A somber man wishing to fulfill certain urges for the first time in his life. A wooden box containing the means for that fulfillment. An intrusive cousin. An impeccable lawn. A garden shed. An embarrassing plaster statue of the goddess Athena.The 3d in a series of 14 short stories by Abbie Joules as she recounts the exploits of her and her brother, Bendigo, growing up on a farm in east Texas in the late 40's. A cow called Two-Banger goes missing, again, and this time it is young Abbie who is sent to retrieve her. Along the way Abbie discovers a nest of baby raccoons in a hollow tree, and unable to resist, she climbs into the tree only to find herself ensnared as the night comes on. Finally discovered by her brother, he and his father go to great and heroic lengths to free her. What would you have done?

“Fans of the crime caper will rejoice” that Linwood Barclay is back with the hilarious follow-up to his “riotously funny and irreverent”* debut, in which paranoid pop Zack Walker plotted to transplant his city-savvy wife and two teenage kids to the tranquillity of the burbs–where planned communities prevail and fathers rest easy. Well, not quite…and now the Walkers have moved home only to find themselves living in the precarious crosshairs of urban sprawl once again, and Zack can’t help but be worried–really worried–that just around the corner lurks the presence of some really bad guys. Zack is back, and much to his family’s relief, the work-at-home science-fiction writer has left the house to take a job as a features writer for the city paper. But now that Zack’s incessant plotting can no longer be hatched from the comforts of his own home, he must be ever more vigilant to outwit the evil at large, whether in the suburbs, the city, or his own imagination. Zack is ready…or so he thinks. While researching his first feature article, Zack stumbles upon a real-life crime scene, but what seems like an ordinary hit-and-run may actually be a homicide linked to a gang that’s been burglarizing Crandall’s high-end shops. Suddenly Zack finds himself at the center of a violent crime wave and destined for a confrontation with Barbie Bullock, an unsettling figure infamous in the crime syndicate for his ruthless business tactics and peculiar proclivity for collecting dolls. And all is not quiet on the home front either. Zack’s protective instincts launch into overdrive when he discovers that his daughter’s rejected suitor has been tracing her every step and may harbor a much more ominous motivation than winning a Saturday night date. Nor does his son’s strange behavior and recent friendship with a creepy computer recluse inspire joy in a father’s heart. As worlds begin to collide and boundaries between family and foe blur, Zack goes on the attack, and heaven help the bad guys when this resourceful father comes to make good on a deal gone bad. From the Hardcover edition.

Fourteen years ago, scientist William Fox implanted four babies with the Medusa gene - a gene for psychic abilities. But Fox died and the babies were hidden away for years. Now the children are teenagers - and unaware that their psychic powers are about to kick in.Cocky, charismatic Nico thinks his emerging telekinetic abilities will bring him money, power and the girl of his dreams. He's about to find out just how wrong he is…

Becky loves Sam, but there's a pretty young teacher who's moved into town, and Sam is charmed. So are all the other boys. Now what? This is a rather evil short story set in the context of a young adult romance. NOTE: This is a revised and complete version!Becky loves Sam, but there's a pretty young teacher who's moved into town, and Sam is charmed. So are all the other boys. Now what? This is a rather evil short story set in the context of a young adult romance. NOTE: This is a revised and complete version of the original story.

Bella is the new girl in school and just wants to fit in. When a group of teens welcomes her into their group, she's relieved not to be sitting alone at lunch anymore. But these strange kids seems to have it out for each other. Bella's suspicions grow~ as does her attraction for the gorgeous guy named Sey.Bella is the new girl in school and just wants to fit in. When a group of teens welcomes her into their group, she's relieved not to be sitting alone at lunch anymore. But these strange kids seems to have it out for each other. They throw insults, fake bugs, and gags at each other in order to torment one another. All they seem to care about is scaring each other to record a video that will make them go viral. Bella's suspicions of these teens grow~ as does her attraction for the gorgeous guy named Sey.And it's that attraction to Sey that will get her scared to death.

