It's a Baby-sitters Club shocker--Dawn's moving back to California for six months to live with her dad.

Meet the woman who works with the U.S. Army by day and strikes out at night on her own as the vigilante "Souverain"! In this short story, Souverain is based in Baghdad in 2009, dealing with a young Iraqi teen with a serious case of hero worship - and a new wave of suicide bombers!Originally appeared in "Souverain" #1 from Earthbound Comics.A burned out drunk on the verge of death is saved by an alien scientist who wishes to use him as a host to study the human race. He is given a new body with enhancements with such features as telescopic, microscopic, infrared, and x-ray vision. His new improved brain allows him to invent new products and write computer programs which make him very wealthy. The alien helps him transform his body and assume a new identity and live out his dream of being a singer and attracting females to his private fan club,His new life doesn't not go unnoticed. A female journalist investigates rumors that he is using his fan club as sex slaves. Also, a detective comes to investigate his possible involvement in the murder of his former self. The detective brings a black cocaine whore to keep him company while he does his investigation.Once he has learned to use his new enhancements, the alien adds a Time/Transport Bubble to his body. To familiarize himself with the abilities of this amazing device, he does a few test trips in current time and in the not too distant past. For example, he travels to North Korea to steal the virginity of the dictator's new bride and wreck his new weapon of mass destruction. He also uses his abilities to save a famous woman who was unfairly accused of being a spy during World War 1. These are only two of the many adventures the new time traveler experiences.

After seventy centuries of travel using the talisman, Tim is ready to settle down and stop. This is the last time he is going to chase her across the stars. But before he can find her he will have to die again.This time has she really gone to far?"Everything needed for a great story is right here in its pages... The novel's a fast-paced read that raises the questions we've come to expect from near future thrillers, but it has a freshness and a vigor -- and dare I say it -- a moral compass that isn't as common as with others of its ilk." - Charles de Lint: Books to Look For, Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine (July/August 2014)When US Marine Sergeant Jill Repeth's blown-off legs begin to regenerate, she thinks it's a medical miracle. But the breakthrough that heals her war injuries is exactly what the government desperately wants to quash - by any means necessary. Hunted, she must cross an America wracked by strife to try to find a family who may already be dead, searching for the inhuman secret of what started it all.Reaper's Run is an origins story and apocalyptic novel, the beginning of one warrior's journey from tactical cop to freedom fighter and beyond. It leads the reader into the acclaimed Plague Wars futuristic thriller series.Plague Wars: Decade One- The Eden Plague- Reaper's Run- Skull's Shadows- Eden's Exodus- Apocalypse Austin- Nearest NightPlague Wars: Alien Invasion- The Demon Plagues- The Reaper Plague- The Orion Plague- Cyborg Strike- Comes the Destroyer- Forge and SteelPlague Wars: Stellar Conquest- First Conquest- Desolator: Conquest- Tactics of Conquest- Conquest of Earth- Conquest and Empire

It’s just another sunny day in Middleburrow, Florida, when Deputy Sheriff Jake Santo is called to investigate the discovery of a severed finger on a tourist beach. Things only get stranger as reports of an ostrich causing havoc in town leads to an investigation of animal cruelty, greed, and power. Everyone seems to be in on it, but can Santo locate the nine-fingered man before the staties arrive?It’s just another sunny day in Middleburrow, Florida, when Deputy Sheriff Jake Santo is called to investigate the discovery of a severed finger on a tourist beach. Things only get stranger as reports of an ostrich causing havoc in town leads to an investigation of animal cruelty, greed, and power. Everyone seems to be in on it, but can Santo locate the nine-fingered man before the staties arrive and things get out of hand? Join Deputy Sheriff Santo as he wrestles with a crab, a rustler, and an ostrich. Praise for Ed’s novel, Our Dying Land: “Our Dying Land is a thrilling dark fantasy with a unique premise and intriguing characters. Eco-horror at its finest! – Tim Waggoner, author of BONE WHISPERS "Our Dying Land is not a standard fantasy quest: author McFadden blends in hints of his own background writing horror, as well as science fictional tropes. The whole combines to give a satisfying view of what may be lurking just under our feet." --SFscope.com "Our Dying Land has a nice blend of mystic realism, hard sf, and fantasy elements that work well together to drive a thoroughly SFnal plot. A socially relevant book that still manages to be entertaining." - Bud Sparhawk, author of VIXEN and THE COMPLETE SAM BOONE Praise for Ed’s novel, The Black Death of Babylon: A fun, dark, globe-hopping adventure that's part action thriller, party mystery, and part atmospheric horror tale. There's something here in Ed McFadden's novel for everybody." --Tom Piccirilli, author of THE LAST KIND WORDS, two time International Thriller award winner, and four time Bram Stoker award winner. The Black Death of Babylon is a riveting murder mystery drawing upon the enigmatic elements of Fringe or The X-Files. And yet, Edward Mcfadden finds a way to make everything happening in this book truly believable. The plot is fascinating for what it reveals about the behind the scenes workings of brilliant scientists who’ve let their experiments get the best of them. The story is beautifully written—this allows seasoned fans of mystery, horror, and SF to find this book irresistibly hard to put down. --Michael Laimo, author of DEAD SOULS and DEEP IN THE DARKNESS.

