Horror Fiction

WARNING: These 25 stories are not for the faint of heart. In this raw and relentless sequel to the bestselling True Crime: GORE, Logan Carter returns with 25 more brutal cases that defy belief—but every one of them really happened. Inside this collection, you’ll encounter killers who drank blood, torturers who filmed their crimes, and predators who struck without warning. These are the stories that even seasoned true crime fans find hard to shake. From Japan’s Otaku Killer to Mexico’s death cult sisters, from basement prisons to cannibal horrors, GORE 2 pulls no punches. Each case ...

Hollywood descends on Marlow House in preproduction for the movie adaptation of Walt's best-selling novel, Moon Runners. Hoping for inspiration, they found death instead. There's a murderer loose, and as the body count increases, secrets are revealed - and it starts to get a little crowded with all these new ghosts hanging around.

A killer strikes under Frederickport Pier. Before dawn the next morning, Marlow House's celebrity guest, mystery author Hillary Hemingway, is busy writing about the crime for her upcoming novel - including details that only the real killer would know. Coincidence? If so, it isn't the first time.

Have you ever sensed an enigmatic presence lingering in the cosmos around you? A deadly force, held in check by either vigilant individuals or those fortunate souls who navigated the right path? Has your intuition ever stirred, hinting at something concealed beneath your bed or in the dim corners of your room? Does your small town or large city veil themselves in secrets, or do the stars above harbor a sinister malevolence, casting a looming threat upon our very existence? Dear readers, prepare to be immersed in an anthology that will transport you into the depths of every conceivable fear....

Emily Croy Barker’s riveting debut novel is a must-read for fans of Lev Grossman and Deborah Harkness. The Thinking Woman’s Guide to Real Magic follows grad student Nora Fischer as she stumbles through a portal into a magical world. Having been transformed from drab to beautiful, Nora finds herself surrounded by glamorous friends. Life seems perfect. But then things take a terrible turn, and Nora must learn magic from a reclusive ally if she is to have any hope of survival...

Meg Cabot is the New York Times best-selling author of The Princess Diaries series. Susannah Simon is a teenager who can see ghosts. As a bridge between the living and the dead, she gets called on to help ghosts take care of unfinished business. After she and her mother move from New York City to sunny California, Suze meets the sexiest boy she's ever seen, too bad he's a ghost, too.

Christine is certain that the Institute is trying to get rid of her. Why else would they send her to investigate a hundred-year-old cold case about some illusive “phantom” lurking in the depths of a crumbling old Opera House? It turns out she’s probably right, but as unlikely as it seems, there might be something to it. There’s definitely more in the shadows than a few rats and some pieces of forgotten scenery—especially now that she’s woken it up. The phantom is real. And now he's set his sights on her.

Just like all little girls, I hoped I was special and that one day my powers would be revealed. My parents would be bewildered, my friends would equally worship and envy me, and my bullies would run away in terror! Nothing happened when I turned 10. I didn't grow wings at 12, still wasn't able to make things move with my mind at 14, and at 16, I was already too old to believe in such nonsense. Well, what do you think happened the day I turned 18? I got the confirmation that I was only human. In the mail! Oh, and also an invitation to apply to the Grim Reaper Academy.

Turner Construction's latest restoration project is a historic Queen Anne Victorian in San Francisco. This time, general contractor Mel Turner has to work around the owners, who insist on sticking around-along with some ghosts that insist in their own way that the work stops. The ghosts aren't the only ones standing in the way of the renovations. A crotchety neighbor, Emile Blunt, secretly wants this house and could be behind some of the disturbances. But when Emile is found dead, it's Mel who appears guilty.

Pen has just received an extremely rare collection of Edgar Allan Poe's complete works. Rumor has it a secret code, trapped within the books' leather-bound pages leads, to buried treasure. Well, it looks like they got the buried part right because, as Pen sells off the valuable volumes, everyone who buys - dies. Once these books go missing from their owners' cold hands, Pen will need resident ghost and hard-boiled P.I. Jack Shepard to help crack the case. The police are skeptical that the deaths involved foul play - so it's up to them to unravel these shocking endings.

