By any reasonable definition, this was a bad day. My parents and sister were on Mars when the planet died. I watched it happen and could do nothing. That type of thing changes a man.

    Would you? Let’s say you just found out you’d survived a massive chemical attack. How it happened and how many others lived through it…you don’t yet know. You don’t know the when (exactly), the who, or the why. You just…don’t…know. You have so many questions, but there’s no doubting what you’ve seen. Surreal as the aftermath may be, this isn’t a hoax. This is for real. You scramble back to where you were—where you were safe—and hear a message on the radio confirming this is widespread—across all of North America. There are probably thousands of other survivors out there—for now--people who got lucky like the nine of you. But it’s not over. Not even close. That message tells you an enemy army is on the way to finish the job. It’s only a matter of time. So what do you do? You’re only 20. The Marines have prepared you for a lot…but this? Your dad, your girlfriend, and your little sister…they’re not ready. How could they be? None of you are. But you only have two choices: Stay—and await the inevitable—or run. Supposedly there’s one safe haven left—ONE—and it’s clear across the country (and an ocean) in Hawaii. But the enemy knows that too. They’ll be lying in wait as you run right at them. That’s your best chance? It can’t be. There has to be a better way. But you know there isn’t. You have to leave behind a mother, your friends, neighbors and families—an entire lifetime. You have to leave behind everything. You have to face off with fear, with the massive devastation, and the force that will be hunting you all the way. This is it… The only way to live is to leave.

    He's confronted the HOA. He's even taken on Santa himself. He doesn't usually win. These are the tales of the Dumb White Husband and they are all available here in this collected edition.This handsome volume includes:Dumb White Husband vs. the Grocery Store - John would rather sit and watch the game, but his wife needs some things at the store. Can he complete the list and get back in time to see the end of the game?Dumb White Husband vs. Halloween - Every Halloween, Chris has the scariest house on the block and gives out the best candy. But, this year, someone is showing him up and he'll stop at nothing to find out who.Dumb White Husband vs. Santa - Erik has planned the perfect Christmas for his family. The plan is foolproof, bulletproof and flame retardant. Nothing can undo the hours of planning and preparation. Nothing except maybe odd-shaped packages, ill-timed fruitcakes or an errant neighborhood Santa Claus.Dumb White Husband vs. the Tooth Fairy - Erik always has a plan and he's sure he would have figured out the whole Tooth Fairy thing eventually. But, when his three-year-old son takes a frisbee to the mouth, he's forced to speed things up. Between neighborhood kids with big mouths and unhelpful dentists he's going to need to improvise. Will he bend to the pressure of inflation? Will he get caught in the act? And, what do you do with those teeth anyway?Dumb White Husband for President (A novella) - There comes a time in every man's life when he must stand for the things he believes in. John doesn't believe in bagging his grass. So, when a new allergy-prone neighbor gets the HOA to require it, there's only one thing he can do - run for President of The Creeks of Sage Valley Phase II.John, Chris and Erik put aside most of their differences to run a campaign that they hope will see John elected as President and end the meddling of the rule-loving new kid on the block. Will they succeed? It's doubtful.

    Gabrielle LaPlante, when an accident of fate had forced her to spend the night in the ceremonial chamber of Anka in an ancient city she'd been helping to unearth on a dig in South America. What Gaby didn't know was that she had helped to unearth much more than the city that had been buried so long it lingered in no living memory . . . she'd awoken an alien being. Anka is enthralled by the modern woman the moment he awakens and discovers her, but he had determined long ago that he would never allow himself to be moved by one of them to help again unless he found that they were truly worthy. Was she worthy of the gift he was inclined to give her? Would she cherish it as it should be cherished? And would he be able to escape their encounter with his heart in tact? In all the time he had interacted with her kind, no one, not one had asked him for the gift she had demanded of him. They had begged for riches. They had asked for power. They had pleaded for fruitfulness. They had wanted all manner of ‘things’ and petitioned him for those gifts they thought would bring them happiness and fulfillment. And yet when he asked her to tell him her heart’s desire, offered to give her whatever that was, she had not asked for what he had expected. She had said ‘you’. Gaby had done much more than awaken him, she'd aroused something within him that he had long forgotten … hunger. He follows her back to the U.S. and decides to take her as his concubine—the chosen one to bear his child. He discovers, however, that it is an honor she does not seem to fully appreciate. Previously published as Breeding Ground

    Then we ask a team of ruthless judges to scour that ore and pick out the gems. The result is All These Shiny Worlds II:A world of today where cosplay and stagecraft are bright lights hiding dark shadowsA world of tomorrow, where kitchen appliances fend for themselves and take solace in each other's arms, refugees from indifferent ownersA world of little cogs in big machines, where the humble trash collector is the unsung hero of getting evil doneA world of small magics and big hearts, where a little chaos can go a long, long wayFrom the brutal curators at ImmerseOrDie.com comes another collection of indie short stories, each a distinct jewel forged in the fires of judgment, and all continuing to carry our one simple promise:Guaranteed not to suck.

    With no idea how to cure himself of this odd new compulsion, he decides to let it take its course and go for a drive, hoping that once he proves to himself that there is nowhere to go, he can return to his normal life. Instead, he finds himself hurled headlong into a nightmare adventure across a fractured Wisconsin as the dream reveals itself one heart-pounding detail at a time. <br><br>Horror, science fiction, dark fantasy. From the author of The Temple of the Blind. 84,000 words.

