Monster Fiction

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.

When a known Komran outpost that has recently been upgraded shows signs of staging an invasion, there are only two options: commit to a full-force assault and lose many lives and ships to take the base, or send in a small, elite team to take on an entire base by themselves. The council believes the barbarian has done well so far. Why not risk his team’s necks first and see how it goes before scheduling that assault? Joe and his team must make their way to a planet that has been under Komran control for decades.

Fans of Nickelodeon’s Blaze and the Monster Machines can meet Blaze, AJ, and all their monster machine friends.

When everything is on the line, how far will you go to protect those you love? What if the cost of saving them is your soul? Would you pay it? I thought I was prepared for what was coming; that if I made sacrifices, I could win this game. I’m no longer afraid of the darkness or the monsters that hide in the shadows. I’ve become what I feared most, allowing it in to protect those I loved. Sometimes it takes a monster to win. Sometimes to fight monsters, you have to become one. My only fear is…can I come back from it?

Sometimes I feel like I have walked into the middle of a movie. Maybe I can make my own movie. The film will be the story of my life. No, not my life, but of this experience. I'll call it what the lady who is the prosecutor called me: Monster.

I'm addicted to my stalker. He watches me at night, sneaking in through my living room window and making my blood turn to ice. I feel him all around me as chills snake down my spine. Each night he becomes bolder, getting closer and welcoming himself into my bedroom, feeding his addiction.

From the USA Today best-selling author Rina Kent comes a new dark mafia romance. The continuation of Kirill and Sasha's twisted story.

Ordinary twenty-something Kurusu Kimihito thought living with a bunch of monster girls was complicated enough, but there's a new directive sent down from the government: get a job!

Agent Franks of the U.S. Monster Control Bureau is a man of many parts - parts from other people, that is. Franks is nearly seven feet tall and all muscle. He's nearly indestructible. Plus he’s animated by a powerful alchemical substance and inhabited by a super-intelligent spirit more ancient than humanity itself. Good thing he’s on our side. More or less.

After a devastating car crash wipes out her family, Laura struggles to get her life together. Grieving, she becomes forgetful. She doesn't remember how money got into her purse, or buying that pint of milk....Adam is the perfect boyfriend. He cooks meals. He does the housework. He looks after Laura's every need. He knows everything about her. But Laura has never met Adam. And she knows nothing about him. What turned him into a monster who stalks his victims? How did he become warped from a sensitive boy who adored the fairy tales his gran read to him?

The kingdom of Cornucopia was once the happiest in the world. It had plenty of gold, a king with the finest moustache you could possibly imagine, and butchers, bakers, and cheesemongers whose exquisite foods made a person dance with delight when they ate them. Everything was perfect - except for the misty Marshlands to the north, which, according to legend, were home to the monstrous Ickabog. Anyone sensible knew that the Ickabog was just a myth to scare children into behaving. But the funny thing about myths is that sometimes they take on a life of their own.

With Ravenheart defeated and his regal duties done, Josh and his lovely misfits return to their idyllic home nestled in the shadows of the Hangsane. Will they hang up their weapons, end their monster-hunting days, and settle down for a cozy slice of farming life like so many heroes? Absolutely not! Attacked, rescued, forced into the Hangsane to seek more power, Josh and the Misfits are hurled straight into the thick of it.

Follow John Smoke—a cunning ex-con turned supernatural bounty hunter—and his partner, Sidney Shaw, a fearless former FBI sharpshooter—as they battle shapeshifters, werewolves, shadowy conspiracies, and inter-dimensional dragons. From secret D.C. wars to world-bending portal invasions, the stakes climb fast and never let up.

Demeter just wants to do her job: shuttling humans between Earth and Alpha Centauri. Unfortunately, her passengers keep dying—and not from equipment failures, as her AI medical system, Steward, would have her believe. These are paranormal murders, and they began when one nasty, ancient vampire decided to board Demeter and kill all her humans. To keep from getting decommissioned, Demeter must join forces with her own team of monsters. Together, this motley crew will face down the ultimate evil—Dracula.

Shrubley, the Hero Adventurer, has vanquished the serpentii threat. Everything he ever wanted is within his twiggy grasp: fame, fortune, adoration, and the love of the people who had once shunned him for being a monster. But Shrubley is an adventurer at heart. Along with his monstrous friends, Cal, Slyrox, and Smudge, Shrubley embarks on a long journey to the fabled monster city of Pandaemonium. Guided by Countess Haalften, Shrubley seeks to master his Sage Knight essence healing powers even as vampyrs, monsters, and bandits ambush the party along the way.

I make a living out of screwing over the jerks who capture and torment supernatural beasties. But when I free a bunch of particularly powerful monsters from their cages, I'm not counting on them following me home like lost puppies - stunningly hot lost puppies, but still. These manly monsters are determined to repay me for my help, and they won't get out of my apartment, until they're satisfied we're even. There's something to be said for allies so devoted they'll tear off heads and shred souls on your behalf. I'm all for joining forces.

As a monster, Shrubley is forbidden from joining the adventurers guild. In a world where essence artists rank up in power and most monsters are feral beasts, Shrubley is among the weakest of creatures and is treated as an outcast. With curiosity essence bound to his spirit, Shrubley might be weak, but he's intelligent and determined. Against all the odds, he discovers a loophole from the Druid that gave him life—but there's a deadly catch. For a chance of ever being accepted as a true adventurer, he must challenge an otherworldly realm threatening to consume everything.

Accountant turned professional monster hunter, Owen Zastava Pitt, managed to stop the nefarious Old Ones' invasion plans last year, but as a result made an enemy out of one of the most powerful beings in the universe. Now an evil death cult known as the Church of the Temporary Mortal Condition wants to capture Owen in order to gain the favor of the great Old Ones.

When Aethelthryth—“Ethel” to her modern-day Manhattan neighbors—finds her sworn nemesis Lazlo Enyedi with no memory of who or what they are, an ancient hunt becomes an unexpected chance at forbidden passion. He’s crashing on her couch, solving her sudoku puzzles, and looking at her like she’s his eternal flame (minus the whole bursting-into-ashes part). As his memories slowly return, Ethel realizes she might be in danger of losing more than just her head…

One October morning, Laina gets the news that her brother has been shot and killed by Boston cops. But what looks like a case of police brutality soon reveals something much stranger. Monsters are real. And they want everyone to know it. As creatures from myth and legend come out of the shadows, seeking safety through visibility, their emergence sets off a chain of seemingly unrelated events. Members of a local werewolf pack are threatened into silence.