Fantasy Adventure Short Stories

Maria, traveling bard extraordinaire, has found herself in quite the predicament. Lost in the woods with the sun slowly setting overhead, she needs to find shelter for the night, and quickly. How did she find herself in this situation? Well, she was caught trying to have a taste of the tavern keeper and was chased out of town by his knife wielding wife. Even finding herself in unknown territory, Maria was more upset about not being able to sample the tavern keeper's raw meat than anything else. Luckily for Maria, a chance encounter with two beautiful elvish women has not just offered her a ...

The System Apocalypse has brought the clothing industry, and just about everything else, to a grinding halt. Now Lana Pearson intends to kickstart the local industry into gear to help Vancouver self-sustain itself. Key to her strategy are special teams of non-combat classes.

"How to Write a Short Steampunk Story: A Comprehensive Guide to Cogs, Corsets, and Steam-Power" teaches the craft of writing Steampunk. This comprehensive guide takes you on a thrilling journey through the unique genre, providing practical tools for crafting captivating narratives in a world where the past collides with a speculative future. This book provides in-depth insights into world-building, character creation, plot development, and the art of capturing the Steampunk aesthetic, whether you're a budding author or a seasoned wordsmith looking for a new challenge. You'll also learn how ...

Lady Sylvia is the personal bodyguard of the beautiful Princess Marisol. However, instead of having to protect Marisol from would-be assassination attempts or any sort of real danger, Lady Sylvia's main duties appear to be making sure the King doesn't catch wind of the Princess's affairs with her fellow knights of the castle. Not that any of them have been able to satisfy her. There's just something that Marisol is missing and she just can't quite put her finger on it. Lady Sylvia may be the only knight in the kingdom she hasn't touched so far. The female knight has a secret weapon that ...

In this new collection of five short stories from New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Maberry, listeners get an eclectic sampling of the writer's work - from SF parody to murder mystery and beyond.

Life after the apocalypse is one daily grind after another. It's a good thing for Wendy that she's got friends - a lot of friends as a fairy summoner. But life in Exeter is not easy, even for a summoner, and the grind of daily jobs and never-ending quests is getting to her. She's got one shot at getting a place for her own, a place of safety and maybe getting ahead. But it'll require Wendy to do the one thing she swore she'd never do again.

Eillea, a member of the Nightshade Brotherhood, is given an unprecedented challenge: assassinate the Crown Prince of Tezari. The problem? No one knows his true identity. She attends a ball at the palace to hunt down her target but finds her attention stolen by a handsome stranger who makes her heart race. When Kenix first spots the beautiful girl with stubborn eyes across the ballroom, his heart is lost. Though it’s clear she wants him too, the girl resists their attraction, fleeing his kiss at the stroke of midnight. When he sees her again, she’s in his chambers with a dagger in her ...

In Crater, family isn't born into—it's fought for. Jerrik has survived Crater’s underbelly by climbing fast and cutting deep. As a thief among the Bucks, he’s carved out a life in the shadows, scaling towers with his rat tail and stealing from the lords who think the city belongs to them. But when the guild is shattered and his crew locked in the Birdcage—the city’s sky-high prison—Jerrik faces a truth he’s never said aloud: the Bucks are his family. And he’ll burn Crater down to save them. As the city above crumbles from a spark lit by a certain Breaker Boy, Jerrik launches...

This volume contains ten stellar short stories by Clifford D. Simak. In "Grotto of the Dancing Deer," a man carrying an ancient secret finally speaks up, unable to bear any longer the loneliness he has experienced for millennia. In "Over the River," which Simak wrote in memory of his beloved grandmother Ellen, children from an embattled future are sent back for safekeeping to their ancestors in the peaceful past. And in "Day of Truce," the inhabitants of a suburban subdivision must barricade themselves against bands of roving attackers.

Epic fantasy, heroic fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, call it what you will, perhaps even edges of a little Grimdark, all and more can be found within the ten stories provided here where heroes face daunting odds, sometimes triumphing and sometimes failing. Barbarians, knights, assassins, each gets their turn, as do men and women from other stripes. All face the dangers of magic and the blade, and sometimes otherworldly beasts. Table of contents Lord of Thunder Scribe: An Assassin’s Tale Black Devil by Moonlight War and Demons Bread and Blades Afraid of the Dark With Reason The Grim Stone ...

