Dark Fantasy Short Stories

In their third critically acclaimed collection of original fairy tales for adults, World Fantasy Award-winning editors Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling present 21 new stories by some of the top names in literature today. Dark, disturbing and delightful, each story was written expressly for this superb collection of distinctly grown-up fantasy - a brilliant companion volume to Datlow and Windling's acclaimed anthologies, Snow White, Blood Red, and Black Thorn, White Rose.

Black Heart, Ivory Bones showcases 20 beguiling tales for the child who was and the adult who is, penned by 20 of the most creative artists in contemporary American literature. Here dissected are the darker anatomies of the timeless, seemingly simple stories we have long loved. Here wonder and truth have serious bite.

The first collection in the ongoing series of fantasy stories from the world of Esowon. You'll find dastardly beasts, tortured monks, and unexpected lovers in a set of tales that'll transport you to lands lost to time. Delve into these companion novellas to The Kishi, an African fantasy based on Angola folklore.

Ten-year-old Jason Meechum is a quiet boy who hides in fantasy and science-fiction books. Other kids pick on and make fun of him, but he suffers through it. That's because Jason has a secret. A secret of pain and fear. A secret he wants to tell but can't. All of that is about to change because Jason will be the recipient of something special. Something beautiful, mysterious, wondrous, and odd. Tonight, Jason will be the bearer of two secrets that will meet for the first time. Only one will survive. The outcome will determine if 10-year-old Jason will live to see age 11.

O.J. Simpson in an alternate reality and blind ninjas ushering in the apocalypse are just two of the beautifully written tales in this seminal work of art, from the mind of a human being the likes of which God and the devil wholeheartedly agree upon. While drenched in comedy, Laughter's Cold Shadow takes on the darkest of subject matter: murder, rape, racism, the nuclear family, ninjas, Nazis, zombies, police brutality, drug cartels, hedonism, psychopathy, and more.

Meet the Kitchen Imps - mischievous creatures who lurk behind the cupboard and under the fridge. Where do all the missing socks go? Find out with "The Joy of Socks". Learn the mysteries of the "Secret Kitchen" and gaze upon a rather familiar world with "Free Will". Dare you risk the king's wrath when you venture into the "House of Treasure"?

The battle has been fought and won, and all have been transformed by the struggle. Imago of Lockwood has become Lord Mayor of the City Imperishable, though at a price beyond his wildest imagination. Bijaz the Dwarf has been imbued with a godlike power and a responsibility he scarcely understands. And Jason the Factor, resurrected from death at the hands of his sister, the Tokhari sandwalker Kalliope, has become the sula ma-jieni na-dia, the fabled Dead Man of Winter.

After Claudia and Ben stumble upon Dorian's secret, they are taken prisoner. Food and supplies are running low, and Dorian's ultimate goal is survival of the race - and the fittest.

Tales from the Eerie Canal weaves the sinister mystery of Edgar Allan Poe with the dark humor of Edward Gorey. No canal. No Lake Erie. Just a stream of the disturbing splashed with bits of the absurd.

Here are 23 terrifying tales, dark reflections of the silver screen from both sides of the camera. James Dean gets a second chance at life and death. The Wicked Witch is out of Oz, and she's made some very unlucky friends. When God decides reality needs an editor, what and who gets cut?

Heartbroken and recently divorced, Jennifer had lost her will to live. Ready to take her own life, she was visited by a strange leprechaun-looking man who offered to take her sorrow away. All she needs to do is swallow two black pills.

Eighteen suspenseful short stories with a twist for lovers of Twilight Zone and Black Mirror. Journey into strange worlds and meet their unusual and sometimes terrifying residents in these stories spanning suspense, horror, paranormal, science fiction, and supernatural from the dark mind of short story award-winning author Susan May.

Sometimes, a thread pulled through the flesh is all that holds you together. Sometimes, the blade of a knife or the point of a nail is the only way you know you're real. When pain becomes art and a quarter is buried deep within you, all you want is to be seen, to have value, to be loved. But love can be fragile, folded into an origami elephant while you disappear, carried on the musical notes that build a bridge, or woven into an illusion so real, so perfect that you can fool yourself for a little while.

During her lifetime Violet Paget, who wrote as Vernon Lee, was referred to as 'the greatest of modern exponents of the supernatural in fiction', and yet today she remains on the periphery of the genre. This collection of her uniquely weird short stories and dark fantasies proves why she was once considered among the best of the genre, and why she deserves to return to those ranks today.

Stories for a Storm Filled Night, is the first book of short stories sent within the dark fantasy trilogy the Storm Series. It’s a standalone book, hence will be perfect for new listeners to the saga. It will transport them to the land of Talocants, where they will meet, werewolves, heroes, and villains.

A collection of three stories by John Kaniecki: "Heretic", "Johnny Can't Run", and "The Psychology of Lady Jane Perkins". Religion and truth battle for control in a future society underground on Earth. In the not-so-far-off future a group of Nazis have been exiled to a distant planet. An engineering student is swept away in love by one Lady Jane Perkins, but what does the young man see in this homeless psychiatric patient?

Fifteen dark tales by USA Today best-selling author J.R. Rain. "Vampire Nights": Samantha Moon meets someone unexpected on a late-night trip to Denny's, someone who seems to know all her secrets and has all the answers. "Book Burning": Two brothers find themselves on a late-night mission to burn a legendary book of supposed dark powers. "The Silo": The land is dying and crops are failing. The city of Wheatopia is in the middle of the worst drought in recent memory - that is, until a city slicker and his too-thin wife arrive in town.... Plus 12 more!

15 Dark Tales by USA Today best-selling author, J.R. Rain:

"Teeth" - What happens when a child is born with a rare throwback gene, a gene that produces two exceptionally long teeth?

Fresh after the release of his best-selling novel The Dark Has Teeth, this new collection might well become your favorite summer treat! These 12 short stories and novellas were written during the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two years, and 10 have never seen publication. All cover the common theme of characters being Distanced in some way from someone or something. They cross the genres of horror, dark fantasy, and science fiction.

Submitted for your approval - Ten Tales of a Dark Tomorrow, a collection of speculative fiction inspired by the original Twilight Zone series. In the spirit of that iconic, timeless show, these mysterious and gripping narratives explore parallel worlds, faraway planets, dystopian societies, and unsettling reality.