Now, in this original short story, available exclusively as an eBook, Picoult introduces Serenity Jones, one of the fascinating characters from her eagerly awaited new novel, Leaving Time. Even as a child, Serenity Jones knew she possessed unusual psychic gifts. Now, decades later, she’s an acclaimed medium and host of her own widely viewed TV show, where she delivers messages to the living from loved ones who have passed. Lately, though, her efforts to boost ratings and garner fame have compromised her clairvoyant instincts. When Serenity books a young war widow to appear as a guest, the episode quickly unravels, stirring up a troubling controversy. And as she tries to undo the damage—to both her reputation and her show—Serenity finds that pride comes at a high price.

    Then it begins. When the fabric of society is torn apart by a deadly viral outbreak, Harmony and Dan find themselves in a terrifying race to find their loved ones and stay one step ahead of the infected. They're quickly absorbed in a world that has collapsed and surrounded by a deadly pathogen that doesn't discriminate. The only question that remains -- did the outbreak already seal their doom?

    That's why he spent nearly every day since his return from Iraq preparing for the end of the world. It's up to him to save the residents of Thunderdome, a run down apartment complex in Northern Las Vegas.Max hosts a live show as Asphyxia Stardust, a semi-nude cosplayer with a love of all things horror who is hosting the cities first ZombieCon. Travis is a computer nerd slash borderline stalker obsessed with zombies and Gemma, a misunderstood party girl everyone thinks is a tease. His roommate Parker is a star athlete gone bad who spends his days partying and chasing skirts. Holt is a stereotypical frat boy who finds new meaning in the apocalypse as a warrior for God with a crowbar sent to kill demons from the pit of hell. Together this unlikely band of college students and burnouts fight their way through a zombie horde in search of somewhere safe to take refuge, encountering every horror imaginable along the way.Is this an inescapable global pandemic or can they find a safe zone outside of Sin City and away from the endless sea of rotting monsters with razor sharp teeth trying to infect and kill them?

    Those of us who survived the subsequent wars that decimated the world as we know it, throwing us back into a pre-industrial era are the lucky ones. Those of us who survived are the lucky ones.Except… Some of us are different. Some of us are changing. Some say the virus mutated. Some say it is a result of genetic warfare. All I know is that I can see better in the dark, I can hear from further away and I am stronger now than I ever have been before. And I have claws.We may not be the lucky ones after all.Photo Description: A person stares out at you, someone clearly no longer human. His hair is white, his skin is dusky purple, and his eyes are the color of honey. He’s scarred, a cut spanning his face from cheek to cheek, and he’s looking at you like you might be lunch.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love is an Open Road" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story. This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

    What comes is a blinding blizzard, and a mass disappearance of nearly every person Robby Pierce knows. He and his family flee, trying to escape the snow and the invisible forces stealing people right from the street.Miles away, Brad Jenkins battles the same storm. Alone, he attempts to survive as snow envelops his house. When the storm breaks, Brad makes his way south to where the snow ends and the world lies empty. Join Brad, Robby, and the other survivors as they fight to find the truth about the apocalypse and discover how to live in their new world.

    With stories by;Chris PhilbrookAlan MacRaffenJoe TremblayJ.C. FiskeAnd more…

    But does that mean it’s the truth? Nora Ryan couldn’t believe her luck when she’s appointed as the onboard nurse for White Star Line’s pride and joy. It was the biggest cruise liner in the world and she was being paid to go on the maiden voyage. Nora was prepared to treat common illnesses, but what she found aboard was something she’d never witnessed before.A virus unlike anything her schooling had taught her had found its way aboard the cruise liner. One passenger had already succumbed, dozens more were infected as the virus rapidly spread through the ship. Nora would have thought death would bring peace to the ill, little did she know they would wake with a blood thirst threatening the few remaining survivors. It’s a race against the clock to find a way to stop the virus from spreading. She turns to Gill, a stowaway, to help her find a solution. But Nora and Gill soon realize a solution wasn’t the goal, survival was. A Titanic Disaster is the second installment in the Infected Histories Series. Alathia Morgan makes you look more closely at the facts you have learned and make you question everything and everyone. Is history a true reflection of the past, or merely palatable fiction at its best? You decide.

    While growing up, Rebekkah watched as Maylene performed the same unusual ritual at every funeral: three sips from a small silver flask followed by the words, "Sleep well, and stay where I put you."Now Maylene is gone and Bek must return to the hometown—and the man—she abandoned a decade ago, only to discover that Maylene's death was not natural . . . and there was good reason for her odd traditions. In Claysville, the worlds of the living and the dead are dangerously connected—and beneath the town lies a shadowy, lawless land ruled by the enigmatic Charles, aka Mr. D. From this dark place the deceased will return if their graves are not properly minded. And only the Graveminder, a Barrow woman, and the current Undertaker, Byron, can set things to right once the dead begin to walk.

