Short Stories Science

Question: What sort of idiot installs his mistress in his wife's house? Especially when that mistress is Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator, Queen of Egypt and the most notorious woman of her time? Answer: Julius Caesar—poised to become King of Rome. Or as good as. Question: At this potentially sensitive point in your political manoeuvrings, who are the last people you'd want crashing through the door, observing, recording, documenting ...? I think we all know the answer to that one.

Robert "Bubba" Brabham never wanted to hunt monsters. He mostly wanted to drink beer, hunt deer, and chase women, like every other giant redneck in the world. But life interfered, and Bubba found himself holster-deep in the family business: monster hunting. Now he's the Southeastern Regional Hunter for the Holy Roman Catholic Church...Bubba has to save the world from the things that go bump in the night! Just as soon as he's done with his beer. And maybe after one more lap dance.

Remarin is a thief. He was hired to steal a gem. No big deal, right? Yeah, right. He stole the gem, then everything went sideways, and now he's running for his life across rooftops, through sewers, and all over the godsforsaken world trying not to get dead. And who is this kid, Kit, anyway?

Inspired by myth, fairy tale, and folklore, number one New York Times best-selling author Leigh Bardugo has crafted a deliciously atmospheric collection of short stories filled with betrayals, revenge, sacrifice, and love.

Fans of The Twilight Saga will be enthralled by this riveting story of Bree Tanner, a character first introduced in Eclipse, and the darker side of the newborn vampire world she inhabits. In another irresistible combination of danger, mystery, and romance, Stephenie Meyer tells the devastating story of Bree and the newborn army as they prepare to close in on Bella Swan and the Cullens, following their encounter to its unforgettable conclusion.

Over the course of two award-winning collections and a critically acclaimed novel, The Croning, Laird Barron has arisen as one of the strongest and most original literary voices in modern horror and the dark fantastic. Melding supernatural horror with hardboiled noir, espionage, and a scientific backbone, Barron's stories have garnered critical acclaim and have been reprinted in numerous year's best anthologies and nominated for multiple awards, including the Crawford, International Horror Guild, Shirley Jackson, Theodore Sturgeon, and World Fantasy awards.

While training for a manned mission to Mars, Dr. Sophie Winston and her team of scientists find themselves cut off from the rest of the world. Trapped inside a biosphere deep within the confines of Cheyenne Mountain, Sophie and crew discover they are the survivors of a brutal alien invasion. But as they struggle to stay alive, they realize their safe haven is far from safe and that they must team up with other survivors around the world to defeat the aliens before it’s too late for humanity and the Earth.

A classic tale featuring two of the most-memorable characters in sword and sorcery, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Over a span of 50 years, the late Fritz Leiber wrote dozens of adventures, set in the fictional city of Lankhmar, featuring the seven-foot-tall barbarian and the diminuitive thief. The stories were recognized with both the Hugo and Nebula Awards.

A classic tale featuring two of the most-memorable characters in sword and sorcery, Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Over a span of 50 years, the late Fritz Leiber wrote dozens of adventures, set in the fictional city of Lankhmar, featuring the seven-foot-tall barbarian and the diminuitive thief. "Ill Met in Lankhmar" was honored with both the 1971 Hugo and Nebula Awards for Best Novella.

In Kharkiv, mysterious eyes sprout from the walls of buildings as the Russian invasion of Ukraine intensifies. A cynical spacefarer on a paradox-chasing mission confronts an ancient star—and the limits of human understanding—while his sentient navigator may know more than it’s letting on. A man mistakenly receives a letter meant for another drawing him into the world of a lost tribe who believe writing itself is a sin against God. In Raghast, a civilization of rats grinds to a standstill every three months as the breeding instinct throws them into chaos.

Bestselling author Stephen R. Lawhead's Dragon King Trilogy—now available in one volume.

Here, together for the first time, are the shorter works of best-selling author Jim Butcher - a compendium of cases that Harry and his cadre of allies managed to close in record time. The tales range from the deadly serious to the absurdly hilarious.

The only thing Benji lacks more than ambition is luck. And his new job has to be the lowest of the low. But something is stirring in the zero-footprint economy of New St. Louis. And Benji’s about to find himself chin deep in the muck! This story was originally published in the Hugo Award-nominated METAtropolis.

I guess you could call my latest job interview a success. I got hired, and it's way beyond my wildest dreams. The pay isn't great. And the hours are pretty much 24/7. But there's magic. And a portal to a fantasy world. Those kind of outweigh the negatives. At first, I thought I was just testing the latest VR survival RPG, but I'm starting to think this might not be a game after all. The monsters are definitely life-like and capable of carving me apart on their worst days. But on their best days, I make them mine.

The beachside town of Oyster Cove had everything a man could want—endless white sand beaches, plentiful summer activities, and of course, more beautiful women than you could shake a tail at. I came to Oyster Cove to enjoy a leisurely summer of surf and sun, but I find out pretty quickly that there’s more to this town than meets the eye. My next door neighbor has eyes that are very similar to a cat’s, and I could have sworn the gorgeous waitress at my favorite food spot has scales on her legs.

The best-selling series, complete in a single volume. Star-spanning action and intrigue. A Nation at War: After aliens attack without warning and slaughter half the human race, a new country emerges. Using alien technology and desperate ingenuity, the reborn USA carves a place for itself in a violent universe, thanks to its deadly Navy and the dreaded Warp Marine Corps.

The internationally acclaimed author of The Martian Chronicles, The Illustrated Man, and Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury is a magician at the height of his powers, displaying his sorcerer's skill with 21 remarkable stories that run the gamut from total reality to light fantastic, from high noon to long after midnight.

It is a time of treachery, terrorism, and tyranny in the Star Kingdom. The king cannot be trusted, the galaxy is on the brink of war, and a notorious mercenary is destroying everything - and everyone - in his path on his quest for vengeance. The Star Kingdom is in dire need of heroes. What it gets is a band of misfits and underdogs:

New York Times best seller, master-class alternate historian, and creator of the Ring of Fire saga Eric Flint delivers an explosion of tales filled with well-turned action, wit, and wonder.

Linx Maxwell is on the verge of greatness. She's finally graduated from street fairs and hopping chain link to making art that pays the bills. Her family life is...not dull. And it looks like her van might just be able to exist on hope and duct tape. If only she could get rid of the ghost who's plagued her since the eighth grade.