His destination today is Pier 13, the ocean front amusement park his family visited every summer when he was a child, and his purpose for coming here is simple: he wants to understand why so many people have been dying in such violent acts... but that might not be the only answer he finds at the old docks.Running Rain:In the year since their son was the first victim of a serial killer known as the The Riverside Strangler, a devastated husband and wife have tried to pretend life can somehow be normal again... but the secrets they're keeping from each other are pushing their relationship to the brink. To make matters worse, The Riverside Strangler was never caught, and now the husband is obsessed with running along the river at night, searching for the truth about why his son died: a truth he may not really want to know...Answering the Call:A young man's very unusual job is taking a heavy toll on him. He stays in homes during the owner's funeral. Someone needs to be there to answer the phone, receive deliveries, and deter thieves who might have seen the obituary in the newspaper and decided this would be a good time for a break-in. The young man has seen a lot of strange things over the years in the homes of the dead, and sometimes his job is truly a matter of life and death...The Punishment Room:Assuming Michael manages to escape the Punishment Room with his sanity and his life, he isn't sure if he'll be able to go on living with the knowledge of what he did to survive... but then again, that's a dilemma he wouldn't mind confronting, given the finality of the alternative.What They Left Behind:There's something lurking in the basement of the old Timlico office building. This thing is evil, the result of the tragic fire that killed dozens of Timlico employees and sent that business spiraling into bankruptcy -- or maybe the thing was the cause of the fire. Scott and a few friends will learn more about this thing before the day is over, including some very bad news for everyone: the thing in the basement is still hungry.A Dreamlike State:Daniel is driving back to his hometown for the first time in six years because his father is dying, but he knows there's more than a sick patriarch waiting for him in the house where he grew up. He has a heart full of questions, and all of his childhood ghosts are patiently waiting for him... and they have a few questions of their own.Where Sunlight Sleeps:A grieving father and his young son, both dealing with their loss in their own ways. A Saturday ritual, retracing the last steps of the woman they loved more than any other. A search for the place where the sunlight sleeps, where bad feelings can be released. And a trip down a memory lane lined with jagged edges and vicious traps that just won't let them go.(The only short story currently listed on Amazon that is missing from this bundle is "The Silent Attic," which is an experimental piece closely related to "A Dreamlike Sleep." If you like "A Dreamlike Sleep", be sure to download "The Silent Attic" to see another glimpse of that same world.)

