Michael J. Stiehl intriguingly merges the worlds of the living and the dead in The Bauer Ranch. This novella narrates the harrowing tale of Abel Reed, a ghoul resurrected from the dead using dark magic. His resurrector is Madame Laroque, a formidable sorceress who sets...

A chess game within a chess game and metaphors within metaphors make up The Pawn Against The King, a short story by Giorgos Katsoulas. As a powerful despot searches for a game worthy of his supposed magnificence, he encounters a lowly commoner bearing a wooden...

The Light That Takes is a short story prequel to Blood of the Stars in The Half-Light Chronicles series by Karyne Norton. Gaeren, a half-light prince, is sailing in search of his beloved childhood friend who was kidnapped fourteen years ago. Aeliana, affectionately nicknamed Daisy...

The Voice and Other Stories by Ann Grant is a thought-provoking anthology of fictional tales rooted in personal experiences. The collection centers around a mysterious, protective voice that warns a young Ann of impending danger. Later in life, this voice reveals profound insights, including a...

A fairytale retelling meets The Parent Trap! The Spindle Trap by Beka Gremikova is a young adult adaptation of Sleeping Beauty. Theryn’s parents are getting divorced, but she has devised a plan to keep them together. The faery curse is upon her on her sixteenth...

The Cycle by Lia Ramsay is a captivating story that follows Heinrich Del Rio, a young boy living in a dystopian future where a pill allows individuals to connect with their past ancestors. Heinrich struggles with wanting to take the pill, despite his parents' objections,...

The Last Arcadian by Z.S. Joseph revolves around Addy, a birthday girl whose only major problem is coming to terms with an impending transition to boarding school and the pressure that comes with it. As her day proceeds with friends Eli and Luka, strange occurrences...

Taking Flight: Short Stories of the Unexpected by Jacques Sardas presents a collection of original tales that, while connected in different ways through a character named Avi, can be comfortably read individually, which is how I approached the anthology myself. These stories include Longevity, in...

The Mission and Three Other Stories by Don Pizzarello is a collection of stories that depict characters ensnared in their situations. They explore themes of faith, friendship, love, and identity. In The Mission, a follower is troubled with a test of deceit, free will, and...

The Christmas Letter by Pat Wahler is a heartwarming short story that beautifully weaves themes of friendship, loss, and the power of love. The novella follows Zoe Kendrick, a new mathematics teacher struggling with a heavy emotional burden. Her friend Viola is gravely ill, and...