Contemplated it seriously, I mean: six times sat with the fat bottle of Clonazepam within reaching distance, six times failed to reach for it, betrayed by some instinct for life or disgusted by my own weakness.Hugo Nomination for Best Novelette 1999.

    The stories recounts the life of times of the hero Domrudhar in colonial India. The protagonist Domrudhar is portrayed as a dishonest man who rises from a lowly shop-assistant to a land owner.

    in Ian McDonald's Tor.com Original short story The Guile.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

    On a blistering desert landscape in World War II, two armies face each other. One belongs to the legendary French Foreign Legion, but the other belongs to the French Foreign Legion also, one side working for the Allies, the other for the Germans. In this vivid historical recreation of one of the strangest battles in modern warfare, a terrible twist of Fate compels comrades-in-arms, who trained together, ate together, and slept in the same barracks, to become mortal enemies.David Morrell is the prize-winning author of First Blood, the novel in which Rambo was created. His numerous New York Times bestsellers include the classic espionage novel, The Brotherhood of the Rose, the basis for the only television miniseries to be broadcast after a Super Bowl. An Edgar, Anthony, and Macavity nominee, Morrell is a recipient of the International Thriller Writers’ prestigious Thriller Master award.“Nobody does this kind of thing better than David Morrell.”—Lee Child, New York Times bestselling author of The Affair“A titan among thriller writers.”—Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of Buried Secrets

     Recently bereaved detective Nadine Meyers is assigned to investigate a brutal massacre, with eight-year-old Mary the sole survivor. Nadine suspects the parents were responsible for murdering all six of their adopted children in a single horrendous act. As she befriends Mary, she discovers a secret that takes the case in a whole new direction, one she could never have imagined.

    Little by little, Jacinta’s mother lost her—first to college, then to a boy she said she loved, and then, finally, to the rage of a school shooter. Snap. In an instant it was all gone. All she has now is her daughter’s phone. Like an album, gripped in the palm of her hand—texts, photos, messages, and videos of her daughter’s first three years at college. With it, Jacinta’s mother is reconstructing her daughter’s last three weeks.In this uniquely moving exploration of mourning, fury, and reminiscence, Susan Straight evokes—through a grieving mother’s devastating internal monologue—both a modern-day nightmare and exquisite proof of love’s extraordinary power to overcome it.

    An old friend shows up in town to stay and they have decisions to make about some big plans for their future. Spend a little more time in Bellingwood during the holidays and see what everyone is up to. Rebecca and Andrew have a party to attend, Polly has yet another rescue. It's just one more week in that little world we all love.

    To fill their sails and set out, they must sacrifice Agamemnon's daughter Iphigenia—and how does a human girl become the wind? The starkness and psychological insight of Rachel Swirsky's Tor.com story earned it a place among the finalists for the 2010 Nebula Award.Rachel Swirsky's short fiction has appeared in Weird Tales, Fantasy Magazine, and Subterranean Magazine, among others, and has been collected in Year's Best anthologies edited by Rich Horton, Jonathan Strahan, and the VanderMeers. She is also the submissions editor of Podcastle, an audio fantasy magazine.

    5,000 words (16 pages).For Bafion, there is no farther to fall. Once a banneret, officer, and gentleman, he is none of those things now. He is a swordsman who has slipped through the cracks of society and is eking out an existence as a thug for hire.Bafion is presented with the opportunity to reclaim some of what was lost to him, but to do so will mean facing part of his past that he would rather forget.The Swordsman of Tanosa is a swashbuckling fantasy short story set in the same world as the Society of the Sword trilogy.

    everyone has gone home hours ago.As Harold prepares to close up the office, he receives an email from someone claiming to be Stephen King.

     From the files and pen of world renowned true crime writer Alan Hynd (1903 - 1974) comes the final installment of deliciously dark true murder cases of the first half of the 20th Century. These stories, the third of these three short collections, are unified by a single theme: they all involve physicians. And not for the autopsy, but as perpetrators or accused perpetrators. You may never see your family care giver again in the same light. Told in the characteristic wry, anecdotal reportorial style that made Alan Hynd famous in his day (two wartime best sellers in 1943, contributions to The Reader's Digest, Colliers, Coronet, The Saturday Evening Post, True, Liberty, The American Mercury and almost every true detective magazine in print) these tales will have you cringing one minute, laughing the next, and gasping in shock a moment later. Truly, no one could make up classics like these. We meet here the notorious Dr. Cream, a twitchy-eyed psychotic with a yen for prostitutes, a Philadelphia chiropractor whose girlfriend lost her head, and Marcel Petiot, whose patients payed their own way out of this world. Then as a bonus, get to know (from a safe distance) "Lethal Louise," the black widow of California, and Adolf Luetgert of Chicago, whose sausage-making plant was put to extracurricular uses. This is not for the faint of heart. True crime is always farther out there than fiction.

    Humans have proved this by worshipping them as gods since the days of Ancient Egypt. But despite their clear superiority, felines continue to be frustrated with humans' bizarre actions and incomprehensible desires — until now. In The Cat's Guide to Human Behavior, the great feline humanologist Professor F.L. Uffy advises cats on how to solve some of their most difficult human-related issues:• Chase away your human's romantic partners• Increase your food supply• And more!What does your cat REALLY think of you? The Cat's Guide to Human Behavior reveals all--even why you refuse to groom yourself with your tongue!

    That's saying a lot. His stories are often unusual, challenging, uncategorizable, and brilliant. This collection assembles 18 of them, including his very first story. Included are:ALOYSADAM HAD THREE BROTHERSSEVEN-DAY TERRORDAY OF THE GLACIERSODOM AND GOMORRAH, TEXASTHROUGH OTHER EYES THE WEIRDEST WORLDTHE SIX FINGERS OF TIME, by R. A. LaffertyTRY TO REMEMBERMcGONIGAL'S WORMTHE POLITE PEOPLE OF PUDIBUNDIAIN THE GARDENALL THE PEOPLEDREAMTHE WAGONSOTHER SIDE OF THE MOONTHE UGLY SEASATURDAY YOU DIEIf you enjoy this ebook, don't forget to search your favorite ebook store for "Wildside Press Megapack" to see more of the 290+ volumes in this series, covering adventure, historical fiction, mysteries, westerns, ghost stories, science fiction -- and much, much more!

    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.

    Two super cute animals. And a multitude of suspects. But, no-one hears me. Hey there. Pleased to meet you. I’m Albertus Eagle. I’m now known as the Detective Beagle. I see things. And I hear more. But what’s best is that no-one suspects me of being the guy who feeds back what the humans can’t unearth.It all started with one case.The one where my owner, Milly was bumped off. It landed me, and the cat, otherwise known as Cleo to her friends, not that she has many, in a shelter for unwanted animals.But, I didn’t let that stop me. Here’s my story. Sleeping dogs don’t lie is the prequel to the Cozy Mystery series of novels starring Albertus Eagle, his two sidekicks, Cleo the cat and Bella Schuhmann, the smart human who actually understands him. In this wonderful short which is packed with humour and satire, we see the world of murder and intrigue set up through the eyes of a loyal dog turned amateur sleuth.