An aimless driver in the mountains comes upon something that’s both more and less than he hoped for. A child discovers why you should always stay in bed if you wake up in the middle of the night. A homeowner unpacks the wrong bag of groceries, and comes to suspect his neighbors might have secrets that he doesn’t want to know. A cable shopping channel presenter is confronted with disgruntled customers from a very long way out of town ... and a man sets himself to rid the world of one of its most famous lies, and winds up destroying himself instead.
Michael Marshall Smith’s last short story collection was hailed as “stellar” by Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) and a “major publishing event” by Ellen Datlow, and it won the International Horror Guild Award. You’re invited to return to the short fiction of New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling author Michael Marshall Smith: it is Everything You Need. Views: 844
Wendy isn't as blind as a bat--there are bats that can see better than she can. Which is why, when her new glasses break, she's all too happy to wear the dorky pair of sunglasses she finds on the lawn. They seem to match her prescription, and that's all that matters if she's going to be able to make it through her school day.
But the glasses correct her vision too much. She begins to see things that no one else can see: cheerful corpses, frightening crones disguised as teenyboppers, and portals to other worlds--places where people are all too aware of the magical properties of her new shades . . . and will do anything to get them. Views: 844
Psychic investigator David Ash delves into the mysterious events terrorizing the community of Sleath, and as each dark secret is unveiled, evil forces are unleashed, and Ash fears for his own sanity as well as that of the village people. Reprint. Views: 844
THE FINAL NOVEL IN THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING SOOKIE STACKHOUSE SERIES!When a shocking murder rocks the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, psychic cocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse learns that she has more than one enemy waiting to get vengeance for the past. Beacuse nothing is ever clear-cut in Bon Temps. What passes for truth is only a convenient lie. What passes for justice is more spilled blood. And what passes for love is never enough... Views: 843
In Alosha and The Shaktra, thirteen-year-old Ali Warner discovered that she was not an ordinary teenager, but was actually Queen of the Fairies. Through seven painful trials, Ali reclaimed many of her magical powers and defeated an elemental army that was preparing to attack the Earth. In the elemental world, Ali learned the true nature of her greatest enemy -- the Shaktra -- and discovered why it covets the Yanti, a mystical talisman of immense power that Ali now possesses.
Now, in The Yanti, Ali discovers that a mysterious Entity is masterminding the Shaktra's attack on Earth, an attack that will kill billions and leave both Earth and the elemental world shattered. Still reeling from the death of one of her closest friends, Ali finds herself accused of murder on Earth and besieged by enemies in the elemental world.
The Shaktra has had years to develop her magical abilities and her evil plots, guided by the otherworldly Entity. Ali has only known about her fairy powers for a month. There are holes in her fairy memories and her powers are still incomplete, while the Shaktra commands vast armies of hideous monsters and rules over hosts of dragons.
Ali's allies are few: one dragon, one leprechaun, a single troll, a handful of fairies and an African boy, Ra, who has sworn to serve Ali even beyond death. Plus the mysterious disembodied Nemi -- whose love sustains Ali through her darkest moments of despair.
Only the Yanti can stop what is to come. Unfortunately, Ali has barely had a chance to study it. The first time she tries to use it as a weapon, it nearly kills her. Unless Ali Warner can solve the riddle of the Yanti - and the mystery behind the Shaktra's insane bitterness -- then the Earth and the elemental world will be doomed. Views: 843
It’s noble to comfort a grieving widow, but Marvin gave too much comfort. That's all I'll tell you. Click the blue below to see why. Here it suffices to say that the story is short and free. Why read a summary when with little more effort you can read the whole thing? If you can't spare a moment more, you shouldn't be wasting time reading fiction anyway. Go back to work!"One can not judge a book by its cover." So we are told. But a cover is usually the only thing a reader has to base a judgment on. Smashwords tries to aid readers by providing summaries, one short, one long, for each book it distributes. For non-fiction this works well. But this, it seems to me, defeats the whole purpose of fiction. After all, one reads a story to find out what will happen. It’s the uncommon twists and turns that make a story interesting. But if a summary has told all this beforehand, what fun is to be had in the reading? Therefore, no summary of the present short story is given. It's short and it’s free! So read the whole thing and see if you like it. I ask you to do this because I think it is the best book judging method. To find fiction you like you must first read around enough to learn something of the style and stories of different authors. Then you can judge books, not by their cover, but by the your opinion of the writer. I'd like to help you do this. The present short story is one of several which I will make available free at Smashwords. Read a few (or all of them) and decide if you like them. It won't cost you a dime. If you like them, you can then purchase some of my not free (but still inexpensive) longer stories. All these stories are of one particular kind. To reflect this similarity all have the same cover picture, the Kitty & Rose shown above. So after you’ve read a few, you can, in fact, judge them by their cover. The common theme of the Kitty & Rose stories is human sexuality. This is not unusual. Most fiction concerns sex in one way or another; ranging from romances so sedate and demure an extraterrestrial could never know sex is at the root of everything described, to erotica