Lightspeed and More Free Fiction

It's a good free fiction Tuesday with new fiction from Lightspeed, Daily Science Fiction, and The Colored Lens.  There's audio fiction from Lightspeed and new audio for a classic science fiction story at Protecting Project Pulp.  And there are flash fiction stories, a continuing serial, and other genres (including historical fiction and fairy tales).  [Art from The Colored Lens]








Fiction
• At The Colored Lens: "The Shallows" by Jarod K Anderson. Fantasy.
     "Merpeople are just like regular people, except that they’re hideous and alien and inscrutable. Okay, forget the regular people comparison. The point is, they sorta saved me from drowning after they sorta almost drown me and now we’re friends. Okay, acquaintances."
 • At Daily Science Fiction: "Virtually Human" by Melanie Rees. Science Fiction.
       "The curtains billowed as a cold gust swept through the open window. Unknown voices whispered on the breeze with a metallic tincture, sending chills down Miranda's spine."

• At Lightspeed: "Dry Bite" by Will McIntosh. Science Fiction.
     "Josephine had been up all night, her heart pounding, thinking about this day, about whether she would survive it. Now, out on the road and exposed on all sides, she was so scared she could barely breathe."

• At Lightspeed: "And Then Some" by Matthew Hughes. Fantasy.
      "Erm Kaslo came to Cheddle on the Adelaine, a tramp freighter that didn’t mind taking passengers who didn’t mind the quality of the accommodations. He could have come on a liner, but he preferred, when working, to make his entrances unnoticed."

• At Weird Fiction Review: "The Divinity Student: Part Five" by Michael Cisco.
     "He was dreaming, a river carrying him away; now he sits up shaking his head alarmed, doesn’t know where he is — walked in his sleep. These are all symptoms of something . . . his mind is too foggy, he can’t remember."

Flash Fiction

• At Every Day Fiction: "Once Upon a Time in Deadbone" by Sam Bellotto Jr. Science Fiction.
• At Strange Horizons: "The Loss" by Mari Ness. Poem.
• At Strange Horizons: "September Poetry" Audio.

Audio Fiction
• At Lightspeed: "Dry Bite" by Will McIntosh, read by Gabrielle de Cuir. Science Fiction.
     "Josephine had been up all night, her heart pounding, thinking about this day, about whether she would survive it. Now, out on the road and exposed on all sides, she was so scared she could barely breathe."

• At Lightspeed: "And Then Some" by Matthew Hughes, read by Barry J. Northern. Fantasy.
      "Erm Kaslo came to Cheddle on the Adelaine, a tramp freighter that didn’t mind taking passengers who didn’t mind the quality of the accommodations. He could have come on a liner, but he preferred, when working, to make his entrances unnoticed."

• At Protecting Project Pulp: "The Servant Problem" by Robert F. Young. read by Mike Wood. Science Fiction.
     "Selling a whole town, and doing it inconspicuously, can be a little difficult … either giving it away freely, or in a more normal sense of “selling”. People don’t quite believe it…."

Other Genres

• Audio at LibriVox: The Fairy Book by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik. Children's fairy Tales.
• Fiction at Author's Site: "The Dead Line" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch. Historical Fiction.
• Flash Fiction at Smashed Cat Magazine: "At The Hospital" by Saul Jennings. 
• Flash Fiction at Linguistic Erosion: "Floyd the Barber" by E.S. Wynn.
• Poem at Leaves of Ink: "Such Beauty" by Collin Stanhope. 

We Wants It My Precious! We Wants All the Free Fiction!

The weekend's almost here! There's some good free fiction this morning, including stories from Buzzy Mag and Daily Science Fiction, serials from Mad Scientist Journal and HiLobrow, and audio from Tales to Terrify.  There also Flash Fiction and more.  [Art from Farther Stars Than These, a flash fiction website making it's QuasarDragon debut]





Fiction
• At Buzzy Mag: "Shattered" by Davyne DeSye. Fantasy.
      "Come in, come in, and welcome! See something you like? Looking for anything in particular? Oh, no problem, no problem. Just look, and let me know if I can help with anything."

