Modern Short Stories

A terrifying, thrilling collection of must-listen horror stories chock-full of nightmarish supernatural beings and the murderously disturbed that are sure to keep you up all night long. 

A selection of the best and most representative contemporary American short fiction from 1970 to 2020, including such authors as Ursula K. LeGuin, Toni Cade Bambara, Jhumpa Lahiri, Sandra Cisneros, and Ted Chiang, hand-selected by celebrated editor and anthologist John Freeman. IN THE PAST fifty...

Discover a modern way to learn Latin American Spanish through short stories designed for today's world. If you are tired of outdated textbooks and stiff dialogues, this audiobook offers a fresh approach for learners who want real results. Inside Learn Spanish with 27 Modern Short Stories for Beginners & Intermediates, you will hear 27 contemporary stories filled with natural conversation, everyday vocabulary, and situations that feel current and relatable.

Are you bored with bedtime stories about princes and princesses, gnomes, wizards, and dragons? Do you want something more realistic, closer to our time? Do you also need bedtime stories to make sense, teach a moral lesson, and raise interesting topics? Everything you need is here! A Collection of Fantastic Short Bedtime Stories for kids contains 10 five-minute fantasy stories that you can read aloud to your child before going to bed. No princesses here–these stories are about space, other planets, aliens, artificial intelligence, robots, cloning, portals, and modern technologies. There ...

Mysterious, funny, insightful, and heartbreaking, these are tales of expatriates and exiles, wise children and straying saints. They compose a secret history, both intimate and panoramic, of modern times, and offer a kaleidoscopic impression of the world within a world that is Paris.

Every city has a story. Some will chill you long after the last page. From the neon glow of Las Vegas to the haunted tunnels beneath New York, America hides dark secrets in every skyline. This gripping anthology dives into 50 terrifying urban legends, each rooted in real locations, whispered folklore, and chilling mysteries that refuse to stay buried. 👻 Inside, you’ll discover: • Ghostly apparitions roaming iconic landmarks • Cursed objects and sinister doppelgängers • Unexplainable creatures lurking in lakes and alleyways • Vanished souls who demand to be remembered • ...

A short, strange story for every week of the year—about the systems we live inside and rarely question. This book is a collection of 52 observational stories, each one capturing a small, familiar moment that quietly shapes how modern life works: the email thread that never ends, the approval that’s never stated, the shortcut that becomes mandatory, the default no one questions, the ending that never quite arrives. Nothing dramatic happens in these stories. And yet, something always shifts. Each piece stands alone, written in a calm, precise, almost documentary style—examining meetings...

Rediscover the magic and menace of Grimms Fairy Tales in a fresh edition crafted for today’s readers. This Adapted for Modern Readers version keeps the original plots, moods, and morals intact while refining archaic phrasing, cleaning up inconsistent punctuation, and presenting clear, contemporary typography. Enjoy smooth, consistent formatting on every device, lightly clarified language that never talks down to you, and a reading experience that lets the stories shine without distraction. Rooted in the oral traditions of nineteenth-century Europe, these timeless tales explore justice, ...

"Haunted Realms Short Ghost Stories" is an anthology that brings together over fifty tales of terror, each one a unique exploration of the supernatural. The stories in this collection span a wide range of settings and scenarios, from haunted forests and abandoned buildings to modern urban legends involving social media and technology. The authors, Lars Lexis and Sebs Svekis, have masterfully crafted each narrative to evoke a sense of dread and suspense, capturing the essence of classic ghost stories while infusing them with modern elements. The collection begins with "The Whispering Shadows...

Twenty-three stories, all unabridged, from a diverse group of star writers and readers. A truly memorable collection with a wide appeal. Includes "The Years Midnight" by Helen Simpson, read by Harriet Walter; "On Seeing the 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful Morning" by Haruki Marukami, read by Walter Lewis; "Bablady" by A. S. Byatt, read by Roslaind Eyres; "Hotel des Vaoyaguerus" by William Boyd, read by Martin Jarvis; and "Who?" by Fay Weldon, read by Julie Christie.

