Showing results by author "H. D. Smith" in All Categories

Then you're in for a treat. Volume three of our popular anthology series is sure to scratch that questionable itch. With stories by Michael Knost, William Joseph Roberts, Philip K. Booker, Christopher Woods, D. Raymond Smith, David Badurina, H.P. Holo, James Palmer, Jason Cordova, Lee Ellis, M Leigh, Michael Morton, Michael Craig, and Guest Editorial by Faith Hunter.

Last spring Claire's seemingly normal - if not totally screwed up - life was tossed on its head. For five years she'd been one of the damned - a human that knows the truth about the otherworldly among us. She'd worked for The Boss - the Demon King himself - as his administrative assistant, handling everything from early retirements, to Maintenance's incessant requests for dental. No one gets dental.

Claire, the Devil's assistant, knows very little about the world she was dropped into five years ago, when she inherited her mother's unpaid debt to the Demon King. She certainly didn't expect to be a contender for the Fallen Queen's throne, a target for the Druid King's mafia, or a suspect in the murder of Junior, the Devil's oldest hell spawn. In a last ditch effort to save her life and get out of her deal with the Devil, she sets out to solve Junior's murder only to be taken prisoner by the four most dangerous immortal hell spawn alive.

A rich and varied collection of classic short stories by British writers: 'Quality' by John Galsworthy, 'The Mark on the Wall' by Virginia Woolf, 'The Horse Dealer’s Daughter' by D. H. Lawrence, 'The Ticking of the Clock' by Louisa Baldwin, 'The Fiddler of the Reels' by Thomas Hardy, 'The Return' by R. Murray Gilchrist, 'Kew Gardens' by Virginia Woolf, 'Seashore Macabre' by Hugh Walpole, 'Satan’s Circus' by Eleanor Smith, 'The Coffin Merchant' by Richard Middleton....

Curated by the inimitable Dr. Chris McAuley (co-founder of the StokerVerse, character creator for DC and Marvel, novelist, and Dr. Who author) is a baker's dozen of heart-thumping, mind-bending tales of science gone horribly awry, mysterious worlds, and the unspeakable horrors they spawn.

One final contender stands between Claire and claiming the Fallen Throne - but Faith isn't giving up without a fight. Defeating Faith and taking her blood isn't all Claire has to worry about. She must find the last few drops of her own original blood - before the big three usurp her realm and end any chance of her completing the prophecy. Putting the Time King back together again won't be easy. Even if Claire manages to gather all the parts, nothing fits like it did before. The cracks expose the truth that will change everything.

Last Spring, Claire was framed for the murder of Junior, the Devil's oldest hellspawn. Last Summer, she reawakened the fourth realm, saved the world (after almost destroying it), and wound up with the worst job ever. Now, Claire's been locked out of her realm, given an assistant that doesn't actually assist, and told to handle a small problem in Underworld that might just get her killed. And to top it all off, Mab's made one of the contenders her untouchable. So, yeah, you could say Claire's having one of those days.