American Short Fiction

Parks- deep down has always known that the day would come when he had to run, taking his family with him. He thinks has prepared for everything. He is mistaken. After letting his guard down to make his wife and Erie happy, he sees his worst nightmare on the horizon. Can he escape again, or will this be the end of the road for their family. Ember- has always chosen her husband and family over what she knew was right. Her guilt is heavy yet doesn't outweigh the love she has for him and their children. As long as they are all together she can handle it. So, when Erie has a request, she grants ...

My Confession: I love my husband, but my therapist touches parts of me that he can't. My husband is a gentleman, but he can't give me what my body needs. After we argued over his performance, he suggested we see a therapist. When we visited our new intimacy therapist named Dr. Lord, he did a demonstration and placed his masculine hand against my dark mocha skin, and at that moment, I knew he had the touch my body craved. I know my husband's therapist should be off limits, but it has always been my dream to be pleased by multiple tall, sexy men that can give my body the ecstasy it deserves. ...

This second collecton of great American short stories includes titles by Mark Twain, O. Henry, and Nathaniel Hawthorne.

A short dirty story about a young, beautiful, and curvaceous cheerleader being seduced by her best friend's mother... Yancy Simpson has been lusting after her daughter's best friend Christina for months. She knows she shouldn't but she can't help it. Every-time Yancy sees her in that form-fitting cheerleading top and skirt that shamelessly shows off all her curves, she feels as if she'll lose her mind. She knows Yancy is too young for her, but the temptation of seeing her flawless body spread open beneath her is too much to resist. Will she risk it all for just one taste? Will Christina be ...

In Look For Me and I’ll Be Gone, his sixth collection of stories, John Edgar Wideman imbues with energy and life the concerns that have consistently infused his fiction and nonfiction. How does it feel to grow up in America, a nation that - despite knowing better, despite its own laws, despite experiencing for hundreds of years the deadly perils and heartbreak of racial division - encourages (sometimes unwittingly, but often on purpose) its citizens to see themselves as colored or white, as inferior or superior.

From the National Book Award “5 Under 35” honoree and author of Bestiary comes startling stories that center the bodies, memories, myths, and relationships of Asian American women. In “Auntland,” a steady stream of aunts adjust to American life by sneaking surreptitious kisses from women at temple, buying tubs of vanilla ice cream to prepare for citizenship tests, and hatching plans to name their daughters “Dog.” In “The Chorus of Dead Cousins,” ghost-cousins cross space, seas, and skies to haunt their live-cousin, wife to a storm chaser.

From sultry international jungles to the rugged terrain of the American Southwest, join the larger-than-life, scorching-hot alpha heroes of the Bureau of American Defense, Black Ops, Inc., and the US Navy SEALs for all the pulse-pounding, heart-racing, toe-curling excitement. They're cool under pressure, steamy under the sheets, and when the enemy strikes, there's not a lethal mission these gorgeous men can't handle.

In the tradition of Calvino’s Italian Folktales, Greg Sarris, author of the award-winning novel Grand Avenue, turns his attention to his ancestral homeland of Sonoma Mountain in Northern California. In 16 interconnected original stories, the twin crows Question Woman and Answer Woman take us through a world unlike yet oddly reminiscent of our own: one that blooms bright with poppies, lupines, and clover; one in which Water Bug kidnaps an entire creek; in which songs have the power to enchant; in which Rain is a beautiful woman who keeps people’s memories in stones.

Here is the preface to twelve magnificent stories, originally part of The John Cheever Audio Collection, in which John Cheever celebrates - with unequaled grace and tenderness - the deepest feelings we have.

Step into a world of wit, wisdom, and wild misadventures in Fools, Frogs, & Folktales, a delightful collection of American short stories that celebrate the humor, quirks, and tall tales of generations past. This anthology gathers twenty timeless stories from literary greats like Mark Twain, O. Henry, and Jack London, alongside other masterful storytellers whose words bring to life the foolish, the clever, and the downright peculiar.

