Despite the warnings, Aenarion rides out upon his dragon Indraugnir to seek the prize in order to save his homeland of Ulthuan. The journey is fraught with danger, and Aenarion must confront daemons, spirits and the elemental forces of nature itself if he is to succeed. But in drawing the blade from the Black Anvil, he will unleash the ancient and malevolent force that will tear the elven race apart.The events in this story form the underpinnings of the entire Warhammer mythos. What Aenarion does here changes the face of the world in ways that won't be resolved until the End Times themselves...This story is also available in the anthology Age of Legend.

     The second tale, "The Candle in the Cloud", is a novella of dark fantasy which follows three children who discover a magical candle that transports them to a world where a plague-cloud is destroying everything in its wake. These two tales, the first ever written by Clive, are offered here for the very first time. Their production has been lovingly supervised by Clive himself to ensure that these are not mere books, but works of art to be cherished. Complete with original illustrations and appendices on select editions, First Tales is sure to delight everyone from longtime fans to new readers. In his own words: "These two stories represent the two essential structures of fantastique literature. ’The Wood on the Hill’ is about an incursion of unearthly elements into an approximation of our world. ’The Candle in the Cloud’ is about a journey taken by people from our world into another reality. Yin and Yang, if you like. Forces pulling in opposing directions but to achieve the same end: Revelation." Clive Barker (2013)

    What if your first kiss resulted in your date turning into a toad? What if you went on a date with a centaur? Follow Cindy Eller and her family as they tell the stories of their first kisses... and near misses. Enjoy this collection of ten short stories by Elizabeth A Reeves plus two bonus stories from authors Rebekah Leeson and Peg Lewis.

    From the whispering corridors of abandoned hospitals to the shrieking dungeons of ghostly castles, this collection of sinister stories further explores the unspeakable evil at large in the Warhammer worlds. Contains the following stories; Lora Gray - He Feasts Forever Ray Cluley - Flesh and Blood Richard Strachan - The Growing Seasons David Annandale - The Hunt Steven Sheil - The Healer Nick Kyme - Stitches Peter McLean - Blood Sacrifice Jake Ozga - Supplication David Annandale - The Summons of Shadows C. L. Werner - A Sending from the Grave David Annandale - From the Halls, the Silence Justin D. Hill - The Confession of Convict Kline

    These visionary stories explore prediction science, quantum computing, real-time translation, machine learning, and much more. The authors used inside access to leading-edge work from Microsoft Research as inspiration, crafting pieces that predict the near-future of technology%mdash;and examine its complex relationship to our core humanity.Future Visions features contributions from: Elizabeth BearGreg BearDavid BrinNancy KressAnn LeckieJack McDevittSeanan McGuireRobert J. Sawyer…along with a short graphic novel by Blue Delliquanti and Michele Rosenthal, plus original illustrations by Joey Camacho.These are some of today’s most visionary creators—and they’ve joined together to give us a preview of tomorrow.

    

    

    A new dawn in Star Wars storytelling has arrived . . . and, with this eBook sampler, it's just a click away.   BATTLEFRONT: TWILIGHT COMPANY by Alexander Freed A companion novel inspired by the hotly anticipated videogame Star Wars: Battlefront, this action-packed adventure follows a squad of soldiers caught in the trenches of the ultimate galactic war between good and evil.   DARK DISCIPLE by Christie Golden Based on unproduced episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, this new novel features one of the great antiheroes in the Star Wars galaxy: bounty hunter Asajj Ventress, the former apprentice of Count Dooku.   LORDS OF THE SITH by Paul S. Kemp When the Emperor and his notorious apprentice, Darth Vader, find themselves stranded in the middle of insurgent action on an inhospitable planet, they must rely on each other, the Force, and their fearsome fighting skills to prevail.   HEIR TO THE JEDI by Kevin Hearne The author of The Iron Druid Chronicles pens a thrilling new adventure set between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, and-for the first time ever-written entirely from Luke Skywalker's first-person point of view.   TARKIN by James Luceno Bestselling Star Wars veteran James Luceno gives Grand Moff Tarkin the Star Wars: Darth Plagueis treatment, bringing the legendary character from A New Hope to full, fascinating life.   A NEW DAWN by John Jackson Miller Set during the mysterious "Dark Times" between Episodes III and IV, A New Dawn tells the story of how two of the lead characters from the animated series Star Wars Rebels first came to cross paths.

    After watching it, one of them vanishes...A heart transplant recipient gets much more than he bargained for when he digs into his donor's sinister past...Mourning the death of their son, a young couple is plunged into madness after encountering something otherworldly in the wilderness...DREAMS IN BLACK STATIC is a collection of eight terrifying stories by Ambrose Ibsen, author of The Haunting of Beacon Hill and Asylum. The tales included are:"Me and Mr. Ray" **"Decatur Road" **"Dreams in Black Static" **"Distortional Addict" **"Trim" **"Subterrane Dream" **"Orchard""The Uncanny" **** = Appearing in print for the first time

    In the big white house on the hill angels are said to appear. A forgotten tenant in an isolated building becomes addicted to milk. A strange goddess is worshipped by a home-invading disciple. The least remembered gods still haunt the oldest forests. Cannibalism occurs in high society at the end of the world. The sainted undead follow their prophet to the Great Dead Sea. A confused and vengeful presence occupies the home of a first-time buyer . . . In ghastly harmony with the nightmarish visions of the award-winning writer's novels, these stories blend a lifelong appreciation of horror culture with the grotesque fascinations and childlike terrors that are the author's own. Adam Nevill's best early horror stories are collected here for the first time.

