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Tormentor by William Meikle


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House of Hollow


Krystal SutherlandKrystal Sutherland - 2021
    Something happened to her and her two older sisters when they were children, something they can’t quite remember but that left each of them with an identical half-moon scar at the base of their throats. Iris has spent most of her teenage years trying to avoid the weirdness that sticks to her like tar. But when her eldest sister, Grey, goes missing under suspicious circumstances, Iris learns just how weird her life can get: horned men start shadowing her, a corpse falls out of her sister’s ceiling, and ugly, impossible memories start to twist their way to the forefront of her mind. As Iris retraces Grey’s last known footsteps and follows the increasingly bizarre trail of breadcrumbs she left behind, it becomes apparent that the only way to save her sister is to decipher the mystery of what happened to them as children. The closer Iris gets to the truth, the closer she comes to understanding that the answer is dark and dangerous – and that Grey has been keeping a terrible secret from her for years.

Can Such Things Be?


Ambrose Bierce - 1893
    He was a man on the move, a man who traveled light: and in the end he rode, with all of his possessions, on a rented horse into the Mexican desert to join Pancho Villa -- never to return.Can Such Things Be?Once William Randolph Hearst -- Bierce's employer, who was bragging about his own endless collections of statuary, art, books, tapestries, and, of course real estate like Hearst Castle -- once William Randolph Hearst asked Bierce what he collected. Bierce responded, smugly: "I collect words. And ideas. Like you, I also store them. But in the reservoir of my mind. I can take them out and display them at a moment's notice. Eminently portable, Mr. Hearst. And I don't find it necessary to show them all at the same time." Such things can be. (jacketless library hardcover)

The Carriage House


Carla Neggers - 2001
    That's all Tess Haviland had in mind when Ike Grantham paid her for her graphic design work with the run-down, 19th-century carriage house on Boston's North Shore. Then Ike disappeared and now Tess finds herself with much more than a simple weekend project to get her out of the city. It's not just the rumors that the carriage house is haunted. It is the neighbors: six-year-old Dolly Thorne, her reclusive babysitter, Harley Beckett and especially Dolly's father, Andrew Thorne, who has his own ideas about why Tess has turned up next door. But when Tess discovers a human skeleton in her dirt cellar, she begins to ask questions about the history of the carriage house, the untimely death of Andrew's wife and Ike's disappearance. Questions a desperate killer wants to silence before the truth reveals that someone got away with murder.

Plague


Victor Methos - 2012
    . . A lethal pathogen appears on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Dr. Samantha Bower of the Centers for Disease Control is handed the case and assigned to investigate its containment and origins. A MYSTERIOUS FIGURE WHO ISN'T WHAT HE APPEARS TO BE . . . Dr. Bower finds a microorganism unlike any she has run across in her lifetime. The symptomology points her to the most destructive disease in human history. One man has offered her help. A man with insight into the disease who reveals nothing about himself or his past. THE WORLD ON THE EDGE OF A CLIFF . . . Dr. Bower discovers that there are forces at work she can't understand. All applying pressure to use the chaos of an epidemic to their advantage. But there is one thing she is certain of: humanity may soon be an endangered species . . .

The Weird Fiction Megapack: 25 Stories from Weird Tales


Steve Rasnic Tem - 2014
    Included are works by many famous authors, such as H.P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, Clark Ashton Smith, Manly Wade Wellman, E. Hoffmann Price, Tennessee Williams, and many more—with an emphasis on great but less-well-known stories that readers may not have encountered before. "To Become a Sorcerer," by Darrell Schweitzer (included here) was a finalist for the World Fantasy Award.Included are:BOY BLUE, by Steve Rasnic TemTAP DANCING, by John Gregory BetancourtTO BECOME A SORCERER, by Darrell SchweitzerTHE GOLGOTHA DANCERS, by Manly Wade WellmanTHE DEATH OF ILALOTHA, by Clark Ashton SmithTHE SALEM HORROR, by Henry KuttnerTHE DISINTERMENT, by H.P. Lovecraft and D.W. RimelTHE SEA-WITCH, by Nictzin DyalhisVINE TERROR, by Howard WandreiTHE PALE MAN, by Julius LongWEREWOLF OF THE SAHARA, by G.G. PendarvesTRAIN FOR FLUSHING, by Malcolm JamesonTHE DIARY OF PHILIP WESTERLY, by Paul ComptonMASK OF DEATH, by Paul ErnstTHE GIRL FROM SAMARCAND, by E. Hoffmann PriceTHE MONKEY SPOONS, by Mary Elizabeth CounselmanTHE VENGEANCE OF NITOCRIS, by Tennessee WilliamsTHE NINTH SKELETON, by Clark Ashton SmithBIMINI, by Bassett MorganTHE CURSE OF YIG, by H.P. Lovecraft and Zealia BishopTHE HAUNTER OF THE RING, by Robert E. HowardTHE MEDICI BOOTS, by Pearl Norton SwetTHE LOST DOOR, by Dorothy QuickDOOM OF THE HOUSE OF DURYEA, by Earl Peirce, Jr.IN THE DARK, by Ronal KayserAnd don't forget to check out the other volumes in this series, covering science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, westerns, single author collections -- and much, much more! Search this ebookstore for "Wildside Megapack" to see the complete list.

