For the special edition slipcase please go here.You know the drill by now. The 2020 Short Story Advent Calendar is a deluxe box set of individually bound short stories from some of the best writers in North America. This year's slipcase is a thing of beauty, too, with electric-yellow lining and spot-glossed lettering. It also comes wrapped in two rubber bands to keep those booklets snug in their beds.

    They all come together in a place underneath the one we know. Ten tales of horror and the supernatural, plus a 17,000 word preview of the upcoming zombie thriller "Orpheus."

    After leaving her friend's house, she decides she's going to prove to her brother that "The Lady on the Road " urban legend is just that...

    Indeed, this enduring obsession provided fodder for some of Singh’s best-known work, both as a journalist and as a peerless raconteur.On Women, a wide-ranging selection of Singh’s writings on the subject, includes Singh’s recounting of an embarrassingly drunken meeting with Begum Para, an actress of yesteryears; a sharp profile of Shraddha Mata, a tantric sadhvi who was alleged to have borne Jawaharlal Nehru’s illegitimate child; and a touching sketch of Singh’s grandmother in the twilight of her life. Also featured in this volume are unforgettable women characters from Khushwant Singh’s most popular works of fiction: Georgine, a clueless American teenager who is seduced by a middle-aged tour guide in Delhi; and Nooran, a young girl in pre-Partition Punjab, who discovers the sweet pleasure of first love only to be overtaken by cataclysmic events which leave her adrift.Insightful, poignant, and occasionally wicked, the essays and extracts in On Women are testament to why Khushwant Singh remains one of the most popular writers of our times.

    In his singular universe, televisions talk (and sometimes sing), animals live in small apartments where their nephews visit from the sea, and men and women and boys and girls fall down wells and fly through space and find love on Ferris wheels. In a voice full of fable, myth, and dream, Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day draws us into a world of delightfully wicked recognitions, and introduces us to a writer of uncommon talent and imagination.Contains 40 stories, including "The Duck," "The Man and the Moose," and "Death and the Fruits of the Tree," as heard on NPR's This American Life, "The Book," as heard on Selected Shorts, and "The TV," as found in The New Yorker.A selection of the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Program and the Starbucks Coffee Bookish Reading Club.Winner of the 2011 Nobbie Award for Best Book of the Year."This guy can write!" –Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451

    Humor and a somewhat postmodern outlook carried over into his novels as well. One of his stories, "Arena," is officially credited for an adaptation as an episode of the landmark television series, Star Trek. With no more room left on Earth, and with Mars hanging up there empty of life, somebody hit on the plan of starting a colony on the Red Planet. It meant changing the habits and physical structure of the immigrants, but that worked out fine. In fact, every possible factor was covered -- except one of the flaws of human nature. . . ."

     A photographer reluctantly agrees to take images of an abandoned manor house on the Dorset cliff tops only to find the building is not completely empty. . .

    They unlock opportunities for wealth and travel, but also create incredible chaos--uprooting populations and blighting landscapes. Work on or around the rails leads to unwelcome discoveries and, in light of the Mythos, dire implications in the spread of the rail system as a whole. A certain path to uncovering unwelcome truths about the universe is to venture beyond our own "placid island of ignorance" and encounter foreign cultures. The Orient Express serves as the perfect vehicle for such excursions, designed as a bridge between West and East. Movement into mystery forms the central action for many stories in this volume. The only limitation placed upon writers for this collection was that their works somehow involve the Orient Express and the Mythos. The last warning whistle has blown, and we are getting underway. Have your tickets at the ready and settle in for a journey across unexpected landscapes to a destination that--well, we'll just let you see for yourself when you arrive. We promise this though: murder will be the least of your problems on this trip aboard the Orient Express!

    Past winners and shortlisted authors have included the Pulitzer winners Junot Díaz, Anthony Doerr and Adam Johnson, plus Hilary Mantel, Ali Smith, Yiyun Li, CK Stead and Elizabeth Strout.Six Shorts 2017 brings together the six stories shortlisted for this year's award: ‘Reputation Management’ by Kathleen Alcott; ‘Half of What Atlee Rouse Knows about Horses’ by Bret Anthony Johnston; ‘The Hazel Twig and the Olive Tree’ by Richard Lambert; ‘The Tenant’ by Victor Lodato; ‘Every Little Thing’ by Celeste Ng; and ‘Mr Salary’ by Sally Rooney.Chosen by a hugely experienced and prestigious judging panel that included Booker-winner Anne Enright, Orange- and Whitbread-winner Rose Tremain, Booker-shortlistee Neel Mukherjee and critic and novelist Mark Lawson, the six stories represent the very best in contemporary English-language short fiction.