    In the cathedral-city of Lodellan and its uneasy hinterland, babies are fashioned from bread, dolls are given souls and wishes granted may be soon regretted. There are ghosts who dream, men whose wings have been clipped and trolls who long for something other. Love, loss and life are elegantly dissected in Slatter's earthy yet poetic prose. As Rob Shearman says in his Introduction: 'Sourdough and Other Stories manages to be grand and ambitious and worldbuilding-but also as intimate and focused as all good short fiction should be . . . The joy of Angela Slatter's book is that she's given us a set of fairy tales that are at once both new and fresh, and yet feel as old as storytelling itself.'

    Each tale offers glimpses into familiar, shadowy worlds that push the boundaries of the spirit and leave the mind haunted with the knowledge that black juice runs through us all.Contents:Earthly Uses (2004)House of the Many (2004)My Lord's Man (2004)Perpetual Light (2004)Red Nose Day (2004)Rite of Spring (2004)Singing My Sister Down (2004)Sweet Pippit (2004)Wooden Bride (2004)Yowlinin (2004)

    Unique twisted visions from the edges and the centre of the SF genres. Stories that carry Adam Roberts' trademark elegance of style and restless enquiry of the genre he loves so much. Acclaimed stories, some that have appeared in magazines, some in anthologies, some appearing for the first time. Stories to make you think, to make you laugh, to make you wonder, to make you uneasy. Stories that ask questions, stories that sow mysteries. But always stories that entertain.Contents:1 • Preface (Adam Robots: Short Stories) • (2013) • essay by Adam Roberts3 • Adam Robots • (2009) • shortstory by Adam Roberts14 • Shall I Tell You the Problem with Time Travel? • (2011) • shortstory by Adam Roberts32 • A Prison Term of a Thousand Years • (2008) • shortstory by Adam Roberts38 • Godbombing • shortstory by Adam Roberts44 • Thrownness • (2011) • novelette by Adam Roberts75 • The Mary Anna • (2010) • shortstory by Adam Roberts83 • The Chrome Chromosome • (2009) • shortstory by Adam Roberts89 • The Time Telephone • (2002) • shortstory by Adam Roberts98 • Review: Thomas Hodgkin, Denis Bayle: a Life • shortstory by Adam Roberts107 • S-Bomb • (2008) • shortstory by Adam Roberts125 • Dantean • (2004) • shortstory by Adam Roberts (variant of Dantesque)134 • Remorse® • (2007) • shortstory by Adam Roberts139 • The World of the Wars • shortstory by Adam Roberts144 • Woodpunk • (2009) • shortstory by Adam Roberts156 • The Cow • (2010) • shortstory by Adam Roberts157 • The Imperial Army • (2002) • novelette by Adam Roberts206 • And Tomorrow and • (2006) • shortstory by Adam Roberts222 • The Man of the Strong Arm • (2008) • shortstory by Adam Roberts246 • Wonder: A Story in Two • (2007) • shortstory by Adam Roberts263 • Pied • shortstory by Adam Roberts273 • Constellations • novelette by Adam Roberts (variant of The Order of Things 2005)294 • The Woman Who Bore Death • shortstory by Adam Roberts309 • Anticopernicus • (2010) • novelette by Adam Roberts346 • Me:topia • novelette by Adam Roberts (variant of Me•Topia 2006)

    Publishers Weekly called it "a sterling collection" while singling out "The Silence of Sorrow" as "an understated masterpiece."Two years later, Subterranean Press published a mini-collection from Chizmar entitled Monsters and Other Stories. In his introduction, acclaimed genre critic Edward Bryant said, "When all is said and done, this book should leave you in utter silence, giving you time and opportunity to contemplate what you just read. Tough storytelling from a tough writer; but a writer who is not calloused. Chizmar possesses a finely honed gift of empathy. With utter grace and loving kindness he'll put you right inside the life (and soul) of the monster."Now, nearly two decades later, Chizmar assembles thirty-five stories, including a previously-unpublished novella, and presents us with A Long December. This massive new collection features more than 150,000 words of Chizmar's very best short fiction and includes 8,000 words of autobiographical Story Notes.Eerie, suspenseful, poignant, the stories in A Long December range from horror to suspense, crime to dark fantasy, mainstream to mystery.As New York Times bestselling author Scott Smith (A Simple Plan, The Ruins) notes: "It's an idyllic little world Richard Chizmar has created. Boys fish in the shallows of a winding creek. A father tosses a baseball with his young son in the fading light of a summer day. There's the smell of fresh-cut grass. And then, well...just beneath the surface? There are those missing pets whose collars turn up in a shoebox. Or the disturbing photos the dead can leave behind. Or the terrible thing you might find yourself doing when a long lost brother suddenly returns, demanding money. Chizmar does a tremendous job of peeling back his world's shiny layers, revealing the rot that lies underneath. His stories feel like so many teeth: short and sharp and ready to draw blood."

    Who can you trust? You are, after all, a rogue... A man without a past. Pursued through the port city of Qeynos by a necromancer and a shadowknight, the charming rogue eludes his assailants by stealing another's place on a ship bound for the pirate-infested Barren Coast.