Classic Literature Dark

A traditional psychological ghost story, ‘A Phantom Lover’ tells the story of an artist who is commissioned to paint eccentric couple Mr and Mrs Oke of Okehurst. But the Okes have a dark family history, and the fateful events of two centuries previous come back to haunt them.

Welcome to Archers Beach in the Changing Land, the last and least of the Six Worlds, where magic works, sometimes, and the Guardian husbands the vitality of the land and everyone on it - earth spirit and plain human alike. Kate Archer, Guardian and carousel-keeper, has been busy making some changes of her own, notably beginning a romantic relationship with Borgan, the Guardian of the Gulf of Maine, Kate's opposite number, and, some would say, her natural mate.

During her lifetime Violet Paget, who wrote as Vernon Lee, was referred to as 'the greatest of modern exponents of the supernatural in fiction', and yet today she remains on the periphery of the genre. This collection of her uniquely weird short stories and dark fantasies proves why she was once considered among the best of the genre, and why she deserves to return to those ranks today.

Raised by a vampire in a secret society of witches, shifters, and elves, Charlotte finds that she is the freak in her world of magic and wonder. When she stands before an army of impossible obstacles, the likelihood of survival in this coming-of-age modern fairy tale is slim, resulting in a war between light and darkness. Charlotte knows no other home than the one nestled deep in the woods of Eastern Europe, where witches draw spells of enchantment, shifters throw tea parties, and elves are the closest in kin.

With the Emperor returned, all hell has broken loose. It's up to me and my elf ladies, along with some newfound friends, to break the curse. We can't simply charge in flinging magic, though. A legend of blessed blades is our only hope, and a cursed woman our chance of finding them. With my beautiful djinn, noble dragon, a beast tamer and more, we set off for a journey that will change the fate of our world forever.We also might add new friends to the mix. Warning: Contains harem situations for adults. A djinn, dragon noble, beast tamer, and more. Yes, details included.

The best-selling author of Atonement and Enduring Love, Ian McEwan is known as one of contemporary fiction’s most acclaimed writers. This Booker Prize-winning novel by McEwan finds two men connecting at the funeral of their ex-lover. Distressed by how she was slowly destroyed by an illness, the two make a pact to save each other from enduring such a fate.

The secret of having an adventure is getting lost. Who ever visited an enchanted kingdom or fell into a fairy tale without wandering into the woods first? Well, Mary is lost. Mary is lost in the story of Little Red Riding Hood, and that is a cruel and murderous story. She's put on the red hood and met the wolf. When she gives in to her wolf's temptations, she will die.

For once no one wants to kill Samantha Martin. She's free to do all the things a mischievous imp loves to do- like remove all the county speed limit signs, and wrap City Hall in crime scene tape. Her only worry beyond organizing the delivery of her boyfriend's birthday present, is writing those pesky four nine five reports for the Ruling Council of Angels. But imps can never stay out of trouble for long. Demon corpses have been found drained of all energy, their spirit selves ripped clean from their bodies.

In 17th century England, a terrible accident forces orphaned Philip Marsham to flee London in fear for his life. Bred to the sea, he signs on with the Rose of Devon, a dark frigate bound for the quiet shores of Newfoundland.Philip's bold spirit and knowledge of the sea soon win him his captain's regard. But when the Rose of Devon is seized in mid-ocean by a devious group of men plucked from a floating wreck, Phlip is forced to accompany these "gentlemen of fortune" on their murderous expeditions. Like it or not, Philip Marsham is now a pirate - with only the hangman awaiting his return to England.With its bloody battles, brutal buccaneers, and bold, spirited hero, this rousing tale will enthrall all listeners in search of seafaring adventure.

In a small village outside the city of Vision, the people know no sorrow or grief. But this seemingly idyllic community is hiding a terrible secret. As a young child, Nalah did not know why she was told to bring a cake to the mute girl known as the Voice whenever she was upset, only that doing so made her feel better. Now grown, Nalah understands the dark truth, and yearns to escape from the oppressive village that has been her life-long home.

