A time machine's lesson comes too late. Christmas trees save a lost soul's life. Ten million people live in one man's breath. ...Or Midnight: Murder returns to an infamous moor. Asylum workers find what is worse than insanity. A shunned grave's secrets gain fatal exposure. Nighttime terrors turn all too real. These and other stories comprise a compilation of bittersweet warmth and creeping horror, subtle illumination and dark vistas. Gregory Miller's Scaring the Crows is a genre-spanning collection of short fiction at its finest. Read it at noon...or midnight.

    Among its pages are a couple who becomes obsessed with their friend hearing them have sex, then seeing them have sex…until they can’t have sex without him; a ten-year-old whose birthday party takes a sinister turn when she wishes for “something mean”; a woman who finds a book of spells half hidden at the library and summons her heart’s desire: a nameless, naked man; and a self-proclaimed “biter” who dreams of sneaking up behind and sinking her teeth into a green-eyed, long-haired, pink-cheeked coworker.Spanning a range of genres and topics—from the mundane to the murderous and supernatural—these are stories about sex and punishment, guilt and anger, the pleasure and terror of inflicting and experiencing pain. These stories fascinate and repel, revolt and arouse, scare and delight in equal measure. And, as a collection, they point a finger at you, daring you to feel uncomfortable—or worse, understood—as if to say, “You want this, right? You know you want this.”Bad boy --Look at your game, girl --Sardines --The night runner --The mirror, the bucket, and the old thigh bone --Cat person --The good guy --The boy in the pool --Scarred --The matchbox sign --Death wish --Biter --Acknowledgments

    This edition contains the original introduction by Theodore Sturgeon and the original foreword by Harlan Ellison, along with a brief update comment by Ellison that was added in the 1983 edition. Among Ellison's more famous stories, two consistently noted as among his very best ever are the title story and the volume's concluding one, Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes.Since Ellison himself strongly resists categorization of his work, we won't call them science fiction, or SF, or speculative fiction or horror or anything else except compelling reading experiences that are sui generis. They could only have been written by Harlan Ellison and they are incomparably original.CONTENTS"I Have No Mouth & I Must Scream""Big Sam Was My Friend""Eyes of Dust""World of the Myth""Lonelyache""Delusion for Dragonslayer""Pretty Maggie Moneyeyes"

    . . ? Find them all here in Holly Black’s amazing first collection.In her debut collection, New York Times best-selling author Holly Black returns to the world of Tithe in two darkly exquisite new tales. Then Black takes readers on a tour of a faerie market and introduces a girl poisonous to the touch and another who challenges the devil to a competitive eating match. Some of these stories have been published in anthologies such as 21 Proms, The Faery Reel, and The Restless Dead, and many have been reprinted in many “Best of ” anthologies.The Poison Eaters is Holly Black’s much-anticipated first collection, and her ability to stare into the void—and to find humanity and humor there—will speak to young adult and adult readers alike.A Junior Library Guild Pick. Illustrated by Theo Black.Holly Black is the author of Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale (an ALA Best Book for Young Adults) and two related novels, Valiant (Norton Award winner) and New York Times bestseller Ironside. Her latest novel, Black Heart is the third of a new series, The Curseworkers. She and Tony DiTerlizzi created the best-selling Spiderwick Chronicles. Holly lives in Massachusetts with her husband, Theo, in a house with a secret library.

    P. Lovecraft.The Stories included are:The Nameless CityThe FestivalThe Colour Out of SpaceThe Call of CthulhuThe Dunwich HorrorThe Whisperer in DarknessThe Dreams in the Witch HouseThe Haunter of the DarkThe Shadow Over InnsmouthDiscarded Draft of "The Shadow Over Innsmouth"The Shadow Out of TimeAt the Mountains of MadnessThe Case of Charles Dexter WardAzathothBeyond the Wall of SleepCelephaïsCool AirDagonEx OblivioneFacts Concerning the Late Arthur Jermyn and His FamilyFrom BeyondHeHerbert West-ReanimatorHypnosIn the VaultMemoryNyarlathotepPickman’s ModelThe BookThe Cats of UltharThe DescendantThe Doom That Came to SarnathThe Dream-Quest of Unknown KadathThe Evil ClergymanThe Horror at Red HookThe HoundThe Lurking FearThe Moon-BogThe Music of Erich ZannThe Other GodsThe OutsiderThe Picture in the HouseThe Quest of IranonThe Rats in the WallsThe Shunned HouseThe Silver KeyThe Statement of Randolph CarterThe Strange High House in the MistThe StreetThe TempleThe Terrible Old ManThe Thing on the DoorstepThe TombThe Transition of Juan RomeroThe TreeThe UnnamableThe White ShipWhat the Moon BringsPolarisThe Very Old FolkIbidOld BugsSweet Ermengarde, or, The Heart of a Country GirlA Reminiscence of Dr. Samuel JohnsonThe History of the Necronomicon

    These are but a few of the curiosities collected in this volume of short stories by three acclaimed practitioners of paranormal fiction.But The Curiosities is more than the stories. Since 2008, Maggie, Tessa, and Brenna have posted more than 250 works of short fiction to their website merryfates.com. Their goal was simple: create a space for experimentation and improvisation in their writing—all in public and without a backspace key. In that spirit, The Curiosities includes the stories and each author's comments, critiques, and kudos in the margins. Think of it as a guided tour of the creative processes of three acclaimed authors.So, are you curious now?

