She’s a nobody. And that’s the way she likes it. Her father, on the other hand — Hank Keeling, the serial killer and occasional cannibal better known as the Pork Chop Killer — has just gone viral. Thanks to a prison guard’s error, a cell phone video of Keeling’s botched execution is quickly becoming an internet sensation. After watching her father die in all his pixelated glory, Caroline is taken off-guard when Keeling himself shows up at her front door, looking very much not dead. And he has a plan. A plan involving Caroline. A plan Caroline is going to take part in whether she wants to or not. Success means wealth beyond her dreams. Failure means death. Soon Caroline is whisked away from her bland life to face down killers, gangsters and a well-meaning cop in a hunt for long-lost fortune. Deceit, avarice and unrelenting violence collide in a coming-of-age story like none you’ve ever read.

     From day one they see lots of roaches in the hallways but nothing in their own apartment. Hoping their luck will hold, they have no idea just what kind of hell is coming their way or what hideous secrets their apartment, in particular, holds. Buckle up. Carl and Jessica are in for a nasty ride and so are you. * NOT Extreme Horror but NOT for the Squeamish. Reactions to 'Warm, Dark Places Are Best' from some of my beta readers: "No. No. Dear God, NO! AAAGGHHH!!!" - William Holloway, master of cosmic dread and author of Lucky's Girl, The Immortal Body and the soon to be released Song of the Death God (all from Horrific Tales Publishing) "Oh god, I am clenching inside!! Uuuuuggghhh!!!....Mike, every time I messaged you while reading, I tossed my kindle down and grabbed my phone. I was squirming....Heebie Jeebie Creep Factor of infinity and beyond!...12:06 am Facebook message – ‘GAAWWDDAMMIT!!!!' *slaps leg*" - Lisa Swearengin, beta reader extraordinaire and veteran horror and extreme horror connoisseur "I loved the whole story. The flow, plot and characters were perfect. [But] Mike, you had me almost puking." - Robin Lee's Darkside Horror Reviews “Heebie Jeebies is an understatement. I'm still being startled half to death by my own hair. (A week after reading it.)” Lisa Lee – avid reader and watcher of all things horror "Oh holy f@#$ing shit! I will never sleep again but hells bells that was really amazing! I couldn't stop reading it, even tho I was horrified." Becky Narron, Reviewer at Roadie Notes "Dude. I was like eww and had to put down my kindle. Like nasty. I had to take a hot shower afterwards…(later that day) It's been 12 hours since I read your story and I gotta say, I can't stop thinking about it." Jason Morton, Published Poet and horror and extreme horror lover “Sent shivers up my spine [and] it certainly did get under my skin.” - Dale Robertson, author of the horror short stories Dobson Lane and Skee-Bo “Not sure if husband is even aware that his sex life is on hiatus...not sure for how long just yet but I know I'm not willing to go to bed with anything less than undies and thick yoga pants for at least a few days! (8 days later) I am still sleeping in double-decker yoga pants!” - Ruthann Jagge – lover of horror and an outstanding beta reader “A couple of times I had to stop reading and walk around my house as I'm yelling, Holy f@#$! Squirming as I try to get a few visual thoughts out of my head.” - Ta Bratcher, author of two contemporary women’s fiction novels and an avid fan of the horror genre

    Davids, now little more than a ghost town, retrieve the target and return to base. Trouble is, the target is a man named Victor, and it looks like somebody else got to him first. And St. Davids is anything but a ghost town... *** SHOCK is a novella that picks up where K.R. Griffiths' acclaimed debut PANIC left off.

    His relative did it because she blames him for the death of her one true love. After spending five years in juvie, he's released on parole and determined to reveal the truth about his relative. In the meantime, he meets a girl he develops feelings for. Shane's relative is a psychopath so good at manipulating people that she has managed to get everyone to believe Shane killed two people that she's killed. She never expected Shane to get such a soft sentence, but instead that he would remain in jail forever. Now she must start from scratch to get him back behind bars. To get her revenge right finally, she'll use the girl Shane falls in love with, breaking his heart as much as his spirit.NOTE: No sex or violence, but some bad language.

    Ten years ago on Halloween night, grotesque creatures snatched her best friend Elliot and Sam narrowly escaped with her life. Now a decade on, the police investigation has ground to a halt and Elliot’s whereabouts remains a mystery. Traumatized by her ordeal, Sam finds it hard to make friends. She is mistrustful of authority and changed schools more times than she cares to remember. To her, the world is cruel and unforgiving. Then she meets the enigmatic Lee Weaver. With his gorgeous face and magnetic presence, he turns heads wherever he goes. Sam has never wanted anyone as much as she wants Lee, but there are things about the alluring stranger that don’t add up, leading Sam to ask unsettling questions about her past. Soon she discovers the boy of her dreams is keeping a terrible secret: one that threatens to destroy everything Sam holds dear . . .Super Dark is a seductive love story that will keep you guessing right until the final page ...

    In the small town of Crescent Point, Jake will come face to face with an enemy unlike any he's ever faced before, and with the sins he's tried to ignore. He will discover that sometimes when you dig too deep into the darkness, you find something dragging you further down, and the only escape from the darkness is a desperate scramble toward the light.