Lazarus Bernardius is immortal, but he had to die twice to discover it. The Devil has made Lazarus the ringmaster of a traveling circus of demionis, creatures with supernatural powers that are descendants of demons from Hell. For 140 years, the troupe of mermaids and ogres, medusas and wyverns, satyrs and alrauns has been touring the U.S. tullies, masquerading as just another mud show.Lazarus Bernardius is immortal, but he had to die twice to discover it. The Devil has made Lazarus the ringmaster of a traveling circus of demionis, creatures with supernatural powers that are descendants of demons from Hell. For 140 years, the troupe of mermaids and ogres, medusas and wyverns, satyrs and alrauns has been touring the U.S. tullies, masquerading as just another mud show.Lazarus's task of giving shelter to unusual creatures requires that he not draw the attention of the Judges, modern inquisitors hunting down the supernatural. Lazarus manages this until Greg, a magician who can control fire, joins the circus. Greg seems like a decent sort, but over time, the magician’s behavior becomes suspicious.When Lazarus learns that Greg uses his magic to fight villains after performances, it is too late. Soon, the first of the Judges arrives. To save his fosterlings and get out of trouble, Lazarus must seek help from a long-abandoned lover who is still angry with him. What the ringmaster doesn’t know is that some of the inhabitants of the circus have secrets of their own.FIRETALE is a cocktail of mythology and historical facts, folklore creatures and demons, witches, bikers, and rock ’n’ roll. It is the first novel in a planned tetralogy, which will include the novels Sandtale, Deeptale, and Timetale.

It has long been the policy of the US government that a nuclear-armed Iran would be unacceptable. Yet, whether the conventional and nontraditional means of US and Western policy can secure the end of keeping Tehran from fulfilling its longtime nuclear ambition is far from clear.It has long been the policy of the US government that a nuclear-armed Iran would be unacceptable. Yet, whether the conventional and nontraditional means of US and Western policy can secure the end of keeping Tehran from fulfilling its longtime nuclear ambition is far from clear. While it is possible military action will deprive Iran of its nuclear option, that the current regime in the Islamic Republic will be overthrown, or that sanctions will bring the regime to the table with meaningful concessions, there is also every possibility that none of these scenarios will come to pass. Moreover, if there is a rising consensus that sanctions ultimately will fail, there is an equally strong belief among the foreign-policy establishment in Washington and other Western capitals that preemptive military action is unappealing, leading many to suggest that containing a nuclear Iran is a reasonable option. Should Iran acquire nuclear weapons, all the tools used heretofore will remain on the table, but there will be a new layer of strategic challenges and constraints—not simply the day after but also well into the future.Containment is hardly a cost-free policy, but aside from a small handful of policy sketches, little thought has gone into what an effective containment and deterrent regime will require of the United States and its allies. The public discussion of containing a nuclear Iran has been conducted in a haze of good feeling about the successes of the Cold War, but containing the Soviet Union was hardly simple. The successes of the Cold War policy certainly provide a framework for thinking about the difficulties of a nuclear Iran, even allowing for the unique circumstances of the two situations and the different and unique ideologies embraced by both adversaries. A deeper examination of the original Cold War policy choices is necessary.

