Dark Fantasy Short Stories

From the haunted hills of Roman Britain to the sewers of occupied Warsaw … in the bloodied streets of Revolutionary Paris, and the anarchy World War II Shanghai … out of the wilds of America, India, Africa and Europe … down the long savage darkness of the centuries, monsters have fed upon us. They are shapeshifters, vampires, sorcerers and spirits—things named only in myth, and things for which we have no name. They are our demons, our reflections, our desires and our nightmares. And all too often, they are … only human.

Meet the Caanlin, a race of shape-shifting humans of dark skin that can become leopards. Enslaved by the Salesicans, a half-breed joins a revolt in Leopard of Night. In Sight For Jaygas, a man attempts to find a purpose in his tribe. A breeder finds love and shame in Disgraced. Sythara of the Hicaanlin leads a group of warriors toward certain doom. Finally, how the Caanlin War is envisioned.

Dreamy fantasy stories have actually been a trend. They’ve inspired millions. As opposed to the lengthy novels, these stories are short but cut to the chase in an instant. They light up the weird and the uncanny, the marvelous as well as the fantastic: All the things we know are going beyond the reasonable and instantly realistic - into looking-glass, beyond the songs of the impossibly haunting violin, with the twisted trees of the ancient timbers.

Alec Bailey knows a thing or two about the supernatural world and its dangers. When the local news crew shows up to do a piece on his hotel, he knows he should send them away…especially with that unchecked demon lurking on the property perimeter. Supernatural protocol dictates he call in Jacquelyn, McCall’s own demon hunter, but he isn’t ready to say goodbye to the beautiful crew member who reminds of a time in his life long past.

Here are 23 terrifying tales, dark reflections of the silver screen from both sides of the camera. James Dean gets a second chance at life and death. The Wicked Witch is out of Oz, and she's made some very unlucky friends. When God decides reality needs an editor, what and who gets cut?

Captain Torren, the warden of the Dormigan Prison, knows that the mysterious Prisoner 34 is much more dangerous than the authorities think. Torren does his best to guard him, going so far as to break some of his orders, but the new governor's sudden wish to personally inspect the prison threatens to destroy the shaky balance the warden has achieved. Will the Prisoner comply and help Torren through the inspection? What will he ask in return? And will he keep his word?

Sin’s Doorway and Other Ominous Entrances is the 4th volume of Night Shade Books’ five volume Selected Stories of Manly Wade Wellman....

A decade of blood stained his hands. None of his victims had ever weighed down his conscience. He was merely the tool, the living weapon wielded by his employers. His victims had begged for their lives, had cursed him with their dying breath, and stared in uncomprehending disbelief. But none had ever been calm in their final moments. None had ever stared up at him with such serenity.

They call the Malar Dorah unbreakable. Five centuries it stood unconquered until foul trickery cracked its gates. Now, it is the final bastion of a retreating northern army, and the culmination of a long-raging war. The warlord Belerod stands at the Dorah's doorstep with a horde at his back, set on testing the meaning of unbreakable with his golems.

Since her first appearance in the award-winning Sunglasses After Dark, Sonja Blue--the leather-clad female punk vampire/vampire slayer--has stalked the Undead who prey on an unwitting humanity at the cost of the lives of those she loves, her sanity, and what hope she might have to one day reach eternal rest. Blue Murder is the first collection of short stories and novelettes in over 20 years to feature the iconic vampire slayer and includes two never-before collected tales. In Search and Destroy Sonja hunts down the undead horror preying on a homeless encampment.

Werewolves, vampires, and gargoyles... these are just a few of the creatures that you will encounter in this collection of short terror stories. From the chilling tale of a man who transforms into a werewolf on the night of the full moon to the terrifying story of a vampire who hunts down its victims in the dead of night, these stories will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Fearful Rock and Other Precarious Locales is the third volume of Night Shade Books' five volume "Selected Stories of Manly Wade Wellman." This volume is made up of eight novella length stories. It includes Wellman's "Judge Pursivant" and "Sergeant Jaeger" stories, as well as a lost classic from Strange Stories (1939).

Richard has just buried his beloved wife. He is a man desperate for answers and has a hardened heart for vengeance. He knows deep down that his enemies have taken his wife from him and will stop at nothing to destroy the ones who did. Against the advice of his allies, he follows a lead to fulfil his vengeance. Yet this path will only bring death.

In his Locus review of Two Worlds and in Between - the first volume of The Best of Caitlín R. Kiernan - Gary K. Wolfe wrote, “...it makes you wish the second volume were here now.” Well, the long wait is over. This second volume completes this ambitious undertaking, collecting the finest of Kiernan’s stories from 2004 to 2012, selected by the author herself. The book includes 25 short stories and one poem, plus the short novel Black Helicopters - more than 200,000 words of fiction, including the World Fantasy Award-winning “The Prayer of 90 Cats”.

Sword and Sorcery Fans Rejoice! Pick up the latest issue of Savage Realms Monthly and fill up on stalwart heroes doing battle with the forces of evil in this epic collection of short sword and sorcery fiction. This month's crop of stories starts off with a story by the talented Jason M Waltz of Rogue Blades and his cursed hero who uses shadows as a weapon, and it ends with a twisting psychedelic journey into the underworld by new comer Sersa Victory."Fantastic Sword and Sorcery Action!""I hope for a long future for this fun monthly magazine.

Before Jak became a hero, a horrible secret surrounded her birth. Witness the beginning of that secret as we follow her father while he searches for his wife, and finds more than he could possibly imagine.

In Book One, four witchy friends find their way back to each other to defeat an enemy, the Shadow who hunted their parents, with the help of the Gargoyle that has protected their family for centuries. Now, in this bonus short-story, Morgan is faced with using her new power as a witch and discovers she has a special affinity for one particular wand. Now, she just need to face her fear of magick.... But can she learn in time to save them all?

The town of Pine Ridge has an eerie past, with tales of witchcraft and ritual murders, but when a local man is savagely killed, all hell threatens to break loose. Supernatural detective Jack Nightingale is called in to investigate the brutal slaying - a murder that seems to have been carried out by children - children with dead black eyes....

Seabury Quinn's short stories were featured in well more than half of Weird Tales' original publication run. His most famous character, the supernatural French detective Dr. Jules de Grandin, investigated cases involving monsters, devil worshippers, serial killers, and spirits from beyond the grave, often set in the small town of Harrisonville, New Jersey. Collected for the first time, The Complete Tales of Jules de Grandin, edited by George Vanderburgh, presents all 93 published works featuring the supernatural detective.

In her second collection from Trepidatio Publishing, award-winning author Gemma Files takes her listeners on journeys out beyond safe borders—from the trackless depths of the sea, to the empty desert frontiers of the Weird West, even to the edges of cracks between worlds. Here, in these narrow spaces between the known and the unknown, behind the paper-thin curtains of reality, lurk monsters both human and ancient: selkies and avenging revenants, voodoo priestesses and pirate sorcerers, ghosts and vampires, and the most famous murderer of all time.