Short Stories

Curl up by the fire with some of today’s hottest authors as they serve up enough holiday sweetness and sizzling spice to melt the frostiest heart. As the temperature drops, friends and neighbors might need to turn up the heat, and even old enemies just might get a second chance. Get ready to tingle all the way ...

A vengeful ghost trapped in a goblin's ear...a flaming spider who must help stop a goddess from conquering a science-fiction convention...a goblin nursery worker who finds herself trapped in the middle of a war. This collection features six humorous short stories that explore the fantasy realm from the perspective of the lowest of the low, the unlikeliest of unheroes: the goblins.

These timeless stories are perfect for young fans of mystery, adventure or detective series. A store of stolen silver, a surprising view through a telescope, a shrill scream on a night out, a disappearing cash box, a dangerous accident and a trap for the Secret Seven! Solve the mystery with the Secret Seven in these six classic short stories by Enid Blyton - perfect for bedtime listening! The stories were originally published in books and magazines in the 1940s and 1950s. This audio recording features the classic texts.

Bringing together six short stories - two of which are previously unpublished - One Last Dram Before Midnight is perfect for fans of Denzil Meyrick. These tales take us from Jim Daley's early days pounding the beat in Glasgow as a young constable to a lighthearted whisky smuggling romp involving Hamish and some ghostly pipers.

Do you have a pet cat? Settle down for Quiet Time and join us for a collection of feline tales, that will transport you and your little into the wonderful world that will show what our feline friends get up to when we’re not looking.

Webster's Dictionary gives the meaning of the word "miasma" as "an infection floating in the air; a deadly exhalation". And in the opinion of Mr. Robert Ferguson, that description, though perhaps a little too flattering, on the whole summed up Master Roland Bean pretty satisfactorily. Until the previous day, Master Bean had served Mr. Ferguson in the capacity of office-boy. But there was that about Master Bean which made it practically impossible for anyone to employ him for long.

When Mr Satterthswaite visits a new exhibit at the Harchester Galleries, there is one painting with a male figure that bares a more than unusual likeness to a mysterious acquaintance of his, a Mr Quin. And with one bold move he purchases the canvas on the spot and in another invites the artist of The Dead Harlequin to dine with him that night. The dinner gets off on the wrong foot with the artist emphatically disagreeing with most points and an empty place at the table ready for the mysterious Mr Quin to arrive.

In this addictive short story collection, 24 very different women reach a pivotal moment in their lives. A widow is liberated by a new job but keeps it secret from her family. A date in suburbia has dramatic results. A seamstress takes revenge on an unsuspecting customer while in France, a mother is promised 'fantastic news' - and lets her imagination run away with her.

Hoffmann, among the greatest and most popular of the German Romantics, is renowned for his humorous and sometimes horrifying tales of supernatural beings. This selection, while stressing the variety of his work, focuses on those stories in which the real and the supernatural are brought into contact and conflict. This new translation includes The Golden Pot, The Sandman, Princess Brambilla, Master Flea, and My Cousin's Corner Window.

It’s been many years since Mr Satterthwaite has seen Mr Harley Quin, so when Satterthwaite, awaiting his broken down car, goes to a tea shop called the Harlequin café, he begins to think of his friend. A self-described snob, Satterthwaite orders coffee and examines the coloured china when a bolt of sunlight comes in and the very same Mr Quin walks through the door.

In this short prequel to Alison Weir's new novel, Elizabeth of York, The Last White Rose, the young princess is born - and the future of England hangs in the balance. The Palace of Westminster, 1466. As the queen of England lies in her chamber, exhausted from childbirth, the court awaits news of the longed-for heir.

Years ago, a fight for supremacy took place between the two most powerful families in New Orleans. The battle was set in the metaphoric octagon, with the spotlight blazing. The city sat in paralyzed fear, awaiting word of a victor. Abraham Rames versus Isaiah Boudreau. One man would emerge victorious and rule the city of sin. Neither understood that the devil was in the details. Neither lived to see the rising sun. I’m Everett Rames, son of Abraham, and I am the devil. I took my rightful place as king of New Orleans.

Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the respective city. In Hong Kong Noir, 14 of the city’s finest authors explore the dark heart of the Pearl of the Orient in haunting stories of depravity and despair.

If you are a French language learner looking to advance your reading skills and enhance your vocabulary, then this book will guide you through dialogue and story listening in your second language. We often are instructed with conventional activities in the form of worksheets, overlooking that words are 20 times more likely to be remembered if they are a part of a story (Bruner, 2017). Language learners retain more in the context of a story and become accustomed to the natural syntax of that language.

Solving murders is as easy as ABCDE in this brand-new collection. Roger Riccard, one of the most respected Sherlock Holmes authors, has again taken pen in hand to bring forth the first five adventures in a new series of short stories for your entertainment.

Detective Jack Nightingale fights his battles in the shadows, in the grey areas where demons and monsters seek their prey. In this collection of nine short stories, Nightingale matches wits against demons from Hell, monsters created by humans, and Satanists who have done their own private deals with the devil.

An unmissable collection of eight unconventional and captivating short stories for young adult and adult intermediate learners of Italian. Short Stories in Italian for Beginners, Volume 2 has been written specifically for students from a high-beginner to intermediate level, designed to give a sense of achievement, and most importantly - enjoyment! Mapped to A2-B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference, these eight captivating stories will both entertain you, and give you a feeling of progress when listening.

Edgar Award-winning editor Otto Penzler is back with a new anthology that has gathered the intel on the world's greatest secret agents, declassified here for the first time.

This is a collection of the third six short stories in the Caverns and Creatures series.

It is a cold day in January when J. Mendelssohn wakes in his Upper East Side apartment. Old and frail, he is entirely reliant on the help of his paid carer, and as he waits for the heating to come on, the clacking of the pipes stirs memories of the past; of his childhood in Lithuania and Dublin, of his distinguished career as a judge, and of his late wife, Eileen. Later he leaves the house to meet his son Elliot for lunch, and when Eliot departs mid-meal, Mendelssohn continues eating alone as the snow falls heavily outside. Moments after he leaves the restaurant, he is attacked.