Lost Voices, a remarkable new novel that confirms him as one of our most significant and compelling novelists. Twice winner of the Miles Franklin Award, Christopher Koch returns with a remarkable novel of gripping narrative power. Young Hugh Dixon believes he can save his father from ruin if he asks his estranged great-uncle Walter- a wealthy lawyer who lives alone in a tasmanian farmhouse passed down through the family-for help. As he is drawn into Walter's rarefied world, Hugh discovers that both his uncle and the farmhouse are links to a notorious episode in the mid nineteenth century. Walter's father, Martin, was living in the house when it was raided by members of an outlaw community run by Lucas Wilson, a charismatic ex-soldier attempting to build a utopia. But like later societies with communitarian ideals,... Views: 439
A novelette comprised of short stories, this sensually-rich collection explores the lives of characters living in a fictional Kentucky town during the 1800s.A collection of short stories about people living in a fictional Kentucky town in the 1800s. The characters' lives intertwine through past, present and future creating a portrait of their community. Views: 439
He didn't remember how he had come to this planet. He only remembered that he was dead! Views: 439
TO understand this story you will have to believe in the Greater Gods—Love and Youth, for example, and Adventure and Coincidence; also in the trusting heart of woman and the deceitful spirit of man. You will have to reconcile yourself to the fact that though daily you go to London by the nine-seven, returning by the five-fifteen, and have your accustomed meals at eight, one, and half-past six, there are those who take neither trains nor meals regularly. That, while nothing on earth ever happens to you, there really are on earth people to whom things do happen. Nor is the possibility of such happenings wholly a matter of the independent income—the income for which you do not work. It is a matter of the individual soul. I knew a man whose parents had placed him in that paralyzing sort of situation which is symbolized by the regular trains and the regular meals. Views: 439
(Short story) When Deidre finds herself unemployed, she eagerly accepts an interview for a housekeeping position. She’s in for a surprise. Not only is her prospective boss a vampire, but he's also cranky, still ardently votes for Eisenhower and gets dangerous when his prune juice runs low. Can Deidre make it as a vampire's housekeeper? First, she’ll have to survive the interview!And you thought your boss was cold! At the age of 24, Deidre finds herself unemployed with few job skills and a growing pile of overdue bills. When a perky career counselor suggests an open housekeeping position, Deidre knows this could be her only chance for a decent job.She doesn't bother asking many questions...like what the career counselor meant when she said the employer had certain "peculiarities".Deidre is in for a very unpleasant surprise. Not only is her prospective boss a vampire, but he's also cranky, adamantly prefers the telegraph over the telephone and gets dangerous when his prune juice isn't delivered on time. Oh, and he also has a strong fondness for another kind of liquid refreshment, one that he prefers warm and fresh.In this hilarious and satirical short story (approx. 4,300 words), author J. Bennett takes on the wildly popular vampire mythology and gives it a certain grizzled spin. As Deidre will discover, not all vampires are eternally-young , virile romantics who effortlessly keep up with the times. Some of them delight in wearing bow-ties, continue to enthusiastically vote for Eisenhower in each election, and consider the television to be witch magic.Can Deidre make it as a vampire's housekeeper? To find out, she'll first have to survive the job interview! Views: 439
Young love is hard, no matter who you are or what you are. This young adult short story by Richard Roberts tells the story of two star-crossed lovers in a steampunk setting. Even though they've never seen the ground, theirs is a story as old as Romeo and Juliet. Will it end just as tragically?What happens when reality alters and you can't remember why?A time travel experiment goes awry, and one scientist must remember how to fix it. His problem? He's losing his memories.A flash fiction sci-fi story. Views: 438
Randy was a senior in high school, and everything was going great, or so he thought. When he wished to read other people's thoughts, he got his wish. It was not as great as he thought it would be. He realized that everybody thought he was a jerk, or used him to get what they wanted, including his girlfriend, teammates, and teachers. His little sister thought that he hated her, and his parents were fed up with his attitude. Randy was suddenly seeing himself as everyone else did, and he didn't like who he was anymore. Could he change, after all this time? Read and find out.Andrew’s Mission is a Portallas short story that tells some of the back story about one of the main characters from the Portallas series of books. Andrew is a young Woodsman in training now living in the village of Morelle, which resides in the western part of Forestium. We first meet Andrew in Forestium: The Mirror Never Lies, which is book one in the Portallas series.In Forestium: The Mirror Never Lies, Andrew joins his best friend, Joshua, who decides to go on an epic journey to help find the truth about his long-lost Father. In Andrew’s Mission, we discover how close the relationship is between Andrew and Joshua, as Andrew attempts to help save his best friend’s life by going in search of something that could very well kill him. Views: 438
