Dark Fantasy Short Stories

A fourth anthology from the editors of Ruby Slippers, Golden Tears presents contemporary retellings of traditional fairy tales in Gregory Frost's "Sparks", "The Dog Rose" by Sten Westgard, and other works by Jane Yolen, Joyce Carol Oates, Nancy Kress, and John Crowley.

The Reaper did not speak. He did not even move, for what need did he have to chase anyone? Everyone comes to him eventually. Men, women, and gods all are consumed in his ever waiting black. Clive, sighing deeply, turned to look Death in the face. In the form he took for Clive, Death stood around seven feet tall, the hood of his monk’s cowl falling to just above the bridge of the nose, had there been a nose to speak of. Instead, there was simply a hole, a cavernous nothing, like death itself.

When a woman’s fed up there’s hell to pay. When a female demon is fed up? You’d better get the f-ck out the way. Wassup? I’m Xenia, and I’m sick and tired of my mate. And no, he didn’t cheat on me, that’s human crap to get mad at. No, the f-cktard can’t get over the thought of his baby brother one-upping him; and has been neglecting me as a result. Well, an idle mind is a dangerous place, especially when it belongs to an intelligent, female demon. When my father-in-law, the devil himself, gives me a task to wipe out an entire country, I jump on it. Especially when I see just...

This short story collection by J. Reder White is an ecclectic patchwork of plots and characters and ideas, some worked out while waking and pondering, others slipped into his mind while sleeping. Some come from a dark place, but most sparkle in that darkness. If they amuse you, then they have done something good. If they make you think, then they have started to work their magic. If they touch you, well, then I have little to do with that, do I?

Blackwater is a collection of two tales of horror and dark fantasy. In "Mercury Rain", a soldier fighting a new enemy learns the importance of holding on to his memories. "Blackwater", the title story of the collection, is an homage to Stephen King's short story, "Graveyard Shift", and it tells the tale of Paul Hawkins, a mine worker who disturbs something terrifying in the Blackwater Hills of Durham, Pennsylvania, in the summer of 1976.

Prometheus - one of the keenest Titans to ever walk the earth. Until, that is, his weakness for the human race resulted in his imprisonment. For thousands of years, Prometheus's only certainty was his daily torture at Zeus's hand. Now, unchained by the Eternal Guardians, he spends his days in solitude, trying to forget the past. He's vowed no allegiance in the war between mortal and immortal, but when a beautiful maiden seeks him out and begs for his help, he's once again powerless to say no.

An anthology of eleven dark fantasy and paranormal short stories. There are haunted houses inhabited by mysterious beings; monsters; dark fairies; the horrors of a psychopathic mind; a cursed jewel; the element of the double as occurs in so many unusual works, and harrowing situations inspired by the universes of George MacDonald, Edgar Allan Poe, and Lovecraft. Ideal plots for more sensitive readers who enjoy dark and mysterious adventures with a hint of supernatural, but do not feel comfortable reading tales with extreme violence and gore scenes.

From the radiance of redemption towards the depths of despair, from the nightmare of normalcy into the ecstasy of the unknown, Dark Detours: a Collection of Sinister Short Stories is an entertaining exploration into the shadowy boundaries of earthly imagination. The author's uniquely poetic prose compellingly involves the reader with 21 turgid tales of inner turmoil and astounding achievements while also evocatively expounding on the price of pain and the cost of conscience. Whether it be a fable about aliens or the occult, sensual schemes or sinister dreams, Dark Detours is an ...

Sometimes the world is a very dark place. You know the magic is still out there, but it feels distant or displaced. Voices in the Darkness is an attempt to create a link, to bring some of those voices together in a single work of art. Six award-winning authors lent their talent to this work. The stories are unique and dark, filled with wonder and emotion.

A collection of horror/thriller stories with surprise endings to chill you and thrill you to the bone. The nightmares include: THE FEUD: After twelve years of truce between two feuding families, Jasper Stump is missing and a beast is devouring people in the woods. CATS: The police are sent to investigate the home of an elderly woman with a houseful of cats who has not retrieved her newspapers for four days. BEDTIME STORY: Cindy is waiting up for her daddy who went out to get something for tomorrow morning’s breakfast. ANOTHER DAMN DAY IN VEGAS: Two detectives have a particularly grisly ...