    Authors include John Bruni, Garry Bushell, Ramsey Campbell, Randy Chandler, Tim Curran, Ralph Greco, Jr., C.J. Henderson, Z.F. Kilgore,Sean Logan, Graham Masterton, Angel Leigh McCoy, C. Dennis Moore, Stefan Pearson, Brian Rosenberger, and Jeffrey Thomas.Witness the history of a sexually rapacious zombie . . . A starving soldier descends into insatiable ghoulism . . . A concentration camp SS guard gets a taste of his own medicine . . . Recycling takes on a whole new grisly meaning when a man obsessed with going green discovers a regenerative serum . . . A man buys his alcoholic mother a bottle of tequila-with the wrong kind of worm . . . An occult detective moves to a town in the Pine Barrens and discovers its sinister past-and his own . . . A tenant gets revenge on a self-centered landlord-with irritating results . . . A fisherman discovers his rival's secret of always getting the biggest catch . . . and much more!The fisherman / Brian Rosenberger --Fungoid / Randy Chandler --Tenant's rights / Sean Logan --Again / Ramsey Campbell --Maggots / Tim Curran --Going green / Stefan Pearson --Coquettrice / Angel Leigh McCoy --The fear in the waiting / C.J. Henderson --The worm / John Bruni --Sepsis / Graham Masterton --What you wish for / Garry Bushell --The devil lives in Jersey / Z.F. Kilgore --Rat king / Jeffrey Thomas --The caterpillar / C. Dennis Moore --"Poor Brother Ed" or the man who visited / Ralph Greco, Jr.

    Now, there's a reason to be. Lux and his younger brother Lunam enjoy the full freedom of the simple life and all the childhood adventures offered by growing up in a small village in a picturesque glen. Life is tranquil, peaceful, and just about perfect—except for one formidable fact... Every day is followed by night. And, with the night, comes the DARKNESS. Slowly shrouding the valley and relentlessly seeping into every nook and cranny on its nightly rampage, the darkness returns to feast on its victims. No man, woman, child, animal—or even, insect—is safe. The darkness consumes all; the darkness's hunger is never satisfied. When the sun falls from the sky, the villagers, young and old, must take to arms, guarding their homes, loved ones, and livestock with every ray of light they can muster. Even young Lux and Lunam are well-soldiered in their responsibilities to safeguard themselves and their parents during the nightly vigil, the nightly fight to live to see another day. It's always been this way—the truths and ritual passed down from generation to generation since ancient times. No one dares question why. Nothing can change the frightening fact of the lives of the villagers or emancipate them from their singular foe—nothing, except a child's imagination and a curiosity as immutable as the darkness's own appetite. There's just one truth guiding every man, woman, and child to strive to see another day: "Darkness Comes but Once a Night."

    A simple touch sending currents of electricity flowing through a body. The feeling of coming home. Friends become lovers. Strangers become soulmates. The chemistry ignited when two people are falling in love is undeniable. Over the course of five short stories, follow these couples on journeys of passion and discover what happens when they decide to let sparks fly…

    Their honeymoon plans go puff as India announces a nationwide lockdown.Months after living under the pressures of joint family, social distancing rules, and work-from-home stress, they get an opportunity to venture out. Viraj plans a trip to the inviting Green Villa for an intimate weekend getaway. But something is lurking beneath the surface.Will it pan out to be the exciting honeymoon that Viraj thinks they desperately need?What is Jhanak scared about?Who is the girl in the Green Villa?Key highlights of the story:• Fast-paced narration• Non-linear storytelling• Interesting twists and turns• Flavours of the supernatural• Imminent dread, doom, and deceit

    To ride alongside your favorite horror authors as they take you on a trip you will never forget. There is no turning back.From new legends to old familiar haunts, the stories held within this tome will make you question whether anywhere is safe. Over 30 authors have crafted the most authentic and horrifying representation of each state. Not a single dark road will be left untraveled. You will never want to leave home again.

    A new homeowner discovers her property comes with a deadly addition. And dark forces stalk a troop of innocent boy scouts when they spend the night on a haunted aircraft carrier…Scare Street delves into the darkness to bring you a new collection of spine-tingling terror. This diabolical tome is bursting with thirteen sinister stories of supernatural horror, featuring ghastly ghosts, cold-blooded killers, and fiendish visions torn from your worst fears.Just be careful you don’t lose track of time as you meander through this shadowy landscape of dreams and nightmares. Because once the sun sets, something waits for you in the darkness of night.And if it finds you, you may never see daylight again…This bone-chilling supernatural collection contains:1. Cool Air by Peter Cronsberry2. The Presentation by Tarphy W. Horn3. The Homeowner's Guide to Sanity by K. M. McKenzie4. Retrospective: Florne's Ghost by Emil Pellim5. 7734 by Ryan Benson6. Aisle 3 by Rosie O'Carroll7. Pumpkin Patch by C. B. Channell8. The Third Father by A. M. Todd9. Troop 94’s Last Scouting Trip by Karl Melton10. Play It, Win It, Kill It by J. M. White11. Satan's Town by Bob Johnston12. Everything as It Was by Warren Benedetto13. Summer Camp by Ron Ripley