Susan Hill's most exciting crime novel yet, another gripping and psychologically acute story set in the darker side of a Cathedral town. Now available in trade paperback from Vintage Canada.Simon Serrailler is on a sabbatical when he is recalled to Lafferton to investigate the murders of two local prostitutes. By the time he returns, another girl has disappeared. Is this a vendetta against prostitutes by someone with a warped mind? Or a series of killings by an angry customer? But then one of the Cathedral wives goes missing, followed by another young married woman, on her way to work. Serrailler follows lead after lead, all of which become dead ends. It is only through a piece of luck, a chance meeting and a life put in grave danger that he finally gets a result...Susan Hill has a genius for evoking atmosphere and suspense, and her characters are so real that the reader is caught up not only in the mystery but in the drama of their lives. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Jeffery Deaver--the *New York Times* bestselling author of the upcoming Lincoln Rhyme novel THE KILL ROOM (on sale June 4, 2013)--comes an original short story featuring Rhyme. When a young woman is found brutally murdered in a parking garage, with a veritable mountain of potential evidence to sift through, it may be the most challenging case former NYPD detective Lincoln Rhyme has ever taken on.

An ancient virus is accidentally unleashed on a sleepy unsuspecting town. As the virus rapidly spreads through the town, killing the residents and resurrecting them as bloodthirsty zombies, Lori, a nurse, fights to stay alive and protect her family. What readers have said so far:"...it got me in from the start!Plenty of action!" DeanThe twenty original Twilight Zone-like short stories of this diverse fantasy and science fiction collection take place mostly on contemporary Earth, or on some slightly futuristic or altered Earth, where a technology, ghost, dragon, demon, curse, or space-alien intrudes. Vampires and zombies are avoided. Sometimes calamity is averted, sometimes it is not. The perspective is an adult one; a PG rating may be appropriate for some stories, as sex or violence is sometimes alluded to though not graphically depicted. A list of contents with links to each story is provided to aid reader navigation through the collection, and a link back to the contents list is provided after each story. (Note: some e-book formats do not support this feature.) The last story is a continuation of the first story, otherwise the stories are not related to each other and do not appear in any particular order, though some of them are related to subsequent e-book novels. In the list of contents a brief phrase describing each short story has been included to aid story selection. The brief introduction which precedes the stories provides the author's perspective on short story advantages compared to novels. Finally, following the short stories a brief description of the author and pending near-term e-book novels is included.

Seven tales of woe ranging from dark to devilish! Obsession for a young woman takes a deadly twist. A death row inmate bids farewell to a world that never really knew him. A girl facing the end of the world loses her last friend and receives some eerie visitors. Sit back, relax, and take comfort in knowing that your worst days don't get quite THIS bad!Everyone has bad days, but not many get as bad as these! These seven tales of woe range from dark to devilish! In Vespine, a dangerous obsession takes a dark and unexpected twist. In If Only in my Dreams, a man shares his darkest secret with a captive audience. In A Terrible Itch, a spaceship finds itself carrying unwelcome cargo and must choose between the unthinkable and the unimaginable. In A Gambling Man, an addict at the end of his rope is given one last, terrible chance to escape the consequences of a lifetime of bad choices. In Shallow Graves, the end of civilization is just the beginning for a young girl who loses her last friend just before receiving some unwanted visitors. In Desperate Times, a man fallen on terrible times wrestles with his conscience, without knowing just how high the stakes really are. And finally, in Last Day on Earth, A death row inmate bids a rather surprising farewell to a world he has no respect for. Sit back, relax, and take comfort in knowing that your bad days don't get quite this bad!

This is a short story. Dragonfire is the name of the game, a new, totally immersive computer game set in a fantasy world. Figurative dragons lurk in hidden places, the stakes are high, and losing the game means losing your life - or does it?She paced the room, looking out the window, waiting for the sun to set. She didn't think anyone would be coming over after her father was arrested; it'd be too dangerous to pay condolences to the daughter of a warlock. Still, she couldn't take any chances. She couldn't be interrupted, and she couldn't speak to anyone until the next morning. The last rays of bright red light filtered through the curtain and left Elizabeth in the night's embrace. She opened the jar, read the spell one more time, making out letters under the moon's meager glow, and then set up the candle. She walked around the tiny flame, careful not to put it out, and began chanting, weaving a part of her own soul into the words and feeding it to the fire. “The harm to me is harm to you and all your kin and all your blood.”The flame leaped, grew larger, consuming the wax in half the time it should have. Elizabeth watched the candle burn in silence, watched energy, the soul of fire, glide through the air and hug her body. She sensed the reassurance of the spell, its protection. With a needle Elizabeth pricked her finger and let one drop of blood fall on the flame just as it was about to die. The wick hissed, and the last of the energy that smelled and tasted of vengeance came to Elizabeth.

