Christmas Urban Fiction

Christmas in Winterspell means ice skating, hot cocoa by the barrel, and frosted gingerbread houses. I was almost looking forward to it. The merriment screeches to a halt when two elves show up, claiming to have been sent by Santa himself, on a mission to track down an ancient grimoire. A grimoire with the power of Christmas itself woven through the pages. Without it, Christmas isn't happening, and Santa himself is in grave danger. Could Winterspell hold the key to saving Christmas?

Aurora Hart hates everything Christmas, but how could she turn down the opportunity to serve one year of probation in Holiday Haven versus a full sentence for her crimes? Saddled with a talking squirrel roommate, Aurora is doing her best to keep a low profile as she bides her time. Everything is going fine...until Santa's sleigh gets stolen.

That there is darkness at the heart of the Yuletide season should not surprise. Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol is filled with scenes that are unsettling. The hideous children - Want and Ignorance - beneath the robe of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. In the finest versions of this story, the best parts are the terrifying parts. Best-selling author and editor Christopher Golden shares his love for Christmas horror stories with this anthology of all-new short fiction from some of the most talented and original writers of horror today.

It is 1890, and in the days before Christmas, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson are visited at Baker Street by a new client. Eve Allerthorpe, eldest daughter of a grand but somewhat eccentric Yorkshire-based dynasty, is greatly distressed, as she believes she is being haunted by a demonic Christmas spirit. Her late mother told her terrifying tales of the sinister Black Thurrick, and Eve is sure that she has seen the creature from her bedroom window. What is more, she has begun to receive mysterious parcels of birch twigs, the Black Thurrick’s calling card.

Christmas is coming to Beechwood Harbor, but will the manor residents be ready for his magical visit? With mischief and mystery at every turn, Holly and friends have to rally to save Christmas before it's too late! A Very Beechwood Christmas includes four mini mysteries set around a wild and magical Christmas when the real Santa Claus comes to town!

Thirty-year-old Zoey Jones lost her mother and her holidays hasn’t been the same since. Which is why she hated to spend the holidays alone. She busied herself into her work. Her outreach program was one of the best programs in the state. When she needed a new sponsor that would help put another program on the map, she fished around for one. She never thought it would be her ex, Ahmad. Being around one another they had no choice but to talk about the past. Zoey knew the people in her life were meant to be there, but what happens when Ahmad gravitates his way back toward her and eventually ...

Majesty Satiana believes the world is hers for the taking, literally. After getting sucked dry by her loser boyfriend Jessup, Majesty decides to make a run back to the family who disowned her. A mean father and a passive-aggressive mother make for a disaster when it comes to Holiday cheer. The strained relationship pushed Majesty to make a decision that gets her into a predicament she didn't expect with somebody she never imagined. Bali Castillio is what some would consider a scrooge but he is misunderstood. Being alone every year for the holidays kind of has that effect on him. After ...

A Long-Awaited Holiday Spin-Off From Bestselling Author, Jade Jones Cameron and Jude host a festive Christmas party, hoping to bring friends and family together. The celebration takes an unexpected turn when mysterious masked guests arrive, revealing intimate knowledge about Cameron’s past. As the night unfolds, hidden agendas surface, with old acquaintances adding tension to the atmosphere. Meanwhile, Justin, fresh from prison, seeks redemption in the eyes of his wife’s skeptical father, Soul. “A Christmas with Cameron” navigates a tapestry of secrets, revelations, and personal ...

But Love Don't Change... Or does it? Those were the words Bentley Powers were battling with on an everyday basis. Bentley, being a young, thugging, trap n$gga, prided himself as being a family man to his girlfriend, Joy Cooper of eight years, and his twin daughters. Always down to get money by any means was law to Bentley, but when he finds himself in a difficult situation, he's determined to get out of it. Things in his life start to crumble, and an unexpected move to another state shakes his world up. Before long, feelings and emotions he tried to suppress come rushing back. Freedom ...

What won’t a mother do to provide for her child? That’s the loaded question. Christmas is here, and with that comes the added stress of trying to provide a very merry Christmas, while at the same time, the money is running low and the bills are running high. When it comes to 32-year-old, single mom Pressure, there’s no levels she wouldn’t stop to make sure her 15-year-old son Jay’ceon has everything he needs. The money she’s making working as a dancer at Titanium isn’t cutting it, neither is her salary working at the law firm as a file clerk. One night, Pressure is ...

