Christmas Short Stories Anthology

One year after the Shattering and the great collapse, survivors in Columbus, Ohio, are barely holding things together. Then, on December 24, when all seemed lost, a new hero appears, and he is determined to protect all the children of the Earth.

Four short, sparkling seasonal tales to warm your heart.

Siblings Alexina and Stephen are down on their luck this year and resign themselves to not having a Christmas dinner. But when their wealthy, gourmand uncle James invites himself to their house for Christmas, the pair scramble to lay out a sumptuous feast, including his favorite, Mince pie. But 10 minutes before the turkey is done, an unforeseeable disaster occurs that threatens to ruin everything.

The Christmas holidays arrive on Bessie's magical mountain. Little did Bessie know that today, when the 10-o'clock train rolls to a stop at the summit of the snow-covered mountain, Matthew, a handsome stranger, will climb down from the coach car and enter her world.

Christmas is one of the best times for huddling round the fire, wrapping up in a cozy blanket and telling each other stories. Storyteller Vicky Parsons brings a series of Christmas stories to charm and delight the whole family. Her lyrical style and humour gives a unique take on age-old stories, and new stories from her own imagination.

What do you do when you see children whose lives are so bad it breaks your heart? One woman took a risk. What she saw was none of her business. But to love...was her business. From the author of a Top-100 Free eBook for Kindle, "Killing of Train-Man Brown" and "The Christmas Mirror: Santa's Last Letter to a Wonderful Child" (number-one in two categories in both the US and UK).

A reminiscence of the Christmas tree tradition and the stories told around them. Maybe some of the tales will sound familiar. 'A Christmas Tree' is taken from the Victorian Anthologies series featuring short stories by classic writers of the spooky, the scary and the supernatural. Guaranteed to give you the shivers, each collection includes familiar and loved creepy tales as well as those less well-known.

Vasilisa had not seen her daughter for four years. Her daughter, Yefimya, had gone after her wedding to Petersburg, had sent them two letters, and since then had seemed to vanish out of their lives; there had been no sight nor sound of her. And whether the old woman was milking her cow at dawn or heating her stove or dozing at night, she was always thinking of one and the same thing - what was happening to Yefimya, whether she were alive.... Read in English, unabridged.

Fourth story in a collection of interlinked tales of crime and retribution laced with dark humour, set around the festive season. Working in a call centre normally offers few career opportunities. But it looks as if Tracy’s about to get her big break.

Novelista ruso, uno de los más importantes de la literatura universal, que escudriñó hasta el fondo de la mente y el corazón humanos, y cuya obra narrativa ejerció una profunda influencia en todos los ámbitos de la cultura moderna.

Henry n’est plus le même depuis que sa petite amie Sheridan a quitté la cage. La retrouvera-t-il? Gregory adore les cadeaux; et plus particulièrement en faire aux autres. Oui mais voilà, Gregory va apprendre que rien ne vaut un cadeau qui vient du cœur.

The Sawyer family puts up an elaborate Christmas light display every year, and people from all over the area come to admire the lights. Humans, however, aren't the only ones who come to view the display.

Fifth story in a collection of interlinked tales of crime and retribution laced with dark humour, set around the festive season. There is never a good time to look upon the face of a dead loved one. But Mr Unwin has dedicated his life to helping the bereaved. While helping himself at the same time….

Second story in a collection of interlinked tales of crime and retribution laced with dark humour, set around the festive season. When a double suicide arrives at the city morgue, Sandra thinks it’s a Christmas like any other. But she’s about to get a very nasty shock – make that two very nasty shocks….

A collection of classic Christmas stories, including:

• 1. "The Royal Truffle Hunt" by Anthony Thorn
• 2. "A Christmas Dream and How it Came True" by Louisa Mae Alcott
• 3. "The Sabots of Little Wolff" by Francois Coppee
• 4. "A Christmas Guest" by Selma Lanerlof
• 5. "The Christmas Goblins" by Charles Dickens
• 6. "At Christmas Time" by Anton Chehkov
• 7. "The Heavenly Christmas Tree" by Fydor Dostoyevsky

Inhalt: "Ansage", "Elfriede Huhn legt los!", "Ein Papphaus für den Osterhasen", "Der Ostereier-Wettbewerb", "Das Eier-Osterfrühstück", "Auf Osterhasenlauer", "Ferien für den Osterhasen", "Ein besonders netter Osterhase", "Eierzielschießen", "Ein Anzug für den Osterhasen", "Lili Naschhase", "Die Osterhasenprüfung", "Ein Kranz fürs Osterfrühstück".

All bakery-owner Lindsay Leeds wants for Christmas is for her former high-school crush Sheriff Keith "Bodey" Bodewell to quit playing games. The sheriff has been dancing around asking her out for months and Lindsay is tired of it. His "fake girlfriend" ploy was cute and it was sweet that he recruited her friends to find out what she likes, but enough is enough. She's a busy woman and he needs to step up or he's going to lose his shot.

While some are nestled cozy in their traditions, others are lost in darkness. An unkindness of ravens lurk like a warning above them while they try to escape their inner demons and fight the dragons they've been trying to avoid. There's no enjoying fatal amounts of pie because their minds are slipping, slipping into a twisted delusion. They are the murderers, the disturbed, the unfortunate, and the misunderstood. These outliers are imprisoned by their circumstances until they slowly fade into the icy landscape, smothered by the forged façade of a perfect Christmas.

Sixth story in a collection of interlinked tales of crime and retribution laced with dark humour, set around the festive season. The maternity ward: the last place you’d associate with criminal activity. Which makes it as good a place as any to carry it out.

Samantha wasn't expecting what she got for Christmas this year. Her doorbell rang and there sitting on her porch was a baby in a basket. This changes her life for the good. But then something happens. The baby's father comes for his child. How can Samantha convince him that she is the best thing for the child?