I Am Dust


Louise Beech - 2020
    But who will be brave enough to take on the role of ghostly goddess Esme Black, last played by Morgan Miller, who was murdered in her dressing room? Theatre usher Chloe Dee is caught up in the spectacle. As the new actors arrive, including an unexpected face from her past, everything changes. Are the eerie sounds and sightings backstage real or just her imagination? Is someone playing games? Is the role of Esme Black cursed? Could witchcraft be at the heart of the tragedy? And are dark deeds from Chloe’s past about to catch up with her?Not all the drama takes place onstage. Sometimes murder, magic, obsession and the biggest of betrayals are real life. When you’re in the theatre shadows, you see everything.And Chloe has been watching…

Hero


Wrath James White - 2012
    A Civil Rights Activist in the Sixties and Seventies, she has spent most of her adult life attending marches, giving speeches, and lending a hand to anyone in need.But on the very evening she is to be acknowledged with a Lifetime Achievement Award for her humanitarian efforts, a stroke leaves her partially paralyzed and unable to speak. Now Adelle's in the care of a ruthless hospice nurse, who sees not a hero before her, but the cause of her many hardships growing up as a child of interracial parents, someone who decides to give Adelle her very own brand of "Physical Therapy" consisting of pain and suffering, mental cruelty and torture.And now, after a lifetime of helping others, Adelle needs help, quickly, before another round of brutal treatment snuffs out her life.

The Ghosts of Varner Creek


Michael Weems - 2007
    Left with his alcoholic and abusive father, Sol lived his life believing the story he'd been told, the story all the people of Varner Creek believed about what happened that summer. But in a plot of twists and family secrets that will leave the reader reaching for their jaw upon the floor, Sol is taken back to his childhood by the spirits he knew in life when he passes away so many years later . . . it is only then he learns what secrets The Ghosts of Varner Creek have been keeping so many years. "Very well written . . . this debut novel is a real page turner with some very interesting characters."-Jani Brooks, Romance Review Today This was a wonderfully woven story about an American family, their secrets, tragedies, love lost and redeemed. - Goodreads 5 Star Review from Robert Stadnik, author of Exodus Of The Phoenix, Phoenix Among The Stars, and Tales Of A Former Child Superhero. Terrific book! This story was haunting and chilled me to the core. I couldn't read fast enough to find out what happened to the characters. I was definitely hooked from the very beginning. I would recommend this book if you are looking for a great mystery. - Nook 5 Star Review Never anything but page-turning . . . I was hooked on this book right from the start. - Dr. Jon P. Bloch, Professor, Author, and Reviewer for The Kindle Book Review, blog website.

Within These Walls


Ania Ahlborn - 2015
    So when he’s promised exclusive access to notorious cult leader and death row inmate Jeffrey Halcomb, the opportunity is too good to pass up. Lucas leaves New York for the scene of the crime—a split-level farmhouse on the gray-sanded beach of Washington State—a house whose foundation is steeped in the blood of Halcomb’s diviners; runaways who, thirty years prior, were drawn to his message of family, unity, and unconditional love. Lucas wants to tell the real story of Halcomb’s faithful departed, but when Halcomb goes back on his promise of granting Lucas exclusive information on the case, he’s left to put the story together on his own. Except he is not alone. For Jeffrey Halcomb promised his devout eternal life…and within these walls, they’re far from dead.