Don “Scarface” Remington’s name rings bells in the streets of Queen’s Grove. He and his cousin, Ace, are known for putting fear in the hearts of some of the city’s toughest gangsters. Scarface’s “bar none, fear none” attitude is quickly put to the test when the one who owns his heart is ready to walk out of his life for good. Race around the city for the holidays as Scarface holds no punches to get his girl, Tiffany Logan, back in his arms for Christmas. Will Tiff let Face back into her life again? Or will their love story end in a romantic tragedy? Find out if Tiffany is ...

It's Christmas in Half-Moon Hollow and newly turned vampire Iris Scanlon-Calix wants to make Gigi's first visit home from college as normal and special as possible. It's taken months for Iris to work up the nerve to spend time around her baby sister after her vampire transition, so she enlists help from Jane Jameson and Company to keep her blood-thirst under control and assure Gigi's safety. Gigi, on the other hand, has problems of her own, including the demise of her relationship with high school sweetheart, Ben, and a looming job interview with Ophelia Lambert, the scariest potential employer in the Hollow.

In this short novelette, a little girl hires Jonathan to get rid of a ghost that haunts her family every Christmas. The hauntings have escalated from sightings to full possession. It should be an open-and-shut exorcism, but when Jonathan discovers the truth, it's more than he bargained for....

Despite the hand that life has dealt her, Aurora Styles is determined to make something out of herself and provide a good life for her son. She has everything she needs in life or so she thinks. A chance meeting with a handsome gentleman proves her wrong. On the outside, Madden “Snow” Love has everything a man could ask for. On the inside, however, the money, fame, and fortune do not fill the void he can’t shake. After meeting Aurora, he wonders if she is what he needs. What happens when Madden and Aurora meet? Is she too self sufficient to allow Madden to love her? Will Madden be ...

After losing their parents on Christmas Day, twin siblings Crimson and A'Miracle, lives took them in two different directions. A'Miracle set out to be one of the top defense attorneys of Chicago while Crimson ended up on the opposite end. Crimson's addiction to cocaine has everyone around him fighting for a new life for him but in his eyes, why fix what's not broken? Finding out some unexpected news is all he needs to turn his life around but is it enough to make him change forever? Fighting addictions is hard and it's even harder when someone you love is on the other end. Will these two ...

Though she's the vampire queen, Betsy Taylor is much more like a princess. In MaryJanice Davidson's novels, this high-maintenance monarch is finally coming to terms with her new status.

From best-selling author Nalini Singh comes "Christmas in the Kitchen," a must-listen Psy-Changeling short story that features several members of the DarkRiver leopard pack, including two sentinels.

Someone is trying to ruin Christmas. Two of the town’s annual traditions have gone sideways so far. Now it’s starting to get personal for Zara Riddle, a witch who’s just trying to enjoy the season with her family. In a small town full of supernaturals, it’s going to be tricky to figure out who or what has been causing such a calamity. Zara has a list of suspects in mind, and the one at the top of the list happens to live under her own roof. Can the Riddle family’s first Christmas in Wisteria be saved?

Lumi Northrop is a powerful guardian of the north - the North Star Reindeer Sanctuary, that is. When Rudolph vanishes the week before Christmas, Lumi is thrust from the peace and quiet of her family's farm, into the magical town of Holiday Haven to help find him. Lumi quickly discovers that Rudolph isn't the only local celebrity who's gone missing. Jack Frost is also MIA, just days before his coronation as the next Frost King.

Cendrine West is looking forward to a cozy Christmas Eve dinner when a blizzard blows in, bringing with it a flurry of unexpected guests. But tipsy witches and mischievous magic spell a recipe for disaster, especially when a guest turns up dead. Cen’s sleuthing exposes a Santa-size sack of trouble, and everyone’s a suspect, even her hunky sheriff boyfriend. Is it a deadly accident by a drunken witch...or something more sinister? Murder is on the menu, and only magic can uncover the truth in this witchy, wacky Yuletide thrill ride!