Previously difficult for readers to discover in its new modes, urban fantasy is represented here in all three of its distinct styles—playful new mythologies, sexy paranormal romances, and gritty urban noir. Whether they feature tattooed demon-hunters, angst-ridden vampires, supernatural gumshoes, or pixelated pixies, these authors—including Patricia Briggs, Neil Gaiman, and Charles de Lint—mash-up traditional fare with pop culture, creating iconic characters, conflicted moralities, and complex settings. The result is starkly original fiction that has broad-based appeal and is immensely entertaining.ContentsIntroduction by Peter S. Beagle Mythic FictionIntroduction: “A Personal Journey Into Mythic Fiction” by Charles de Lint “A Bird That Whistles” by Emma Bull“Make a Joyful Noise” by Charles de Lint“The Goldfish Pool and Other Stories” by Neil Gaiman“On the Road to New Egypt” by Jeffrey Ford“Julie’s Unicorn” by Peter S. BeagleParanormal RomanceIntroduction: “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Urban Fantasy” by Paula Guran “Companions to the Moon” by Charles de Lint“A Haunted House of Her Own” by Kelley Armstrong“She’s My Witch” by Norman Partridge“Kitty’s Zombie New Year” by Carrie Vaughn“Seeing Eye” by Patricia Briggs“Hit” by Bruce McAllister “Boobs” by Suzy McKee Charnas “Farewell, My Zombie” by Francesca Lia BlockNoir FantasyIntroduction: “We Are Not a Club, but We Sometimes Share a Room” by Joe R. Lansdale “The White Man” by Thomas M. Disch“Gestella” by Susan Palwick“The Coldest Girl in Coldtown” by Holly Black“Talking Back to the Moon” by Steven R. Boyett“On the Far Side of the Cadillac Desert With Dead Folks” by Joe R. Lansdale“The Bible Repairman” by Tim Powers“Father Dear” by Al Sarrantonio

    Billions died, civilization collapsed, and the human race teetered on the brink of extinction. Humanity's only hope was not a cure, but another bioweapon. When deployed it killed ninety percent of the infected, but the remaining ten percent transformed into even more terrifying creatures called Variants.  Heroes have risen up to meet these abominations. Men like Master Sergeant Reed Beckham of Delta Force Team Ghost and Marine Corporal Joe Fitzpatrick. Women like Dr. Kate Lovato and firefighter Meg Pratt. Throughout the world, survivors band together to fight the evolving monsters in an effort to save humanity. Now, for the first time ever in print, comes a collection of Extinction Cycle short stories that explore the human spirit and the fight for survival in the face of overwhelming odds from some of the leading voices in the post-apocalyptic genre.   Featured Authors Include:  Mark Tufo - Extinction Trippin'Anthony Melchiorri - Darkness EvolvedJeff Olah - The Bone Collector Russell Blake - Extinction Thailand Rachel Aukes - The Fall of Fort Bragg Note: All stories were previously published in the Extinction Cycle Kindle world, but are now being offered in print, and audio for the first time. Readers outside of the USA will also get to experience these stories for the first time as well. Thank you for reading!

    http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DX73ZPY It’s suggested you read the novel before you read SO LONG, LOLLIPOPS. Unless you’re someone who likes to read the last page of a book first—in that case, enjoy! SO LONG, LOLLIPOPS description below * * * * * * * * * Peter watched his new family drive away, certain it was the last time he’d ever see them. But sometimes plans go awry in the best way. Now, the plan is to get back to them. But sometimes plans go awry in the worst way. Sometimes the only plan is to believe it will be all right, even when it’s almost impossible to believe.

    In a world changed by mutation and madness, the past reminds us of who we are, and our memories ground us to who we’ll become. My name is Zoe Cartwright, and I see people’s memories. They haunt me. I know things I shouldn’t about my friends and family--their experiences with love and loss, hope and fear--things that must never be forgotten. Stories that must be written down. The world has already changed so much; who knows what the future will hold.  These are our stories from the world before The Ending.

