Showing titles in Short Stories

Curated by the author, Thrilled to Death is the definitive entry point for both established fans and new listeners alike. These selected stories collect a bold, playful, and eclectic ensemble of Tillman's Borgesian fictions that span decades and traverse themes of sex, death, memory, and anxiety. With argumentative wit, Tillman's meditations and reflections on art, politics, and culture are animated by deliciously paradoxical characters who desire and fret in turn, and who are imbued with searing intelligence and dolorous ambivalence.

Ring Around the Sun is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the March 1940 issue of Future Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov . "Ring Around the Sun" was the fifth story Asimov wrote, and also the fifth to be published.

This audiobook is based on literature that was written in a past cultural or historical context, and includes language and depictions of people or cultures that are considered offensive to listeners. Please keep this in mind when deciding if, how and when you’ll listen. The third book in Agatha Christie's famous detective series takes listeners on an exciting journey through a collection of Poirot's trickiest cases. From finding the Prime Minister to solving a bank robbery, these 11 cases illustrate why Poirot is still considered one of the greatest literary detectives of all time.

A rugged, bearded mechanic becomes my knight in shining armor. Traveling three hours to make my twin daughter's Christmas come true. I never expected him. We are the complete opposites and he infuriates me like no one else. Love was never on the cards for me. A blizzard holds up my plans and I end up staying the night with him. Everything I never thought I wanted. I thought being stranded at Christmas was the only surprise I was in for. How wrong was I?

From the master of crime fiction comes an unexpectedly whimsical short story about this San Diego surfer whose life plan is working perfectly until he meets a wealthy woman at an art gallery opening (the hors d’oeuvres), falls in love, and then has to masquerade as an upstanding member of society.

An alien race is forced to leave their planet in search of a new home. The alien explorers do not travel in a ship but, interestingly enough, they travel as a swarm through space. When they arrive on our planet, they divide into two swarms, one pursuing a search in outer space for another suitable planet while the swarm remaining here searches for intelligent life. This of course was eons ago. They eventually find what they believe is a suitable species, with an interesting outcome.

Cassie Franklin trips over nothing on perfectly flat surfaces every day, and she cannot seem to be able to simultaneously speak and look into her audience's eyes. Cassandra Frank is the ultimate tease; her words have aroused, intrigued and captured the heart of thousands...and somehow, they are the same person. Hiding the fact that she writes erotica isn't much of a challenge - no one would ever think that a plain, boring little accountant like Cassie could so much as read anything so scandalous...but one day, she makes a huge mistake.

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?

It had been a typical New Year's Eve party. But as midnight approaches, Mr. Satterthwaite - a keen observer of human nature - senses that the real drama of the evening is yet to unfold. And so it proves when a mysterious stranger knocks on the door. Who is this Mr. Quin? Mr. Satterthwaite's new friend is an enigma. He seems to appear and disappear almost like a trick of the light. In fact, the only consistent thing about him is that his presence is always an omen - sometimes good, but sometimes deadly....

Jack Roberts is back from the Sudan and with a crippling wound, no longer an active soldier. When he is sent to Iran to help find oil for British battleships he has to leave home once more. This time he leaves a son who is about to embark on a military career too. The Roberts family is soon going to war again.

Every novella by Ursula K. Le Guin, an icon in American literature, collected for the first time - and introduced by the legendary author - in one breathtaking volume. Ursula K. Le Guin has won multiple prizes and accolades, from the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters to the Newbery Honor, Nebula, Hugo, World Fantasy, and PEN/Malamud awards. She has had her work collected over the years but never as a complete retrospective of her longer works.

Author Peter Ackroyd has won the Somerset Maugham Award, the Whitbread Novel of the Year, and the Guardian Fiction Prize, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Based on Geoffrey Chaucer’s immortal work, this retelling of The Canterbury Tales follows a party of travelers as they tell stories amongst themselves about love and chivalry, saints and legends, travel and adventure. Through allegory, satire, and humor, the tales help pass the time during their journey.

