Monster Fiction

On a hot summer night in Montauk, the bodies of two local bar patrons are discovered in the dunes, torn to shreds, their identities unrecognizable.... In another part of town, a woman's backyard is invaded by four terrifying creatures that defy any kind of description. What's clear is that they're hostile - and they're ravenous....

As a world-ending war surges around them, Todd and Viola face monstrous decisions. The indigenous Spackle, thinking and acting as one, have mobilized to avenge their murdered people. Ruthless human leaders prepare to defend their factions at all costs, even as a convoy of new settlers approaches. And as the ceaseless Noise lays all thoughts bare, the projected will of the few threatens to overwhelm the desperate desire of the many.

In Monsters, Inc., join monsters Mike and Sulley on a wild adventure that takes them from the Scare Floor at Monsters, Inc., all the way to the dangerous human world. Joined by the human child, Boo, the best friends must return the little girl before an evil plot prevents her from ever going home.

A sailor recalls the monstrous terror that lay at the bottom of the deep in this, Lovecraft’s earliest tale of unspeakable horror from outside our universe.

Josh yearns for a smidge of peace and quiet, but Mythelore has other ideas. Cassandra must learn to control her magic before she accidentally casts a world ending spell, and there is only one person who can help her. They must travel to the Elven land of Alianthia to seek out the old harmonic Simmalion—a handy coincidence as that is where the healer, Vella, comes from.

When everything is on the line, how far will you go to protect those you love? What if the cost of saving them is your soul? Would you pay it? I thought I was prepared for what was coming; that if I made sacrifices, I could win this game. I’m no longer afraid of the darkness or the monsters that hide in the shadows. I’ve become what I feared most, allowing it in to protect those I loved. Sometimes it takes a monster to win. Sometimes to fight monsters, you have to become one. My only fear is…can I come back from it?

Every beat of my heart is the tick of a time bomb, reminding me to squeeze as many thrills out of life as I can. A horde of nightmarish monsters jumping me in the middle of the night? Nope, that's too much even for me. So when three demonic figures leap out of the shadows to my defense, my choices are trust my unexpected champions... or die. Not exactly a tough decision. The beastly men wrench me away from my home, claiming they'll keep me safe. They say there's something special about me—something the others want to devour and they mean to protect.

When marine private Oliver Chadwick Gardenier is killed in the marine barrack bombing in Beirut, somebody who might be Saint Peter gives him a choice: Go to heaven, which, while nice, might be a little boring, or return to earth. The Boss has a mission for him, and he's to look for a sign. He's a marine: He'll choose the mission. Unfortunately, the sign he's to look for is "57". Which, given the food services contract in Bethesda Hospital, creates some difficulty. Eventually it appears that God's will is for Chad to join a group called Monster Hunters International.

The Aether Shift. An event that changed the world forever. Unleashing untold powers onto the minds and bodies of humans on Earth. Some were chosen, against their will, to become something new. Azaria, finally allowed leave the house on her own for the first time, ends up as a Dungeon Core, however, the situation gets turned sideways during the process and she's left alone for nearly a year. Lance, an individual with a hidden past has been struggling in the changed world that is Earth. Meeting Azaria through a twist of fate, what will change with the two brought together.

Clay Jaeger and his family have faced down hordes of mobs, evil forces, and deadly Dungeon Lords since they came to the IZ, but this is the first time all of Civilization has been turned against them. Framed for heinous crimes they didn’t commit, Clay, Alex, and Joe will have to fight back with every resource the wasteland has at its disposal. If that includes taking over a dungeon and turning it against their enemies, so be it. This time, it’s not just the Jaegers’ lives on the line. This is bigger than them. The freedom of every wastelander and mob in the IZ is at stake.

The most important thing I’d ever read was scribbled on the door of a portable restroom, engraved into plastic at a carnival on the outskirts of Boston. Lust lingers, love stays. Lust is impatient, love waits. Lust burns, love warms. Lust destroys, but love? Love kills. Maybe it was always my destiny to fall in love with a monster. When other kids stayed awake at night fearing the pointy-toothed beast hiding in their closet, I longed to see mine.

Jack Miller has spent his entire nine years in the same house on the same street in the same town with the same best friend. One day, while delivering papers on his same ordinary paper route, Jack finds himself amidst a very unordinary world. A world where strange and silly monsters become his friends. In this story, Jack and Annabelle meet Winston who is determined to get their help back in Monster World.

I’m out for revenge. He’s out to rule the world. Kirill and I are as different as day and night. We shouldn’t have been in the same frame or universe. But we meet under the strangest circumstances. He’s my superior in the military and the man who’ll introduce me to carnage.

An alien invasion comes to one man’s doorstep in the form of a story-creature, followed by death and rebirth in a transformed Earth, in this Tor.com Original science fiction tale from Jeff VanderMeer, the New York Times best-selling author of the Southern Reach trilogy.

My name is Marek, and I hunt monsters for gold. But now, with the help of a magic beacon, I'm seeking those who are tainted. The impure. Abominations. Monster girls. But not to kill. They need my help. All kinds of help. I'm more than happy to provide it, to do all I can to keep them safe from the real monsters that exist in the world.

Eric Bergman used to be treated like an outcast, cripple, and freak. Some pitied him, others squirmed in his presence, while others still mocked him to his face. He himself even thought he was born cursed by the gods. But bit by bit, all that changed. That which was once considered a flaw or defect transformed into an advantage. And Eric slowly learned to use it to his benefit.

Kal Anderson is a stone-cold fixer, both in the literal and figurative sense. Nicknamed Doctor Death, he prefers to keep his messes confined to his workspace and out of his personal life. Still, when it comes to the notorious Ricci crime family, he can't seem to catch a break. He's not supposed to notice his boss's daughter or engage in any way with her, considering the sordid history he has with both of her parents. Elena Ricci won't let him go without a fight, though. Not with the date of her arranged wedding on the horizon.

Chloe Mendoza and her team from Monster Hunter International must seek out and destroy an ancient evil threatening Los Angeles at the height of Disco Fever.

Teo never thought he could be a Hero. Now, he doesn’t have a choice. The sun is gone, the Obsidian gods have been released from their prison, and chaos and destruction are wreaking havoc on Reino del Sol. All because Teo refused to sacrifice a fellow semidiós during the Sunbearer Trials. With the world plunged into perpetual night, Teo, his crush Aurelio, and his best friend Niya must journey to the dark wilderness of Los Restos, battling vicious monsters while dealing with guilt, trauma, and a (very distracting) burgeoning romance between Teo and Aurelio.

Jack Miller has spent his entire nine years in the same house on the same street in the same town with the same best friend. One day, while delivering papers on his same ordinary paper route, Jack finds himself amidst a very unordinary world. A world where strange and silly monsters become his friends. This is the first of several adventures that Jack and his best friend, Annabelle, will have in the secret world that Jack discovers that fateful day.