    In Jim Butcher’s ”Curses”, Harry Dresden investigates how to lift a curse laid by the Fair Folk on the Chicago Cubs. In Patricia Briggs’ “Fairy Gifts,”, a vampire is called home by magic to save the Fae who freed him from a dark curse. In Melissa Marr’s “Guns for the Dead”, the newly dead Frankie Lee seeks a job in the afterlife on the wrong side of the law. In Holly Black’s “Noble Rot”, a dying rock star discovers that the young woman who brings him food every day has some strange appetites of her own.Featuring original stories from 20 authors, this dark, captivating, fabulous, and fantastical collection is not to be missed!Contents:Curses / by Jim Butcher --How the pooka came to New York City / by Delia Sherman --On the slide / by Richard Bowes --The Duke of Riverside / by Ellen Kushner --Oblivion by Calvin Klein / by Christopher Fowler --Fairy gifts / by Patricia Briggs --Picking up the pieces / by Pat Cadigan --Underbridge / by Peter S. Beagle --Priced to sell / by Naomi Novik --The bricks of Gelecek / by Matthew Kressel --Weston walks / by Kit Reed --The projected girl/ by Lavie Tidhar --The way station / by Nathan Ballingrud --Guns for the dead / by Melissa Marr --And go like this / by John Crowley --Noble rot / by Holly Black --Daddy longlegs of the evening / by Jeffrey Ford --The skinny girl / by Lucius Shepard --The Colliers' Venus (1893) / by Caitlín R. Kiernan --King pole, gallows pole, bottle tree / by Elizabeth Bear.

    Half zombie while her job is to hunt bloodthirsty creatures to protect the innocent. It’s the dreams that haunt her and they aren’t nightmares. Wunder dreams of a man, a man made just for her. Is he real, can he be the one she‘s yearned for?Pete’s world is a lonely one as he wrestles with the reality of being part zombie. His hatred for the creatures that killed his parents drives him to patrol the streets and wipe them all out. His life would be stark, but for the dreams he’s been having; of a woman, so sensuous, so sexy. These alluring visions have become erotic and consuming. He feels as if he made her up to keep from going crazy. Is this life of hunting the walking dead, all there is? Or is she out there, waiting…just for him?

    I, Zombie is a comedy horror short story from Nick Spalding (writing as Clive Bonnet) about the thinking dead! It is featured in his fantasy novel "The Cornerstone".

    Experience firsthand the beginning of the end and behold the apocalypse through the eyes of characters you only thought you knew. Ashes to ashes . . .Evie Greene’s story of the Flash is just one of many. All over the world, those connected in some way to the lethal Arcana game—like Death, Jack, and Fortune—must first survive a horrifying night of blood and screams. We all fall down.Some will have to grapple with new powers; all will be damned to a hellish new existence of plague, brutality, desolation, and cannibalism. Find out who they lost, why they endure, and what they sacrificed in order to live past Day Zero. . . .

    The side effects were anything but hopeful. Mara and Sebastian are young, in love and newlyweds. Far too soon, they will face tests to their love that most others won’t survive. Their bond strengthens with each loss, destruction and unbearable race against time. In each other, they find the will and hope to endure. Hand in hand, they will face the darkening of humanity with strength and integrity and an undeniable spirit to survive; together.

    The constant peril of brigands keeps Verity Coleman stuck in Silver Cliffs, dreaming of the open road—and of Loyal Alsbaugh, the tall and silent highway patrolman. When her town is attacked, Verity has a chance to win over Loyal’s muted heart. But will his wounded past make him leave her along the road, or can she convince him to take her along?“By the Sea of Sand” by Megan Hart…Captain Kason Reed was willing to give his life to the Sheirran Defense Forces, but now he can’t remember anything but bits and pieces of the war. When his sexual attraction to his caregiver, Teila, causes him to make advances toward her, she becomes the aggressor, urging him with her body to explore the memories of his past—memories that all seem to draw him back to Teila…