Dance of Shadows


Yelena Black - 2013
    Elegant and intimate; you're close enough to kiss, close enough to feel your partner's heartbeat. But for Vanessa, dance is deadly – and she must be very careful who she trusts . . .Vanessa Adler attends an elite ballet school – the same one her older sister, Margaret, attended before she disappeared. Vanessa feels she can never live up to her sister's shining reputation. But Vanessa, with her glorious red hair and fair skin, has a kind of power when she dances – she loses herself in the music, breathes different air, and the world around her turns to flames . . . Soon she attracts the attention of three men: gorgeous Zep, mysterious Justin, and the great, enigmatic choreographer Josef Zhalkovsky. When Josef asks Vanessa to dance the lead in the Firebird, she has little idea of the danger that lies ahead – and the burning forces about to be unleashed . . .

Notes from Ghost Town


Kate Ellison - 2013
    When sixteen-year-old artist Olivia Tithe is visited by the ghost of her first love, Lucas Stern, it’s only through scattered images and notes left behind that she can unravel the mystery of his death. There’s a catch: Olivia has gone colorblind, and there’s a good chance she’s losing her mind completely—just like her mother did. How else to explain seeing (and falling in love all over again with) someone who isn’t really there?With the murder trial looming just nine days away, Olivia must follow her heart to the truth, no matter how painful. It’s the only way she can save herself.

Shallow Graves


Patrick Logan - 2016
     Robert Watts is having the worst day of his entire life: first he's laid off, then he finds out that his wife is having an affair... with his boss no less. And that's only the beginning. Before the month is out, Robert finds himself alone to raise his daughter with no money, no job, and a house that is minutes from being repossessed. Just when he hits rock bottom, a strange visitor arrives at the doorstep of his soon to be foreclosed house with a letter from an Aunt he didn't know existed. The offer is simple: look after Aunt Ruth during her dying days, and in return Robert will be bequeathed the Harlop Estate in which she currently resides. It's a no brainer and Robert jumps at the opportunity, equally motivated by the prospect of financial security as he is for a fresh start. Problem is, it only takes a few nights in the Harlop Estate before he begins to question Aunt Ruth's claims that they are the home's only inhabitants... It's the scratching he hears during the night, the voices that he can barely make out over the constant rain, and then there's the girl with the rat... With their house foreclosed and their bank accounts liquidated, Robert and his daughter Amy desperately need a place to live. But the question Robert soon finds himself struggling with is whether living in the Harlop Estate is worth it... and if he can survive until Aunt Ruth passes to collect his inheritance. Shallow Graves is the first book in the Haunted Series, chilling, gruesome, and truly haunting tales with a twist that you will never see coming.

The Doll


J.C. Martin - 2011
    On a trip to the island, Joyce Parker's daughter falls in love with a beautiful but sinister doll. Soon after, she starts developing strange mannerisms that concerns Joyce. Her research into the doll's past reveals a dark history, and the curse of a lonely child spirit.

Childgrave


Ken Greenhall - 1981
    But then he sees them for himself: weird and uncanny images of the dead appearing in his photographs. The apparitions seem to have some connection to Childgrave, a remote village in upstate New York with a deadly secret dating back three centuries. Jonathan and Joanne feel themselves oddly drawn to Childgrave, but will they survive the horrors that await them there?The third novel by Ken Greenhall (1928-2014), whose works are receiving renewed attention as neglected classics of modern horror, Childgrave (1982) is a slow-burn chiller that ranks among Greenhall’s best.“Writing in Shirley Jackson’s precise, sharp, chilly prose, Greenhall delivers a slippery book that can’t be pinned down, all about spectral photography, little dead girls, snowbound small towns, and the disquieting proposition that maybe God is not civilized.” - Grady Hendrix, author of Paperbacks from Hell“A very well-orchestrated, eerie tale.” - Publishers Weekly

Dream of the Serpent


Alan Ryker - 2014
    And then one mistake, one unfortunate accident, takes it all away in the blink of an eye. His future, his health and his hope—gone—up in flames, leaving him the victim of an unimaginably horrific injury.Upon emerging from a coma, Cody discovers his life and plans have been shattered. As he struggles to find the strength to go on and a reason to live, he slowly begins to realize things may not be as they seem. His life has changed more than he could've ever imagined, but someone…or something…may be working beneath the surface…changing the world around him, altering lives and procuring victims…an ancient evil that hides in plain sight and destroys as it consumes.To uncover the truth, Cody will have to forget everything he thought he knew about reality in order to salvage his sanity and save the life of the woman he loves.How much would you give, how far would you go, what would you sacrifice, to save the person you love more than life itself? From deep within the flames, Cody Miller is about to find out.