From mystery and crime to romance and tragedy, in this collection you will discover award-winning writing that effortlessly spans genre and style. Witness the excess and luxury of 1920s America in The Great Gatsby, experience profound meditations on death in The Bridge of San Luis Rey, as well as Poirot's very first murder case in The Mysterious Affair at Styles.

Debbie Macomber’s heartwarming new series, set at the Rose Harbor Inn in picturesque Cedar Cove, displays the author’s signature talent for creating characters who feel like friends, and small towns that feel like home. In this original short story, Jo Marie Rose readies her inn for spring...

The prestigious annual story anthology, featuring prize-winning stories by a diverse and exciting array of writers, including Wendell Berry, Alice Hoffman, Dave Eggers, Ling Ma, Lori Ostlund, and Anthony Marra. Continuing a century-long tradition of cutting-edge literary excellence, this year's...

Call If You Need Me includes all of the prose previously collected in No Heroics, Please, four essays from Fires, and those five marvelous stories that range over the period of Carver's mature writing and give his devoted fans a final glimpse of the great writer at work. The pure pleasure of Carver's writing is everywhere in his work, here no less than in those stories that have already entered the canon of modern literature.

The Big Book of Scary Stories 2 is a massive collection of horror short stories built for readers who want fast, brutal chills with zero filler. Open to any page and you’re dropped straight into a fresh nightmare - the kind that starts with a normal moment (a ferry ride home, a hospital corridor, a quiet street) and then tilts sideways into something wrong. This volume delivers creepy tales, ghost stories, and supernatural horror with a sharp edge of modern dread — the feeling that the world is still the world… but something is watching from just outside the light. You’ll find ...

Book Description: In the quiet town of Edenvale, a tragic crime shakes a family and a community to its core. The Trial of Cain is a masterful reimagining of the ancient biblical story of Cain and Abel, set against the dramatic backdrop of a modern courtroom. As farmer Cain Adams faces charges for the murder of his brother Abel, the trial unravels a century-old legacy of land disputes, sibling rivalry, and divine rejection. Through gripping legal battles, forensic discoveries, and profound questions of faith and justice, the story explores the depths of human emotion and the haunting power ...

Read FREE now on Kindle Unlimited! Slow down. Take a breath. And no—there are no monkeys, donkeys, or pails of water here. Let’s be honest. As comforting as traditional Zen parables can be, they don’t always land when your biggest challenge isn’t carrying water up a mountain—it’s answering emails, navigating relationships, overthinking everything, or wondering why you walked into the room in the first place. Daily Zen is a collection of zen stories for adults who live in the modern world—where enlightenment happens somewhere between your coffee getting cold and your phone ...

Some neighbors share sugar. We shared everything. A journey of passion, pleasure, and self-discovery. This intimate memoir chronicles Skylar's journey from curious author to confident hotwife. What starts as a forbidden moment between new friends quickly evolves into an exploration that challenges everything she thought she knew about fidelity and attraction. Follow Skylar and Chris as they accept their first invitation to an exclusive swingers club, where champagne flows freely and inhibitions melt away under dimmed lights. With unflinching honesty, Skylar details their night of firsts. ...

After the loss of her mother, a woman returns to the San Fernando Valley only to uncover a haunting secret about her childhood friend. A visiting professor at a charming but strange California liberal arts college must face her past in order to protect her son. A sister, lost in the woods, confronts the dangerous truth about her brother, her stepmother, and herself. Rose's dog Wolfie has died, and three seductive women offer to help return him to her. But only if she will pay the price.

Step into the world of Skylar Reyes, where passion knows no boundaries and self-discovery awaits behind closed doors. In this sizzling contemporary romance series, Skylar shares her authentic journey from curious newlywed to confident hotwife, chronicling every heart-pounding encounter and emotional revelation along the way. Each book offers an intimate, first-person account of Skylar and her husband Chris's adventures in the swinger lifestyle—from their nerve-wracking first club experience to their most boundary-pushing explorations. Book 1: Neighbors with Benefits Follow Skylar and ...