London, 1921. An archaeological find from the steppes of Central Asia is sought by the shadowy Thule Society to further their nefarious purposes. But can an absent-minded professor and his rather more competent assistants save the day? A period urban fantasy about the magical wonders of the world.London, 1921. An archaeological find from the steppes of Central Asia is sought by the shadowy Thule Society to further their nefarious purposes. But can an absent-minded professor and his rather more competent assistants save the day? A period urban fantasy about the magical wonders of the world, and the first in a series of short stories that delves into the mysteries of the Voynich Manuscript, the Thule Society, and magical artifacts from across the globe. One must always be prepared for the unexpected when working for the British Museum's Division of Curious Devices and Remarkable Artifacts!

(Part 2 to Walt vs the Space Flunkies) They is back! And this time, defeating these ornery little aliens is gonna take more branes than ever!Bullying was something James Griffin had sadly become accustomed to, it was a daily occurrence either at school or at home. From nasty insults to bruising punches James had endured it all. Too ashamed to ask for help, he begged the universe for a way out and it answered. Hamlet, the secluded English village in the countryside where James resides, unknowingly played host to other worldly beings for whom a looming battle is fast approaching. When a heartbreaking tragedy sets in motion a chain of events that lead James away from his old life he is forced to find the courage to take control and embrace war, love and destiny.

A man must decide his own fate on the Dark Railroad. Zero has no voice, yet has a story to tell. The Warehouse holds a dark and ancient secret. Ranging from horrifying to to weird, with a sense of dark humor throughout, Dark Railroad is a collection of eight short stories to make you shudder, look over your shoulder, and occasionally say "Huh?"When a man goes to the local sandwich shop, he finds that the service isn't quite up to par. He is forced to allow a grotesque, old lady to make his sandwich. After much struggle, he finally makes it home with his sandwich. Upon opening the wrapper, the man makes a shocking discovery.

Nadine Daniels’ life is a disaster. She helped a woman escape an abusive husband or so she thought. Now, he and his mob associates want her back. While she is searching for answers and dodging bullets, her mother begins to meddle in her life. She thought this was as bad as it could get, but she was wrong—dead wrong.Nadine Daniels’ life is a disaster. Someone believes she knows a secret; a secret worth killing over. A year ago, Nadine helped a woman escape an abusive husband or so she thought. Now, the husband and his mob associates want her back, even if that means killing Nadine. While Nadine is searching for answers, she gets a roommate and bodyguard. Zeke works for her and he’s a former mercenary, just the kind of man Nadine needs protecting her. However, when Nadine’s mother meets the tall, exotic bodyguard, she leaps to conclusions. Her daughter is living with a man, an attractive man, they must have eloped. To get answers, Nadine will have to turn to a man that has been trying to kill her for most of her life, only he has the connections to get the information she needs to stay alive. However, playing with bad guys is never a good idea and this time proves no different. Now, Nadine will have to fight the mob, the monster from her past, and her mother.

What does it look like when the madness that is complacency, and the frustration of mediocrity, slowly unravel the mind?“Plot-driven non-stop action…” “The pages fly.” “100% a truly fast-paced thriller” A storm is forming south of the border. A hidden danger lurks behind a failing regime. The year is 2026 and an unsuspected but powerful enemy is aiming secretly to revive a long-thought abandoned Mexican nuclear program jeopardizing peace on the western hemisphere for selfish gain. A dictatorship has been discretely imposed on Mexico by the hand of the reckless and cruel President Martin Trujillo who will let nothing stand in his way toward absolute power, or so it appears, to American lawyer Robert Higgins, Frank “Big Luck” Smith and a group of brave freedom warriors. They will find the true answer in their effort to help Mexico´s people strive for freedom. Lucia, a beautiful and mysterious secret agent, trapped in a dangerous mission in Europe, is about to cross paths with Robert Higgins. She holds key information, information that could make Robert´s efforts to maintain world peace fail or succeed. Decisions for her will not be easy to make; she has become emotionally involved with a man she shouldn´t have, and a mistake that could cost her everything… In a situation where nothing is what it seems, unlikely friends and secret foes urge for new point of view. The freedom of a nation and world peace depend upon dismantling an international conspiracy through the streets of New York City, Madrid, Mexico and Geneva and discovering the true face behind an increasingly relevant character with a secret agenda of his own. In this fast-paced thriller, Johnny Delca guides the reader through the intriguing world of conspiracies in a novel form of action narrative where the aim is to make the pages fly and the plot flow delivering exciting and dire turns of events.

