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100 Tiny Tales: Short Stories Told in Exactly One Hundred Words


K. Kris Loomis - 2019
    Why not try some microfiction short stories instead? These bite-sized, slice-of-life short stories are crafted with only one hundred words, so they go by in a flash. Perfect for time-challenged fiction lovers, these humorous yet thought-provoking stories can be read when you’re waiting in line, riding the bus, or whenever you need a short mental break. Go on. Try some flash fiction. Grab your copy of 100 Tiny Tales today! 100 Tiny Tales: Short Stories Told in Exactly One Hundred Words is written by K. Kris Loomis, a native South Carolinian and the author of the novels, The Sinking of Bethany Ann Crane and The Murder of Leopold Beckenbauer, as well as the short story collection, The Monster In the Closet and Other Stories. Kris is also a nonfiction author who writes books about yoga, meditation, and the time she spent living in South America, including After Namaste: Off-the-Mat Musings of a Modern Yogini and Thirty Days in Quito: Two Gringos and a Three-Legged Cat Move to Ecuador. When Kris isn’t at her standing desk writing, she can be found playing chess, folding an origami crane, or practicing a Beethoven sonata on the piano. She lives in Rock Hill, South Carolina with her husband and two cats. You can connect with Kris at her website, www.kkrisloomis.com or her Amazon Author page, or find her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram @kkrisloomis.

Happily Ever After


John KlimaPeter Straub - 2011
    And so the Editor ventured forth, wandering the land of Story from shore to shore, climbing massive mountains of books and delving deep into lush, literary forests, gathering together thirty-three of the best re-tellings of fairy tales he could find. Not just any fairy tales, mind you, but tantalizing tales from some of the biggest names in today’s fantastic fiction, authors like Gregory Maguire, Susanna Clarke, Charles de Lint, Holly Black, Alethea Kontis, Kelly Link, Neil Gaiman, Patricia Briggs, Paul Di Filippo, Gregory Frost, and Nancy Kress. But these stories alone weren’t enough to satisfy the Editor, so the Editor ventured further, into the dangerous cave of the fearsome Bill Willingham, and emerged intact with a magnificent introduction, to tie the collection together. And the inhabitants of Story—from the Kings and Queens relaxing in their castles to the peasants toiling in the fields, from the fey folk flitting about the forests to the trolls lurking under bridges and the giants in the hills—read the anthology, and enjoyed it. And they all lived... ...Happily Ever After.

THE ROAD TO HELL


Paul Levine - 2011
    Levine's heroes travel dark and dangerous paths as they confront devilish and powerful villains. The journeys are by land, by sea, and in one case, perhaps only in the mind. In "El Valiente en el Infierno," (The Brave One in Hell), a 13-year-old Mexican boy tells his own story as he makes a treacherous midnight crossing into California in search of his father. The boy's courage is tested when he runs into two gun-toting American vigilantes, and the confrontation will change all of them forever. "Development Hell" imagines a pitch session in which a bedraggled Edgar Allan Poe squares off with a slick Hollywood producer who wants to make a cheesy slasher flick out of "The Pit and the Pendulum."Bookgasm praised the story as "going straight to the funny bone." In "A Hell of a Crime," a prosecutor prepares for a homicide trial while being pestered by his domineering mother, a famous lawyer herself. Just what role did she play in the murder? And how is the prosecutor's enigmatic wife involved in the case? Two of the author's best-loved characters, mismatched law partners Steve Solomon and Victoria Lord, appear in "Solomon & Lord: To Hell and Back."  Steve says he's going fishing with Manuel Cruz, a sleazy con man. Victoria knows that Cruz is an unlikely fishing buddy. So just what is Steve up to now? Something between mischief and murder.The book also contains an excerpt from "Solomon vs. Lord," the first novel of the bestselling series of legal thrillers. A quick synopsis: Victoria Lord follows all the rules. Steve Solomon makes up his own. When they defend an accused murderer, they'll either end up in ruin, in jail...or in bed. Here's what number one bestselling author Harlan Coben had to say: "Hiaasen meets Grisham in the court of last retort. A sexy, wacky, wonderful thriller with humor and heart."Finally, an excerpt of "Mortal Sin," one of the award-winning Jake Lassiter novels, is also included in the collection. This time, the linebacker-turned-lawyer has a dangerous conflict of interest. He's sleeping with Nicky Florio's wife...and defending the mob-connected millionaire in court.  One false move, and Jake will be gator bait. "Recalling the work of Carl Hiaasen, this thriller races to a smashing climax." - Library Journal. PRAISE FOR THE FICTION OF PAUL LEVINE "Mystery writing at its very, very best." - Larry King, USA TODAY"Irreverent...genuinely clever...great fun." - The New York Times Book  Review"Just the remedy for those who can't get enough Spenser and miss Travis  McGee terribly." - St. Petersburg Times"Genuinely chilling." - Washington Post Book World "Take one part John Grisham, two parts Carl Hiaasen, throw in a dash of John D. MacDonald, and voila!" - Tulsa World"Wildly entertaining blend of raucous humor and high adventure."- St. Louis Post-Dispatch"Cracking good action-mystery...funny, sardonic, and fast-paced." - Detroit Free Press ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The History of Vegas