    Hamilton’s bestselling novel, Kiss the Dead. You’d think I’d get used to seeing such a beautiful man and knowing he was mine, but it never grew old, as if his beauty and the fact that he was mine, and I was his, would forever surprise me. With a vampire like Jean Claude around, it’s far too easy for Anita Blake to doubt her own appearance—and the hold it has on those who love her. But one hot tub and two incredibly sexy men—Jean Claude and Asher—will make her feel like the most lusted-after woman alive…or undead. Not bad for a mere human… “Hamilton remains one of the most inventive and exciting writers in the paranormal field.”—Charlaine Harris, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Includes an excerpt of Kiss the Dead, the new Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter novel

    It detailed our culture, accumulated mathematical knowledge, and the finer points of human physiology. Now, years later, they have finally received a reply... The Western Hemisphere is plunged into chaos, as exposure to the alien radio signal transforms millions of ordinary citizens into savage lunatics, their re-programmed minds relentlessly driving them to spread mayhem and death. From the southernmost point of Chile to the farthest reaches of Northern Canada, the day dawns upon a desperate struggle for survival. Fleeing from raging fires, disastrous havoc, and the murderous rampaging of the infected, the survivors must try to overcome the odds and survive to see tomorrow - but, with a mentally unstable President contemplating full-scale nuclear war on the East, will there even be a tomorrow? Originally published as a condensed serial on Reddit.com, in the SubReddit Library of Shadows, 99 Brief Scenes From the End of The World is a taut, adrenaline-fueled excursion into the darkest depths of the human id. It takes the reader from the embattled streets of suburbia to a besieged church in a Texan border town; to top-secret government facilities, where powerful men play a game of political chess, using people as pawns. Will the alien transmission succeed in destroying us all - or does salvation lie within the extraordinary mind of a catatonic little girl?

    Sure, it’s not the romantic trip she was envisioning with her fiancé Jared Monroe – especially since her best friend Zander is acting as a third wheel when it comes to the long-planned cruise – but it’s a break from the weather and a chance for fun in the sun.Rowan Gray is excited. She and her boyfriend Quinn Davenport are getting closer to solving a personal mystery, which plays into her paranormal past, and she’s simply happy doing her job on The Bounding Storm for the next few days. The promise of a life spent in the open is in front of her … but for now, her only concern is snapping photographs of the paranormal enthusiasts descending on the ship.Hundreds of psychics and ghost hunters in one place makes for fun, frolicking, and frightening encounters. It also leads to murder. The only problem for those investigating the murder is there are way too many suspects.Harper, Jared, and Zander find themselves in the thick of things as the investigation heats up. Of course, that means they’re butting heads with Rowan and Quinn, the people with actual authority on the ship. Both women are special, overflowing with gifts, but trust isn’t always easy.Before all is said and done, two teams are going to have to become one if everyone wants to survive. It won’t exactly be smooth sailing but everyone is open to one heck of an adventure.

    Ten years after the apocalypse destroyed the world that she knew, a survivor returns to her home town, hoping to piece together the bits of her past that have troubled her so much ever since.Sometimes the past is best left behind us, but sometimes we all need to say goodbye."At last, goodbye" is a short story set in the world of the Diary of the Displaced novel series.

    But whatever you do, don’t pray for hope.”– Season 1 of Dying Hope, Zombie Apocalypse Kindle book description:Brody had always wanted to live like the rich kids did, with their hot meals and shiny cell phones. Unfortunately, life had other plans for him and his sister Pippa. Struggling to pick up the pieces after their father’s mysterious death and coping with their mother’s drug use and her abominable new boyfriend, the children felt even more removed from hope. In this thrilling debut novella, Brody and Pippa are about to learn to rely on a completely different set of survival mechanisms — a set that would keep them alive while horror, a virus that slowly poisons the human brain, tears apart their small town. Amid the outbreak, tales of fright breed and people begin using the word zombie — something Brody, even though young, thinks is foolish.The horror and fun begins here, Episode 1