Showing titles in Short Stories

When vandals destroy beach hut 512 on Brighton’s iconic seafront, they reveal a dead body that has apparently lain undisturbed for two months. But according to the hut’s owner, Sims, its locks rusted shut three months ago and she hasn’t had access to it since. So how could the man have got in, and why is there no evidence of the murderer?

Based on the wildly popular TikTok series, F*cked Up Fairy Tales presents modern retellings of some of the strangest and darkest stories humans have invented. Inspired by sources across the world, “Cosbrarian” Liz Gotauco conjures gossipy animals, homicidal royals, doomed commoners, and shape-shifting beaux—all reckoning with complicated, adult problems that “Disney versions” have sanitized.

Brought to you by Penguin. This Penguin Classic is performed by Eleanor Matsuura, known for AMC's The Walking Dead and Spooks. This definitive recording includes an Introduction by Paul Murray. In this collection of classic ghost stories from Japan, beautiful princesses turn out to be frogs...

Bukowski's mad immortal origins, surfaced from the literary underground, have addicted legions of audiences who've recognized Bukowski as one of America's greatest realist writers and poets. Audible Studios narrator and OBIE winner Will Patton ( Remember the Titans, The Good Wife, Armageddon) gives a tour de force performance of Bukowski's greatest work in his prime.

In "Strange Highways," a floundering alcoholic gets a mysterious second chance to relive the night his life began its downward spiral 20 years ago. But on this dark journey, he’ll be supremely tested by conflict with his successful, charismatic older brother, his loss of faith, and the clash between good and the ultimate evil. Sink into this binge-worthy collection of beloved Koontz short stories, featuring denizens of hell, vengeful children, and eerily human-like robots that will send shivers down your spine.

From the mind of the man Stephen King calls "a master of the macabre", comes a brilliant new collection of no-punches-pulled horror stories, some never-before-collected and many originals that have never been published anywhere before. Bentley Little can take the innocuous, twist it around, and write a story that will change your way of thinking. Walking Alone: Short Stories is a shining example of his talent to scare you, creep you out, and make you shudder.

My Man Jeeves, first published in 1919, introduced the world to affable, indolent Bertie Wooster and his precise, capable valet, Jeeves. Some of the finest examples of humorous writing found in English literature are woven around the relationship between these two men of very different classes and temperaments. Where Bertie is impetuous and feeble, Jeeves is coolheaded and poised.

Who would suspect that the same mind that created the most famous literary detective of all time also took on the eternally popular genre of vampires? Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a contemporary of Bram Stoker, gave us some fascinating works of vampire fiction. From the bloodsucking plant in "The American's Tale" to the bloodsucking wife in "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire," he reveled in the horror created by creatures who survived on the blood of men and women.

A strikingly original collection of short stories and accompanying vignettes that marked Ernest Hemingway’s American debut. When In Our Time was first published in 1925, it was widely praised for its simple and precise use of language to convey a wide range of complex emotions, and earned...

The definitive short story collection that established Ernest Hemingway's literary reputation, originally published in 1938. Ernest Hemingway is a cultural icon—an archetype of rugged masculinity, a romantic ideal of the intellectual in perpetual exile—but, to his countless readers...

In A Few Quick Ones, P. G. Wodehouse brings together some of his oldest friends for a party. Jeeves and Wooster are there, so is Mr Mulliner and the Oldest Member.

This is a story from the Fall of the House of Usher collection. The horrors of the Spanish Inquisition, with its dungeon of death, and the overhanging gloom on the House of Usher demonstrate unforgettably the unique imagination of Edgar Allan Poe. Unerringly, he touches upon some of our greatest nightmares: Premature burial, ghostly transformation, words from beyond the grave. Written in the 1840s, they have retained their power to shock and frighten even now.

Eve has always lived on Ennisfarne, an idyllic island just off the coast of Northumberland and only accessible when tides are low. There she runs a bar overlooking Darling Cove, a heavenly horseshoe-shaped beach named after her seafaring ancestors, whose links to the Farne Islands stretch back centuries. Logan is a famous photographer desperate to evade the limelight after a difficult break-up. Renting a cottage from Eve, he chooses Ennisfarne in the hope of anonymity but is immediately spellbound by its natural beauty.

Twelve short stories from the universe of Magdalene Nox, Neve Blackthorne, Vivian DeVor and all their friends . . .

Santa had it right with his naughty and nice lists. Me? I was firmly Team Nice. Need help throwing together a holiday wedding in four days, big brother? No problem. Need me to share my bed with your super-hot best friend? If I must. Want to be sure I won't accidentally fall in love with said super hot best friend—Brooks Claus? Can't promise that. He may have moved away from our small town years ago, but there's something about being near him again that brings back memories of that innocent crush I never quite got over.

From his early days as a Baltimore cop to his time with the Department of Military Sciences and then more recently leading Rogue Team International, these stories cover the range of the Ledger timeline bringing back old favorites and introducing new ones. The stakes are as high as ever, and Joe Ledger is there to save the day!

Benedict Cumberbatch reads five stories featuring the famous vegetarian railway detective, Thorpe Hazell, as heard on BBC Radio 4. In The Affair of the German Dispatch-Box, Hazell hatches a daring plan to retrieve a highly sensitive government document before it reaches the German Ambassador. In...

Holden James was my everything—my first love, my future, or so I thought. When he left after our high school graduation, he shattered my heart, and I promised myself I'd never look back. Now, he's returned to Lilac Harbor, acting like he can waltz back into my life as if nothing happened. He says he can explain, but I won't listen. I'm stronger now, smarter. I'm not the girl who once believed in forever with him. He broke me once, and I'll be damned if I let him do it again.

Lord Arthur Saviles's Crime is a masterpiece of polished cynicism, in which poison, explosive clocks and finally murder forerun married bliss. Each of the eight stories here were published in the heyday of Wilde's career, between 1887 and 1891.

While the Billy Boils (1896) is a collection of short stories by Australian writer Henry Lawson, portraying life in the Australian outback during the late 19th century. The stories, written with a real touch of dry humor, focus on the struggles of bush workers, swagmen, shearers, and settlers. Lawson captures the themes of rural life, of isolation, resilience, and mateship. It highlights the everyday hardships and quiet heroism of the ordinary Australians. The collection remains a significant work in Australian literature, shaping national identity and bush storytelling traditions.