With 12 terrifically spine chilling short stories, this anthology contains contributions from some of the best young horror writing talent out there, and was curated by the editors of the PlayWithDeath.com, the premier destination for online horror entertainment. If you're searching for stories that will frighten you to your very core, look no further. List of Short Story Authors Tom Wortman M. B. Vujačić Manen Lyset Jenny Ashford Kyle Yadlosky G. T. Montgomery Ari Drew Patrick Winters Trevor James Zaple John Teel Dexter Findley Kyle Rader

    After an unspeakable tragedy, its doors close. Decades later, a tabloid TV host investigates the vacant lodge with his production crew in search of supernatural evidence. Their show ends in disaster. In the years that follow, family man Greg Barrett purchases the property with dreams of running his own business. But his presence awakens a dormant curse and unleashes a terror from beyond.The Haunting of the Silver Creek LodgeIn a small town rests an old lodge with a big secret.Maxine Finch and Simon York, a recently married couple with little money, use their limited honeymoon funds to buy a foreclosed inn in the tiny snowy town of Silver Ridge, Colorado. But when strange things start happening in the middle of the night, Maxine and Simon wonder if their investment is a dangerous mistake.The Haunting of the Briar RoseJules is recovering from a recent failure when her mysterious uncle makes her an offer she can’t refuse: restore his bed and breakfast the Briar Rose.When Jules inherits the Briar Rose bed and breakfast from her strange and mysterious uncle, she thinks it will be the opportunity of a lifetime for her and her husband, Paul. But Jules and Paul soon discover that the Briar Rose holds many secrets: one of them about the murders that took place a year prior, when two of the guests never checked out.

    But the men, led by a killer who calls himself ‘‘Teacher,” have much darker plans in mind.Teacher intends to give a lesson unlike any taught before. Written on flesh, inked in blood. A lesson about monsters.The bell has been rung, the lesson begun. And the lesson is this: The monsters are real, and to them... you are just a plaything.

    Harshwardhana, the leader, believes they will win…Until he falls upon a sinister secret of the dark forces.Centuries later… Prithvi Sen is a regular college-going boy. His growth from childhood to adulthood has been plagued by an uncanny disease. Although medicines have it under control, Prithvi feels that the illness hasn’t revealed its truest nature yet. During his existential crisis, a drastic series of events occur and bring the most unexpected twist into his life. Could there be a link between Prithvi and the Dharmayodhas?

    Warlords are seizing control of a central African nation and what had begun as a limited conflict is quickly ramping up to full-scale genocide. On orders of the President, he leads a Delta Force team to join up with a squad from the Australian SASR who are already on the ground. Together, they have one mission. Stop the wholesale slaughter of innocents by any means necessary. But, things are not as they seem. John is accompanied by a CIA agent who has a personal issue with him, as well as a mysterious specialist from USAMRIID, the US Army's laboratory for medical and biological defense research. Together, they encounter horrors that can only come from generations of tribal hatred. After witnessing unspeakable atrocities, none of the men will ever be the same. For those readers who are familiar with the V Plague series, this is the story of John and Lucas Martin that was referenced in the novel Recovery: V Plague Book 8. This story is set before the time of the V Plague and can be read before, during or after without spoiling any events in the series. While Hunter's Rain is by definition of word count a novel, it is published as a novella.

    It was Halloween and Samantha`s contractions were unbearable so her husband rushed his pregnant wife to the hospital to deliver their new bundle of joy. Mike told the doctor and nurse to take great care of his wife. The doctor and nurse reassured Mike they would take very good care of her and not to worry. Mike waited patiently in the waiting room as the doctor and nurse delivered their beautiful baby. After a few hours the baby finally arrived and the doctor entered the waiting room and told Mike to come in the room and see his new baby. Mike entered and his wife was all smiles and said "Honey, it`s a boy!" "I think he looks like a Johnny. What do you think?" asked his wife. "Johnny sounds fine to me," replied Mike. Mike was so excited and held his baby boy in his arms as tears rolled down his cheeks and said "Darling, I think he likes me." Mike stayed the night in his wife's room with their new baby, but as they were both sleeping, an unforeseen force came in their room that was about to change their lives forever, when they both woke in the morning. Morning came, and Samantha was discharged from the hospital, and time for their new baby to be raised in their new home. It wasn't until after little Johnny turned 6 years of age that things around the Delany Estate turned deadly. The first sign that Johnny had the mark of the beast was June 6. It was the 6th month, 6th day, and Johnny was 6. All the numbers represented 666.

