American Fiction Short Stories

The third in a series of American Western short stories compiled by Jon Tuska, and preformed by celebrity readers.

Fear. Anguish. Heartbreak. Selfless love. Ultimate sacrifice. All in less than a minute. Sometimes that’s all the time there is. Adam Manning arrives at the crime scene and quickly sees that not everything is as it seems. Neither is he. If you enjoy clean mystery romance and inspirational women’s fiction filled with love, hope, family, new and old friendships, and a mystery to keep you guessing, Stay With Me is the series collection for you. This is Book Two of the eight-part Stay With Me mystery romance novella series. Book 2 of 8.

The fiction of Bonnie Jo Campbell has been honored with the Pushcart Prize, the AWP Award for Short Fiction, and Southern Review’s Eudora Welty Prize. In this stunning collection—a National Book Award finalist—Campbell’s rural Michigan characters are both as jagged as rusty metal and as delicate as the light brush of fading dreams.

Josie Tucker is in a pickle. She's a rising food critic in the blogosphere, but she can't eat. Her testy stomach is always in knots - is it anxiety, a food allergy, or something else? With a Boston blueblood matron funding her adventures, and a trio of loyal friends, Josie finds herself in scrape after bizarre scrape, barely escaping by the skin of her neck.

Here is a stunning collection of short stories by the acclaimed fantasy writer. These stories will dazzle your senses, haunt your imagination, and move you to the very depths of your soul. This extraordinary compilation reveals one of the world's most gifted storytellers at the height of his powers.

New York City, 1890 Olga Schoon’s father has big plans for her life. Soon, she will be married. In fact, he has found her the perfect match. Olga, however, has no time for love. New York City’s garment factory workers deserve safe and fair working conditions, and as the daughter of one of the city’s most successful factory owners, she is determined to help the cause. Can she navigate her father’s strict expectations while still pursuing her calling? And what happens when her growing feelings for a handsome business associate threaten to destroy everything she’s been striving for? ...

This long-awaited story collection from Wesley Brown summons up the smoky clubs and gritty streets of a long-gone New York City, one that moved in the frenetic rhythms of jazz. A more innocent city fueled by cool, not money. We meet Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, John Coltrane, Coleman Hawkins, Cab Calloway, and many giants of the era in these sharply observed, carefully intertwined stories. In Brown's deft hands, these legends become real - like we've never seen them before.

Jasper asked Bessie to marry him, and she said yes. How was Jasper to know that he would have to wait to marry her? Bessie decides to go to Oklahoma on her own for the land rush. If Jasper has something that is more important than getting them land, then she will just have to get it herself. They say woman can own land, but the trick will be her being able to claim the land. Her father's best friend, Sam, and his son decided to accompany her so she would not be going alone. Will Bessie find land and be able to claim it for herself? Will Sam try to match her up with his son? Will Jasper come...

Una mujer se enamora de un vecino por cómo cuida las plantas de su terraza. Un hombre organiza una fiesta con todos sus seres queridos para celebrar el final de una larga enfermedad. Una niña acompaña a su madre a ver pisos que nunca podrán permitirse y un padre lleva a su hija adoptada a conocer a su madre biológica....

A girl who believes in UFOs; a boy who might have finally found his Prince Charming; a hopeful performer who dreams of being cast in her school’s production of The Sound of Music; a misunderstood magician of sorts with a power she doesn’t quite understand. These plotlines and many more compose the eclectic stories found within the pages of this dynamic, exciting, and expansive collection featuring exclusively Black characters.

Emma’s life turns upside down after finding her husband murdered at their home. With no evidence left at the crime scene and no known motive, Emma is determined to find the person responsible. However, her husband’s death uncovers a secret that leaves her questioning everything she thought she knew about him. Emma believed she was in a loving and trusting relationship with Kendrick. She thought of them as just another couple living a normal life. However, Kendrick had a dark secret, one that got him killed. Detective McKinley is working the case, as he continuously communicates with ...

Terrence McCauley delivers up the tale of a former moonshiner looking to make his fortune on dirt tracks of stock-car racing. J. Walt Layne details one of the first interracial college football games ever played. Up next, John Rose gets us into the ring with a boxing prodigy from the hills of Kansas, and then Fred Adams Jr., offers up a barnstorming adventure with the Negro Baseball League Moline Wizards.

Trying to build a life literally from scratch for me and my kids seems impossible. I’m just glad to have May and Jason helping me out. But even with us three, plus our kids’ assistance, it still isn’t enough to get things done. And that’s when Elijah Maynes enters. There’s no avoiding it. The more I try to escape him, the more I see of him.

Being back into the dating scene isn’t as glamorous as people made it out to be. Especially to single moms like me. But I have a boyfriend now and a house where I can finally start over again. I should be happy, right? Or at least I thought so, until Elijah begins to occupy my mind. He broke my heart all those years ago, and yet I can’t stop thinking about him. The big question is… can I push aside old wounds and keep being friends with him? Or will a second chance make it all worth it?

If there is one person on this earth that I could not imagine helping me raise my kids that would be Elijah Maynes. But here I am, exchanging parenting tips with my ex and hanging out with him and his children like it’s the most normal thing in the world. Surprisingly our arrangement works, more than I expected it would. I wonder how long it will last when the past comes knocking on our door.

It was supposed to be a new beginning for us. Me and Elijah again. Girlfriend and boyfriend. Forgetting the past and starting over again. I know it’s going to be a lot of work especially now that we both have our own kids but we learned from our mistakes. History will not repeat itself. Except Leah’s back. The woman Elijah had left me for in the past and also the mother of his kids. Now I don’t know what to think. I have decisions to make...and it’s not just about me anymore.

Three years since my husband’s death and it still doesn’t get any easier. A brand new start is what I needed, not only for me but also for the kids. I decided to return to my hometown, Brookings, Oregon, where I have a lot of fond memories, especially with my high school best friend, May. I got it all planned out. I just didn’t know HE would also be there.

"Dizzy & Gillespie" unfolds as an emotionally rich mystery, intertwining the lives of a devoted daughter and her aging mother. Within their once-grand, now-fading New York City apartment, they face the relentless challenges of poverty, the encroaching tides of gentrification, and the relentless passage of time. Their bond, tested by life's struggles and their community's transformation, finds a glimmer of hope with the arrival of two rescue kittens, Dizzy and Gillespie. However, the actions of a new neighbor soon set off a chain of events that will alter their lives forever. This story ...

Roberto "Papa" Huffington. Beloved husband. Father. Friend. This is a very short story in honor of his legacy that he has left behind.

What is Katie’s career-ending mishap? Will she get over it in time to find a suitable husband? What is the secret of Jane? Will it hinder her from Mrs. Eva’s Services? To what ends will Mrs. Eva go to find a suitable match for Jane? Meet Katie and Jane, the latest enrollees in Mrs. Eva Crabtree’s Matrimonial Services. Katie is a school teacher who encountered an event that ended her career, which forces her to join Mrs. Eva’s Matrimonial Services. Jane is an adventurous and choosy girl who has a secret that even Mrs. Eva doesn’t know. Read all books by bestseller and Kindle All-...