Fantasy Short Stories

"Into the Comet" was first published in the October 1960 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Sir Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) is regarded as one of the most-influential science fiction writers of all time. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

Kuno, a former soldier, is searching for fortune. But not just as any ordinary adventurer. True power comes from making alliances with the alluring dungeon goddesses. Armed with a mysterious journal, his trusty axes, and no small amount of courage, he must navigate treacherous dungeons and prove his worth. The prize? Exclusive access to the goddesses' domains.

In a post-apocalyptic America, Jamie Teague helps a group of travelers make their way past the murderous Bushwhackers. Jamie comes to find that the strangers are Mormons headed for Utah to avoid being massacred. Knowing that they will die without his help, he agrees to take them as far as his cabin.

This story is included in Orson Scott Card's collection The Folk of the Fringe.

A strange cry for help distracts Daniel from his boring study session. Curiosity gets the better of him and he is thrust through a portal where he emerges into a fantasy world of myth, magic, dragons and war. His arrival grants him a special opportunity. After stumbling upon a dying dragon, he discovers an egg that is about to hatch. Daniel knows a grand adventure awaits him and he seizes the moment to become a dragon rider.

After his son gives him a pair of "X-ray" glasses as a gift, Martin Blackstone tries them on just for the hell of it - and all they do is give him a headache...until he sees things he can’t possibly be seeing. Glimpses of things on the other side of a wall or beneath someone’s clothing. He wants to believe it’s just his overactive imagination, but the “X-ray” specs actually work.

An all-new Dresden Files story headlines this urban fantasy short story collection starring the Windy City's favorite wizard. From the Wild West to the bleachers at Wrigley Field, humans, zombies, incubi, and even fey royalty appear, ready to blur the line between friend and foe. In the never-before-published "Zoo Day", Harry treads new ground as a dad, while fan-favorite characters Molly Carpenter, his onetime apprentice, White Council Warden Anastasia Luccio, and even Bigfoot stalk through the pages of more classic tales.

"A Walk in the Dark" was first published in the August 1950 issue of Thrilling Wonder Stories. Sir Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) is regarded as one of the most-influential science fiction writers of all time. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.

More than a hundred years into the future, as the US approaches its 400th anniversary, Tomas, a young graduate student, searches for the real identity of one of the cyborgs that maintained American homes. He has been haunted for years by an audio clip of a cyborg named Felipe and is intent on writing Felipe’s biography. In the clip, Felipe can only recite that he was made in America, but Tomas must find out: Where was the Self-made Man really from?

Sharon Shinn's Twelve Houses books have fascinated fans and critics alike with their irresistible blend of fantasy, romance, and adventure. Now in Quatrain, she weaves compelling stories in four of the worlds that fans love in "Flight", "Blood", "Gold", and "Flame".

A Sci-Fi Short Story In the far reaches of the Orion Expanse lies a mystery older than civilization—a silent forest no ship has ever returned from until now. The Dark Forest Protocol is a gripping, atmospheric sci-fi short story that explores the chilling theory that the universe may not be empty but hiding. With compelling characters, rich world-building, and thought-provoking themes, this tale will keep you hooked from the first page to the last. Perfect for fans of hard sci-fi, space exploration, and cosmic suspense, this short story delivers a powerful narrative in a fast-paced format...

Enter the Druidverse® and discover a world of magic, mythology, and urban fantasy! This set contains three short story collections and three novellas: Blood Scent (a prequel novella), Druid Blood (a prequel novella), Blood Circus (a short story collection), Blood Ties (a short story collection), Blood Bound (a short story collection), and Colin McCool Saves Christmas (a Christmas novella). The novellas primarily focus on everyone’s favorite down-on-his-luck druid, Colin McCool, while many of the short stories feature supporting characters.

Deep within the cold, primordial forest and the Algonquin people's consciousness lives the Wendigo: a towering, emaciated being with translucent skin draped over its skeletal frame like a veil of mortality. Its hollow eyes gleam like fiery coals, emanating a malevolent crimson glow that mirrors its unquenchable craving for human flesh. An extraterrestrial shifter, stranded on our planet millennia ago, assumes the forms of not only humans but also hideous creatures in order to survive. The story of the Wendigo spans millennia, entwining native folklore with modern-day mysteries.

A landmark short story collection that put the more character-based New Wave science fiction on the map, Dangerous Visions won several prestigious awards and was nominated for many others. This now-classic anthology includes thirty-three stories by thirty-two award-winning authors, over half of whom have won multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards.

Your search for something new and different in sci fi and fantasy ends here. Presenting this year's collection of fresh voices, fabulous worlds, and fantastic new characters. Each year, the Writers and Illustrators of the Future contests' blue-ribbon judges search the world to discover and introduce to you the very best new talent in sci-fi and fantasy.

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.

Lily wants more excitement in her life. She has been sharing erotic fantasies with an online stranger for months. They decide to meet in person for some vampire role play and sexy foreplay. When Lily’s car breaks down en route to meet her blind date, things take a dangerous turn. As the two strangers meet beneath the moonlight, they boldly engage in their erotic fantasies, but tensions escalate when one of them exposes an unsettling secret. What is intended to be a night of thrilling exploits leads to a shocking and brutal climax.

A collection of twenty-five horror/thriller stories with surprise endings to chill you and thrill you to the bone. The creepers include: BLACK AS NIGHT: THE SEQUEL: Norman's two sons disappeared on Halloween; the same night, a masked rider carries a screaming woman in a burlap sack from the abandoned house next door. DISTURBING ELEMENTS: A chemistry prof has a phobia of seeking vengeance on any student who reminds him of the jocks who bullied him in college. CHARLEY REVISITED: Mandy's new book about an invisible playmate jeopardizes her marriage and her life. THE NECKLACE: Hazel inherits ...

Five fantasy futa tales to titillate your senses. Sold to the Futa Gladiator: Futa-on-Female Priscilla was once a noble, but now she's nothing more than a merchant's daughter. Exiled from their once fruitful lives, the family has grown desperate to reclaim even a sliver of the wealth they once held. So desperate that Priscilla's father has decided to barter his daughter to the champion of the arena, Valencia, for one night. How will the fair Princess Priscilla fair against the brutish gladiator? Or perhaps Valencia isn't such the cutthroat thug that she imagines her to be? In either case, ...

From the author of Aevalorn Tales comes a story about freedom and autonomy. Godwick Emberfoot, a Halfling Warlock enslaved to an Archfae, takes the king’s cousin hostage to learn the whereabouts of the last Gifting Tree—a tree whose fruit grants infinite, perfect knowledge—in the mortal realm. Upon finding the tree, Godwick’s pseudodragon familiar, Greymalken, urges Godwick to destroy it, but instead, Godwick eats the fruit from the tree, risking everything by asking a single gnawing question. And when the universe answers, Godwick's consciousness is pulled into the Faewild, where ...

Brad and Jason had been stepbrothers for several years and never much got along. They were too different. Brad was an all-star quarterback in college and Jason more reserved and brainy. When Brad comes home for the summer, Jason is not looking forward to his visit, but he realizes quickly that something about Brad has changed. He is being nice to him and though he’s suspicious, he finds himself going on a camping trip with him and a friend of Jason’s. Disaster strikes and Brad steps up to save his stepbrother, staying with him through his recovery. Jason finds himself falling for him ...