Shadowed Souls


Jim ButcherAnton Strout - 2016
    Anderson, and Rob Thurman—nothing is as simple as black and white, light and dark, good and evil..Unfortunately, that’s exactly what makes it so easy to cross the line.In #1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher’s Cold Case, Molly Carpenter—Harry Dresden’s apprentice-turned-Winter Lady—must collect a tribute from a remote Fae colony and discovers that even if you’re a good girl, sometimes you have to be bad...New York Times bestselling author Seanan McGuire’s Sleepover finds half-succubus Elsie Harrington kidnapped by a group of desperate teenage boys. Not for anything “weird.” They just need her to rescue a little girl from the boogeyman. No biggie.In New York Times bestselling Kevin J. Anderson’s Eye of Newt, Zombie P.I. Dan Shamble’s latest client is a panicky lizard missing an eye who thinks someone wants him dead. But the truth is that someone only wants him for a very special dinner...And New York Times bestselling author Rob Thurman’s infernally heroic Caliban Leandros takes a trip down memory lane as he deals wih some overdue—and nightmarish—vengeance involving some quite nasty Impossible Monsters .ALSO INCLUDES STORIES BYTanya Huff * Kat Richardson * Jim C. Hines * Anton Strout * Lucy A. Snyder * Kristine Kathryn Rusch * Erik Scott de Bie *From the Trade Paperback edition.

Looking for Jake


China MiévilleCristina Jurado - 2003
    Now from this brilliant young writer comes a groundbreaking collection of stories, many of them previously unavailable in the United States, and including four never-before-published tales–one set in Miéville’s signature fantasy world of New Crobuzon. Among the fourteen superb fictions are“Jack”–Following the events of his acclaimed novel Perdido Street Station, this tale of twisted attachment and horrific revenge traces the rise and fall of the Remade Robin Hood known as Jack Half-a-Prayer. “Familiar”–Spurned by its creator, a sorceress’s familiar embarks on a strange and unsettling odyssey of self-discovery in a coming-of-age story like no other.

Fearful Symmetries


Ellen Datlow - 2014
    There are children—those who victimize, and those who are victims. There are supernatural horrors, psychological terrors, nourish dark fantasies, and downright weird fictions.   Featuring Nathan Ballingrud, Laird Barron, Pat Cadigan, Siobhan Carroll, Terry Dowling, Brian Evenson, Gemma Files, Jeffrey Ford, Carole Johnstone, Stephen Graham Jones, Caitlín R Kiernan, John Langan, Catherine MacLeod, Helen Marshall, Bruce McAllister, Gary McMahon, Garth Nix, Robert Shearman, Michael Marshall Smith, and Kaaron Warren.   Come on in, and make yourself a cozy little nook in the dark, and enjoy.

Flight or Fright: 17 Turbulent Tales


Stephen KingDan Simmons - 2018
    This exciting new anthology, perfect for airport or airplane reading, includes an original introduction and story notes for each story by Stephen King, along with brand new stories from Stephen King and Joe Hill.Stephen King hates to fly. Now he and co-editor Bev Vincent would like to share this fear of flying with you.Welcome to Flight or Fright, an anthology about all the things that can go horribly wrong when you're suspended six miles in the air, hurtling through space at more than 500 mph and sealed up in a metal tube (like—gulp!—a coffin) with hundreds of strangers. All the ways your trip into the friendly skies can turn into a nightmare, including some we'll bet you've never thought of before... but now you will the next time you walk down the jetway and place your fate in the hands of a total stranger.Featuring brand new stories by Joe Hill and Stephen King, as well as fourteen classic tales and one poem from the likes of Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury, Roald Dahl, Dan Simmons, and many others, Flight or Fright is, as King says, "ideal airplane reading, especially on stormy descents... Even if you are safe on the ground, you might want to buckle up nice and tight."

The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares


Joyce Carol Oates - 2011
    The Corn Maiden is the gut-wrenching story of Marissa, a beautiful and sweet eleven-year-old girl with hair the color of corn silk. Taken by an older girl from her school who has told two friends in her thrall of the Indian legend of the Corn Maiden, in which a girl is sacrificed to ensure a good crop, Marissa is kept in a secluded basement and convinced that the world has ended. Marissa s seemingly inevitable fate becomes ever more terrifying as the older girl relishes her power, giving the tale unbearable tension with a shocking conclusion. In Helping Hands, published here for the first time, a lonely woman meets a man in the unlikely clutter of a dingy charity shop and extends friendship. She has no idea what kinds of doors she may be opening. The powerful stories in this extraordinary collection further enhance Joyce Carol Oates s standing as one of the world s greatest writers of suspense."

