The liche, Dr. Cadman, has discovered a long-hidden artifact and perverted its power for his own selfish ends. But an ancient evil from beyond the stars is drawn by its use and turns hungry eyes upon the Earth. These are the times of Unweaving, the times Deacon Shader has been prepared for since the day he was born. A man of prayer, deeply troubled by a contradictory faith, he is also the deadliest warrior of his generation. As events spiral out of control, and Creation itself hangs by a thread, the paradox at the heart of Shader’s life may just be the last desperate hope of all the worlds. Contains: Book 1: Sword of the Archon Book 2: Best Laid Plans Book 3: The Unweaving

    These are worlds undreamt-of by any other mind. Only David Foster Wallace could convey a father's desperate loneliness by way of his son's daydreaming through a teacher's homicidal breakdown ("The Soul Is Not a Smithy"). Or could explore the deepest and most hilarious aspects of creativity by delineating the office politics surrounding a magazine profile of an artist who produces miniature sculptures in an anatomically inconceivable way ("The Suffering Channel"). Or capture the ache of love's breakdown in the painfully polite apologies of a man who believes his wife is hallucinating the sound of his snoring ("Oblivion"). Each of these stories is a complete world, as fully imagined as most entire novels, at once preposterously surreal and painfully immediate. Oblivion is an arresting and hilarious creation from a writer "whose best work challenges and reinvents the art of fiction" (Atlanta Journal-Constitution).Mister squishy --The soul is not a smithy --Incarnations of burned children --Another pioneer --Good old neon --Philosophy and the mirror of nature --Oblivion --The suffering channel

    Nesbit, Diana Wynne Jones, Gahan Wilson, and other literary luminaries. Sales of Unnatural Creatures benefit 826DC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students in their creative and expository writing, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.

    There is no better anthology that captures the birth of science fiction as a literary field. Published in 1973 to honor stories that had come before the institution of the Nebula Awards, The Science Fiction Hall of Fame introduced tens of thousands of young readers to the wonders of science fiction and was a favorite of libraries across the country. This volume contains novellas by: Ray Bradbury, James Blish, Algis Budrys, Theodore Cogswell, E. M. Forster, Frederik Pohl, James H. Schmitz, T. L. Sherred, Wilmar H. Shiras, Clifford D. Simak, and Jack Vance.Contents: Introduction · Ben Bova · in · Call Me Joe · Poul Anderson · nv Astounding Apr ’57 · Who Goes There? [as by Don A. Stuart] · John W. Campbell, Jr. · na Astounding Aug ’38 · Nerves · Lester del Rey · na Astounding Sep ’42 · Universe [Hugh Hoyland] · Robert A. Heinlein · na Astounding May ’41 · The Marching Morons · C. M. Kornbluth · nv Galaxy Apr ’51 · Vintage Season [as by Lawrence O’Donnell] · Henry Kuttner & C. L. Moore · na Astounding Sep ’46 · ...And Then There Were None · Eric Frank Russell · na Astounding Jun ’51 · The Ballad of Lost C’Mell · Cordwainer Smith · nv Galaxy Oct ’62 · Baby Is Three · Theodore Sturgeon · na Galaxy Oct ’52 · The Time Machine [Time Machine] · H. G. Wells · na The New Review Jan, 1895 (+4) · With Folded Hands... [Humanoids] · Jack Williamson · nv Astounding Jul ’47

    After all, he was not the heir or the spare, but a lowly third son. Miss Diana Grambling is painfully aware her blood isn’t blue enough for an earl to consider her as a match. When the childhood friends stumble across a smuggling ring operating along their coast, they are in need a Christmastide miracle. If they can survive, will they be strong enough to follow their hearts?Warning: Contains a hero battling his gentlemanly impulses, a heroine who falls for her brothers’ best friend, and a wicked night in front of a fire that changes everything.Previously published in the Once Upon a Christmas Wedding anthology