Begin the military dystopian series Friends of my Enemy. Arinna and Michael Prescot are just two of the many former soldiers sent to embassies in the hopes of strengthening faltering US alliances in 2055. But as the US becomes embroiled with new internal terrorism, its agents in Europe are offered intimidation, lies, and deceit rather than explanations. And the price of seeking answers is steep.A dark future awaits...After a decade of storms, disease, drought, and riots, the US conquers its troubles by militarizing its government. Old democratic allies in Europe respond uneasily to the change.in 2055 Arinna and Michael Prescot are just two of the many former soldiers sent to foreign embassies in the hopes of strengthening faltering US alliances. But as the US becomes embroiled in new internal terrorism, its agents in Europe are offered intimidation and lies rather than explanations. And the price of seeking the truth to events back home is steep.As the growing conflict in the US threatens the peace of Europe and tips the world toward World War III, choices of loyalty need to be made - if Michael and Arinna can determine who to trust and if the price of their help is worth the cost. Global events hinge on a few individuals as an apocalyptic war threatens Europe, and no one is more unprepared than its potential saviors.Stories from the War consists of eleven interlinked short stories that are a prelude to the military dystopian thriller trilogy Friends of my Enemy.Set in Europe, this near future fiction series of novels unfolds through the intersecting lives of a small handful of people and explores adult themes, both dark and hopeful, of friendship, romance, and family, including how these influences direct everyday choices which ripple outwards to impact governments on the verge of an apocalypse. Because not all influence is good, and not all decisions can be made in time.What readers are saying:“Part one of what appears to be an interesting tale of tangled relationships and covert happenings in a future earth torn asunder with riots and natural disasters. Strong characterization and believable scenarios coupled with a setting that is thought provoking and entertaining. I want to read the next one. Check this story out!” - J.Williams 4 stars“Autumn has done it again. This book will grab you and carry you from beginning to end without a moment of boredom. Think of the quotation "The Enemy of my enemy is my friend" and you gain some insight into the substance of the story. I normally like Fantasy Adventure, but this novel was a great walk through something a little different. Can't recommend it enough.” - Victor 5 stars

Taking place from both Phone Guy and Purple Guy's perspectives, witness the end of Phone Guy's story, and the incident that put the final nail in the coffin for Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.Taking place in between the events of Five Nights at Freddy's 4 and Five Night's at Freddy's 2, witness the newly invented Freddy Fazbear crew through the eyes of both Phone Guy and Purple Guy. This takes place during the events that took place in the past during the FNaF Novel, The Silver Eyes, featuring many characters and twists from that novel as well.

After a tsunami has taken his daughter and leukemia his wife, Yasahiro Kobayashi goes to the mountains of Hokkaido to commit seppuku, but not before he rescues an old man from several delinquents. "Black-Naped Oriole in Hokkaido Snow" is a story of a man grabbling with love and lost, and life and death.Hi readers,I have these stories posted on my website, but wanted to offer them as an e-book. These three shorts are from a pile of numerous stories that I’ve written, which I call my raw story collection. The stories that I have in my raw story collection are the stories I wrote for fun and have since done little to no editing. Many of the stories from my raw story collection will probably never be published. But I guess I should never say never. I hope you enjoy these brisk little stories.**********Tiny Town KurtsAfter twelve years, Parker Porter returns to his hometown to check on his little sister. He is met with a ghost town, a house in disrepair, and the undead. **********ManKindA hit man who discovers that his latest hit is not human.**********It's a Numbers GameTwo brother's. One doesn’t want to share an inheritance that they will one day inherit from their parents. The other just wants to survive.**********

