Showing titles in Short Stories

Horror novelist Nick Steen (whose imagination has escaped from a portal to another dimension situated within his own brain following ill-advised dabblings with a cursed typewriter) is haunted by two murdering men-monkeys intent on peeling their victims apart like massive human bananas (whose names are Throttle and Bribes, hence the title). Can Nick protect two young siblings (whose names he can't remember) plus erstwhile editor Roz Bloom from the aforementioned murdering men-monkeys before it's too late?

The first complete collection of A. A. Milne’s short fiction for grown-ups, including several newly discovered stories. He paints memorable scenes – from a children’s birthday party, to an accidental encounter with murder, and a case of blackmail – often with an unexpected twist. But he also deals in poignancy, from the girl who pulls the wool over her boyfriend’s eyes, to a first dance and first disappointment or family reunion and domestic dissonance.

A tourist becomes prey in this surprising journey into the secrets of a small town.

Sixteen more charming animal stories, read by everyone's favourite zookeeper. The tales are: 1. Winkle, the Zoo Cat, is lost and found. 2. Nibble, the Squirrel, has his revenge. 3. The arrival of Otto, the German Giraffe. 4. Coconut, the Orang-Utan, has fun with the lawn. 5. Otto and Georgina...

Weaving tales of the everyday world transformed into an unrecognizable place, where reason no longer exists and logic ceases to explain the workings of the universe, Clive Barker provides the stuff of nightmares in packages too tantalizing to resist. This first volume contains the short stories : "The Book of Blood," "The Midnight Meat Train," "The Yattering and Jack," "Sex, Death, and Starshine," and "In the Hills, the Cities,"

“I was sick, sick unto death with that long agony,” begins one of the most famous tales from the master of the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe. Through the tortures of the Spanish Inquisition, we follow the straying mind of the unnamed prisoner in his quest for hope in a world of darkness and despair. This episode skyrocketed The Classic Tales Podcast to number 3 on iTunes’ Top 100 Podcasts chart.

Brought to you by Penguin. This Penguin Classic is performed by Andrew Scott, star of Sherlock, Fleabag and Black Mirror, also known for his on-stage roles in Present Laughter and Hamlet. This definitive recording includes an Introduction by Terence Brown. Joyce's first major work, written when...

Who would suspect that the same mind that created the most famous literary detective of all time also took on the eternally popular genre of vampires? Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a contemporary of Bram Stoker, gave us some fascinating works of vampire fiction. From the bloodsucking plant in "The American's Tale" to the bloodsucking wife in "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire," he reveled in the horror created by creatures who survived on the blood of men and women.

Anna thought she’d found The One – until he broke off their engagement exactly a year before their wedding day. Hoping new surroundings will do her the world of good, she moves in to a place of her own on the edge of gorgeous Wildflower Park. With the help and friendship of her neighbour Sophie, Anna quickly settles in and pledges to focus on her career, but a handsome new colleague seems determined to thwart her attempts at every turn. And when she receives a text from a mystery man, it looks as though an unlikely romance is on the horizon....

Though best known for his classic novel of Edwardian childhood The Go-Between, L. P. Hartley was also a master of supernatural and macabre fiction, the best of which is collected in The Travelling Grave and Other Stories. This volume demonstrates Hartley's versatility, ranging from traditional ghost stories like "Feet Foremost" and "The Cotillon" to the wonderfully black humor of the horror masterpieces "The Travelling Grave" and "The Killing Bottle". Originally published in 1948 and long out of print, this collection features 12 of Hartley's best tales.

Benedict Cumberbatch reads five stories featuring the famous vegetarian railway detective, Thorpe Hazell, as heard on BBC Radio 4. In The Affair of the German Dispatch-Box, Hazell hatches a daring plan to retrieve a highly sensitive government document before it reaches the German Ambassador. In...

Don’t miss the next Will Trent thriller, This Is Why We Lied, coming this August! The third book in Karin Slaughter’s acclaimed Grant County Series. “[A] page-turner . . . Slaughter’s plot has more twists than a Slinky factory and the characters’ relationships are sharply drawn.”...

Fifteen highly original and darkly unsettling supernatural stories, performed by some of Britain's finest actresses 'This is what we know about The Hotel. It is bigger on the inside than on the outside. Do not go into Room 63. Doors and windows do not stay in the same places. The Hotel listens...

The Collected Works of Philip K. Dick is a collection of 11 science fiction stories by Philip K. Dick.

Here, collected in one volume and chosen by the author himself, are favorites such as "What Kind of Day Did You Have?", "Leaving the Yellow House", and a previously uncollected piece, "By the St. Lawrence". With his larger-than-life characters, irony, wisdom, and unique humor, Bellow presents a sharp, rich, and funny world that is infinitely surprising. With a preface by Janice Bellow and an introduction by James Wood, this is a collection to treasure for longtime Saul Bellow fans and an excellent introduction for new listeners.

In the vibrant world of Gaycity, comic strip illustrator Andrew Gilman finds himself immersed in the whimsical adventures of his characters, especially the charming campground owner, Bradley Bream. As their playful banter evolves into a passionate romance, Andrew grapples with an enticing dilemma: can he bring Bradley into his real world, or will he embrace the magic of their connection in Gaycity?

England is a maritime nation. Our folklore and history is peppered with tall tales of the high seas: mysteries of the great ocean, the unknown world beneath the surface of the salt sea, and the liminal coast where the sea-gods meet our lives on the land. Here is a collection of traditional folk tales from the coasts and seas of England. Lisa Schneidau retells the old stories with a contemporary twist: dragons and monsters, sailor heroes and ghost ships, mermaids and shapeshifters.

Just when things have finally cooled down for 88-year-old Maud after the disturbing discovery of a dead body in her apartment in Gothenburg, a couple of detectives return to her doorstep. Though Maud dodges their questions with the skill of an Olympic gymnast a fifth of her age, she wonders if suspicion has fallen on her, little old lady that she is. The truth is, ever since Maud was a girl, death has seemed to follow her....

A brilliantly twisty, 80-page novella from the No. 1 bestselling author of the Logan McRae series. Including an extract from his new Logan novel, THE MISSING AND THE DEAD. It’s the night of the big Referendum, and all Acting Detective Inspector Logan McRae has to do is find a missing ‘No’...

In a remote part of 19th-century Afghanistan, two British adventurers pursue their ambition to rule an empire. Using betrayal, threats, and guns, they win the respect of a primitive tribe and become worshipped as gods until one day they draw blood, and the game is up. "The Man Who Would Be King" is an action-packed tale about the pitfalls of colonialism and the temptations and evils of power.