    On the night he decides to strike, his life, and his world, are forever changed. Alien scientists from across the cosmos, abduct and place Kazaka in deep storage for centuries. When they revive him with the intent to subject him to extraterrestrial evisceration, the ninja escapes. The shadow warrior then begins to hunt his captors, one by one, leading up to a battle that will shake the galaxy.The Bear That Fell From the StarsA different kind of alien terror. NOTE: This is a Novella of approx. 20,000 words, or about 60 pages.Science Fiction Fantasy and not hard SciFi.Some scenes of graphic violence.

    (A between-the-novels short)Other short stories: “Taming the Hulk,” “Top Lawn,” and “The Road to Shangri-La.” Also, just for fun, the author has added two BONUS shorts with different themes. All-in-all - a collection sure to entertain.

    Also published as "The Ship Who Returned" in Federations edited by John Joseph Adams.

     (No previous DEAD CLOWN BARBECUE reading experience required.) This 21,000-word collection contains the first-ever publication of "Gave Up The Ghost," the basis for the horror/comedy short movie directed by Gregory Lamberson, that will appear in the upcoming anthology film CREEPERS. In addition to a report from the movie set, this collection contains... "The Car." A pair of vampires get together for an evening of vicious fun. "The Loneliest Jackalope." Bunnies with antlers! You can't go wrong with bunnies with antlers. "Inside the Boxes." Whatever is in there can't be good... "A Bit of Christmas Mayhem." Andrew Mayhem vs. a trio of axe-wielding Santa Clauses. "Scrumptious Bone Bread." It's not just for giants anymore. "A Flawed Fantasy." Sometimes, two girls at once isn't the best idea. "Tin Cans." What will you hear when you put one to your ear?

    The short stories included in this selection are representative not only of Tagore's range, but they also enable us to revise the conventional view of Tagore as a short story writer. Writing them at a time when the form was not yet popular, Tagore eschewed the romantic strain prevalent in his day. His stories are fables of modern man, where fairy tale meets hard ground, where myths are reworked, and the religion of man triumphs over the religion of rituals and convention, where the love of a woman infuses the universe with humanity. He writes with concern about such issues as the Hindu revivalism in the late nineteenth century and the bondage of women. The rhythms of daily life, his rural encounters and childhood reminiscences, unfold in his tales, as does a sense of history, the reality of the political situation and its impact on individual lives. Tagore wishes to see the world of humanity not only reflected in his own life but also actualized in Bengali literature. His profound sensibility led him beyond the merely regional, his humanity stretching across east and west, fulfilling the purpose of his Jibandebata, his life's deity, Edited by Sukanta Chaudhuri, a well-known scholar and translator, this is an authoritative and readable translation of Tagore's short stories. An essential Tagore for the collector, it is one that will find its place on every discerning reader's shelf.

    The others are immersed in a digital world he cannot access. He's left to explore miles of wilderness bounded by the Nolichucky River and encircling Appalachian mountain ridges of Bumpas Cove, Tennessee. Beyond the last broken and tilted pieces of a crumbling asphalt road, he discovers the abandoned village where Iron Mountain's mine workers lived. He walks inside empty houses and mine-works searching for toys and relics of the families that lived there decades before. In this place, being alone feels natural. He returns daily, looking for forgotten things. Crawling through a streambed under a tunnel of long blackberry briars, he finds something that isn't covered with rust. It shines white in the scattered shadows. Freed of muck and mire, the glass-metal sleeve is as light as plastic. He slides his arm inside, but before his fingers can reach down into the two long flat fingers, a sharp hook locks into his arm. Leo is forced to find other scattered pieces, assembling a full flightsuit. Once restored, it prepares for a thousand light-year return trip with Leo trapped inside, as it waits for its alien pilot to be restored into Leo's mind. But the suit has drawn others, like Leo, set apart and isolated. Their fate and Leo's intertwine as they face an alien entity that has no regard for their lives.

    John Suter believes himself the sole survivor until he finds a mutilated body in the river near his house. He knows he has no choice but to investigate. What he discovers upstream stretches his endurance to its limits and forces him to reassess not only his own humanity, but also his place within the human family he had once believed extinct.

    It’s Halloween and time to put some troll in our trick or treating!  YTT to his fans (and if you’re a fan, you know his full name…) Correk and Leira are called away on a case leaving Leira’s grandmother, Mara Berens in charge.  What could go wrong?  Learn more about the troll and have some fun with some of your favorite characters on another troll adventures.  When magic returns…

    You are thrown off your feet by jolting earthquakes that peg the Richter scale, nearly burned to death by fire falls--think rain showers but with magma--and if you live along a coastline (or likely anywhere within several hours drive) you'll be swept away by tsunamis large as mountains. And those are just the immediate effects. Follow them with Impact Winter that lasts for years, plagues, starvation and having to defend your family against those who would murder, enslave, or eat them and you have an inkling of what Michael and Ellen Whitebear must endure to survive and begin rebuilding. Meanwhile, aboard the International Space Station the hastily expanded crew, humanity's last hope to avoid extinction, view the devastation below with growing horror and despair. The extent of the cataclysm makes them wonder if they will ever get to go home. But their attention is soon diverted by other issues, for they have serious problems of their own. Preppers and Fans of apocalyptic fiction novels like The Stand, Lucifer's Hammer, The Postman, Swan Song and Patriots: Surviving the Coming Collapse will love The Dying Time: Impact.