    Spooky Nook is a 10,000-word "prequel of sorts" to The Calling, a supernatural thriller by Robert Swartwood.

    When the opportunity arises, the two jump at the chance to make this dream a reality. They find an old Victorian home that has been vacant for many years and believe this is their chance to fix up and open the Inn at Raven’s Crest. Maggie quickly learns of the ghosts still living in the house. She befriends them; talks to them; helps them find peace, and offers a way to get to the other side. As the first guests arrives, so does an awful storm which puts out the roads, the power and the internet, thus leaving all of the guests captive at the Inn. When one person is found murdered, and then another, everyone is frightened and not sure who to trust and who the murderer is. There are many signs that point to one and then another suspect before the final chapter is revealed. Inn at Raven’s Crest by Salem Marlowe has a plot we may have read before, but the characters and the events are brand new and kept me glued to my Kindle. Each time I thought I had solved the mystery, another twist changed my mind. I couldn’t help but root for Maggie and Lee and for the future success of the Inn. Each character was well portrayed and had all the human characteristics of good and evil in them. I would love to see what happens when the next set of guests arrive at the Inn. It would be an awesome TV series with new guests arriving weekly. I highly recommend reading Inn at Raven’s Crest; mystery fans will not be disappointed. Two friends buy an abandoned Victorian house and turn it into a bed and breakfast. Before renovations are completed they discover their home has come complete with ghosts, and an old, unsolved murder. Can they solve the mystery and get the ghosts to leave? Or will they get caught up in a new set of murders, ones that are decimating their guests?

    Sharpe.I just woke up in this ghostly town. There are only a few people living here, although “living” might not be the right word. They just told me that I’m dead. That this is the afterlife. I don’t want to believe them. One thing is for sure though. Whatever is going on here, I’m screwed.Waking up in a different body isn’t the strangest thing that happens to Tim. He fights for answers in an unusual little town with only a nine-year-old girl on his side.Together they battle to find the truth. Is this heaven, hell, purgatory, or a mind-control experiment? No matter what, Tim and Ella need to uncover the reality of this nightmare.Broken Memory was nominated for the Harland Awards for best novel of 2015, and received an honorable mention for the extraordinary originality. If you like fast-paced thrillers with influences of horror and science fiction, packed with twists and turns, then you are going to love this novel by bestselling author J. Sharpe.

    The house hasn’t been lived in for years, but they are drawn to its original features and surprisingly large garden, which stretches down into a beautiful apple orchard. It’s idyllic, remote, picturesque: exactly what they need to put the horror of the past behind them.One hundred and fifty years earlier, a huge oak tree was felled in front of the cottage during a raging storm. Beneath it lies a young man with a shock of red hair, presumed dead—surely no one could survive such an accident. But the red-haired man is alive, and after a brief convalescence is taken in by the family living in the cottage and put to work in the fields. The children all love him, but the eldest daughter, Eliza, has her reservations. There’s something about the red-haired man that sits ill with her. A presence. An evil.Back in the present, weeks after moving to the cottage and still drowning beneath the weight of insurmountable grief, Mary Coles starts to sense there’s something in the house. Children’s whispers, footsteps from above, half-caught glimpses of figures in the garden. A young man with a shock of red hair wandering through the orchard.Has Mary’s grief turned to madness? Or have the events that took place so long ago finally come back to haunt her…?

    There was nothing to distinguish it from any other quaint, older home nestled within the rural Vermont landscape. For Liz, Charlie, Donna and Willa it was a dream come true; exactly what they needed. Each of them had escaped hardship longing for the comforts of loved ones, hearth and home. The spacious house, the location and the timing all seemed so perfect. But none of them could imagine the horrors that awaited them as the house revealed its secrets.

    A gang-infested school. A vengeful teacher. After his star pupil, Rina Ogawa, is sexually assaulted in a school restroom, Edward Clifford sets out on a journey to find the truth and bring her attackers to justice. He finds himself delving head-first into the lives of his other students—lives filled with crime, violence, and hatred. What starts as a desperate attempt to achieve justice quickly sends Edward down the path of vengeance... Who attacked Rina Ogawa? Can Edward bring her attackers to justice? Or will he take matters into his own hands? From the provocative author of The Law of Retaliation and Grandfather’s House, Jon Athan brings you a shocking thriller packed with mystery, suspense, and extreme violence. This is a story of human horror. WARNING: This novel contains graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.