Poe's Children: The New Horror


Peter StraubM. Rickert - 2008
    Showcasing this cutting-edge talent, Poe’s Children now brings the best of the genre’s stories to a wider audience. Featuring tales from such writers as Neil Gaiman and Jonathan Carroll, Poe’s Children is Peter Straub’s tribute to the imaginative power of storytelling. Each previously published story has been selected by Straub to represent what he thinks is the most interesting development in our literature during the last two decades.Selections range from the early Stephen King psychological thriller “The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet,” in which an editor confronts an author’s belief that his typewriter is inhabited by supernatural creatures, to “The Man on the Ceiling,” Melanie and Steve Rasnic Tem’s award-winning surreal tale of night terrors, woven with daylight fears that haunt a family. Other selections include National Book Award finalist Dan Chaon’s “The Bees”; Peter Straub’s “Little Red’s Tango,” the legend of a music aficionado whose past is as mysterious as the ghostly visitors to his Manhattan apartment; Elizabeth Hand’s visionary and shocking “Cleopatra Brimstone”; Thomas Ligotti’s brilliant, mind-stretching “Notes on the Writing of Horror: A Story”; and “Body,” Brian Evenson’s disturbing twist on correctional facilities.Crossing boundaries and packed with imaginative chills, Poe’s Children bears all the telltale signs of fearless, addictive fiction.

Love in Vein: Twenty Original Tales of Vampiric Erotica


Poppy Z. BriteDouglas Clegg - 1994
    Brite.The classic horror tale is about fear. But in the last few years a new literature of the macabre has arisen, one that goes deeper than horror, beyond fear, to explore our darkest, most intimate hungers. The ones even lovers are forbidden to share.Acclaimed dark fantasy author Poppy Z. Brite has brought together this genre's most powerful and seductive authors in an original collection of vampiric erotica, a shameless celebration of unspeakable intimacies. It is not for everyone.But neither is the night.

Asimov's Mysteries


Isaac Asimov - 1968
    THE TALKING STONE—A spaceship crew is planning on some illegal uranium mining with the help of on intelligent creature mode of rock. WHAT'S IN A NAME?—Everything. Especially when twin librarians ore involved in a murder. PÂTÉ DE FOIE GRAS—Just how did that goose lay the golden egg? Also included in the collection are: THE DYING NIGHT. THE DUST OF DEATH, A LOINT OF PAW, I'M IN MARSPORT WITHOUT HILDA, MAROONED OFF VESTA and ANNIVERSARY, OBITUARY, STAR LIGHT, THE KEY, and THE BILLIARD BALL.

The Improbable Adventures of Sherlock Holmes


John Joseph AdamsTanith Lee - 2009
    This reprint anthology showcases the best Holmes short fiction from the last 25 years, featuring stories by such visionaries as Stephen King, Neil Gaimen, Laura King, and many others.

Let the Old Dreams Die


John Ajvide Lindqvist - 2011
    Now at last, in “Let the Old Dreams Die,” the title story in this absolutely stunning collection, we get a glimpse of what happened next to the pair. Fans of Let the Right One In will have to read the story, which is destined to generate much word of mouth both among fans and online.“Let the Old Dreams Die” is not the only stunner in this collection. In "Final Processing," Lindqvist also reveals the next chapter in the lives of the characters he created in Handling the Undead. “Equinox” is a story of a woman who takes care of her neighbor’s house while they are away and readers will never forget what she finds in the house. Every story meets the very high standard of excellence and fright factor that Lindqvist fans have come to expect. Totally transcending genre writing, these are world class stories from possibly the most impressive horror writer writing today.

Witches: Wicked, Wild & Wonderful


Paula GuranT.A. Pratt - 2012
    No longer confined to the image of a hexing old crone, witches can be kindly healers and protectors, tough modern urban heroines, holders of forbidden knowledge, sweetly domestic spellcasters, darkly domineering, sexy enchantresses, ancient sorceresses, modern Wiccans, empowered or persecuted, possessors of supernatural abilities that can be used for good or evil—or perhaps only perceived as such. Welcome to the world of witchery in many guises: wicked, wild, and wonderful. Includes two original, never-published stories.ContentsThe Cold Blacksmith • (2006) • shortstory by Elizabeth BearThe Ground Whereon She Stands • (2011) • shortfiction by Leah BobetThe Witch’s Headstone • (2007) • novelette by Neil GaimanLessons with Miss Gray • (2006) • novelette by Theodora GossThe Only Way to Fly • (1995) • shortstory by Nancy HolderBasement Magic • (2003) • novelette by Ellen KlagesNightside • [Diana Tregarde] • (1989) • shortstory by Mercedes LackeyApril in Paris • (1962) • shortstory by Ursula K. Le GuinThe Goosle • (2008) • shortstory by Margo LanaganMirage and Magia • (1982) • shortstory by Tanith LeePoor Little Saturday • (1956) • shortstory by Madeleine L'EngleCatskin • (2003) • shortstory by Kelly LinkBloodlines • shortfiction by Silvia Moreno-GarciaThe Way Wind • (1995) • novelette by Andre NortonSkin Deep • (2008) • novelette by Richard ParksIll Met in Ulthar • shortfiction by Tim Pratt [as by T. A. Pratt ]Marlboros & Magic • shortfiction by Linda RobertsonWalpurgis Afternoon • (2005) • novelette by Delia ShermanThe World Is Cruel, My Daughter • (2011) • shortstory by Cory SkerryThe Robbery • (1995) • shortstory by Cynthia WardAfterward • (1999) • shortstory by Don WebbMagic Carpets • (1995) • shortstory by Leslie WhatBoris Chernevsky's Hands • (1982) • shortstory by Jane Yolen