     And yet, there is an attraction, undeniable, to the vampire archetype, whether the pale European count, impeccably dressed and coldly masculine, yet strangely ambiguous, ready to sink his sharp teeth deep into his victims' necks, draining or converting them, or the vamp, the count's feminine counterpart, villain and victim in one, using her wiles and icy sexuality to corrupt man and woman alike... Edited and introduced by acclaimed anthologist John Joseph Adams (Wastelands, The Living Dead), By Blood We Live gathers together the best vampire literature from the preceding three decades, authored by many of today's most renowned writers of fantasy, speculative fiction, and horror. Contents: (Author, title (type, year of first publication, beginning page in print edition))01 - Neil Gaiman, Snow, Glass, Apples (short story, 1995, p3)02 - Anne Rice, The Master of Rampling Gate (novelette, 1984, p13)03 - Harry Turtledove, Under St. Peter's (novelette, 2007, p33)04 - Tad Williams, Child of an Ancient City (novelette, 1988, p43)05 - Michael A. Burstein, Lifeblood (novelette, 2003, p75)06 - Barbara Roden, Endless Night (short story, 2008, p88)07 - Garth Nix, Infestation (novelette, 2008, p106)08 - Carrie Vaughn, Life Is the Teacher (short story, 2008, p120)09 - Nancy Kilpatrick, The Vechi Barbat (short story, 2007, p134)10 - Kristine Kathryn Rusch, The Beautiful, The Damned (short story, 1995, p148) 11 - David Wellington, Pinecones (short story, 2006, p161)12 - Norman Partridge, Do Not Hasten to Bid Me Adieu (novelette, 1994, p165)13 - Sergei Lukyanenko, Foxtrot at High Noon (short story, 2008, p180)14 - Michael Marshall Smith, This Is Now (short story, 2004, p189)15 - Nancy Holder, Blood Gothic (short story, 1985, p199)16 - Jane Yolen, Mama Gone (short story, 1991, p204)17 - Joe Hill, Abraham's Boys (short story, 2004, p209)18 - Tanith Lee, Nunc Dimittis (novelette, 1983, p224)19 - Gabriela Lee, Hunger (short story, 2007, p240)20 - Caitlín R. Kiernan, Ode to Edvard Munch (short story, 2006, p250)21 - L.A. Banks, Finders Keepers (short story, 2008, p256)22 - Brian Stableford, After the Stone Age (short story, 2004, p275)23 - Kevin J. Anderson, Much at Stake (short story, 1991, p286)24 - Elizabeth Bear, House of the Rising Sun (short story, 2005, p297)25 - Lilith Saintcrow, A Stand-Up Dame (short story, 2008, p302)26 - Kelley Armstrong, Twilight (novelette, 2007, p316)27 - Eric Van Lustbader, In Darkness, Angels (novelette, 1983, p333)28 - Barbara Hambly, Sunrise on Running Water (novelette, 2007, p355)29 - Bruce McAllister, Hit (short story, 2008, p372)30 - Ken MacLeod, Undead Again (short story, 2005, p385)31 - Robert J. Sawyer, Peking Man (short story, 1996, p388)32 - Ben Lumley, Necros (short story, 1986, p396)33 - Catherynne M. Valente, Exsanguinations: A Handbook for the Educated Vampire by Anna S. Oppenhagen-Petrescu (short story, 2005, p409)34 - Charles Coleman Finlay, Lucy, In Her Splendor (short story, 2003, p415)35 - John Langan, The Wide, Carnivorous Sky (short story, 2009, p426)36 - Stephen King, One for the Road (short story, 1977, p464)37 - Ross E. Lockhart, For Further Reading (By Blood We Live) (essay, 2008, p477)

     The Hugo Award-winning author of such groundbreaking and innovative novels as "Accelerando, Halting State," and "Saturn's Children" delivers a rich selection of speculative fiction- including a novella original to this volume- brought together for the first time in one collection, showcasing the limitless imagination of one of the twenty-first century's most daring visionaries.

    Tales of everyday people caught up in indomitable situations. Dread-inducing moments with an air of plausibility—while you hope to god they aren’t actually true. Urban legends, modern folklore, or creepypasta. Whatever you call them, they represent shards of our deepest anxieties as individuals, as a society.Corpse Cold: New American Folklore evokes the spirit of the campfire tales you heard as a kid. This 20-story anthology offers refreshing, mature reinterpretations of time-tested stories, and wholly original legends that explore the twisted labyrinth of modern myth. Each tale is brought to life and made all the more unsettling by the striking, grisly illustrations of artist Chad Wehrle.

    An old-fashioned barbershop is the site of a medieval ritual of bloody terror.... During a post-apocalyptic Christmas celebration, a messenger from the South brings tidings of great horror.... From a ghostly Civil War battlefield to a combat theme park in Vietnam, from the omnipotent brain of an autistic boy to a shocking story of psychic vampires, journey into a world of fear and mystery, a chilling twilight zone of the mind.

    Before Chess Putnam was a magic-wielding Churchwitch, she was a student in the Church of Real Truth—with a keen sensitivity to magic, a strong rebellious streak, and a penchant for self-destruction. And in Finding Magic, a grisly ghost murder becomes Chess’s baptism of fire.   When eighteen-year-old Chess Putnam is offered the chance to train with a special team of investigators known as the Black Squad, she feels torn. She’s never been a team player and hates how one male Inquisitor condescends to “the new kid.” But at her first bloody crime scene, she gets a taste for investigation—and is hooked on the high. Though the seasoned Inquisitors consider the series of ghost murders random events, Chess starts to detect a pattern. Is a psycho killer summoning ghosts from the City of Eternity and using them as murder weapons? As Chess gets closer to the dark truth, she puts herself in grave danger and risks losing everything she’s fought so hard for.   Includes a special preview of Stacia Kane’s upcoming urban fantasy thriller, Chasing Magic!