Smoke Dugan is on the run. He dropped out of sight because of a misunderstanding with his employers about an airplane crash and $2.5 million in cash. But they've found out where he's living--a picturesque seaside city in Maine. And Denny Cruz, a high paid assassin, is on his way to collect him. A drama of abduction, car chases, and triple bluff, where escape and violent death are the only options.Smoke Dugan is on the run. A bomb-maker by profession, he dropped out of sight because of a misunderstanding with his employers about an airplane crash and $2.5 million in cash. Unfortunately, they've found out where Smoke's living--a picturesque seaside city in Maine. And Denny Cruz, a highly paid assassin, is on his way from New York to collect him. Smoke's girlfriend, Lola Bell, is unaware of his past. Sexy, smart, and tough, Lola's a weed that grew up through the cracks in an inner-city housing project. Her big eyes belie her secret weapon: she's spent a decade studying the martial arts. The tattoo on her shoulder reads "Girls Kick Ass." When Cruz decides to use Lola to get to Smoke, he has no idea what he's taking on. A time bomb is ticking as Smoke, Lola, Cruz, and anyone unlucky enough to come into their orbit are caught up in a drama of abduction, car chases, and triple bluff, where escape or violent death look like the only options. But nothing turns out quite as anyone might expect . . . Patrick Quinlan's fast-paced, edgy, and brilliantly original first novel introduces a cast of characters worthy of Tarantino in their sophistication and resourcefulness, in a stylish thriller that marks the debut of a stunning new talent.From Publishers Weekly:"James "Smoke" Dugan, a natural-born bomb maker, plays an unwitting role in a heinous tragedy when his talents are exploited by a New York mob boss; nobody's fool, Smoke double-crosses the mob in a final, lucrative play and then goes into hiding in Portland, Maine. In pursuit, world-weary hit man Denny Cruz begins to see in Smoke a role model for escaping from New York and from crime—unless, of course, Denny and his disparate crew succeed in killing him. Graphic action and exhilarating chases ensue as Quinlan's characters play cat-and-mouse through Portland, giving a memorable look at the city's patchwork culture of industrial shipping, tourism, yuppies and foreign refugees. Denny and Smoke share an unlikely, endearing sensitivity and intelligence, and Smoke's girlfriend, Lola, is a fierce delight. This is Maine resident Quinlan's debut, and it makes one hope that Smoke hasn't quit the life entirely." Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Also known as Incident in Nice and available on Anthony's website a href="https://www.anthonyhorowitz.com/extra.... Just a few months into his new life as Britain's top superspy, Alex Rider is in need of some serious r&r. But what should have been a fun, relaxing vacation on the south of France turns deadly. Alex will need to use all of his training to get out of this tight spot, because there's more than just his life at stake in this nail-biting story.

How did Fox Mulder become a believer? How did Dana Scully become a skeptic? The X-Files Origins has the answers in this young adult origin story. The X-Files Origins: Devil's Advocate will explore the teen years of Dana Scully, the beloved character depicted in the cult-favorite TV show The X-Files. Her story is set in the spring of 1979, when serial murder, the occult, and government conspiracy were highlighted in the news. The book will follow Scully as she experiences life-changing events that set her on the path to becoming an FBI agent. Don’t miss The X-Files Origins: Agent of Chaos, by Kami Garcia, about 17-year-old Fox Mulder. An Imprint Book

Detective Steve Fischer was as tough as they come. Then he goes to the scene of a robbery and winds up being injected with an experimental drug before he's shot by notorious gangster Artie Luther. But Steve doesn't die. Instead, the experimental drug causes his body to regenerate as that of a young woman. Now as she tries to adjust to her new life, she sets her sights on repaying Luther.Detective Steve Fischer was as tough as they come. Then he goes to the scene of a robbery at a pharmaceutical company and winds up being injected with an experimental drug before he's shot in the head by notorious gangster Artie Luther.But Steve doesn't die. Instead, the experimental drug causes Steve's body to regenerate as that of a young woman. Now as she tries to adjust to her new life, she sets her sights on repaying Luther and his cronies.

A morgue is a scary place to most people. Most of us associate it with death and macabre things. But the only thing worse than a morgue is waking up in a morgue with no way out.A morgue is a scary place to most people. Most of us associate it with death and macabre things. But the only thing worse than a morgue is waking up in a morgue with no way out.An entertaining short story from the author of "When there is blood on the moon" and "The man who refused to grow old."Just like his previous works, Eduard Joseph will throw you a curve ball twist that you did not expect.