    These are just some of the stories included in Bernard Schaffer's first collection, Women and Other Monsters. ***Vampires are assholes. They're not sparkly, reticent killers yearning for true love. They aren't gothic romantics who read poetry. They aren't even mysterious Romanians who turn into bats and terrorize the countryside. Really, they're just douche bags. - Room ServiceThus begins "Room Service," a dark comedy about a loser named Robbie who lives with his mom and dates a stripper. One night his girlfriend does a "private" with a suspiciously pasty customer and is never heard from again. As soon as Robbie figures out his girl was served up as a vampire Slurpee, he's out to exact revenge. Not that he has any clue how do it. But when you have nothing to lose and a bloodsucking freak to get even with, you don't mind improvising. ***Women and Other Monsters is the first collection of short stories by best-selling author Bernard Schaffer. Readers will have plenty more to feast on (nearly as much as Blake the vampire did in the story mentioned above), whether it's a Civil War Era woman too beloved by Death to die, or Ancient Astronauts who are only supposed to observe Earth, but instead tamper with humanity and trigger a history-altering event. Prepare to be seduced, surprised and sometimes horrified at the twists and turns that await as you venture into the darkness with Bernard Schaffer.***Women and Other Monsters is a short story collection recommended for fans of scary short stories, sexy short stories, superhero stories, secret agent short stories, horror stories and more.

     Two students return from a mountain camping trip to find an empty city. Everyone in every metropolis has gone. Only a few living souls remain in the countryside. And then the lizards came. The size of men, they flooded the city and attacked the few remaining people. When these mutated creatures are confronted by giant spiders, the two species fight each other for the remaining food supply...with the humans caught in the middle. A teenage boy with electric powers, a college student who can communicate with animals, a scientist with a dark secret, and a band of psychopaths with their own agenda... all come together. Defending each other from the evils of men and creatures alike, the last humans form separate camps and race against each other to unravel the mystery of the deserted cities, the swarming creatures, and the threat to humankind. While fighting off the giant monsters that sprang from nowhere, they search for clues that lead to alien devices and the possibility of a deeper reason for the world's transformation. But the mystery of the human disappearance remains. Sam, a boy born with powers able to generate electric charges, teams up with a boy who can understand the language of birds and spiders, and together they set out to find the answers. Another camp led by a mad scientist is racing to find the same answers, but for a very different reason. A post-apocalyptic novel and science fiction adventure blending together elements of monsters, survivalists, and science fiction. Earthweeds is Volume 1 in the Sons of Neptune series.

    Yet, one resident has seen the devastation before-hand and knows that if something isn't done quickly to eradicate the evil that is upon them, the town they know and love will be a distant, tragic memory.What no one can possibly fathom is that the seemingly pious and good-natured may be the reason the darkness has found its way to Bringham in the first place.As you pay close attention to this story, each episode will bring you closer and closer to the truth.Will Marie Adams become a victim herself? Has she slipped too deeply into the bowels of darkness?

    Now, he is back, leaving a trail of bloody carnage in his wake. The media has dubbed him Strawberries, and the country is mesmerized. Detective Harry Bland is a broken man, and can’t find a single clue to catch him. It doesn’t help that his mind won’t focus; his heart just isn’t in it anymore. Halfway across the country, Sylvia is in a different state of mind. When she isn’t selling sex to the rich, she is doing her best to disappear. She lives a life of assumed names, one night stands and a constant stream of narcotics. A reporter, two cross-country truckers, an eccentric friend, and a rubber-clad CSI all have their part to play. Get ready for an intense, yet human experience, as their paths come together in a small town you've never heard of. Strawberries has killed again.

    Upon inspecting the peephole, the wary teenager decides not to answer. The person standing on the porch is wearing a dark jacket with a hood. Something about the mysterious unexpected visitor doesn’t feel right. A minute later as Dylan tries to pretend that no one is home, he hears, in the backyard, his German shepherd Murray barking and growling fiercely. Then to the adolescent’s horror, he hears the sound of a loud boom, reminiscent of a firecracker exploding. Suddenly the dog squeals like a stuck pig. Oh no! What just happened? What was Dylan suppose to do now? Hide! Yes. Hide. That was about all he could do. Especially since Dylan had forgotten to lock the back door.

    Follow Max on his lifelong quest to produce the perfect novel. Touching, irreverent, hilarious and sad. Every writer should read this story. Every writer will relate to Max. please note: This is a SHORT STORY consisting of 2,500 words.

    

     (No previous DEAD CLOWN BARBECUE reading experience required.) This 21,000-word collection contains the first-ever publication of "Gave Up The Ghost," the basis for the horror/comedy short movie directed by Gregory Lamberson, that will appear in the upcoming anthology film CREEPERS. In addition to a report from the movie set, this collection contains... "The Car." A pair of vampires get together for an evening of vicious fun. "The Loneliest Jackalope." Bunnies with antlers! You can't go wrong with bunnies with antlers. "Inside the Boxes." Whatever is in there can't be good... "A Bit of Christmas Mayhem." Andrew Mayhem vs. a trio of axe-wielding Santa Clauses. "Scrumptious Bone Bread." It's not just for giants anymore. "A Flawed Fantasy." Sometimes, two girls at once isn't the best idea. "Tin Cans." What will you hear when you put one to your ear?

    When that death seems all too likely, she is found by one of the Dragon Kindred and Tika's life takes a twist she could never have imagined in her wildest dreams - or her worst nightmares.