He was a stringy mongrel, wandering the streets of the city, driven by a ravenous hunger and hunting a quarry he could not define. But he was something more. Somewhere in the depths of his consciousness was a memory clawing its way to the surface, tormenting him, refusing to let him rest. The memory of what he had once been. A man... 'The author has an undeniable knack for thrilling, as few other writers have... he sure can tell a devil of a story.' Literary Review

When Vince took the job at the funeral home he didn't really know what to expect. He thought he had prepared himself for the worst... He was wrong... Now everything that Vince thought he knew about the living and the dead is about to be turned upside down. The Morticians Apprentice is a breath of fresh air in the zombie genre.Dumped on Homecoming night, Amanda Larson assumes that her life is over. That is until Jake Edwards, her next-door neighbor and long time crush, has come to the rescue. Although he is visiting from college, Amanda can't help but hope that their night will lead into something bigger. Jake, on the other hand, knows that despite his attraction to little Mandy, he can't commit, not while he's away at college. Still, Amanda will never forget the kiss she shares with the boy next door.This is a prequel short story for a contemporary romance novel, Time Changes Everything.

Old West judge Dalton Freely makes a Faustian bargain to take revenge against the outlaws who murdered his family and left him for dead.Old West judge Dalton Freely awakes under a scorching desert sun in a pool of blood-soaked dirt, a noose around his neck, his arms bound behind his back. He turns his gaze upward to find the bodies of his wife and children hanging from a tree. Only then does he begin to recall the horror of the previous evening when a gang of outlaws murdered his family. On the verge of death himself, Dalton desperately drags his broken body back toward civilization, a single thought on his mind: revenge."Dalton" is part of "The Eyes of Mictlan Origins" series, a collection of free short stories excerpted from the dark fantasy novel, "The Eyes of Mictlan."

Set against the backdrop of the Salem witch hunts, Elizabeth Gaskell’s somber novella reveals much about the complicity of mankind. Recently orphaned, Lois is forced to leave the English parsonage that had been her home and sail to America. A God-fearing and honest girl, she has little to concern her in this new life. Yet as she joins her distant family, she finds jealousy and dissension are rife, and her cousins quick to point the finger at the “imposter.” With the whole of Salem gripped by a fear of the supernatural, it seems her new home is where she is in most danger. Lonely and afraid, the words of an old curse return to haunt her. Collaborator and friend of Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins, Elizabeth Gaskell is a leading figure in Victorian literature.

It was hope that undid them. Hope, and the certainty that Providence had made them suffer enough for their dreams. They'd lost so much already along the trail--children, healers, leaders, all taken--surely, they reasoned, God would preserve them from further loss, and reward their griefs and hardships with deliverance into a place of plenty. This specially bound and slipcased edition of Everville has been limited to 526 copies, 500 of which are for sale, each one numbered and signed by the author.

Our woe is upon us. This chilling tale of one man’s descent into madness was published shortly before the author was institutionalized for insanity, and so The Horla has inevitably been seen as informed by Guy de Maupassant’s mental illness. While such speculation is murky, it is clear that de Maupassant—hailed alongside Chekhov as father of the short story—was at the peak of his powers in this innovative precursor of first-person psychological fiction. Indeed, he worked for years on The Horla’s themes and form, first drafting it as “Letter from a Madman,” then telling it from a doctor’s point of view, before finally releasing the terrified protagonist to speak for himself in its devastating final version. In a brilliant new translation, all three versions appear here as a single volume for the first time. **The Art of The Novella Series **Too short to be a novel, too long to be a short story, the novella is generally unrecognized by academics and publishers. Nonetheless, it is a form beloved and practiced by literature's greatest writers. In the Art Of The Novella series, Melville House celebrates this renegade art form and its practitioners with titles that are, in many instances, presented in book form for the first time.