Alexis Silver has spent a century dancing between two worlds: the deep, dark ocean that made her a mermaid and the human shores she can never fully leave behind. But when a playful midnight swim near a cargo ship reveals a darker truth: a young woman hidden below deck, destined for a nightmare, Alexis knows she can’t turn away. Soon, Alexis launches a daring, high-speed rescue across the waves. Saving one life won’t change the world. But for Alexis, tonight, it’s enough. Fans of Samantha Moon and urban fantasy will love this heart-racing, emotional short adventure in the Alexis Silver...

The weird, wild west - an American frontier populated by gunslingers, rattlesnakes, outlaws, zombies, aliens, time travelers, and steampunk! Twenty-three of science fiction and fantasy's hottest and most popular authors create all-new tales, written exclusively for this anthology. Aliens and monsters, magic and science are introduced to the old west, with explosive results.

Hank is walking home from the bar when the Model T pulls alongside him. It's been decades since he saw a car this old, and the sound of it takes him right back to his 20s. The door is open, and when he climbs in, the car takes off - without a driver. Before he knows what's happened, Hank is right back at Big Spring Pavilion, where he spent his youth drinking bootleg whiskey and chasing pretty girls. He will find the past is not quite as he remembered it, but still a lovely place to go for a drive.

Such a long life of killing has left plenty of dangerous enemies in its wake. An ancient witch coven, a jealous assassin, and even a demon lord all have old scores to settle. With one last contract to fulfill, Yrlissa hopes to be free from her past and her guild forever so she can disappear with her husband and young daughter. But the past doesn't forget so easily, and neither will a betrayed guild of magical assassins. Yrlissa's only concern is to keep her new family safe, but with enemies closing in on all sides, will they become a distraction she cannot afford?

Chrysalis, the glass-skinned queen of the Joker underworld, has been found brutally murdered in her popular restaurant, the Crystal Palace. Now two men are out to find her killer: Jay Ackroyd, the Ace private investigator who discovered her ruined body, and the vigilante archer known as the Yeoman, who has been framed for the crime. Their quest leads them on a nightmare odyssey of madness, violence, passion, and political intrigue that will forever alter the fates of Aces and Jokers everywhere.

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.

Robert E. Howard may no longer be penning Conan tales but that doesn't mean you have to go without your fix of axe wielding barbarians, lusty wenches, and evil wizards! Literary Rebel is dedicated to bringing you a new crop of monthly fantasy fiction by talented authors. In this month's issue: Steve Dilks returns with another jaw-dropping Bohun tale, a fledgling sorcerer goes toe to toe with an evil warlord, and a mercenary pits himself against a villainous tree(?). You have to listen to it to get it.

For marine biologist Dr. Hae-Won Lee, the legendary Black Lake Annex isn't just a cave system; it's the holy grail. Stubbornly elusive and rumored to hold untold secrets, this underwater labyrinth is Hae-Won's obsession, even if it means teaming up with her perpetually disgruntled geologist, Jang, and their annoyingly cheerful tech expert, Min-Jun. Their expedition is everything you'd expect: tight squeezes, treacherous climbs, and marine life seemingly on extended vacation. But the deeper they go, the clearer it becomes: this cave isn't empty. It's guarding something extraordinary. They ...

My new dance teacher had a rhythm that was impossible to resist. I thought I'd explored the depths of my desires with Jenny, Sophia, Claire, and Lisa, but my education in passion was about to take a mesmerizing turn. When Jenny introduced me to her friend Marisa, a captivating dance teacher, I was drawn into a world of movement and seduction. Marisa offered me a free private class, and with the encouragement of Jenny, Sophia, Claire, and Lisa, I stepped onto the dance floor. What I found was far more than just a lesson in dance. Marisa's graceful movements and intense gaze taught me the art...

El sol se está muriendo, y la Tierra, consumida por los últimos suspiros de esta estrella, también desaparecerá. Pero la humanidad, en lugar de abandonar el planeta, construye doce mil grandiosos motores de fusión para desorbitar la Tierra y propulsarla hacia Próxima Centauri en un viaje que durará siglos....