Buck Johnson, along with his slow-moving and slow-thinking sidekick Skeeter Evans, currently plies his trade as a dragon wrangler on Terul and is busting out a bunch of dracs for the repulsive Terullian Karposh.But when an unruly Red Kraken throws Buck, events take an unexpected turn. “Buck Johnson: Dragon Wrangler” is short story (approximately 4,000 words).Buck Johnson, along with his slow-moving and slow-thinking sidekick Skeeter Evans, currently plies his trade as a dragon wrangler on Terul and is busting out a bunch of dracs for the repulsive Terullian Karposh. But when an unruly Red Kraken throws Buck, events take an unexpected turn. And Buck and Skeeter, with a little help from Snort Jones, right some wrongs and give Karposh his come-uppance, while still meeting their contractual obligations. A wild mix of Fantasy, Action/Adventure, Western, and Science Fiction, “Buck Johnson: Dragon Wrangler” is a new twist on the Space Western and a rollicking ride across the vagaries of a dragon wrangler’s and his sidekicks’ lives on the planet Terul. Think of The Good Old Boys, The Rounders, and a little bit of Lonesome Dove all rolled up together and cast into space.“Buck Johnson: Dragon Wrangler” is short story (approximately 4,000 words).

Why does evil exist? If God is all powerful, why doesn't He prevent it? Do the choices we make in life really matter? Shelly experiences the turmoil of these questions as war breaks out in Kenya, on her 10th wedding anniversary. She experiences death, destruction and loss. The innocent die, why? Where is God? What awaits her in the African wilderness? Come, learn what God reveals to her there.Why does evil exist in this world? If God is all powerful, why doesn't He prevent it? Or does He have a reason for staying His hand? Do the choices we make in life really matter?Shelly is about to experience the turmoil of these questions as her faith in God is challenged.She and her husband, Jim, unable to have the children they long for, travel to Africa to fulfill his lifelong dream of an African safari. Beginning the trip with a second honeymoon in Mombasa, Kenya, they are separated by war.Nightmarish days follow as Shelly tries to elude the unexpected death and dangers around her, making her way to the American Embassy in Nairobi to find help. On her journey, she rescues two recently orphaned young children, a brother and sister.Shelly’s Christian beliefs are stretched and tested, but with the children’s trust in God and evidence of His presence revealed repeatedly, she finds her answers in the African wilderness.Who will survive the horrors of war? Has her life with her best friend and husband been lost forever? What will she discover in the African wilderness about God’s love and light? Come and discover how the choices we make in this world really do matter.

In Where the Past Begins, bestselling author of The Joy Luck Club and The Valley of Amazement Amy Tan is at her most intimate in revealing the truths and inspirations that underlie her extraordinary fiction. By delving into vivid memories of her traumatic childhood, confessions of self-doubt in her journals, and heartbreaking letters to and from her mother, she gives evidence to all that made it both unlikely and inevitable that she would become a writer. Through spontaneous storytelling, she shows how a fluid fictional state of mind unleashed near-forgotten memories that became the emotional nucleus of her novels. Tan explores shocking truths uncovered by family memorabilia—the real reason behind an IQ test she took at age six, why her parents lied about their education, mysteries surrounding her maternal grandmother—and, for the first time publicly, writes about her complex relationship with her father, who died when she was fifteen. Supplied with candor and characteristic humor, Where the Past Begins takes readers into the idiosyncratic workings of her writer’s mind, a journey that explores memory, imagination, and truth, with fiction serving as both her divining rod and link to meaning.

The one and only Pat Conroy returns, with a big, sprawling novel that is at once a love letter to Charleston and to lifelong friendship. Against the sumptuous backdrop of Charleston, South Carolina, South of Broad gathers a unique cast of sinners and saints. Leopold Bloom King, our narrator, is the son of an amiable, loving father who teaches science at the local high school. His mother, an ex-nun, is the high school principal and a well-known Joyce scholar. After Leo's older brother commits suicide at the age of thirteen, the family struggles with the shattering effects of his death, and Leo, lonely and isolated, searches for something to sustain him. Eventually, he finds his answer when he becomes part of a tightly knit group of high school seniors that includes friends Sheba and Trevor Poe, glamorous twins with an alcoholic mother and a prison-escapee father; hardscrabble mountain runaways Niles and Starla Whitehead; socialite Molly Huger and her boyfriend, Chadworth Rutledge X; and an ever-widening circle whose liaisons will ripple across two decades-from 1960s counterculture through the dawn of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. The ties among them endure for years, surviving marriages happy and troubled, unrequited loves and unspoken longings, hard-won successes and devastating breakdowns, and Charleston's dark legacy of racism and class divisions. But the final test of friendship that brings them to San Francisco is something no one is prepared for. South of Broad is Pat Conroy at his finest; a long-awaited work from a great American writer whose passion for life and language knows no bounds.