Modern Short Stories

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride… Shelby: It’s my 30th birthday, not that anyone seems to remember. Instead, everyone is focused on my brother Sam’s wedding. I’m happy for him, but still. This will be the sixteenth time I’ll be a bridesmaid since my college graduation, but at least this time I get to be maid of honor. Only that means I have to walk down the aisle with him. Jagger, my brother’s best friend and my lifelong crush. If that isn’t bad enough, he’s brought his model girlfriend. It seems I can’t win. Bringing my best friend, Chip, seems like a good idea until he...

The Forgotten Warnings: Lessons We Ignored A Myth-Inspired Horror Anthology They told us not to stray from the path. Not to speak certain names. Not to touch what was buried. We didn’t listen. In this haunting collection of first-person horror stories, The Forgotten Warnings reimagines ancient myths, folklore, and cautionary tales through the eyes of those who ignored them—and suffered the consequences. Each story is a confession from the edge of madness: a streamer haunted by his own reflection, a researcher seduced by sentient code, a wanderer who finds forbidden fruit beneath the ...

Gripping and compassionate, Land of Big Numbers traces the journeys of the diverse and legion Chinese people, their history, their government, and how all of that has tumbled—messily, violently, but still beautifully—into the present. Cutting between clear-eyed realism and tongue-in-cheek magical realism, Chen’s stories coalesce into a portrait of a people striving for openings where mobility is limited.

Previously published as "The Bloody Slipper" by Arla Jones. Get ready to shift gears into a magical world! When a mysterious sleeping curse hits Prince Charming's father's castle, the enchanted affliction spreads far beyond the medieval walls. Modern-day household items from coffee makers to cars lie in slumber, their engines dead, victims of the witch's dark magic. Prince Charming must navigate this strange new world, teaming up with a mystical beast, a fiercely loyal band of dwarfs, and a pinch of magical fairy dust. Together, they embark on a heart-pumping quest to outsmart the wicked ...

Words of a Feather is a stunning collection of Short Stories, Poems and Sketches from author, Robert E. Kearns. There's something inside for every taste, and Words of a Feather comes packed with hours of reading pleasure. Replete with entertainment, there is sure to be laughs, tears, spills and thrills. Satisfying pleasures of the mind, Words of a Feather is a book you'll want to read again and again.

I.L. Peretz, the acknowledged "Father of Yiddish Literature", captured the essence of Eastern European Jewish life. He wrote of the magical quality of kindness, and the bitter fruits of blind faith.

Seizing the Tiger It’s 1996 and Alex the Pirate hates having his smuggled goods ripped off on the high seas. Colonel Le, another pirate, got the drop on him and he is vastly outgunned in his wooden-hulled tongkang in the middle of the Gulf of Thailand. Le smirks as he steals Alex’s valuable cargo and powers away to leave Alex and crew drifting on their damaged craft at sea. Alex and his friend Diego know that vengeance is a dish best served cold. Le will pay for his treachery—the hard way. And maybe they will seize the cutthroat’s prize boat—the one they call the Tiger. The first ...

Quantum Shadows When cutting-edge quantum computing research at UC Berkeley becomes the target of a high-stakes espionage operation, CIA Spymaster Corey Pearson and his elite team are called in to stop a looming disaster. A revolutionary encryption algorithm, capable of rendering the world’s most sensitive communications unbreakable, is at risk of falling into the hands of Russian intelligence. Embedded in the campus, Corey, Ana Ramirez, and Brad Hawkins unravel a web of deceit where ambitious academics, foreign operatives, and betrayal collide. With time running out, the team must ...

13 Acorns is the debut work of up-and-coming American author G. Edward Martin. It is composed of twelve original short stories written in multiple genres beneath the umbrella of philosophical fiction. Each unique story addresses one central idea or moral question, with each story being akin to a single acorn—something small or simple with the potential to grow enormous. The False Treeing Hound- Daniel, a lost young man, abandons everything and sets out on a road-trip headed west.

After unexpectedly coming home to find a “Dear John” letter from his girlfriend, Daniel feels the calling for a fresh start—packing all his belongings in the car and taking a road trip out west hoping to rediscover what is essential to life. When his car breaks down in the mountains of Wyoming, he walks for several miles in search of assistance. After stopping at the first home he passes, he meets an old hunting guide and dog trainer named Kurt, who generously welcomes him in and offers to let him stay until the mechanic shop reopens after the weekend.

This is a story from the Canterbury Tales I: Modern Verse Translation collection. Chaucer's greatest work, written towards the end of the fourteenth century, paints a brilliant picture of medieval life, society and values. The stories range from the romantic, courtly idealism of "The Knight's Tale" to the joyous bawdy of the Miller's; all are told with a freshness and vigor in this modern verse translation that make them a delight to hear.

Nikki is tired of being single, childless, and unhappy. At thirty-five, she ready to start a family, and offers her best friend a chance to be her baby daddy. Her plan goes according to plan, however, what she didn’t expect was to catch feelings for him… The Proposal is a steamy BWWM interracial romance. This short story is 4,400 words and is for mature readers only.

An eclectic compendium of the finest short fiction of the last 150 years, featuring works by Paul Theroux, Joseph Conrad, James Ellroy, Ambrose Bierce, Charlotte Perkins Gillman, Aldous Huxley, Philip Roth, and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Unfiltered True Short Stories from the Modern Business Are you tired of wading through corporate self-help books filled with recycled advice and worn-out clichés? Cubicles, Coffee, and Corporate Candy shatters the mold, delivering an unapologetically raw look into the real stories that define today's corporate world.Step Behind the Cubicle Curtain Author Mohamad Chahine compiles a riveting collection of 90 authentic short stories, each one a window into the unfiltered realities of modern business life. These aren't hypothetical scenarios or overblown success tales—they're genuine ...

Ashely Williams is down on her luck. Swimming in debt, her baby daddy won’t pay child support, and broke, her life wasn’t going anywhere. It wasn’t until she meets a sexy Irish man on Saint Patrick’s Day, when her life turns around. Luck of the Irish is a steamy interracial BWWM romance. This short story of 4,400 words is for mature readers only.

After a failed petition to change his career, Bill, the local pottery maker and town drunk, is coerced by his neighbors and king to join an expedition to hunt down and slay a mighty dragon that plagues their village.

19 short stories from the deep end. (Contains some salty language and subject matter--reader discretion advised.)

Tom Hallman Jr. has won every national feature writing award in the business, including the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing. A master storyteller, he is an elegant writer with a deeply perceptive heart. Tom has the uncanny ability to see the profound in the everyday. He will make you see it, too, in ways that will remind you of what’s really important in life. This is the second collection of Hallman’s stories from The Oregonian. The first, Dispatches From 1320, was published in 2015

During the day when there is a break in the day’s labor or in the evenings when the sunlight is waning, stories are told from Texas porches. Although these are usually short stories, they can be long, and thus continued at the next porch sitting. They contain humor, sadness, suspense, mystery, philosophy, and instruction about the human condition and, in general, the journey of living. The storytellers find the rhythm of life for themselves, and the listeners hear valuable lessons and truth. Tales from the Texas Timberlands, Volume 1 celebrates this storytelling about East Texans with ...

Bianca Taylor has one goal. Make it to the pros. She works night and day for that dream. Every morning she wakes up early to shoot the basketball in the gym. Every morning was the same until Seth Williams walked in the gym. The sexy shooting guard, captured her attention and now she can’t keep her hands off him. March Madness is a steamy sports BWWM romance. This interracial short story is 3,400 words long and is for mature readers only.