For 30 years, they have avoided the outbreak of walking death that has consumed America's heartland. They have secured a small compound near the ruins of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Isolated from the world, they have remained blissfully unaware of what lies outside in the region known as the Dead Lands. Until now. Led by a military vet who's seen better days, the inexperienced offspring of the original survivors form a small expedition to explore the wastelands around them. Small pockets of humanity hide in the shadows: some scared, some mad, all dangerous. This is the New World.

Newly appointed as land agent to the youthful Lord Croft, Matthew Rowsley finds plenty to keep him busy as he attends to his lordship's neglected country estate. But he's distracted from his tasks by the disappearance of a young housemaid. Has Maggie really eloped with a young man, as her mother attests - or is the truth rather more sinister? What's been going on behind the scenes at the grand country estate...and where has his lordship disappeared to?

Pristine beaches, lush greenery, and perfect weather, the island of Kisapmata would be the vacation destination…if not for the curse. The Filipino locals speak of it in hushed voices and refuse to step foot on the island. They know the lives it has claimed. They won’t be next. A Hollywood film crew won’t be dissuaded. Legend claims a Dreamer god sleeps, waiting to grant unimaginable powers in exchange for eight sacrifices. The producers are determined to document the evidence. And they convince Alon, a local teen, to be their guide.

The year is 1942. Britain is in the grip of the Second World War, bringing blackout conditions to much of the country. For several years, Briarwych Church has remained locked and unused. Arriving to take up his new position, Father Lionel Loveford's first task is to open the great wooden door and get the church back into use. But something lurks in the shadows. A terrible tragedy once took place in Briarwych, and now the locals live in fear of a vengeful spirit that has sometimes been spotted looking out from the church's windows.

By day, Mark Wojcik can be found elbow-deep in engine grease, making cars and trucks safe for the highway. By night, he can be found traipsing through the wilds of Pennsylvania, making the world safe for humans. He's more than just a mechanic, he's a New Templar Knight. He travels the backroads and byways fighting weresquonks, ningen, selkies, ghosts, and . . . gnomes? Is that gnome . . . naked? (Sigh.) Season One collects the first four novellas in the Spells, Salt, & Steel series: Spells, Salt, & Steel; Open Season; Deep Trouble; and Close Encounters.

Danger the likes Boone McCreery has never seen is brewing in the Black Hills. Fresh in from Santa Fe, he’s returned to Deadwood to seek justice for his uncle - and maybe to see about a girl. Little did he know his search for justice would have him stumbling into a hornets’ nest beyond his worst nightmare. One thing is for certain: The trouble he and his compadres chance upon deep in the trees is a long way from ordinary.

Paige Winterbourne was always either too young or too rebellious to succeed her mother as leader of one of the world's most powerful elite organizations - the American Coven of Witches. Now that she is 23 and her mother is dead, the Elders can no longer deny her. But even Paige's wildest antics can't hold a candle to those of her new charge - an orphan who is all too willing to use her budding powers for evil.

American journalist, short story writer, and poet, Ambrose Bierce is best known for his formidably vicious wit - given free rein in his famous column, "The Prattler." But his stories were elegantly crafted, with a compelling blend of realistic detail, clever plot twists, and his own sardonic humor. These 8 macabre stories, read here by Mark Hammer, establish Bierce as a master of the genre.

When Anne's friend Kevin asks her to spend the summer at Grayhaven, his parents' new home in Pennsylvania, it seems like the ideal way to complete the book on contemporary literature they have been working on. And Grayhaven, an authentic medieval manor, proves to be nothing short of miraculous. But at the end of three weeks Anne realizes that she and Kevin have not added one new sentence to their book. What is it about this house that is so disturbing?

Eroan, one of the last elven assassins, lives for one purpose: Kill the queen. He would have succeeded if not for her last line of defense: Prince Lysander. Now, captured and forced into the queen's harem, Eroan sees another opportunity. Why kill just the queen when he can kill them all? It would be simple, if not for the troubled and alluring dragon prince.