    But with a stalker out for revenge, all Allie can think about now is their safety. She heads to the peaceful Bluebird Ranch, nestled in Texas hill country. Ranch owner Elijah DeAngelo eagerly welcomes the duo. But Rick Bailey—the ranch foreman—hasn't decided to let his guard down. Promises made long ago soon force Rick and Allie to work together to escape danger. Lonestar Secrets Shannon Astor returns to southwest Texas to serve as the town's veterinarian—and to get her life back on track. Then she catches a glimpse of Jack MacGowan, the man who ruined her life years before. Even more shocking is the sight of Jack's five-year-old daughter Faith, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Shannon's own daughter Kylie. Could Faith be the daughter that Shannon has believed to be dead for all these years? Lonestar Homecoming Gracie Lister escapes with her daughter to the West Texas country where her family fell apart years ago. There, Lieutenant Michael Wayne gives Gracie the refuge she needs and a job caring for his two children. When Gracie’s ex-fiancé catches up to her, her impulse is to flee the danger—and the father she lacks the courage to confront. Together Gracie and Michael must find the strength they need in each other to protect their newly forged family. Lonestar Angel Five years ago Eden and Clay Larson’s baby was stolen and never found. The tragedy ended their young and rocky marriage. Now Eden’s moved to a new town to rebuild her life. But Clay arrives and delivers news: he never signed their divorce papers. And Clay has been searching for Brianna all this time. He believes he’s found her in Bluebird, Texas, at a youth ranch. All five little girls there are the right age. Eden and Clay sign on as counselors, but as danger closes in, Eden, Clay, and all their young charges are in jeopardy. As they fight to save their family, Eden realizes that God has been fighting for them all along. All is Calm The Bluebird Ranch is the perfect place for Lauren Everman to hide. As the witness to a murder, she needs protection and the ranch’s owners offer her sanctuary. She lends a hand with the foster kids who visit the ranch to learn how to ride horses. Little Carly is her first student. Brendan Waddell is recovering from a gunshot wound at Bluebird Ranch. His friends’ welcoming home is the perfect place for him to rest during the holiday season. Lauren intrigues him, even though she says she’s not interested in romance. When Lauren and Brendan conspire to give young Carly a happy Christmas, love blooms. But first the couple must race against time to find the killer before he strikes again.

    From dark fantasy and pure suspense to classic horror tales of vampires and zombies, 999 showcases the extraordinary scope of fantastical fright fiction. The stories in this anthology are a relentless tour de force of fear, which will haunt you, terrify you, and keep the adrenaline rushing all through the night.Amerikanski dead at the Moscow morgue / Kim Newman --The ruins of contracoeur / Joyce Carol Oates --The owl and the pussycat / Thomas M. Disch --The road virus heads north / Stephen King --Keepsakes and treasures: a love story / Neil Gaiman --Growing things / T.E.D. Klein --Good Friday / F. Paul Wilson --Excerpts from the records of the New Zodiac and the diaries of Henry Watson Fairfax / Chet Williamson --An exaltation of termagants / Eric Von Lustbader --Itinerary / Tim Powers --Catfish gal blues / Nancy A. Collins --The entertainment / Ramsey Campell --ICU / Edward Lee --The shadow, the darkness / Thomas Ligotti --Rio Grande Gothic / David Morrell --Des Saucisses, Sans doute / Peter Schneider --Angie / Ed Gorman --The ropy thing / Al Sarrantonio --The tree is my hat / Gene Wolfe --Styx and bones / Edward Bryant --Hemophage / Steven Spurill --The book of irrational numbers / Michael Marshall Smith --Mad dog summer / Joe R. Lansdale --The Theater / Bentley Little --Rehearsals / Thomas F. Monteleone --Darkness / Dennis L. McKiernan --Elsewhere / William Peter Blatty