• At Daily Science Fiction: "The Titanium Geisha" by Elias Barton. Science Fiction.
     "Cannery Beach is where it all started. While my brothers and sisters abandoned it years ago for prestigious careers in New York and Los Angeles, I was always drawn back, drawn back, drawn back to the place where robots love to tread. I enjoyed seeing the different models released each season: the utilitarian, the intelligentsia, and the Semiprecious Sensuals as Dad called them."

• At HiLobrow: "The Man with Six Senses - 11" by Muriel Jaeger. Science Fiction. 1927.
     "Michael’s methods also nonplussed the Stunt correspondent. He had expected the usual paraphernalia of spiritualism — a séance, crystal-gazing, planchette — that kind of thing. These would have provided him with material for picturesque description."

• At Mad Scientist Journal: "Dr. Derosa’s Resurrection: Part III" by R.G. Summers. Science Fiction.
       "After my phone call with Mr. Charlie, I went directly to the salon down the street. He had told me that he would send a plane immediately and that I only needed to be at the Renton Municipal Airport by ten-thirty that night. I took pictures of my mother to the salon so that the hairstylist would know exactly how to cut my hair. It was more eerie than melancholy to watch her hack off my hair."

Flash Fiction

• At Farther Stars Than These: "We've Got A Live One" by Madeline Dyer. Science Fiction.
• At Farther Stars Than These: "The Bank Teller" by Jerry Guarino. Science Fiction.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "Solid State" by Jae Miles. Science Fiction.
• At Weirdyear: "We Want Some Definite Answers" by Michael Liesch,

Audio Fiction

• At LibriVox: Uncle Wiggily's Travels by Howard R. Garis. Children's Animal Fantasy.
        "This is the second of 79 Uncle Wiggily books published and contains another selection of bedtime stories from those originally published in the Newark Evening News every day except Saturday for over 40 years. Uncle Wiggily Longears is a loveable rabbit who suffers from rheumatism and has many woodland friends and innocent adventures."

• At Tales to Terrify: "No. 89" Horror. Dark Fantasy.
     “And the Coyotes Sang” by S. A. Hunter, narrated by Antoinette Bergin and “Grandmother’s Road Trip” by Cat Rambo. - "The sound of the car wheels whispering along the road meshes with Grandmother’s snores and the faint noise of my mother’s humming as she drives. She prefers not to have the radio on during long trips." - text here.

Other Genres

• Audio at The Classic Tales Podcast: "The Moonlit Road" by Ambrose Bierce.
• Audio at WMG Publishing: "Name-Calling" by Kristine Grayson. Romance.
• Flash Fiction at Every Day Fiction: "Internet Angling" by Anne Jarvis.
• Flash Fiction at Linguistic Erosion: "The Stranger on the Train"
• Poem at Leaves of Ink: "A Graveyard in Pennsylvania"
• Poem at Smashed Cat Magazine: "Habit rip (Abel Ferrara mix)" by Steve Isaak. 

The Gates of Free Fiction - Spend a Vision with Me, A chase with the Wind

A few goodies for your morning reading or listening pleasure. [Art from "The Grab" in audio fiction below]





Fiction
• At Beneath Ceaseless Skies: "The Black Veil" by M. Bennardo. Fantasy.
     "As Constant Sterry slipped exhausted from his saddle, the last he saw was that same figure approaching, outstretched hands sheathed in thin black gloves with lacework as fine as any to be found."

• At Beneath Ceaseless Skies: "Now Ix, He Was a Lover" by Hannah Strom-Martin. Fantasy.
     "Ela nodded mechanically. The loom clicked: a new blanket for her bed. Feride had got the wool from Kismé and it was pink: the color of a swollen lip."

• At Weird Fiction Review: "The Divinity Student: Part Four" by Michael Cisco.
     "No good trying to concentrate, his mind chasing after a dozen different things, just killing time. Is Ollimer actually his contact — why wait around? The Clown was sent to teach him how to use the box, make him ready to play it for Magellan."

Flash Fiction

• At Daily Science Fiction: "Finally Free" by Frances Silversmith. Fantasy.
• At Every Day Fiction: "Robot for Sale" by Scott Shipp. Science Fiction.
• At Flashes in the Dark: "The Tomb of Nagaresh" by David Nordahl. Horror.
• At Nature: "Reach for the Stars" by Priya Chand. Science Fiction.