Laura Logan dreams of a glorious Cape Cod day when all the dark secrets are swept away.... For Laura Logan, life on Cape Cod has been nearly perfect, full of magical days spent enjoying the sea with her beloved twin brother, Cary. But then, like the creeping of the tides, the vicious rumors at school begin — cruel voices saying unspeakable things about the Logans. Laura tries to ignore them, but not until handsome, gentle Robert Royce moves to their town does she feel truly carefree and happy again. While Robert's smile drives the shadows from Laura's heart, she still worries about Cary, whose gloomy moods drift in like the coastal fog. And then Grandma Olivia issues a chilling threat, forbidding Laura to see Robert ever again. Alone to suffer because of dark secrets no one will explain, Laura obeys...until the miracle of a glorious summer leads her back into Robert's arms. But dark thunderclouds have been gathering on the horizon, and when they suddenly burst with tragedy, they howl a name from the Logans' shameful past that plunges Laura into a silent, terrible agony. Now Laura can only dream of the warm, sun-filled life she so desperately desires....

"I felt like I was going to my own execution...."Cat had listened patiently as the other three girls in Dr. Marlowe's therapy group shared their innermost feelings. They had described their broken families honestly, to the point of pain. If Cat doesn't tell her own tale, the others will see it as a betrayal. So she has no choice.Or does she? Maybe she could lie -- just make something up.Anything would be better than the truth. For Cat has the darkest, most horrifying secret of them all....

Sherlock Holmes has investigated some strange cases in his celebrated career, but none stranger than when a woman claims that she has received vital clues to an unsolved murder from the ghost of her own murdered daughter. Based on an actual 19th century legal case, join Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson as they journey to America to solve the Adventure of the Greenbriar Ghost!

They were miscreants with black souls, roaming the corridors and passageways. Infamous people thought long-deceased. Hiding and nurturing their evil in a basement full of secrets so shocking they would shake the world if they were ever revealed. David Ash, ghost hunter and parapsychologist, arrives at Comraich Castle – a desolate, ancient place with a dark heart – to investigate a series of disturbing events. An incorporeal power has been ignited by a long-ago curse, fed and now unleashed by the evil of those who once inhabited this supposed sanctuary – and by some who still do. Yet their hour of retribution is at hand . . .

Dark Seed, reveals the disturbing early days of Willow DeBeers, the "dark seed" of the DeBeers family. This prequel to Willow, the highly anticipated first novel chronicling the DeBeers family, hints at the dark shadows that can haunt forever. Find out what secrets lie behind the begining of the tragic and flawed DeBeers family. Revealed as only V.C. Andrews can.

In this Collection of ghost tales there is a variety of tales for all ages. That often take on more than one meaning—some to spiritually enlighten and others to amuse or frighten. Also available, Annette’s new series Can Such Things Happen? Vol. I, Short Stories of the Paranormal.I can imagine you thinking, ‘What’s so scary about ‘Fizzy, Cherry Cola?’ To be truthful there is nothing scary about it, but having said that, please look carefully into the bottle before making your final assumptions…Well, did you see anything? Did you see the troubled souls trapped inside the bottle? Did you see the expressions on their poor, pitiful faces, knowing they have no hope of ever escaping it, that the only release they might hope for is that someone happens upon the bottle, and then drinks the cola, this finishing them off?

When the world ends, can love survive? For Scarlet, raising her two daughters alone makes fighting for tomorrow an everyday battle. Nathan has a wife, but can’t remember what it’s like to be in love; only his young daughter Zoe makes coming home worthwhile. Miranda’s biggest concern is whether her new VW Bug is big enough to carry her sister and their boyfriends on a weekend escape from college finals. When reports of a widespread, deadly “outbreak” begin to surface, these ordinary people face extraordinary circumstances and suddenly their fates are intertwined. Recognizing they can’t outrun the danger, Scarlet, Nathan, and Miranda desperately seek shelter at the same secluded ranch, Red Hill. Emotions run high while old and new relationships are tested in the face of a terrifying enemy—an enemy who no longer remembers what it’s like to be human. Set against the backdrop of a brilliantly realized apocalyptic world, love somehow finds a way to survive. But what happens when the one you’d die for becomes the one who could destroy you? Red Hill grabs you from page one and doesn’t let go until its stunning conclusion. This is #1 New York Times bestselling author Jamie McGuire at her unforgettable best.