    Grandmamma did, too, back when she could still think straight. Hell, everybody in the poverty and crime-ridden Oak knew to stay away from it.But when a drug deal goes bad, and Mike is left penniless and desperate, he and his younger brother, James, do the unthinkable. In the dead of night, they sneak onto the unkempt property in search of rumored treasures. Beneath the thick shadow cast by the deserted home, they find what they are looking for.But brothers get greedy. Enticed by the promise of enough riches to get them out of the doomed neighborhood, the pair enters the house.And soon discover that the truth can be much worse than legend.

    Captain Dak Smith saw in her something special, an opportunity to burn for the far horizon as an independent, free from the gloms that hold known space in thrall – but he had to get her running first.Armed with a standard-issue captain's eyebrow and an infectious grin, Captain Smith and his hand-picked crew embark on an adventure through deep space filled with scoundrels, pirates, and some incredibly unfortunate peace-loving rocks that happened to be at the wrong place, at the worst time.

    A free short story taken straight from the pages of THE MONSTER’S CORNER, an all original anthology from some of today’s hottest supernatural writers, featuring stories from the monster’s point of view.SPECIMEN 313 is the story of a meat-eating plant named Max, surviving in the greenhouse with his mad doctor keeper when he gets a new female neighbor.

    Awe meets ache. Terror becomes transcendence. Regret gives way to rebirth. Fifteen short stories and one poem span nearly every twisted corner of the horror and dark fiction genres:A woman experiences an emotional reckoning inside a haunted house. A father sees his daughter rescued after a cold case is solved, only to learn the tragic limits of his love. A man awakens a vengeful spirit and learns the terrible price of settling scores. A boy comes of age into awareness of a secret universe of Lovecraftian scale. A young woman confronts the deathly price of existence inside a German concentration camp during the Holocaust. And much, much more…Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories features the most celebrated voices in dark fiction, as well as a number of exciting, new talents, including: Clive Barker, Neil Gaiman, Ramsey Campbell, Paul Tremblay, John F.D. Taff, Lisa Mannetti, Damien Angelica Walters, Josh Malerman, Christopher Coake, Mercedes M. Yardley, Brian Kirk, Stephanie M. Wytovich, Amanda Gowin, Richard Thomas, Maria Alexander and Kevin Lucia. With a foreword from Cemetery Dance magazine founder Richard Chizmar.

    "Gone" and "The Box" were honored with the prestigious Bram Stoker Award. Whether you are already familiar with Ketchum's unique brand of suspense or are experiencing it for the first time, here is a book no aficionado of fear can do without.Contents:1 · Introduction · in 5 · The Rifle · ss Cemetery Dance Win ’95 18 · The Box · ss Cemetery Dance Spr ’94 31 · Mail Order · ss Voices from the Night, ed. John Maclay, Maclay & Associates, 1994 45 · Luck · ss Skull Full of Spurs: A Roundup of Weird Westerns, ed. Jason Bovberg & Kirk Whitham, Dark Highway Press, 2000 56 · The Haunt · ss Cemetery Dance #34, 2001 70 · Megan’s Law · ss Subterranean Gallery, ed. Richard T. Chizmar & William K. Schafer, Subterranean Press, 1999 81 · If Memory Serves · ss Darkside, ed. John Pelan, Darkside Press, 1996 93 · Father and Son · ss, 2000 99 · The Business · ss Murder for Mother, ed. Martin H. Greenberg, Signet, 1994 109 · Mother and Daughter · ss The Spook (online) Aug, 2001 120 · When the Penny Drops · ss The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard, Obsidian Books, 1998 133 · Rabid Squirrels in Love · ss Cemetery Dance Spr ’97 143 · Sundays · ss, 2000 153 · Twins · ss * 168 · Amid the Walking Wounded · ss The UFO Files, ed. Ed Gorman & Martin H. Greenberg, DAW, 1998 183 · The Great San Diego Sleasy Bimbo Massacre · ss The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard, Obsidian Books, 1998 202 · The Holding Cell · ss Bizarre Bazaar #2 ’93 216 · The Work · ss, 1997 226 · The Best · ss, 2000 231 · Redemption · ss Night Screams, ed. Ed Gorman & Martin H. Greenberg, Roc, 1996 245 · The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard · ss The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard, Obsidian Books, 1998 259 · Chain Letter · ss The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard, Obsidian Books, 1998 267 · Forever · ss Imagination Fully Dilated 2, ed. Elizabeth Engstrom, IFD Publishing, 2000 281 · Gone · ss October Dreams, ed. Richard Chizmar & Robert Morrish, CD Publications, 2000 288 · Closing Time · na * 331 · The Rose · ss Deadly After Dark, ed. Jeff Gelb & Michael Garrett, Pocket, 1994 348 · The Turning · ss Vampire Detectives, ed. Martin H. Greenberg, DAW, 1995 354 · To Suit the Crime · ss Bizarre Sex & Other Crimes of Passion #1, ed. Stan Tal, Tal Publications ’92 363 · Lines: or Like Franco, Elvis Is Still Dead · ss * 372 · The Visitor · ss The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard, Obsidian Books, 1998 380 · Snakes · ss Fear Itself, ed. Jeff Gelb, Warner, 1995 400 · Firedance · ss Imagination Fully Dilated, ed. Alan M. Clark & Elizabeth Engstrom, CD Publications, 1998 413 · Afterword · aw