Audio Fiction
• At Beneath Ceaseless Skies: "The Goblin King’s Concubine" by Raphael Ordoñez, read by Dan Rabarts. Fantasy.
     "Maugreth was roused by the concubine in the darkness before dawn. He threw off the chitinous coverlet of mushroom velvet and sat up. He was still half-asleep. The sound of a distant horn rolled through the forest, echoed by another note from nearer at hand. "Eh? What is it? What?" he grunted, groping for his sword."

• At Chilling Tales for Dark Nights: "The Grab" by Richard Laymon, read by Matt Grant. Horror.
      "In this twisted tale, a man and his good friend Clark visit a country bar in a small town, which boasts of an attraction called “The Grab.”   The attraction is concealed inside a padlocked box at the end of the bar, and it only costs $10 to play.  When Clark opts to display his alpha-male attitude by committing to give it a try without knowing what’s inside the box, he bites off more than he can chew."

I'm Pickin' Up Good Free Fiction. It's Giving Me Excitations

Yeah! There's quite a bit of really outstanding free fantasy and science fiction this morning. Be certain not to miss any of the greatness.And mystery fans will want to check out the "other genres" for a couple of good ones. [Art from "Ragged Claws" by Lisa Tuttle in fiction and audio fiction.]






Fiction
• At The Colored Lens: "Another Life" by Michael Siciliano. Science Fiction, Slipstream
     "I stood on a hill, overlooking a city. A giant mushroom cloud dominated my field of view. White hot at the base. Yellow as it extended up. Red as it billowed outward. Dark gray at the rounded top. Each color shot through with streaks of black. It was beautiful and horrific at the same time. Larger than I could have imagined."

• At Drabblecast: "Five Ways to Fall in Love on Planet Porcelain" by Cat Rambo. Science Fiction Romance.
      "Over the years, Tikka’s job as a Minor Propagandist for the planet Porcelain’s Bureau of Tourism had shaped her way of thinking. She dealt primarily in quintets of attractions, lists of five distributed by the Bureau: Five Major China Factories Where the Population of Porcelain Can Be Seen Being Created; Five Views of Porcelain’s Clay Fields; Five Restaurants Serving Native Cuisine at Its Most Natural."

• At HiLobrow: "Herland -  part 10" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Science Fiction. 1915. 
      "When I asked her about it, she tried at first to tell me, and then, seeing me flounder, asked for more information about ours. She soon found that we had many, that they varied widely, but had some points in common. A clear methodical luminous mind had my Ellador, not only reasonable, but swiftly perceptive."

• At Lightspeed: "Ragged Claws" by Lisa Tuttle. Science Fiction
      "Last night, after a short struggle, I went out. It’s like that most evenings, the slow, silent battle between my desire to stay in, with my thoughts and dreams and memories, and the need to go where other people gathered. Much as I preferred my own company, no one, these days, was paying me to keep it. I lived as frugally as I could on what I’d saved, but the price of electricity had soared recently, and I was in the red again. If I went out, there was at least the chance of making money."

• At Lightspeed: "Bellweather" by Marc Laidlaw. Fantasy.
      "They had struggled for days through a wasteland of broken rock, high in the mountains, on their way through a pass that maps had indicated would take them to a country of promise. The first of the rocks were chipped and quarried, and showed signs of having been worked by artisans as much as by nature. But after a time, the unfashioned stone gave way to broken figures. The general impression was that a nation of statues, its entire populace, had been carried to the heavens and then dropped, so that all were shattered. Fractured heads and torsos, truncated limbs, toes and fingers of every size, from gnomic to gigantic, lay strewn from peak to peak, as if spread across the high mountain valleys by glacial action."

• At Strange Horizions: "ARIECC 1.0" by Lillian Wheeler. Science Fiction.

     "You are speaking to the Automated Road Information and Emergency Contact Computer, version one point zero. How may I help you?"

• At Weird Fiction Review: "The Divinity Student" by Michael Cisco. Part Two and Part Three.
      "Pausing in mid-stride, two black dogs stare at the Divinity Student as he emerges from the office. Recoiling, he claps his hands and steps backwards into the threshold; they scrabble headlong down the stairs with clicking feet — a bad omen. With a rustle of papers, he recollects himself and follows them down slowly."