My name is Sam Ryder. I was abducted from Earth and brought to a planet called Tor, a world of dying goddesses and monsters. I was leveled up - four times now - turning me from a slightly overweight gamer into a man-beast demigod charged with the unfortunate tasks of kicking demon ass and getting busy with gorgeous goddesses and exotic alien women. At this point in the tale, we’re about to be attacked by a massive army of shadow monsters conjured from the depths of the underworld (yeah, that part sucks), but don’t worry, there’s hope. Because we’re awesome.

When the jury of which Roger Collins is chairman finds Harriet Barnes guilty of murder, she swears vengeance on the entire Collins family, then kills herself. Soon, Celia Dalton, a guest at Collinwood, starts suffering strange spells. Each time she does, someone at Collinwood is violently attacked. Has Harriet Barnes taken over her spirit, making the innocent girl a bloodthirsty killer? Can Barnabas and Quentin save Celia - and the Collins family - from this menace out of the crypt?

Against her will, Anita Burgess accompanies her brother, Jeffrey, to Collinwood. He is determined to get revenge against Quentin Collins, who he believes is responsible for his best friend’s death. Pretending friendship toward Quentin, Anita and Jeffrey learn he has established a back magic center at Collinwood and has several young women completely under his power. ​Jeffrey enlists Barnabas’ aid in his struggle to destroy Quentin - both to avenge his friend’s death and to free the young women. But does he not realize that by destroying Quentin, he risks destroying Anita.

Five friends. West L.A. The power goes out, and everything with it. Civilization as they know it has ended. And they are in the worst place they could be - surrounded by looter gangs and millions who will soon be desperate and dying. Young, fit, but ill prepared, their choices are few and stark. Jeremy's Run: L.A. Dark is the first installment of a serial story that chronicles an epic struggle of the human spirit to survive, to prevail over the odds, to retain one's humanity, and to keep alive the hope for a new and better future.

Keawe es un hawaiano que decide conocer otras tierras y se embarca en un buque que se dirige a San Francisco, donde descubre una casa preciosa, cuyo dueño parece triste y solo. Keawe se pregunta cómo el dueño de una casa tan hermosa puede ser tan infeliz. Tras enseñarle su mansión, el anciano le muestra una botella de vidrio blanco en cuyo interior se pueden ver los colores cambiantes del arco iris, además de un diablillo.

Making his way to a tryst with his "dark lady" near the royal palace the young playwright William Shakespeare encounters a mysterious woman in a cloak. Mistaking her for his lady friend, he accosts her in a familiar fashion, only to discover, to his dismay, that she is in fact the queen. He overcomes his initial discomfort, and takes advantage of the situation to make a petition for royal support to establish a national theatre.

Loosely inspired by the legend of Camelot, Dark Sexy Knight tells the story of dinner theater knight Colt Lane, who meets down-on-her-luck Verity Gwynn on the worst day of her life. Evicted from their home, Verity and her special-needs brother, Ryan, must find jobs or risk being separated. Colt, who is the furthest-possible thing from a white knight in real life, comes to their unlikely rescue, quickly cementing his place in Verity's heart.

These three novella-length tales explore psychological themes latent in the classic Grimm versions. Rather than presenting two-dimensional "good" heroines pitted against "evil" step-mothers, Grim portrays fully realized characters grappling with shame and self-doubt, suffering at the hands of mothers best thought of as narcissistic in modern terminology. Due to their dark themes and some graphic sexual material, these tales are not for the faint of heart and are unsuitable for children.

Gertrude Barrows Bennet is better known by her pen-name, Francis Stevens. With a career that only spanned three years between 1917 and 1920, when she stopped writing after her mother's death, she is credited as "the woman who invented dark fantasy". She was a direct influence on H.P. Lovecraft, and in the words of Sam Moskowitz was the "greatest woman writer of science fiction in the period between Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and C.L. Moore"

Emma Donahue has just started her new job as nanny to Simone, the daughter of John Chen, a very rich Hong Kong businessman. She understands that Simone may be a target for kidnappers but she does not expect to be drawn into a world of martial arts, magic and extreme danger, where both gods and demons can exist in the mortal domain. When John and his American bodyguard, Leo, teach Emma their particular style of martial arts, they begin to realise that Emma herself is more than she seems....