    Bawdy, funny, touching, and downright outrageous, there's simply no one else like Roald Dahl.This volume is a diabolical collection of 28 of Dahl's best stories. Shiver to classics like The Man From the South, Taste, Royal Jelly and The Great Switcheroo and hard-to-find gems like Poison, The Wish and Neck. It's the perfect remedy for a sleepless night. From Someone Like YouTasteLamb to the SlaughterMan from the SouthThe SoldierDip in the PoolGalloping FoxleySkinPoisonWishNeckSound MachineNunc DimittisGreat Automatic GrammatizatorClaud's DogRatcatcherRumminsMr HoddyMr FeaseyFrom Kiss KissLandladyWilliam and MaryThe Way Up to HeavenRoyal JellyGeorgy PorgyGenesis and CatastropheEdward the ConquerorPigChampion of the WorldFrom Switch BitchGreat SwitcherooLast ActBitch

    But the villains themselves beg to differ. In Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling's new anthology for younger readers, you'll hear from the Giant's wife ("Jack and the Beanstalk"), Rumplestiltskin, the oldest of the Twelve Dancing Princesses, and many more. A stellar lineup of authors, including Garth Nix, Holly Black, Neil Gaiman and Nancy Farmer, makes sure that these old stories do new tricks!

    A wave of sinkholes appears on the anniversary of a rural tragedy, and local residents begin to hear the voices of the dead. A woman encounters a predator from her youth—and a chance to turn the tables. A child’s inner beast takes on a sinister life of its own. An undetectable serial killer raises tensions on a college campus. Experimental physics reveals another world, and it might mean the end of ours. Shrouded in darkness, lurking in the shadows, NIGHT TERRORS III awaits you. The third installment of the chilling Night Terrors anthology series includes stories from Jack Ketchum, Steve Rasnic Tem, Dennis Etchison, Taylor Grant, Eric J. Guignard, Aric Sundquist, Jennifer Brozek, John McNee, Simon McCaffery, Patty Templeton, and many more!

    The afterword explains where the ideas for the stories came from.

    edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.

    14 original teen paranormal short stories YA talent, united with the common theme of road trips.Contents:Introduction by Melissa Marr & Kelley Armstrong1 Giovanni’s Farewell by Claudia Gray2 Scenic Route (The Forest of Hands and Teeth #0.5) by Carrie Ryan3 Red Run by Kami Garcia4 Things About Love (Genies #1.5) by Jackson Pearce5 Niederwald (Soul Screamers #4.5) by Rachel Vincent6 Merely Mortal (Wicked Lovely #5.5) by Melissa Marr7 Facing Facts (Darkest Powers #3.6) by Kelley Armstrong8 Let’s Get this Undead Show on the Road by Sarah Rees Brennan9 Bridge (Shade #2.5) by Jeri Smith-ReadySkin Contact (The Body Finder #2.5) by Kimberly Derting10 Leaving by Ally Condie11 At The Late Night, Double Feature, Picture Show by Jessica Verday12 IV League by Margaret Stohl13 Gargouille by Mary E. Pearson14 The Third Kind by Jennifer Lynn Barnes15 Automatic (The Morganville Vampires: Extras) by Rachel Caine