    The humble, pixelated games of the ‘70s and ‘80s have evolved into the vivid, realistic, and immersive form of entertainment that now rivals all other forms of media for dominance in the consumer marketplace. For many, video games have become the cultural icons around which pop culture revolves.PRESS START TO PLAY is an anthology of stories inspired by video games: stories that attempt to recreate the feel of a video game in prose form; stories that play with the concepts common (or exclusive) to video games; and stories about the creation of video games and/or about the video games—or the gamers—themselves.These stories will appeal to anyone who has interacted with games, from hardcore teenaged fanatics, to men and women who game after their children have gone to bed, to your well-meaning aunt who won’t stop inviting you to join her farm-based Facebook games.At the helm of this project are Daniel H. Wilson—bestselling novelist and expert in artificial intelligence—and John Joseph Adams—bestselling, Hugo Award-nominated editor of more than a dozen science fiction/fantasy anthologies and series editor of Best American Science Fiction & Fantasy (volume one forthcoming from Houghton Mifflin in 2015). Together, they have drawn on their wide-ranging contacts to assemble an incredibly talented group of authors who are eager to attack the topic of video games from startling and fascinating angles.Under the direction of an A.I. specialist and a veteran editor, the anthology will expose readers to a strategically chosen mix of stories that explore novel video game concepts in prose narratives, such as save points, kill screens, gold-farming, respawning, first-person shooters, unlocking achievements, and getting “pwned.” Likewise, each of our authors is an accomplished specialist in areas such as science fiction, fantasy, and techno-thrillers, and many have experience writing for video games professionally.Combining unique viewpoints and exacting realism, this anthology promises to thrill generations of readers, from those who grew up with Atari 2600s to the console and PC gamers of today.

    This edition also comes with twelve exclusive postcards. A must-have gift edition for all Whovians!To celebrate the arrival of Peter Capaldi on to our screens as the newly regenerated Doctor, this collection of Doctor Who short stories, each written by a different author, now includes an extra, brand-new twelfth adventure as part of the 12 Doctors, 12 Stories paperback anthology. Offering the perfect addition to the top-selling series, the twelfth story, 'Lights Out', has been penned by self-professed Doctor Who fan and best-selling female sci-fi writer Holly Black.Contents:A Big Hand For the Doctor by Eoin Colfer sees the First Doctor in pursuit of a gang of Soul Pirates in Victorian London. Missing both his left hand and his beloved granddaughter Susan, his quest to retrieve them promises a journey into a land he may never forget...The Nameless City by Michael Scott, who puts his own inimtable spin on the Second Doctor. When Jamie McCrimmon gives the Doctor a mysterious book, he has no idea of the danger contained within its pages. The book transports the TARDIS to a glass city on a distant world, where the Archons are intent on getting revenge on the Time Lord for an ancient grudge.The Spear of Destiny by Marcus Sedgwick follows the Third Doctor and Jo Grant on a quest to track down the magical spear of Odin. Caught in a vicious battle between two Viking tribes, the Doctor stop the spear getting into the wrong hands before it's too late.The Roots of Evil by Philip Reeve, joins the Fourth Doctor and his companion Leela on an adventure on a massive tree space station known as the Heligan Structure. Little do they know that the tree has been asleep for centuries, dreaming of vengeance against a man in a blue box... Tip of the Tongue by Patrick Ness is a Fifth Doctor adventure about a strange new craze for Truth Tellers, which is sweeping through the kids of small-town America. While the Doctor and Nyssa investigate the phenomenon, they discover the truth behind the Truth Tellers is far more sinister than anyone could have imagined...Something Borrowed by Richelle Mead. The Sixth Doctor and Peri attend a wedding on the planet Koturia and discover the return of a formidable old foe, whose genius matches the Doctor's. Can he outwit this villain, save Peri and stop the wedding in time?The Ripple Effect by Malorie Blackman. When the TARDIS lands on Skaro, the Seventh Doctor and Ace are shocked to discover the planet has become the Dalek's have become a force for good, and their once battle-torn planet is now a universal centre of learning. But how long can peace last...?Spore by Alex Scarrow, who puts his own twist on the Eighth Doctor in a terrifying tale about an alien pathogen that attacks a small town in the Nevada desert. As the population is reduced to a seething mass of black slime the Doctor realise it is the same virus which almost annihilated his entire race, the Time Lords...The Beast of Babylon by Charlie Higson. A young girl called Ali sees a silver orb fall from the sky and soon learns it's her ticket to seeing the universe. Desperate to retrieve the mysterious object, the Ninth Doctor lets her join him on a dangerous trip to ancient Babylon, where he must battle a giant Starman for the fate of the Earth.The Mystery of the Haunted Cottage by Derek Landy, joins the Tenth Doctor and Martha on a planet that looks exactly like Earth, but is full of fictional characters from Martha's childhood. Together they must solve the mystery of who has created a world of books before their story concludes.Nothing O’Clock by Neil Gaiman, is a terrifying tale about a race called the Kin. Thousands of years ago, the Kin were imprisoned for their crimes by the Time Lords. But the Kin were patient and deathless and, when Gallifrey fell, they escaped. Now the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond are all that states between the Kin and fate of the universe.Lights Out by Holly Black. The Twelfth Doctor is sucked into a murder investigation on the International Coffee Roasting Station, the most caffeinated place in the universe. A killer is on the loose; one who only emerges in the dark. Can the Doctor solve the mystery before the lights go out forever?