As a part of the launch of the new A-List series, a curated selection of titles from Anansi's backlist featuring handsome new covers and introductions by well-known Canadian writers, comes Graeme Gibson's Five Legs, with an introduction by Sean Kane. Views: 438
Tyler Brown is an average guy who works at the Duke of York Hotel in St Kilda. When he sees somebody whisk by in a mysterious-looking coat, he initially thinks nothing of it. Little is he to know that this coat will change his life.The coat comes to haunt Tyler, appearing at work, at home and even when he is with his exotic girlfriend Angelique. There seems no escaping it and Tyler is never able to identify who's wearing it.Tyler thinks he's going mad and employs the aid of the famous psychiatrist/private eye Dr Van Airhardt who encourages him and assists Tyler to investigate the mystery. The investigation leads to Tyler meeting a world of different people and finding out things about himself, Angelique, the police and the city of Melbourne that he didn't think were possible.The Mysterious Coat is an amazing adventure full of twists and turns that you won't be able to put down. It will have you seeing life from another person's perspective in a way you'd never... Views: 438
What do an 82-year-old war veteran and an 11-year-old Ninja wannabe have in common? They are related but they don’t find out about it until the tenth chapter. Tom’s Treasure is a heart-warming story of how God brings a faithful servant’s life full circle. Have you ever made a decision you knew was right but something went terribly wrong and you wondered why? Tom did. But, God worked it all out.When World War II broke out, Tom Dandridge joined the Army and eventually became a part of the newly formed U.S. Army Rangers. On their first assignment, a premature explosion crippled Tom and gave him amnesia. A band of local natives carted him away to the safety of their village until they could find the outcome of the skirmish. He stayed there for several years until his memory came back.The explosion was so fierce, that the Army thought he was dead. His widow, Ellen, and his young son, Billy, were devastated. After several years, Ellen married the associate pastor of her church to help her raise Billy. When Tom's memory came back, the Army went about the arduous task of mending his crippled legs. It was during his transport to a another Army hospital that he prevailed upon his superiors to allow him to just ride by his old home. He knew that Ellen had remarried and he didn't want her and Billy to know he was still alive just yet. When he got to his home, the three of them were outside. His son and the stepfather were playing catch with the football while Ellen cheered him on. Billy was pretty doggone good. They were happy and Billy wanted to be a tight end just like his dad. With a heavy heart, Tom made the decision not to come back into their lives. He couldn't bear the thought of forcing his sweet Ellen to make a tough decision. Then again, he didn't know if the Army doctors could ever straighten out his legs. Would Billy stick with football or give it up to be with him?Years and operations went by and Tom was eventually as good as new. He busied himself with helping troubled teens find their way to Jesus. One by one, God would bring them into his life. One by one, he would walk with them through their turmoil. He said it was like helping them find buried treasure. Life was fairly satisfying but a part of his life was still empty.Years later, God began to tug on his heart to go back to his old home town to see if he had any relatives there. Was Billy still alive? Did he have any grandchildren? The most haunting question was, if he did find anyone there, what would they think? Would they be mad because he never came back? Could they accept him for who he was? As hesitant as he was, God wouldn't leave him alone. Tom knew that there must be someone there God needed him to talk to.The town had changed a lot in fifty years, and there were no Dandridges to be found. He figured his search was over and he headed back to the hotel. He may as well go back home and live out the last few years of his life.As he took a short walk through the park, he happened to meet an eleven-year-old boy who was showing the middle school football team some Ninja moves. Now that was quite odd. But, more peculiar than that, God would not let him leave until he spoke to the young man. As they struck up a conversation, Tom realized that this kid was rambunctious and energetic. He didn't seem to have any deep-seated problems at all.That's where he was wrong. This young man need a great-grandfather to speak into his life. Yes, he didn't find out for ten more chapters but Tom had just met one of his only great-grandson.A Soldier Finds His Treasure is funny and very heart warming. God is faithful to honor the love and dedication of His faithful servant, Tom. He has sown good seed for fifty years and God brings him an abundant harvest of happiness. Also, we find out that God put Tom through his journey because of the plans that He had for Tom's great-grandson, Arthur. In the end, all things do work together for good to those that love the Lord.I trust that you will laugh, cry and enjoy this testimony to God's goodness. Views: 438
