Everyone is someone else when the world isn't looking. Sometimes that person is good, sometimes that person is not. In Bram Stoker Award-winning author Kealan Patrick Burke's latest terrifying collection of short stories, you'll meet thirteen people who discover the horror of what happens when those secret faces are removed and the true darkness that dwells within us all is unleashed.Table of Contents:HomeStalledThe End of UsThe Red Light is BlinkingMother/NatureI’m Not ThereMemory LaneTerminalForced EntryThe QuietThe One Night of the YearPigHoarder With an introduction and story notes by the author.

    Kate Stringer is a woman in mourning, her murdered husband the latest victim of the notorious Catholic Jack slayer. A nationwide manhunt remains underway, but the serial killer continues to remain elusive. Now, unknown to her, Kate too has been targeted by the maniac. However, other forces are in play. Things moving in the shadows, with an agenda of their own...From those broken places, where trauma and distress cloister, they watch with accusing eyes. And if they judge us, they may look to share their pain.

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    This was published as a Clarkesworld audiobook podcast in 2020.

    One legendary music venue. We all know the old cliché: Sex, drugs and rock and roll. Now, add demons, other dimensions, monsters, revenge, human sacrifice, and a dash of the truly inexplicable. This is the story of the (fictional) San Francisco music venue, The Shantyman.In Welcome to the Show, seventeen of today's hottest writers of horror and dark fiction come together in devilish harmony to trace The Shantyman's history from its disturbing birth through its apocalyptic encore.Featuring stories by Brian Keene, John Skipp, Mary SanGiovanni, Robert Ford, Max Booth III, Glenn Rolfe, Matt Hayward, Bryan Smith, Matt Serafini, Kelli Owen, Jonathan Janz, Patrick Lacey, Adam Cesare, Alan M Clark, Somer Canon, Rachel Autumn Deering and Jeff Strand.Compiled by Matt Hayward. Edited by Doug Murano.Bring your curiosity, but leave your inhibitions at the door. The show is about to begin…TOC: Alan M Clark – What Sort of Rube Jonathan Janz – Night and Day and in Between John Skipp – In the Winter of No Love Patrick Lacey – Wolf with Diamond Eyes Bryan Smith – Pilgrimage Rachel Autumn Deering – A Tongue like Fire Glenn Rolfe – Master of Beyond Matt Hayward – Dark Stage Kelli Owen – Open Mic Night Matt Serafini – Beat on the Past Max Booth III – True Starmen Somer Canon – Just to be Seen Jeff Strand – Parody Robert Ford – Ascending Adam Cesare – The Southern Thing Brian Keene – Running Free Mary SanGiovanni – We Sang in Darkness Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths.

    He's not sure who put him there or why, he just knows that he needs to escape.WELCOME TO PARADISE (August) - A young woman with psychic powers and her three friends become stranded in a town where the people won't let them leave.VOODOO ASSASSIN (September) - A woman seeking revenge for the death of her sister finds her answer in a strange assassin.THE SPIRIT OF HALLOWEEN (October) - Three friends try to outdo each other with frights on Halloween night.RATTRAP (November) - A young couple believes they have rats in the walls of their house - but their pest problem is much worse than they ever imagined.THE VENDING MACHINE (December) - Nine year old Sammy discovers a broken vending machine that seems to grant his wishes, but he must be very careful what he wishes for.

    2: AmericanThen he saw, an indefinite distance beyond him, burning like red-hot iron through the darkness, a little scarlet or crimson gleam, as of a lighted cigar.

    Yet it seems like only yesterday when I had my first book, Let's Meet on Platform 8, published. I'm so lucky to have an enthusiastic and devoted following of readers - some who've stayed with me from the very beginning and some who are recent converts. Without you reading and enjoying my books, I would never have had the fabulous career I've been blessed with. We make a great team!I thought it would be nice for you all to join the celebration with me and to offer a small token of my thanks and appreciation for all your support over the years. I love writing short stories and that's what helped to get me started on this road so I've put together a collection of a few of my favourites that have interspersed the last twenty-five books. Each one is very special to me for a different reason and has lovely memories. I hope you enjoy them too. Find half an hour to curl up on the sofa with them and raise a glass to toast twenty-five books and us!*Includes an exclusive extract from The Cake Shop in the Garden*