    12"* "For Want of a Nail"* "The Shocking Affair of the Dutch steamship Friesland"* "Salt of the Earth"* "American Changeling"* "The White Phoenix Feather"* "We Interrupt This Broadcast"* "Rockets Red" (A brand new story in the Lady Astronaut universe)* "The Lady Astronaut of Mars"

    The Bound Folio tells their stories from the tortured childhood of the legendary Blademaster the Sword of the North, to the humble origins of the Queen of the Five Kingdoms, to the death of one of the world's greatest assassins. This anthology collects together eight dark stories of swords, sorcery, and seduction from First Earth, the setting of Rob J. Hayes' The Ties That Bind trilogy.CONTENTS"The Sword of the North" - Northborn lordling Derran Fowl has a natural affinity for swordplay. Even so, such a talent cannot contend with an alcoholic father who invites an Arbiter to their estate in order to investigate his own sickly daughter and Derran's beloved little sister, Leesa. Learn the origins of what drives young Derran to begin a journey that ends with the Sword of the North."The Night Blade" - A tale in which two fabled assassins, one a veteran of the trade, the other a promising upstart, are hired by the same man to kill one another, with the prize being a major contract for a hefty sum."The Kid" introduces an undersized street rat at the bottom of the pecking order in his small group of famished and thieving orphans. A victim of frequent beatings and constant bullying, learn how he overcomes his enemies in the unfeeling gutters and alleyways of Korral."The Battle of Underbridge" - Tristan Southerland and his fellow squires intend to get riproaring drunk on a night out. Instead, they find themselves fighting for their lives — and dying — against a pestilent tide of ceaseless foes."The Merchant of Truridge" - Sirion Tell is married to the perfect woman, and although his father has recently passed, he has inherited a considerable sum and the future looks bright for the enterprising newlyweds...until he crosses paths with the pirate known as Drake Morass."The Twins" - Irris the Drurr is charged with the protection of royal half-breed twins as they flee to the surface world. In the coming weeks, beneath the open skies, will she be able to lead both small girls to a safe haven? Or will they be caught by human hunters; or worse, their own merciless people, intent on slaughtering the twins merely for being born?"The Mistress of the West" - In the western deserts of the Five Kingdoms, the school of mistresses instructs young girls like Shián how to capture rich and powerful husbands to increase their family's status; however, will the mistresses be able to teach Shián what cost the price of vengeance?"Beck" - An Arbiter of the Inquisition finds herself at the mercy of pirates, taken captive for her magical abilities and used to locate a mysterious treasure. When the treasure itself turns out to potentially be heretical, the Arbiter finds she must make a choice between her duty or freedom.

    Dive into these fantastic realms of dangerous creatures and rich characters and discover engrossing stories of friendship, adversity, and hope.This book includes: * WARRIOR MAGE (Chains of Honor: Book 1) – Lindsay Buroker * MAGIC OF THIEVES (Legends of Dimmingwood: Book 1) - C. Greenwood * BLAZE (Tranquility: Book 1) – Krista D. Ball * THE BOOKBINDER’S DAUGHTER (The Conjurers: Book 1) – Jane Glatt * AVARICE (Pyrrh Considerable Crimes Division: Book 1) – Annie Bellet