A romantic road trip along Maine's rugged coast turns into a fight for survival when a couple's car breaks down. Seeking refuge in a mysterious shoreline village, they uncover a web of secrets and lies. But this village holds more than just earthly secrets... Beneath the waves, an ancient submerged village lurks, home to malevolent spirits that rise with the night. As darkness falls, these vengeful ghosts haunt the living, pulling them down into the depths. Trapped between the world of the living and the realm of the dead, the couple must unravel the sinister connection between the two ...

Once upon a time, the stories that came to be known as "fairy tales" were cultivated to entertain adults more than children; it was only later that they were tamed and pruned into less thorny versions intended for youngsters. But in truth, they have continued to prick the imaginations of audiences at all ages.

A woman meets her next-door neighbor and loans her a spatula, then starts suffering horrific gaps in her memory. A man, feeling jilted by an unrequited love, becomes obsessed with sorting through his neighbors' garbage in the belief that it will teach him how to better relate to people. A landlord decides to raise the rent, and his tenants hatch a plan to kill him at a team-building retreat. In 10 captivating, unnerving stories, Flowers of Mold presents a range of ordinary individuals who have found themselves left behind by an increasingly urbanized and fragmented world.

This bundle includes The Dark Corner, Pan's Realm, and The Wishing Stone.

Step into the shadows—if you dare. Flowers at Midnight is a razor-sharp collection of flash fiction that packs a punch in 300 words or less. Each story is a fleeting glimpse into the uncanny, the eerie, and the unexplainable. From cursed objects and vengeful spirits to ancient rituals gone wrong and eldritch creatures hiding in plain sight, this collection blends the chilling atmosphere of horror with the dark beauty of fantasy. Perfect for fans of bite-sized terror, haunting imagery, and twist endings that linger long after the final sentence, these stories are designed to be devoured in...

An incubus disguised as a high school girl puts a disturbing spin on the teacher/student fantasy. An engineer creates a robot with unexpected consequences during the end of the world. A man becomes the pet of alien invaders. From stories of aliens in other worlds to those living among us, these tales will move you out of your comfort zone and open you up to experiencing something - or someone - completely different.

Congratulations! You made it to the last and final installment of the keys! We maximized and planned our future with THE KEYS TO FUTURE SELF. I mentored you through my failures with KEYS TO YOUR CROWN. For those who want long lasting relationships and a family we did a thorough assessment and and internal break down with KEYS TO YOUR KINGDOM. Now what most men put first we will FINALLY cover last with the KEYS 2 SEX! Most men chase and women. You want to really become the best version of yourself and have and abundance of sex and women. Let me tell you a secret. Looks in side you, the ...

Pick a master and serve. Serve them well and die. Marigold wants to die the right way. She wants a transformative bite from her master. Vampires have it all: the statuesque look, the immortal life, and the power to enchant others. All she has is debt, a distracted boyfriend, and a desire to be more than human. When unwanted holiday gifts are exchanged between two master vampires, Marigold’s wish might come true if she can survive until dawn. A perfectly sized introduction into the new paranormal worlds created by urban fantasy and paranormal romance author Azaaa Davis. Start reading Hiss,...

"ALICE CROWLEY'S EROTIC STORIES ALWAYS HAVE SURPRISE ENDINGS!" ~ Hwk "I LOVED THE IMAGINATION OF THIS AUTHOR!" ~ Satisfied Kindle Reader "ALICE CROWLEY IS ONE OF OUR GREATEST LIVING WRITERS!" ~ G. Taylor Big, burly, alpha male KING KONG is at it again in this hot and hungry tale of tail! Two civilian women have a threesome one day in LA with a sexy chef named John, only the ladies are unaware of the man's hidden dark side. Things go all the way south as John shifts and mutates mid-coitus, turning into a half-beast, half-man with the size and strength to service a gaggle of females! Only ...

An idyllic summer bike ride takes a turn into darkness. Ryan is excited about the first day of school, he is even more excited about seeing his best friend and his crush, Jen. Sometimes the road less traveled shouldn't be taken. "This is the first of the "Night Portals" series, which will consist of twelve short stories that are this author's equivalent of "The Twilight Zone" or "Black Mirror", telling darker tales about humanity and exploring "what if this happened" scenarios." Amazon Reviewer Chris Fried Night Portals is a metaphysical series that explores the hidden secrets of life ...