Magical Realism Short Stories

In the quiet heart of a small, enchanted town of Havenmoor, Thea Alexander tends to a library steeped in centuries-old secrets and whispered legends. Shy and gentle, she prefers the company of books to people—until Oliver Bennett steps through the door. A thoughtful, reserved visitor, Oliver finds comfort in the ancient myths he borrows again and again. Neither expects their shared fascination with lost loves and mythical stories to spark something undeniably real. When a discreet matchmaking witch named Juniper Hart lends a helping hand—and a subtle charm or two—their conversations ...

For former pushover Janet, her Sophie curls appear to be a balanced and beautiful new addition to her magical, life-changing wig collection. She’s positively beaming, has smoothed out the wrinkles in her personal life, and is embarking on a philanthropic new business venture. Everything is ideal until the unthinkable happens and she has to stand on her own - with a final push from Lady Miss Jacqueline, of course!

Nounous is a fourteen-year-old Maltese who adores people—but above all, he loves his mother. As he takes his last steps, he reflects on a life filled with love and loyalty, his most significant concern being the thought of leaving his beloved Mommy behind. His mother, Susanne Leist, is a paranormal suspense author and former financial analyst. When she isn’t weaving thrilling tales, Susanne cherishes every precious moment with Nounous—her best friend, constant companion, and inspiration.

The collected fantasy stories of World Fantasy Award winner S.P. Somtow — a half century of his acclaimed work brought together in a single volume. From rural America to exotic Bangkok, from ancient history to contemporary times — and sometimes both within the same story — Somtow's world betray a limitless imagination and the finely honed writing that has brought him numerous awards during his half-century writing career. Beginning with his first fantasy story from the 1970s, Fire from the Wine-dark Sea to his most recent tales, this collection is a a treasure chest.

The Staggered Births of the Triplet Witches Reuniting after years apart, three sisters find their latent powers springing to life, evolving into potent shields against looming darkness. Despite sharing a birthright, they've grown up unaware of their shared lineage, thanks to being brought up by a secretive grandmother and an enigmatic great aunt. As the shadows of an unsolved serial murder case resurface, troubling signs emerge— their young cousin bears unexplained bruises, and the townsfolk are growing increasingly sinister. Can the sisters, bound by blood but unaware of their profound ...

An eclectic collection of fantasy and paranormal stories from Angela Lam. From the depths of desire, a woman's longing makes her a mother. A depressed vampire considers suicide against her obligation to parent a dhampir. A concerned citizen breaks into a house to steal a neighbor's grief. A bridesmaid tumbles into an awkward wedding reception. And a heartbroken child yearning for his mother's return wishes against his father's magic.

Some stories are bittersweet. Some stories are magical. A Holocaust secret kept for decades. A young teacher learns to be strong. A werewolf. An elf. A genie. A marriage. A Poppa God, a Momma God, a Baby God. The most beautiful woman in the world battles the Devil. Things are not always what they seem...

Still recovering from a brutal breakup, Stan Dobrev crashes a “divorce party” in the Southern California desert. An unknown extra in a stranger’s drama, he’s on his way back to the bar when a fellow interloper catches his wandering eye. She’s a formidable tortoise named Greeley, trudging through the drunken revelry and chaos like a true survivor. Before the night is over, she’ll lead Stan on a strange journey beyond oblivion.

The stories in Animal Husbandry all deal in some way with mythology, from animal fables to imaginary friends to the myths people tell themselves. In some cases, the myths are fantastical: a farmer finds his cow has given birth to a surprising offspring; a guitarist tries to improve his skills with a visit to the crossroads; or a young girl meets with a visitor in the woods to plot against her neighbors. Others concern everyday mythology: a small-town ballplayer struggles to earn a nickname; or a man's clean bill of health arrives at the worst possible time.

In the world of speculative fiction… Your favorite authors… Have selected best new voices of the year.

Un gruppo di viaggiatori che, per un complesso di circostanze diverse, hanno perso la parola si ritrovano in un castello. L'unico mezzo che hanno per comunicare è rappresentato da un mazzo di tarocchi. Un romanzo affascinante composto da tante storie intrecciate.

Already compared to Hemingway and Murakami, Shuang Xuetao is one of the most highly celebrated young Chinese writers—his English-language debut collects three dazzling novellas of Northeast China, mixing realism, mysticism, and noir. An enterprising inventor dreams of escaping his drab surroundings in a flying machine. A criminal, trapped beneath a frozen lake, transforms into a giant fish. A strange girl pledges to ignite a field of sorghum stalks.

The Unlikely Match This is a cozy fantasy novella from the land of Frostoria. When Crystal, a delicate snowflake, is swept away by the Ice Queen’s magic to the human realm, she finds herself in the unlikeliest of places: the arms of Alex, a handsome and charming human. As their whirlwind romance blossoms, Crystal must choose between her icy homeland of Frostoria and the warmth of Alex's love.

Two dark pasts. One bond beyond their control. For a month, Coal has tried to stay away from the beautiful cadet who makes him feel things he shouldn’t, each day of separation spiraling him deeper into worsening nightmares. Already on edge, it takes Coal one split second to plunge into violence - and find himself in shackles once more.

A 20-something advertising executive receives a postcard from a friend and casually appropriates the image for an insurance company's advertisement. What he doesn't realise is that included in the pastoral scene is a mutant sheep with a star on its back, and in using this photo he has unwittingly captured the attention of a man in black who offers a menacing ultimatum: find the sheep or face dire consequences. Thus begins a surreal and elaborate quest that takes our hero from the urban haunts of Tokyo to the remote and snowy mountains of northern Japan.

This collection of eight stories paints a vivid image of people who don't do what you might expect them to living on the fringes in America. Not stories of triumph over adversity but something completely other. Described in language that is brilliantly sardonic, Woods' characters return repeatedly to places where they don't belong - often the places where they were born. In the background are the endless American wars and occupations and too many early deaths of friends and family. This is fiction that is fresh and of the moment, even as it is timeless.

Un placido lago di montagna ha un abitante misterioso, un essere solitario che conduce la sua esistenza in una caverna sottomarina. Da sotto la superficie dell'acqua, senza mai farsi vedere, osserva il mondo esterno, ne invidia i colori sgargianti, e guarda con curiosità e paura a quegli esseri così diversi da lui che animano le rive del lago. Può sentire le vibrazioni dei loro sentimenti, ma ha troppa paura per mostrarsi. Quando arriva sul pontile una ragazza speciale, dai capelli rossi e lo sguardo triste, tutto cambia. Le sue vibrazioni sono diverse da quelle di tutti gli altri.

In this poignant tale of transitions, Chris moves to New York and his path soon intertwines with that of Jane’s, a young woman looking for a missing cat. The Reasons We Had to Meet is a magical story that weaves itself around themes of mortality, affliction, and the profound impact of lending a helping hand.

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.

Seamlessly shifting between the speculative and the blindingly real, balancing the bizarre with the subtle brutality of the mundane, A Manual for How to Love Us is a tender portrait of women trying their best to survive, love, and find genuine meaning in the aftermath of loss. In these unconventional and unpredictably connected stories, Erin Slaughter shatters the stereotype of the soft-spoken, sorrowful woman in distress, queering the domestic and honoring the feral in all of us.