Showing titles in Anthologies & Short Stories

Imprisoned for a crime he barely remembers, Gunnar is forced to labor in an underground prison camp. But if he works hard, he earns time in a beta test for the first fully immersive online RPG. The realms of Pantheon are beyond anything Gunnar has ever experienced, but the virtual world is inextricably linked to his reality as a prisoner. He may not be the best or the brightest criminal, but if he fails to perform... things are not going to go well for him.

Chad Stone's life took a dramatic turn when he was laid off from his job and forced to move back in with his parents. But little did he know, his struggles were just the beginning of a culinary adventure unlike any other. After finding solace in a popular MMORPG, Chad suddenly finds himself transported to a strange new world where players of the game are mysteriously vanishing. With the guidance of a purple kangaroo named Fozzy, Chad learns that he has been ranked a powerful S-class barbarian in this new world.

This bundle includes books four through six of Dirty Blood, a dark romantic fantasy series where a male vampire falls for a female human in the midst of a paranormal war: The Forsaken Vampire, The Broken Prince, and Clash of Kingdoms.

These two tales, the first ever written by Clive, are offered here for the very first time. Their production has been lovingly supervised by Clive himself to ensure that these are not mere books, but works of art to be cherished. First Tales is sure to delight everyone from longtime fans to new listeners.

It was a simple job. All I had to do was steal a ring from a mainland witch for the Thieves’ Guild that owned me. Easy enough, right? The reward would bring me closer to earning my freedom. And stars above, I wanted off this floating luxury island. But then he showed up, a cocky thief from a rival guild, and ruined all my plans. Every. Single. One. I lost the ring and my chance at freedom. But on the bright side, if we fail to retrieve three magical artifacts for the witch, I’ll be forever cursed to exist no more than fifteen feet from that unnaturally beautiful, arrogant elf.

The last time Matteo tried out for the Rangers, he lost an arm. In a world plagued by monstrous threats, Matteo is granted a second chance to join the elite Rangers—the monster hunters protecting the city atop a giant turtle. With the promise of wielding a powerful magical artifact, he vows to excel in boot camp and make this opportunity count. Yet, as he endures the grueling trials of the Ranger training, a dark revelation surfaces: their ranks are thinning at an alarming rate.

New York Times best-selling authors Charlaine Harris, Katie MacAlister, and Jeaniene Frost - plus Lilith Saintcrow, Jeff Abbott, and more - send postcards from the edge of the paranormal world to fans who devoured Wolfsbane and Mistletoe and Many Bloody Returns. With an all-new Sookie Stackhouse story and twelve other original tales, editors Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner bring together a stellar collection of tour guides who offer vacations that are frightening, funny, and touching for the fanged.

Imagine my luck when I'm transported to a fantasy world where magic is real, beautiful women are bountiful, and the Blessing of a Goddess creates endless opportunities. Yeah, it is one hell of a way to arrive. Unfortunately, I've got some work to do because my heroic actions just triggered the End of an Age. With the help of some lovely new allies, we might just save the day or die trying.

Magical creatures known as beings emerged from hiding amid the destruction of the First World War. Since then they've lived on the margins of the human world as misunderstood objects of fear and desire. Some are beautiful, others fearsome and powerful. Yet for all their magic and strength, they are as vulnerable as anyone when it comes to matters of the heart.

Science fiction is a portal that opens doors onto futures too rich and strange to imagine. Fantasy takes us through doorways of magic and wonder. For more than a decade award-winning editor Jonathan Strahan has sifted through tens of thousands of stories to select the best, the most interesting, the most engaging science fiction and fantasy to thrill and delight readers.

Everybody’s favorite over-the-top circus performers travel to Hemlock Cove, where they meet a group of witches they didn’t see coming, before heading to the Detroit area and visiting Poet Parker’s old stomping grounds. There, they come across a family of snarky reapers who challenge their world view...and a group of at-risk street kids who are in danger of being swallowed whole by a dark enemy. Finally, they stop at Mammoth Caves, where vampires (and something a little more sinister) seem to be taking over a small town and leaving nothing but devastation in their wake.

As a half-troll, Keygar has been treated as an animal his whole life due to his lack of a soul mark. Will a brush with the law prove deadly—or provide an unexpected opportunity to prove himself? A heart-warming Sword and Sorcery adventure from the pen of Carnegie-nominated author Corinna Turner.

This lesser-known character isn't so much a typical Lumley hero as an innocent bystander, who all too often seems to be standing by in the wrong place at the wrong time - a man in collision with various weird horrors, who can never state definitely that the things he experiences are real. So here he is - the neither hero nor anti-hero narrator of these stories - though, in The Nonesuch and Others, he's at least seen to be brave, if not actually heroic.

Villains take center stage in this collection of 19 dark and magical stories. Listeners will be cheering for all the wrong heroes as some of the most fearsome, devious, and brutal antagonists perform savage deeds towards wicked ends. And why not? These characters are the champions of their own stories - evil is a matter of perspective. Contributors also include Mark Adler, Bradley P. Beaulieu, E.V. Morrigan, Peter Orullian, Matthew Ward, Kaaron Warren, Deborah A. Wolf, and Janny Wurts.

Five full length books by Sharon Hamilton: Heavenly Lover, Underworld Lover, Underworld Queen, Honeymoon Bite, and Mortal Bite. These books are the entire works of Sharon's Paranormal series, her Golden Vampires of Tuscany and her Guardians. There is dark angel/vampire love waiting for you.

The Iron Kingdoms is a land dominated by mighty warcasters, arcanists who command the terrifying war machines called warjacks. While these epic figures lead armies and shape the futures of their nations, other powerful individuals, no less skilled, forge their own destinies in steam and steel. Called to Battle is a collection of stories focused on the Iron Kingdoms’ unsung heroes, its skilled mercenaries, and even the horrifying villains who haunt its darker reaches.

Dive into worlds of wonder, action, adventure, and so much more. This collaboration includes short LitRPG stories of all types brought to you by authors with thousands of 5 star reviews. The fantastic tales within this tome are a rare opportunity to sample so many wonderful authors in one offering.

Zach Riley is a man on the run… from something, or someone, that he just can’t figure out. What, pray tell, might that be? Women who are around him want to jump him, and get him into bed. But Zach can’t figure out why! He simply can’t take it anymore, so he escapes, taking refuge in his own spaceship and he never, ever, leaves it. But his comfortable, if lonely, lifestyle is suddenly thrown into chaos.

Featuring A Prelude to War, an Iron Druid novella. After an old friend is murdered in retaliation for his mercenary strikes against the oldest vampires in the world, Atticus O'Sullivan must solicit the aid of another old friend in Ethiopia if he's going to have a chance of finishing a war he never wanted. Meanwhile Granuaile MacTiernan starts a private war of her own against Loki, the lord of lies, and if it brings Ragnarok early - so be it.

Full of glimpses into gleaming worlds and fairy tales with teeth, Seasons of Glass and Iron: Stories is a collection of acclaimed and awarded work from Amal El-Mohtar. "A stunning performance.”—Kirkus on The River Has Roots (Earphones Award winner) With confidence and style, El-Mohtar guides...