so unrestricted even an extraterrestrial might blush. Kitty & Rose stories are in the middle of this range. All deal with human sexuality, but none do so explicitly. Rather, they are seemly. The dictionary gives three meanings for seemly: Attractive or agreeably fashioned; Decorous or conventionally proper; and Appropriate or suited to its purpose. With respect to appropriateness, seemly sex stories range from the humorous to the inspirational, but all concern human sexuality. So they are clearly appropriate. These stories are also seemly in the decorous and conventionally proper sense. For, while they treat sex candidly, they do not do so graphically. There is nothing pornographic nor erotic in any seemly sex story. Of course, different persons’ opinions about this may differ. A few consider frank pornography decorous. At the opposite extreme are those like the abbot of the monastery where the great biologist Gregor Mendel did his epochal research. This abbot thought Mendel’s studies were decidedly indecorous because they involved the sex of pea plants! Finally, there is the principal sense of seemly, attractive and agreeably fashioned. Like every author I exert my every effort and ability trying to make these stories seemly in this regard. But like every author, I must await your determination of the degree of my success. Since both of us will be pleased if you find them attractively seemly, I very much hope you do.Happy reading!BobbyBP.S. This is the second Kitty & Rose free short story. It's upload date is 2-15-17. Views: 842
Repairman Jack is back! An anonymous mercenary, with no last name and no social security number, Jack has thrilled a veritable army of readers ever since his bestselling debut in The Tomb. Jack can fix any problem, supernatural or otherwise, for a price. Now, in his latest gripping adventure, he takes on two cases at once.
The first involves a nun being blackmailed by someone who has photos of her she doesn't want made public. What's in those photos, she won't say, but with her meager savings just about exhausted, she hires Jack to help her.
The second seems straightforward enough, as an elderly woman hires Jack to find her missing son. But to locate his quarry, Jack must infiltrate the inner reaches of the Dormentalist Church, a secretive, globe-spanning cult whose members include some of the biggest and most powerful names in entertainment, sports, and politics. Ruthless in its pursuit of critics and enemies, the Church hides a sinister agenda known only to its ruling elite.
But Jack can be ruthless, too, going to darker lengths than ever before as he crisscrosses the two fix-it jobs to settle the deadliest of scores! Views: 842
Seedy corporations and airship factions, demons and rogues, zealots and thieves…an epic tale of power, greed, and corruption.Nimbus is steampunk for people who don't know they like steampunk, as well as being steampunk for people who already love steampunk!.NIMBUS is steampunk for people who don't know they like steampunk, as well as being steampunk for people who already love steampunk! This is PART ONE of a complete, four-part serial novel.--Seedy corporations and airship factions, demons and rogues, zealots and thieves…an epic tale of power, greed, and corruption.Jude Finley is a new recruit aboard the Gangly Dirigible, an airship that extracts water from rainclouds. While working aboard the ship, Jude and his friends uncover a secret which may or may not help them against a growing uprising that could spell doom for everyone on the planet. Meanwhile, Demetrius Rucca, the wheelchair-bound son of a prominent religious leader, begins recruiting followers for his own subversive cause. As allegiances are sworn to him and his followers grow, he begins to discover the new powers that lie within him. This power could be the salvation Demetrius is looking for–or it could be the destruction of the known world.--About the Authors:AUSTIN KING is married, but thanks you for your interest.B.J. KEETON is a writer, teacher, and runner. When he isn't trying to think of a way to trick Fox into putting Firefly back on the air, he is either writing science fiction, watching an obscene amount of genre television, or looking for new ways to integrate fitness into his geektastic lifestyle. Views: 842
The official novel of Naughty Dog’s award-winning videogame franchise! In the ancient world there was a myth about a king, a treasure, and a hellish labyrinth. Now the doors to that hell are open once again. Nathan Drake, treasure hunter and risk taker, has been called to New York City by the man who taught him everything about the “antiquities acquisition business.” Victor Sullivan needs Drake’s help. Sully’s old friend, a world-famous archaeologist, has just been found murdered in Manhattan. Dodging assassins, Drake, Sully, and the dead man’s daughter, Jada Hzujak, race from New York to underground excavations in Egypt and Greece. Their goal: to unravel an ancient myth of alchemy, look for three long-lost labyrinths, and find the astonishing discovery that got Jada’s father killed. It appears that a fourth labyrinth was built in another land and another culture—and within it lies a key to unmatched wealth and power. An army of terrifying lost warriors guards this underground maze. So does a monster. And what lies beyond—if Drake can live long enough to reach it—is both a treasure and a poison, a paradise and a hell. Welcome to The Fourth Labyrinth. Views: 842
A short story, loosely based on the recollections of a number of veterans, dealing with the horrors of war. The story is free to download, but if you appreciate the story then you are asked to make a small donation to a charity of your choice.A short story, loosely based on the recollections of a number of veterans, dealing with the horrors of war. The story is free to download, but if you appreciate the story then you are asked to make a small donation to a charity of your choice.The short story, The Squad, is based on the recollections of a number of soldiers and a radio discussion on firing squads. The synopsis was written on the 1st Aug 2010 and the story was published on 12th Nov 2010. Views: 842
Shadowed by her tortured past, Dawn has a bright new life of glimmering hopes...