Jodi Angel - 2005
    From the first page of each of the edgy and unrelentingly intense stories in this debut collection, the teenaged characters are headed for big trouble. The adult world has mostly failed them, and they find themselves entering into highly charged situations where they make their own rules, with misguided understanding of the consequences. The stories burn hot and fast, providing searing insights into their world of sex, drugs, drinking, violence, and accidental grace, played out in small, tough towns. Written with raw directness and understanding that makes these nine stories impossible to forget, The History of Vegas announces an exciting, fresh talent with the impact of Mary Gaitskill, Mary Karr, and Jayne Anne Phillips.

Something Came Through


Joe Hart - 2019
    In “Down In The Valley” a young fire service member discovers the horrifying truth regarding the missing persons in the lonely state park his fire tower watches over. A man whose entire life has been haunted by a hideous childhood event gets a second chance to make things right in “You Can Never Go Back”. And a young woman’s tragic mistake while driving and texting literally comes back to haunt her in “More”. Written in Hart’s hypnotic and unnerving style, Something Came Through features ten new terrifying stories that peel back the surface of everyday life to expose the darkness waiting beneath.

The Worst Kind of Monsters


Elias Witherow - 2016
    There's something horrible in that storm over the ocean. What does "feed the pig" mean? What are those ropes in the sky? Why is Dad acting so funny? In these dark tales you will experience every type of horror imaginable. It is so gruesome, frightening, and demented that only the bravest of readers will make it through these pages.

24 Stories: of Hope for Survivors of the Grenfell Tower Fire


Kathy Burke - 2018
    An entire community was destroyed. For many people affected by this tragedy, the psychological scars may never heal.Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a condition that affects many people who have endured traumatic events, leaving them unable to move on from life-changing tragedies. In the immediate aftermath of the fire, the focus was rightly placed on providing food, shelter and health care for those left homeless – but it is important that we don’t lose sight of the psychological impact this fire will have had on its survivors.24 Stories is an anthology of short stories, written on themes of community and hope, by a mix of the UK’s best established writers and previously unpublished authors, whose pieces were chosen by Kathy Burke from over 250 entries.Contributors include: Irvine Welsh, A. L. Kennedy, Meera Syal, John Niven, Pauline Melville, Daisy Buchanan, Christopher Brookmyre, Zoe Venditozzi, Nina Stibbe, Mike Gayle, Murray Lachlan Young, Barney Farmer.

Beyond the Woods: Fairy Tales Retold


Paula Guran - 2016
    But in truth, they have continued to prick the imaginations of readers at all ages.Over the years, authors have often borrowed bits and pieces from these stories, grafting them into their own writing, creating literature with both new meaning and age-old significance. In the last few decades or so, they’ve also intentionally retold and reinvented the tales in a variety of ways—delightful or dark, wistful or wicked, sweet or satirical—that forge new trails through the forests of fantastic fiction.This new anthology compiles some of the best modern fairy-tale retellings and reinventions from award-winning and bestselling authors, acclaimed storytellers, and exciting new talents, into an enchanting collection. Explore magical new realms by traveling with us, Beyond the Woods . . .

Five Tales of Horror and Suspense


C.D. Wilsher - 2018
    A young man finds out from a fortune teller that there’s always a price to be paid. A rich man doesn’t quite have the 25th high school reunion experience he expected. Beware of strangers on a train. A dog may not be man’s best friend. An aging hitman takes a trip down memory lane.