Flash Fiction

• At Classics On-the-Go: "The Hungry Wolf" Audio. Children's Fantasy.
• At Daily Science Fiction: "Tunnel Vision" by Zach Shephard. Science Fiction. 
• At Quantum Muse: "Lights Out" by Gabriel E Zentner.
• At Strange Horizons: "When Ever Young" by Mukete Samuel Oreh. Poem.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "Ringminer’s Daughter" by Duncan Shields. Science Fiction.

Audio Fiction
• At Drabblecast: "Five Ways to Fall in Love on Planet Porcelain" by Cat Rambo. Science Fiction Romance.
      "Over the years, Tikka’s job as a Minor Propagandist for the planet Porcelain’s Bureau of Tourism had shaped her way of thinking. She dealt primarily in quintets of attractions, lists of five distributed by the Bureau: Five Major China Factories Where the Population of Porcelain Can Be Seen Being Created; Five Views of Porcelain’s Clay Fields; Five Restaurants Serving Native Cuisine at Its Most Natural." and drabble "The Octopus Train" by Jason Jones.

• At Lightspeed: "Ragged Claws" by Lisa Tuttle. Science Fiction, read by Alex Hyde-White.
      "Last night, after a short struggle, I went out. It’s like that most evenings, the slow, silent battle between my desire to stay in, with my thoughts and dreams and memories, and the need to go where other people gathered. Much as I preferred my own company, no one, these days, was paying me to keep it. I lived as frugally as I could on what I’d saved, but the price of electricity had soared recently, and I was in the red again. If I went out, there was at least the chance of making money."

• At 19 Nocturne Boulevard: "The Invader" by Alfred Coppel, read by Julie Hoverson.
     "Invading Earth was going to be a cinch, the Triomed scout decided. But to make certain he must study its inhabitants—as one of them!" from Imagination Stories of Science and Fantasy February 1953. Text here.

• At Protecting Project Pulp: "Letter from the Stars" by A. E. van Vogt, read by Josh Roseman. Science Fiction.
     "It was just a peaceful correspondence between two lonely shut-in strangers — but the destiny of the universe was to depend on the answers" first published in Out of This World Adventures, July 1950.

• At Strange Horizions: "ARIECC 1.0" by Lillian Wheeler, read by Anaea Lay. Science Fiction.

     "You are speaking to the Automated Road Information and Emergency Contact Computer, version one point zero. How may I help you?"

Other Genres

• Audio at Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine: "Ghost Negligence" by John Shepphird, read by John Cramer.
• Fiction at Author's Site: "What People Leave Behind Written" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch. Mystery.
• Fiction at At Baen: "Sweothi City" by Larry Correia. Military adventure.
• Flash Fiction at Every Day Fiction: "Tomorrow I Will Skydive" by Stephen V. Ramey.

Of Free E-Books, Skraelings, and Audio Fiction

It was just going to be the ebooks, but a few other items just didn't want to wait.  [Art from "The Hill Where Thorvald Slew Ten Skraelings" in short fiction.]












Short Fiction

• At Weirdyear: "Chemistry" by LA Sykes. Weird Fiction.Flash.

• At Amazon: "The Hill Where Thorvald Slew Ten Skraelings" by Regan Wolfrom.(E-book)
     Historical Fantasy "In the land of long, cold winters and exploding green summers, the frail seidrman Thialfarr works the last of his magic to keep his fellow Norsemen alive. As the summers grow colder and Thialfarr weakens, and with the savage skraelings blocking their only outlet to the sea, Thialfarr's Christian neighbours have begun to see his heathen presence as the reason for their misfortune." Limited time.


Audio Fiction
• At Selected Shorts: "Expect the Unexpected"
      "Guest host Neil Gaiman presents tales with surprises. Jane Yolen’s “The Babysitter” is a contemporary Gothic with a twist; James Thurber’s classic “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” introduces a milquetoast with attitude; Ray Bradbury’s “The Pedestrian” anticipated our media-driven lives; and Thurber’s “The Wood Duck” seems to have nine lives. The readers are Isaiah Sheffer, Dick Cavett, Jamey Sheridan, and Malachy McCourt."

• At WMG Publishing: "A Time to Dream" by Dean Wesley Smith , read by the author. Science Fiction.
       "Captain Brian Saber, his ship and other Earth Protection League ships face a suicide mission to save Earth. Can he succeed, even though seemingly moments before he lay slowly dying of old age in a nursing home on Earth?" - Steaming only. Free for one week.