    It’s how so many of our most beloved stories start.Fairy tales have dominated our cultural imagination for centuries. From the Brothers Grimm to the Countess d’Aulnoy, from Charles Perrault to Hans Christian Anderson, storytellers have crafted all sorts of tales that have always found a place in our hearts.Now a new generation of storytellers have taken up the mantle that the masters created and shaped their stories into something startling and electrifying.Packed with award-winning authors, this anthology explores an array of fairy tales in startling and innovative ways, in genres and settings both traditional and unusual, including science fiction, western, and post-apocalyptic as well as traditional fantasy and contemporary horror.From the woods to the stars, The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales takes readers on a journey at once unexpected and familiar, as a diverse group of writers explore some of our most beloved tales in new ways across genres and styles.

    . . Bradbury?You might see rockets to Mars. Or bizarre circuses where otherworldly acts whirl in the center ring. Perhaps you travel to a dystopian future, where books are set ablaze . . . or to an out-of-the-way sideshow, where animated illustrations crawl across human skin. Or maybe, suddenly, you're returned to a simpler time in small-town America, where summer perfumes the air and life is almost perfect . . . "almost."Ray Bradbury--peerless storyteller, poet of the impossible, and one of America's most beloved authors--is a literary giant whose remarkable career has spanned seven decades. Now twenty-six of today's most diverse and celebrated authors offer new short works in honor of the master; stories of heart, intelligence, and dark wonder from a remarkable range of creative artists.TABLE OF CONTENTSSam Weller and Mort Castle - IntroductionRay Bradbury - Second HomecomingNeil Gaiman - The Man Who Forgot Ray BradburyMargaret Atwood - HeadlifeJay Bonansinga - HeavySam Weller - The Girl In The Funeral ParlorDavid Morrell - The CompanionsThomas F. Monteleone - The ExchangeLee Martin - Cat on a Bad CouchJoe Hill - By The Silver Water Of Lake ChamplainDan Chaon - Little AmericaJohn McNally - The Phone CallJoe Meno - Young PilgrimsRobert McCammon - Children Of The Bedtime MachineRamsey Campbell - The Page Mort Castle - LightAlice Hoffman - ConjureJohn Maclay - MaxJacqueline Mitchard - Two Of A KindGary Braunbeck - Fat Man And Little BoyBonnie Jo Campbell - The TattooAudrey Niffenegger - Backwards In SevilleCharles Yu - Earth: (A Gift Shop)Julia Keller - Hayleigh's DadDave Eggers - Who Knocks?Bayo Ojikutu - Reservation 2020Kelly Link - Two HousesHarlan Ellison - Weariness

    They stand out as one of the pinnacles in the critically neglected but perennially popular tradition of weird writing that includes E.T.A. Hoffmann and Charles Dickens as well as more recent masters like Jorge Luis Borges and Roald Dahl. With a cast of characters that ranges from man-eating flora to disgruntled devils and suburban salarymen (not that it's always easy to tell one from another), Collier's dazzling stories explore the implacable logic of lunacy, revealing a surreal landscape whose unstable surface is depth-charged with surprise.

    THE STEAL - A thief is hired by a collector to acquire an occult aaaaaartefact... CRASH - A hard landing on an alien plaaaaaanet... COLLISION - A world changing incident at the Laaaaaarge Hadron Collider... THE FALL - A London gangster finds himself in a baaaaaad situation...