    In this book you'll find three stories of occult and demoniac horror. No blackmail is as ghastly as extortion from angels. A swift reckoning often travels in handheld luggage. No sign of life aboard an abandoned freighter, but what is left below deck tells a strange story. Praise for Adam Nevill's debut collection, Some Will Not Sleep: Selected Horrors: "Nothing is sacred, nothing is safe, and goodness me, if you like horror fiction you’re going to absolutely love every damn minute." Pop Mythology “Beautifully crafted, original and complete works.” This is Horror "An outstanding anthology of career spanning short stories.” Gingernuts of Horror Praise for Adam Nevill's horror novels: "Adam Nevill is a spine-chiller in the classic tradition, a writer who draws you in from the world of the familiar, eases you into the world of terror, and then locks the door behind you." Michael Koryta, NYT Bestselling author "He has the rare ability to craft a nebulous atmosphere of terror, as well as to capture cinematic slasherpunk in the written word. Both are incredibly rare talents." Pornokitsch "The sense of dread is immediate, with the reader’s sense of foreboding increasing with every new page." Irish Examiner "Readers will lose all hope of peaceful, undisturbed sleep. Highly recommended.” Library Journal - Starred Review "Nevill's talent for horror resonates ominously in every scene, almost as if the theme from Jaws echoes when a page is turned." Kirkus

    On the deadly island of Patji, where predators can sense the thoughts of their prey, a lone trapper discovers that the island is not the only thing out to kill him.Mary Robinette Kowal’s “A Fire in the Heavens” is a powerful tale of a refugee seeking to the near-mythical homeland her oppressed people left centuries ago. When Katin discovers the role the “eternal moon” occupies in the Center Kingdom, and the nature of the society under its constant light, she may find enemies and friends in unexpected places.Dan Wells’s “I.E.Demon” features an Afghanistan field test of a piece of technology that is supposed to handle improvised explosive devices. Or so the engineers have told the EOD team that will be testing it; exactly what it does and how it does it are need-to-know, and the grunts don’t need to know. Until suddenly the need arises.Howard Tayler’s “An Honest Death” stars the security team for the CEO of a biotech firm about to release the cure for old age. When an intruder appears and then vanishes from the CEO’s office, the bodyguards must discover why he is lying to them about his reason for pressing the panic button.For years the hosts of Writing Excuses have been offering tips on brainstorming, drafting, workshopping, and revision, and now they offer an exhaustive look at the entire process. Not only does Shadows Beneath have four beautifully illustrated fantastic works of fiction, but it also includes transcripts of brainstorming and workshopping sessions, early drafts of the stories, essays about the stories’ creation, and details of all the edits made between the first and final drafts.Come for the stories by award-winning authors; stay for the peek behind the creative curtain.

    Martin is a giant in the field of fantasy literature and one of the most exciting storytellers of our time. Now he delivers a rare treat for readers: a compendium of his shorter works, collected into two stunning volumes, that offer fascinating insight into his journey from young writer to award-winning master.Gathered here in Volume I are the very best of George R.R. Martin's early works, including never-before-published fan pieces, his Hugo, Nebula, and Bram Stoker Award-winning stories plus the original novella The Ice Dragon, from which Martin's New York Times bestselling children's book of the same title originated. A dazzling array that features extensive author commentary, Dreamsongs, Volume I, is the perfect collection for both Martin devotees and a new generation of fans.Contents:- Introduction by Gardner Dozois One: A Four-Color Fanboy (2003)- Only Kids Are Afraid of the Dark (1967)- The Fortress (2003)- And Death His Legacy (2003)Two: The Filthy Pro (2003)- The Hero (1971)- The Exit to San Breta (1972)- The Second Kind of Loneliness (1972)- With Morning Comes Mistfall (1973)Three: The Light of Distant Stars (2003)- A Song for Lya (1974)- The Stone City (1977)- This Tower of Ashes (1976)- And Seven Times Never Kill Man (1975)- Bitterblooms (1977)- The Way of Cross and Dragon (1979)Four: The Heirs of Turtle Castle (2003)- The Lonely Songs of Laren Dorr (1976)- The Ice Dragon (1980)- In the Lost Lands (1982)Five: Hybrids and Horrors (2003)- Meathouse Man (1976)- Remembering Melody (1981)- Sandkings (1979)- Nightflyers (1980)- The Monkey Treatment (1983)- The Pear-Shaped Man (1987)