Showing results for "Humans" in Anthologies & Short Stories

Not all monsters are fantasy. Some are very real, and they walk among us. They're our friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers. They're the people we're supposed to trust...and they know it. Contained within this anthology are 35 never-before-published works by supremely talented authors and best-selling novelists. Brace yourself for the unexpected and unimaginable horror of...human monsters.

An old man wakes inside his comatose, completely nonresponsive body. According to his insurance company, in order to return to his life and family, he must pass a test. As if coming out of a coma weren’t enough of a challenge, our patient must also pass the Turing test, i.e., prove he’s human to an AI resuscitation machine. This satirical but heartfelt tale reminiscent of Kurt Vonnegut and Ted Chiang asks the question: Can a person articulate the deepest truths he knows to be real?

From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Storyland and Wild, comes a sweeping new legendary of miracles, magic, human frailty and heroic strength. Illustrated with over thirty original paper cutouts by the author. 'Jeffs writes beautifully, erring just on the right side of florid, and her...

From the dog who interviews potential owners to the cat who writes Yelp reviews about her human, this hilarious and heartwarming flash fiction collection celebrates the glorious mess of life with adopted pets. Whether it’s a puppy submitting a resume ("Skills: Professional Cuddler, Amateur Sock Thief") or a shelter cat staging a protest for better treats, these 100 bite-sized stories are packed with love, laughter, and heart-tugging surprises—plus one powerful truth: adopting a pet might just be the best decision you ever make (even if they chew the evidence).

In modern-day Earth, Yoojin Kim thinks she is just a normal Korean-American woman—until her dormant supernatural abilities suddenly ignite. Her awakening sends a power signature straight into the deep recesses of space. Believing she is an entity without feelings, a law enforcement faction known as Caesar deploys their elite Orion Team to hunt her down. But when the Orions corner their target, they don't find a monster. Instead, they discover a staggering secret about Yoojin that turns the hunters into the hunted.

Myths provide the keys to truly grasping the ways that principles, rituals, codes, and taboos are woven into the fabric of a particular society or civilization. It's through myths that we can answer these and other fundamental questions: How was the universe created, and why? What is the purpose of evil? Why is society organized the way it is? How did natural features like rivers, mountains, and oceans emerge?This entertaining and illuminating course plunges you into the world's greatest myths.

It is said that dreams are harmless, that they are nothing more than the meaningless fancies of an unconscious mind. It’s only a dream. It’s only a dream. It’s only a dream. This, of course, is something we tell ourselves when we wake up screaming in the dead of night. We repeat the mantra in order to bring ourselves back to reality, in order to remind ourselves that there is nothing to fear.

Before he was Old-timer, he was Craig Emilson, a young doctor, sucked into military service at the outbreak of World War III. Enlisting to become a Special Forces suborbital paratrooper, Craig is selected to take part in the most important mission in American military history - a sortie into enemy territory to eliminate the world's first strong Artificial Intelligence. The mission is only the beginning of Craig's story, and for the story of humanity as well, as they accelerate towards a world that is post-human.

Before he was Oldtimer, he was Craig Emilson, a young doctor,sucked into military service at the outbreak of World War III. Enlisting to become a Special Forces suborbital paratrooper, Craig is selected to take part in the most important mission in American military history, a sortie into enemy territory to eliminate the world's first strong artificial intelligence.

Step one: Perfect the smile. Step two: Master the routine. Step three: Never let them see what’s underneath. Through this series of haunting tales, Gerden Ibrahim guides us into a realm where beautiful surfaces hide monstrous depths. I was the star of Dr. Warly’s adventure club: a children’s show that doesn’t exist. My sister disappeared five years ago, but last night she knocked on our door. Never leave a chair empty in your bedroom at night. You don’t want to know who might take a seat while you sleep. I just got a job at a lamp store. Turns out we don’t actually sell lamps…

An undocumented woman answers a job posting only to find herself held hostage, a group of outcasts obsess over boys drowned while surfing, and an unhappy couple finds themselves trapped in a terrifying maze. With scalpel-like precision, Ampuero considers the price paid by those on the margins so that the elite might lounge comfortably, considering themselves safe in their homes.

The Human Moments Collection brings together the complete James Ellery trilogy— Turning Points, Beautiful Cracks, and Brief Encounters—in one definitive volume. Thirty-six stories about the moments that redirect us, the failures that reveal us, and the connections that sustain us. Three books. One complete portrait of what it means to be human in the unremarkable, quietly astonishing texture of everyday life.

In the not-too-distant future, UNIT JHEU198, a Safety and Street ROBO, has malfunctioned. It has attacked an innocent man. This shouldn’t be possible. No one was truly harmed, and no real blood was spilled, but still, Amir has the board breathing down his neck for answers.

It was supposed to be a simple rescue mission: secure the doctor and exfil to the surface. A task that Nade Wilhelm and Pip Damon of A.L.P.H.A Team could be forgiven for considering beneath them. But there are things thriving in the underground facility that would have been better off undiscovered.

The Ultimate Classics Collection: Volume Four is the fourth instalment of our wide-ranging classic collections. Volume Four features 12 timeless works that largely focuses on the greats of American and British literature, with novels from Charles Dickens, Edith Wharton, Thomas Hardy, Victor Hugo, and others. Read by a cast of incredible narrators including Miranda Raison, Pearl Mackie, Adam Sims, David Rintoul, and more, this is a chance to expand your listening with some of the greatest authors of all time.

Recipe? Two parts evil, one part dark, fill the rest with fear. Add a dash of sarcasm and serve it with a beer! A collection of horror stories from the author of Demon and Other Inconveniences. Not a cook book.

Dark, moving and eccentric, GENTLEMAN'S RELISH is Patrick Gale's second collection of subversive and exhilarating short stories 'The short story form suits Gale's ability to zoom in on the smallest nuances of a relationship' Kate Saunders, The Times A lonely prison governor's wife develops a...

The future should have been perfect. Microscopic robots known as nans could repair any damage to your body, keep you young by resetting your cellular clocks, and allow you to download upgrades like intelligence, muscle strength, and eyesight. You were supposed to be able to have anything you wanted with a simple thought, to be able to fly without the aid of a machine, to be able to live forever. But when a small group of five terraformers working on Venus return to Earth, they discover that every other human in the solar system has been gruesomely murdered.

Award-winning comedian Andrew Heaton brings wit and warmth to his vision of humanity, the supernatural, and bureaucrats in his debut short story collection. Learn the pitfalls of settling resurrected Neanderthals in Detroit. Explore the work-life balance of a professional who assumes other people’s hangovers. Or the travails of a State Department diplomat posted to a planet with relentless boredom and allergies. Discover the challenges time-travel regulators face when everyone tries to kill Hitler.

Light, Laugh, and Human Folly is a collection of novellas centered around anti-heroes living in a society that makes a straight road to success impossible. Alexander Belyaev’s reality-set stories with a touch of science fiction are chillingly close to home. They present the listener with scenarios that are very plausible and easy to imagine witnessing in today’s world. Instead of introducing a traditional hero, who comes and saves the world, Belyaev centers his narrative around individuals who are not only far from heroic but are decidedly unlikable at times.