Selected Shorts: For Better and For Worse


Symphony SpaceJocelyn Sharlet - 2008
    More than 300,000 listeners tune in to this offering weekly to hear some of their favorite tales read aloud by distinguished actors.From a couple's rocky, college love affair that lasts a lifetime and a mother who nervously chaperones her retarded daughter's honeymoon to a supernatural tale of marriage and transformation and a grieving man who buries his young wife and makes amends with her family—this anthology captures the powerful and complicated lives of married couples. Among the stories are Sherman Alexie's "Do You Know Where I Am?" read by Keir Dullea; Karen E. Bender's "Eternal Love," read by Joanne Woodward; Ursula K. LeGuin's "The Wife's Story," read by Joanna Gleason; Shahrnush Parsipur's "Mrs. Farrokhlaqa Sadraldivan Golchehreh," translated by Kamran Talattof and Jocelyn Sharlet and read by Frances Sternhagen; and Luis Alberto Urrea's "Bid Farewell to Her Many Horses," read by Robert Sean Leonard.

Folk


Zoe Gilbert - 2018
    Harsh winds scour the rocky coastline. The villagers' lives are inseparable from nature and its enchantments.Verlyn Webbe, born with a wing for an arm, unfurls his feathers in defiance of past shame; Plum is snatched by a water bull and dragged to his lair; little Crab Skerry takes his first run through the gorse-maze; Madden sleepwalks through violent storms, haunted by horses and her father's wishes.As the tales of this island community interweave over the course of a generation, their earthy desires, resentments, idle gossip and painful losses create a staggeringly original world. Crackling with echoes of ancient folklore, but entirely, wonderfully, her own, Zoe Gilbert's Folk is a dark, beautiful and intoxicating debut.

The Bone Mother


David Demchuk - 2017
    It is said that even the Czarina Anastasia Romanova had received one in her trousseau. The workers come from the three neighboring villages on the border of Romania and Ukraine. Nourished, dressed and educated, they are the envy of all at a time when a famine programmed by Stalin sweeps the countryside and cannibalism rages from city to town to farm. But what is the secret of this factory and why does the Grazyn family protect its employees so scrupulously?The Bone Mother revives the great figures of Slavic mythology on the eve of the Second World War, from rusalka and Baba Yaga--The Bone Mother herself--to the golem. The existence of mortals is intimately linked to that of witches and vampires, in a universe where strigois rub shoulders with mermaids, ghosts and seers...and all are in peril from the Nichni Politsiyi, the Night Police, which wish to eradicate them.

White Haven and the Lord of Misrule


T.J. Green - 2021
    He announces he is the Lord of Misrule and appoints his Court of Fools.Very quickly odd things start to happen.Previously unseen magic is revealed, and paranormal characteristics are unveiled.And unfortunately, darker events occur, too.Unless Avery, Alex, and the other witches can find a solution, Yuletide may not be as joyous as they hoped.

Winter's Tales


Isak Dinesen - 1942
    A despairing author abandons his wife, but in the course of a long night's wandering, he learns love's true value and returns to her, only to find her a different woman than the one he left. A landowner, seeking to prove a principle, inadvertently exposes the ferocity of mother love. A wealthy young traveler melts the hauteur of a lovely woman by masquerading as her aged and loyal servant.Shimmering and haunting, Dinesen's Winter's Tales transport us, through their author's deft guidance of our desire to imagine, to the mysterious place where all stories are born.

American Fairy Tales


L. Frank Baum - 1901
    In Boston, five magical bon-bons make an ordinary senator, an ordinary professor, an ordinary girl and her ordinary parents do the most extraordinary things! A young cowboy lassoes Father Time; the dummy in Mr. Floman's department store window comes to life; and a tiny beetle gives a New England farmer and his wife a pump which pumps not water, but gold!Author of the much-loved Oz books, L. Frank Baum transforms the familiar with his magical mix of humor and enchantment. Most of the twelve stories in this delightful collection are set in America where, so it seems, modern fairies, knooks, and ryls are always causing the most astonishing things to happen! These tales will enchant both young and old. When American Fairy Tales first appeared, Baum's reputation as a storyteller had already been established by The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, written in 1900. The twelve stories in this collection were originally syndicated weekly in at least five newspapers during the first half of 1901. The first book edition, which this facsimile reprints, came out later that year.