Before being torn down in 2007, the Stateway Gardens public housing projects on Chicago’s South Side were ridden with deprivation and crime. But for some, like Tracy, the shy, intelligent young boy at the center of this enthralling collection of linked stories, they are simply home. Set in the mid-1980s and taking listeners up to the point of the destruction of the infamous Cabrini-Green housing projects, this collection gives an intimate look at the hopes, dreams, failures, and fortunes of a group of people growing up with the deck always stacked against them.

So many things have made Melanie think that her man has been cheating on her. But time and time again she is proven wrong. After a confrontation with a mystery woman Melanie has found herself questioning her man yet again. This time she gets an immediate answer to her questions. But is that enough to get things back on track? Just as Melanie thinks she has everything figured out some devastating news lands in her lap. Does she have it in her to fight for the love of her life? Or will this be the end of Melanie and Xavier? Xavier has been fighting for Melanie's love since he laid eyes on her...

Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, renowned marine biologist and co-founder of the All We Can Save climate initiative, compiles the best science and nature writing of the year.

Irish crime-fiction sensation Ken Bruen and cohorts shine a light on the dark streets of Dublin. Dublin Noir features an awe-inspiring cast of writers who between them have won all major mystery and crime-fiction awards. This collection introduces secret corners of a fascinating city and surprise assaults on the "Celtic Tiger" of modern Irish prosperity.

Five great American short story writers, dating from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, are represented here. Different in atmosphere and writing style, they nevertheless caught the mood and concerns of the day in a way that was distinctly American.

Explore the depth of passion and uninhibited desires in 'Black Erotica 2', a collection meticulously edited by the renowned Jade St. James. Delve into a series of powerful and provocative short stories penned and narrated exclusively by black talent that bring to life a spectrum of erotically charged experiences. From the daring explorations of BDSM to tender first times, and from exhilarating group escapades to enchanting paranormal encounters, each story offers a unique glimpse into intimate moments, painted vividly to stir the senses and challenge the imagination.

A mother and daughter negotiate the Oregon Trail with grisly results; an elementary teacher watches the carnage of the Challenger explosion spill over into her own classroom. A possible prospector traveling west is drawn to an isolated inn where no one walks away hungry; a 1950s housewife shares the gruesome repertoire of behavior expected of a proper lady. Prohibition and women’s suffrage, the Civil War and the Vietnam War, the JFK assassination conspiracy and the Y2K hysteria.

Sublime Funeral is a brief, serene, and powerful story about how family becomes support, guidance, and meaning. Beyond the loss that sets the journey in motion, what truly shines is the way familial bonds hold, structure, and dignify life, even in its most difficult moments. With sober and sensitive prose, G. G. Melies portrays the silent path of a community that needs no words to express the essential. In every gesture, in every shared glance, a way of being in the world is revealed: through presence, support, and care. Sublime Funeral is a delicate portrait of a culture where familial ...

When Cohn Holland sets his sights on Eliza Allen, he’s captivated and is drawn to her dark beauty. The new divorcée is hurting from her ex-husband’s betrayal and trying to build a new life of independence; finding love again is the last thing on Eliza’s mind. Sensing Eliza’s pain and mistrust, Cohn tries to prove that he can be all the man she will ever need— in and out of the boardroom, even if he is younger. Cohn doesn’t give up easily and will annihilate Eliza’s doubts and fears one by one until he makes her his for good. This is an older woman and younger man romance with...

I am THAT wife. I am Suzy Homemaker. I don't go anywhere; don't do much of anything. I stay home, I cook, I clean, I take care of my man. I am faithful to my man. I am a fraud. I'm not happy, least not completely. I am unfulfilled. I'm missing something. My husband is a great man but he doesn't get my motor running or my heart racing. And when was the last time he made my panties wet? Has he ever made my panties wet? Our sex life, when it happens, is vanilla at best. But I make it work, you know? Because that's what wives do. But then one day, I am accosted by a sexy, demanding, enticing ...