    With nothing but his name and a pistol, he escapes into the rainy darkness of the wastelands surrounding him.Stumbling to a nearby outpost, expecting to find help and some clues to this mystery he's found himself in, Greg instead discovers a new level of terror. Something has gone incredibly wrong in the area. As he begins searching the base, he realizes that the dead aren't staying dead...

    As a longtime meth addict, he’s no stranger to horrifying, drug-fueled hallucinations.  But as he and his fellow junkies soon discover, the little girl is no illusion. The end of the world really has arrived.  The funny thing is, Chase’s life was over long before the apocalypse got here, his existence already reduced to a stinking basement apartment and a filthy mattress and an endless grind of buying and selling and using. He’s lied and cheated and stolen and broken his parents’ hearts a thousand times. And he threw away his only shot at sobriety a long time ago, when he chose the embrace of the drug over the woman he still loves.  And if your life’s already shattered beyond any normal hopes of redemption…well, maybe the end of the world is an opportunity. Maybe it’s a last chance for Chase to hit restart and become the man he once dreamed of being. Soon he’s fighting to reconnect with his lost love and dreaming of becoming her hero among civilization’s ruins.  But is salvation just another pipe dream?  Propelled by a blistering first-person voice and featuring a powerfully compelling antihero, Fiend is at once a riveting portrait of addiction, a pitch-black love story, and a meditation on hope, redemption, and delusion—not to mention one hell of a zombie novel.

    Disturbing news footage floods the cable news channels. People are running scared, terrified. Frightened. Dana is oblivious. She’s in her final meeting with Miss Jenkins, her caseworker. Dana’s juvie record is an inch thick, a catalogue of misdemeanors. She’s destined to spend her life behind bars. Stressed out and looking for some much-needed distraction, Max turns up at her boyfriend’s apartment. But something is wrong. Darren is not alone. He’s in bed with another girl. Eating her, and not in a good way. He attacks Dana with savage violence. She puts him down, but not before his blood-stained teeth tear into her arm. This is the first part in a brand-new dystopian post-apocalyptic series, a tour-de-force in thrills and excitement. Resistant 0.5. Download Now FREE.

    She slings insults with precision, not caring about the destruction she leaves in her wake. We clash in a battle of wills every time we’re around each other, and yet… I still fantasize about being lodged deep within her body.Clash (verb): to come together or collideI have never encountered someone that grates me the way Cal Carson does. His pompous, arrogant demeanor. A holier-than-thou attitude. Any interaction with “Saint Cal” ends in a verbal clash of epic proportions, and yet… there’s no one I’d rather have in my bed than him.Clash (noun): a battle, fight or skirmishHer breathy moans mingle with the sound of our flesh coming together, clashing with the silence that surrounds us, dispelling any notions I once had about Macy Carrington.Maybe I can break down her walls if we can call a truce to this battle.He whispers filthy words in my ear, provoking feelings I never knew were possible. The burning desire in his touch clashes with everything I once believed about Cal Carson.Maybe he can be the balm I need to soothe my broken soul, if only temporarily.**Cal and Macy’s story is a trilogy within the Legal Affairs series. All three books—Clash, Grind and Yield—must be read in order. You do not have to read the other Legal Affairs books to understand this trilogy.

    Sandman Slim, has a new job, but being the new Lucifer in town gives fresh meaning to the word "Hell." Especially when he hears of hideous massacres near a haunted fortress out on Hell's frontier.As far as Stark's concerned, the more dead Hellions, the better, but he still has to prove that no one screws with Sandman Slim. And facing creatures so terrible even Hell does not want them is no cakewalk, even for Lucifer.Includes 13 pages excerpt from Devil Said Bang

    He was born in an isolated home surrounded by a deep forest, never known to his father, kept secret from everyone but his mother, who barely accepts him. She is haunted by private demons and keeps many secrets—none of which she dreads more than the young son who adores her.   Only in the woods, among the wildlife, is Addison truly welcome. Only there can he be at peace. Until the day he first knows terror, the day when his life changes radically and forever . .

    An alternate cover edition for this ISBN can be found here.NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM IFC MIDNIGHT, STARRING SIERRA MCCORMICK, VINESSA SHAW, AND PAT HEALY.A family on the verge of self-destruction finds themselves isolated in their bathroom during a tornado warning.Includes an introduction from Sean King O'Grady (director of the film adaptation) and a brand-new afterword from Max Booth III.