    There he is stunned to discover that his father’s will disinherits his family and leaves everything – including the family home – to a secret son, Andrew Shaw.The news fills the Shaw family with hope. Twenty-year-old Andrew is in desperate need of a kidney transplant, and for him the inheritance may mean the difference between life and death. However, the lives of Andrew, his devoted older sister Tors and young brother Jack are disrupted when their mother insists they move from their home in Kerry to Wicklow to stake their claim under the will. There they live in a tiny bungalow on the sea front, while the Murtaghs take steps to contest the will.Gradually, both Seán Murtagh and Tors Shaw recognise the need to seek some middle ground but that seems impossible, such is the hostility between the families and the burning resentment that exists between the mothers.Andrew Shaw’s focus, however, is not on the question of the inheritance. There is something else he needs from the Murtaghs . . . something only they can give him . . .The Secret Son is a poignant and thought-provoking story that will stay with you long after you turn the last page.

    Some mutations are worse than others.Ebola, one of the most feared of the hemorrhagic diseases, begins spreading across the borders of countries in West Africa. Soon after, the disease mutates into the “Z” or Zombie Virus. Journalist Hunter Morgan uncovers a disturbing connection between Chen-Zamora Pharmaceuticals and this mutation. Further investigation reveals a web of sinister intrigue connecting the pharmaceutical company to a treatment and research camp in West Africa, U.S. government officials, the CDC and the World Health Organization. Racing against time to find a cure, Hunter and several scientists go underground in order to hide from powerful forces trying to silence them forever.Boxed Set of NOVELETTES and NOVELLAS. GENRES: Apocalyptic Science Fiction, Zombie Fiction, Conspiracy Fiction, Horror. REVIEWS: Book #1, Mutation Z: The Ebola Zombies:“The plot sucked me in, as it was well done and believable. This take on the pandemic angle was well done, and an interesting to see a zombie outbreak from start. I have to say this kept me on the edge of my seat, and made me want to wash my hands repeatedly.” – Shandy Jo, Mama Knows Books“I am VERY excited to hear that this novelette will be growing into a series! Especially because of the ending that leaves you with buggy eyes and an impressive jaw gape.” – Rebecca Engelmann, Sister Sinister Speaks blogBook #2, Mutation Z: Closing the Borders:“Ms Peake delivered an enthralling read...Ms Peake pulls you into the story and keeps you reading with lots of action and twists to keep you on your toes.” – Shandy Jo at Mama Knows Books“This second book is as intense as the first one. And the addition of new characters and the spread of the disease build the suspense to a fever pitch.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW BlogBook #3, Mutation Z: Protecting Our Own:“Electrifying: Science Gone Amuck” – Mallory Heart Reviews“Holy crap! / Just when you think things can’t get any crazier, they do. This is one intense series. I loved the first two books and this one is just as good, if not better.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“The Mutation Z series is a must read for horror and dystopian lovers everywhere. The story grows better and better with each novella.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and ReviewerBook #4, Mutation Z: Drones Overhead:“Well, the author did it again. Kept me tearing through this episode, cringing, cheering, and hoping. Mutation Z is like zombie M&Ms. You can’t read just one and keep reaching for more.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“Mutation Z: Drones Overhead by Marilyn Peake is the fourth novella in this zombie series that had me feeling like upchucking one minute and kicking ass the next.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and ReviewerBook #5, Mutation Z: Dragon in the Bunker:“Zombie horror, big government, a little bit of science fiction, and some modern cyber twists. Too good to pass up.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“Journalist Hunter Morgan is a seriously messed up guy who has lost so much because of the Z virus, but he never gives up and I love that, because in this apocalyptic horror novella, all my conspiracy theories developed into full blown betrayal and treason showcasing an evil so potent that it makes me so angry I want to jump into my Kindle and beat the hell out of someone…or so much worse and with writing like that I say, ‘Well done, Marilyn,’ as we move on to a new beginning in Hunter’s life.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and ReviewerBook #6, Mutation Z: Desperate Measures:“I almost didn’t want to start this one as it’s the final book and I didn’t want it to end. / I wondered who would survive, if they’d find a cure, whether the world could be saved. I didn’t have a clue how all of my questions would be answered. / The author did a bang up job of doing just that.” – Laura, FUONLYKNEW Blog“Marilyn Peake wraps up this novella series, exposing all the conspiracies and corruption, the perverted reasons for setting the zombies loose, and my juices were flowing as they pissed me off and sickened me beyond words, but left me with the faith that a…few good men/women can make all the difference in the world.” – Sherry Fundin, Blogger and Reviewer

    What if the devil on your shoulder could actually come out and play? Voices in my Head is just that. Meet Mikey, the sweetest five-year-old you've ever met, and his psychotic dark side Michael. When his mother changes his life forever Michael comes out to play.