Dawn can hardly believe she's a student at one of New York City's best music schools. Now her most precious wish, to become a singer, can come true. But Dawn still dreams about Jimmy, her strong, intense boyfriend, and the love and anguished secrets they share.
Then Michael Sutton arrives, a new teacher at the school, a singing star and the most wonderful looking man Dawn has ever seen. Together they create a world of feeling Dawn has never known. In his embrace Dawn awakens to disturbing, unfamiliar desires, and Michael's promises offer a vision of music and romance forever...until he disappears.
Dazed by his cruelty, alone with the bitter fruit of his betrayal, Dawn becomes, once again, a victim of her grandmothers twisted schemes. Desolate, she clings to the tender hope that Jimmy will return and renew with her their deepest hearts' dream... Views: 842
My family seems to be perfect on the outside. We have the house, the money, the million-dollar-smiles... but I know that's not what really is going on. We're plastic. We're fake. What would happen if someone found out? If they knew what we hid behind our curtains...My family seems to be perfect from the outside looking in. We have the big house, the money for things, the million-dollar-smiles… but nothing is ever as it seems.We’re plastic. We’re fake. So fake, in fact, that we hide the little things about us, we hide everything about us, to be more specific. My dad does things he isn’t supposed to, and my mom is taking it hard. My brother has a full ride to any college of his choice, and he’s blowing it away like it’s nothing at all. So what would happen if someone found out about us? If they saw through our little charade? If they looked past the kitchen curtains that hide every conversation my parents have with each other? What if we were exposed for who we really are, instead of who everyone thinks we are? INSPIRED BY MELANIE MARTINEZ' SONG DOLLHOUSE Views: 841
In the lands of the True Game, your lifelong identity will emerge as you play. Prince or Sorcerer, Armiger or Tragamor, Demon or Doyen... Which will it be? Views: 841
Roselyn Victoria Fleming was born of wealth and influence, an illegitimate child of aristocratic power, she was sure a chance encounter with vigilante John Stanton was not coincidental but the coming of destiny. The insatiable flower from the Garden of Eden is cast amongst the noxious weeds of dominion, industrial, and political power, not as a puppet, but as peerage.Roselyn Victoria Fleming was born of wealth and influence, an illegitimate child of aristocratic power, she was sure a chance encounter with vigilante John Stanton was not coincidental but the coming of destiny. The insatiable flower from the Garden of Eden is cast amongst the noxious weeds of dominion, industrial, and political power, not as a puppet, but as peerage.Time was of the essence, aristocracy rely on heirs and allies; Stanton drew upon this Roman characteristic fostered by peers of the realm. In the game of chess there is no solace for the humble pawn, but when one makes it to enemy lines they become a sleeping giant. Upon the horses back, the white knight backs the pawn. Checkmate. Views: 841
Remember that murderous semi chasing Dennis Weaver down a lonely stretch of desert highway?
Duel, Steven Spielberg's acclaimed first film, was adapted by Richard Matheson from his unforgettable story of the same name.
But "Duel" is only one of the classic suspense tales in this outstanding collection of stories by the Grand Master of Horror, which also contains Matheson's legendary first story, "Born of Man and Woman," as well as several stunning shockers that inspired memorable episodes of The Twilight Zone, including "Little Girl Lost," "Steel," and "Third from the Sun."
Like Matheson's previous collection, Nightmare at 20,000 Feet, this collection is an indispensable treasure trove of terror from the New York Times bestselling author of I Am Legend and What Dreams May Come. Views: 841