Brace yourself for bone-chilling fear, the haunting horror collection you'll be too afraid to read at night is finally here. In Haunted Horrors, author Silas Toombs unleashes ten terrifying tales of the supernatural, the disturbed, and the downright depraved that will make you second guess leaving your bedroom lights off ever again. From the malicious urban legend of Purple Aki who stalks young weightlifters leaving the gym alone, to Sideways Bob and the deadly secrets of his unassuming roadside bridge where he's known to have lived his entire life, no chapter is safe from the nightmares ...

If you like faith-based stories that offer insight and perspective on life's most challenging trials, then this novella is for you. A.J. Maxwell lives a quiet life in Michigan with his parents. In other words, he is a typical high school senior living a typical teen’s life. Suddenly, A.J.'s life is flipped upside down. Just like Job in the Bible's Old Testament, A.J. is faced with life's harshest battles -- physically, emotionally and spiritually. A.J.'s faith is put to the test through his struggles. How will adversity change him? And how will it impact his relationship with God? Chris's...

When sparks fly between a firefighter and her mechanic, some rules are worth breaking... Small-town mechanic. Self-taught genius. That's what they see when they look at me. The guy from the wrong side of the tracks who fixes their precious trucks. What they don't see? How hard it is to keep my distance from our newest firefighter. Evie Phoenix. The department's rising star with something to prove. Smart. Determined. Completely off-limits. And the only woman who's ever looked past my grease-stained hands to see me. I fought to be the first female firefighter in the county. Trained harder, ...

What’s hotter than a firefighter who knows how to take control—at work, at play, and in the bedroom? Jake Martinez is the kind of man who lives to protect, serve, and leave a trail of smirking hearts behind. He’s sexy, cocky, and always the center of attention. But underneath the charm? He’s loyal, fierce, and more than ready to drop everything for the woman who matters. Savannah Thompson is about to find out what it’s like to have a man show up—not just for a hookup, but for the fight of your life. This standalone, high-heat novella delivers everything readers crave in ...

This short story is a companion piece to The Chaos Machine. However, it was written such that it may be read separately and contains only brief references to the novel solely to provide a minimal background for the story. It is a tale about Leonardo da Vinci and his encounter with a cave in his childhood. It was an experience that changed his life forever. The Chaos Machine is the first book of The Chaos Trilogy. It was originally intended to be a stand-alone novel, but (optionally) continues with Second Contact. The third book, Mankind 2.0, bridges the first two books and ties everything ...

She married for money. She plotted for more. But the insurance policy had other ideas... Chantel Fletcher’s specialty is husbands. Her problem is cash. When her third husband turns out to be worth $2.5 million dead, she makes the leap from trophy wife to cold-blooded conspirator. With a mountain of debt and a dangerous past catching up to her, Chantel enlists her teenage daughter and a dim-witted ex-con to help pull the trigger on the perfect murder. But this is St. Isidore—a town that chews up second chances and spits out twisted endings. And when the cops come knocking, Chantel ...

From the charming, slow-paced streets of Savannah, Georgia, to the relentless hustle of New York City, Dr. Danver’s journey is anything but ordinary. Leaving his small-town roots behind, he steps into the chaotic world of one of New York’s busiest hospitals, where life as a surgeon is as unpredictable as the city itself. Over three decades, Dr. Danver has encountered countless jaw-dropping, hilarious, and downright shocking cases—most involving the removal of objects from places they were never meant to be. From rogue sex toys, drugs, and foodstuffs to bizarre household items stuck in...

“Short, but spicy and sweet, ‘Mountain Man Pierce’ will deliver the warm fuzzies, and … other … feels you crave.” -ARC reviewer Welcome to Ashwood, New Hampshire, where the high strung new girl and the local player are a match made in the mountains. Pierce Ashwood is lonely. Sure, I have my friends but I’ve run the well dry in the love department, never more than a night or two. Until Hensley moves in. The girl next door is exactly who I should not be falling for; snarky, unintentionally sexy and way too close by if things don’t work out. One night is all I have on my mind. ...