    Well, if you had to experience even one of the things that we discuss in this book, perhaps, you will change your mind on actually seeing ghosts. It may be hard to accept that the place we are living in is occupied by entities we cannot see. Many claim that if a place becomes abandoned for a long time, then ghosts may see it as a sign of welcome, and hence, they would reside in that area. However, there are various reasons as to why a place (or a person) is haunted - it could be memories, a refusal to cross over, deliberately communicating with the dead or perhaps, one is just gifted. Reading this book may make you more aware of your surroundings; who knows, perhaps one of these days, you’ll realize that a part of your life is also haunted... Here Is A Preview Of What You'll Learn... True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – The Real Exorcist True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – Popper the Poltergeist True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – The Ghosts of the Chernobyl Disaster True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – The Psychic's Gift and Curse True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – The Devil on Trial True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – The Curse in Black Hope True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – Rudy Loves the Club True Ghost Stories And Hauntings – Heidi Wyrick can Talk to Ghosts Much, much more! >>> Download this book today! <<<Get under the covers and turn the lights off to experience a book full of scary, haunted stories!Tags: true paranormal hauntings, true ghost stories and hauntings, true paranormal, true ghost stories, bizarre true stories, true paranormal stories, unexplained phenomena, haunted asylums, haunted houses, unexplained mysteries

    The carnival is about to begin, and the show is to die for... Grab your ticket and take a seat. The ringmaster’s opening act? A creature showcasing its bloody feat.There are haunting spirits with much to tell. Tales of torture and screams straight from the burning flames of hell.Tick-tock goes the time, seconds passing by as you slowly lose your mind.Watch.Wait.Listen.Evil is coming, and it’s striking from behind.Horror and fear, like filth on your skin it clings,Question is, are you brave enough to endure…The Carnival of Strange Things?

    Each book in the series has been designed with today's young reader in mind. As the words come to life, students will develop a lasting appreciation for great literature.The humor of Mark Twain...the suspense of Edgar Allan Poe...the danger of Jack London...the sensitivity of Katherine Mansfield. Creative Short Stories has it all and will prove to be a welcome addition to any library.

    Now he offers us a superb quintet of novellas -- five dazzling masterworks of speculative fiction, including "Orphans of the Helix," his award-winning return to the Hyperion Universe -- that demonstrates the unique mastery, breathtaking invention, and flawless craftsmanship of one of contemporary fiction's true greats.Human colonists seeking something other than godhood encounter their long-lost "cousins"...and an ancient scourge.A devastated man in suicide's embrace is caught up in a bizarre cat-and-mouse game with a young woman possessing a world-ending power.The distant descendants of a once-oppressed people learn a chilling lesson about the persistence of the past.A terrifying ascent up the frigid, snow-swept slopes of K2 shatters preconceptions and reveals the true natures of four climbers, one of whom is not human.At the intersection of a grand past and a threadbare present, an aging American in Russia confronts his own mortality as he glimpses a wondrous future.

    The bridge holds many secrets.Two hurting women face each other on this night, destinies merging. Mistakes have been made, people have been hurt, and these two are the victims. After the many years, they are ready to give up, ready to end it all. But one thing keeps them from giving up.The bridge holds many secrets, and the city breeds scum. But together, they can heal and help.This passionate, emotional story about the power of forgiveness takes you far away, to a city you'll always remember and never forget. Follow me to the place where mercy and grace mingle, where love and pain go hand-in-hand. Follow me to the bridge.

    

    Here is the lineup:AT CHRIGHTON ABBEY, by Mary Elizabeth BraddonTHE HAUNTED MILL, by Jerome K. JeromeTHE GHOST CLUB, by John Kendrick BangsTHE SHADOWS OF THE DEAD, by Louis BeckeTHE ROOM IN THE TOWER, by E. F. BensonTHE HAUNTED AND THE HAUNTERS, by Lord Edward Bulwer-LyttonTHE MIDDLE BEDROOM, by H. de Vere StacpooleTHE DRUMMER GHOST, by John William DeForestMISS JÉROMETTE AND THE CLERGYMAN, by Wilkie CollinsTHE SPECTRE BRIDE, by William Harrison AinsworthTHE TAPESTRIED CHAMBER; or, The Lady in the Square, by Sir Walter ScottTHE OLD NURSE’S STORY, by Elizabeth GaskellTHE JUDGE’S HOUSE, by Bram StokerAT THE END OF THE PASSAGE, by Rudyard KiplingTHE WITHERED ARM, by Thomas HardyJOHN CHARRINGTON’S WEDDING, by Edith NesbitTHE MAN OF SCIENCE, by Jerome K. JeromeWHAT DID MISS DARRINGTON SEE? by Emma B. CobbA GHOST STORY, by Mark TwainTHE SOUL OF ROSE DÉDÉ, by M.E.M. DavisTHE HOUSE OF THE NIGHTMARE, by Edward Lucas WhiteREALITY OR DELUSION? by Mrs Henry WoodFISHER’S GHOST, by John LangTHROUGH THE IVORY GATE, by Mary Raymond Shipman AndrewsTHE COLD EMBRACE, by Mary Elizabeth BraddonAnd don't forget to check out all the other volumes in the "Megapack" series! Search on "Wildside Megapack" in your favorite ebook store to see the complete list...covering adventure stories, military, fantasy, ghost stories, westerns, mysteries, and much more!