Brave New Worlds


John Joseph AdamsNeil Gaiman - 2010
    Brave New Worlds brings together the best dystopian fiction of the last 30 years, demonstrating the diversity that flourishes in this compelling subgenre. This landmark tome contains stories by Ursula K. Le Guin, Cory Doctorow, M. Rickert, Paolo Bacigalupi, Orson Scott Card, Neil Gaiman, Ray Bradbury, and many others.Table of ContentsIntroduction / John Joseph Adams --Lottery / Shirley Jackson --Red card / S.L. Gilbow --Ten with a flag / Joseph Paul Haines --Ones who walk away from Omelas / Ursula K. Le. Guin --Evidence of love in a case of abandonment / M. Rickert --The Funeral / Kate Wilhelm --O happy day! / Geoff Ryman --Pervert / Charles Coleman Finlay --From homogeneous to honey / Neil Gaiman & Bryan Talbot --Billennium / J.G. Ballard --Amaryllis / Carrie Vaughn --Pop squad / Paolo Bacigalupi --Auspicious eggs / James Morrow --Peter Skilling / Alex Irvine --The Pedestrian / Ray Bradbury --Things that make me weak and strange get engineered away / Cory Doctorow --Pearl diver / Caitlin R. Kiernan --Dead space for the unexpected / Geoff Ryman --"Repent harlequin!", said the Ticktockman / Harlan Ellison --Is this your day to join the revolution? / Genevieve Valentine --Independence day / Sarah Langan --Lunatics / Kim Stanley Robinson --Sacrament / Matt Williamson --Minority report / Philip K. Dick --Just do it / Heather Lindsley --Harrison Bergeron / Kurt Vonnegut Jr. --Caught in the organ draft / Robert Silverberg --Geriatric ward / Orson Scott Card --Arties aren't stupid / Jeremiah Tolbert --Jordan's waterhammer / Joe Mastroianni --Of a sweet slow dance in the wake of temporary dogs / Adam-Troy Castro --Resistance / Tobias S. Buckell --Civilization / Vylar Kaftan.

Dreamsongs, Volume I


George R.R. Martin - 2003
    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)

Darkness: Two Decades of Modern Horror


Ellen DatlowRamsey Campbell - 2010
    Hand selected from cutting-edge authors, each work blends subtle psychology and mischievousness with disturbingly visceral imagery. In the classic "Chattery Teeth,” Stephen King provides a tautly drawn account of a traveling salesman who unwisely picks up yet another hitchhiker, while in Peter Straub’s eerie "The Juniper Tree," a man whose nostalgia for the movies of his childhood leads to his stolen innocence. Renowned fantasy author George R. R. Martin weaves a sinister yarn about a young woman encountering a neighbor who is overly enamored with her in "The Pear-Shaped Man." Combining acclaimed masters of the macabre, such as Clive Barker, Poppy Z. Brite, and Thomas Ligotti, with bold new talents to the genre, including Kelly Link, Neil Gaiman, and Stephen King’s son, Joe Hill, this distinctive collection of stories will delight and terrify.Contents "Jacqueline Ess: Her Will And Testament" by Clive Barker "Dancing Chickens" by Edward Bryant "The Greater Festival of Masks" by Thomas Ligotti "The Pear-Shaped Man" by George R. R. Martin "The Juniper Tree" by Peter Straub "Two Minutes Forty-Five Seconds" by Dan Simmons "The Power and the Passion" by Pat Cadigan "The Phone Woman" by Joe R. Lansdale "Teratisms" by Kathe Koja "Chattery Teeth" by Stephen King "A Little Night Music" by Lucius Shepard "Calcutta, Lord of Nerves" by Poppy Z. Brite "The Erl King" by Elizabeth Hand "The Dog Park" by Dennis Etchison "Rain Falls" by Michael Marshall Smith "Refrigerator Heaven" by David J. Schow "----" by Joyce Carol Oates "Eaten (Scenes from a Moving Picture)" by Neil Gaiman "The Specialist’s Hat" by Kelly Link "The Tree is My Hat" by Gene Wolfe "Heat" by Steve Rasnic Tem "No Strings" by Ramsey Campbell "Stitch" by Terry Dowling "Dancing Men" by Glen Hirshberg "My Father’s Mask" by Joe Hill

The Mammoth Book of Modern Ghost Stories


Peter HainingElizabeth Bowen - 2007
    Wodehouse, John Steinbeck, and Ian Rankin