E-Books
At Amazon: [via Pixel-of-Ink]

• Ambasadora (Book 1 Marked by Light) by Heidi Ruby Miller. Science Fiction Romance.

At Smashwords:

• "Slipped" by Edward Lange, Science Fiction.
• "Transit Dreams" by Antonio Simon, Jr. 
• "Apocalypse Earth (3d Illustrated) Episode 1" by Aisa Malyn Rose. Apocalyptic.
• "Southwest Gothic Tales" by John T. Biggs. Paranormal.
• "Tower of the Lost Ways" by Ander Nesser. Science Fiction.
• "Mooncake" by Ray Hecht. Science Fiction.
• "McGellen" by L L Watkin. Science Fiction.

At Amazon: [via Freebook Sifter]

• Parallaxium 2 by Mark Bernal and Termian. Comic Book. 
• Brotherhood of Osiris by Jeremiah Mckinlay. Fantasy.
• The Gall (The Gall Series) by Bill Abot. Science Fiction. Humor.
•  ... And the World Shall be Born Anew by Daniel Berman. Fantasy. Science Fiction.
• The Stulman Project by Joel Maus. Science Fiction.
• Gamer by Dr. Kim Smith. Time Travel.
• Welcome to the Dream (A Celeste Cross Book, #1) by Odette C. Bell. Paranormal.
• Taven's Departing by Mike Jackson. Paranormal.
• The Vision Keeper (Stone Bearers Trilogy) by P. A. Ellwood. Fantasy.
• Dust in the Wind by William Hutchison. Science Fiction.
• The Vanished Colony (Legend of Alm) by Graham M. Irwin. Science Fiction.
• Rites of Succession by Jane McCaa. Science Fiction.
• Cyber Trooper by Dareion Morgan. Science Fiction.
• 2040: Revelations (Ancient Origins) by Robert Storey. Apocalyptic.
• Frozen In Time (Blood of the Gods, Book 1) by Marie Symeou. Vampires.
• The Skull of a Crystallite: First Edition by C. R. Ballast. Fantasy.
• In Defence of the Empire by John Williams. Steampunk.
• The Mad Emperor (The Doomsayer Journeys) by Steven Wetherell. Science Fiction.
• Blood of the Immortals - The Blood Crystals by Brian Ramsey. Paranormal.
• Full Moon at Midnight Part 1 by David Amburgey. YA Paranormal
• The Colour of Dishonour: Stories from the Storm Dancer World by Rayne Hall. Fantasy.
• Falaysia - Foreign World by Ina Linger. Fantasy.
• The Terminus by Oliver Eade. YA Time Travel
• Arcadium by Sarah Gray. Zombie.
• The Diamond of Freedom (The Unaltered) by Lorena Angell.
• The Corsican by Tina Shelton. Science Fiction.
• Kasey And His Dragon by E. H. White. YA Fantasy.
• Blank Slate Boarding House for Creatives by Chaunce Stanton. historical-magical realism.
• Vault of Ages (The Langsyne Chronicles) by Jonathan Christopher.
• Descendant: The Protector (The Descendant Series 1) by Daniel W. Koch. YA Vampires.
• Timecachers by Glenn R. Petrucci. YA Time Travel.

Other Genres

• At Classic Tales Podcast:  "The Call of the Wild, part 4 of 5" by Jack London.

Fun Free Fiction

It's almost the weekend!  Until then here's some great free fiction to pass the time.  There's a new issue of Beneath Ceaseless Skies, tons of flash fiction and comics, and more. A couple of links via Regan Wolfrom at the always awesome SF Signal. More later. [Art from "Asteroid Witch" in comics]


Fiction
• At Beneath Ceaseless Skies: "On the Weaponization of Flora and Fauna" by Alec Austin & Marissa Lingen. Fantasy.
     "As such, I was present in the imperial audience chamber when Plinio Gustavo Invicta presented the results of his expedition into the half-wild province of Corvesia; though not, alas, in any position to witness the first revelation of Plinio’s great discovery, as the Count of Nova Carthago was standing directly in front of me."

• At Beneath Ceaseless Skies: "The Goblin King’s Concubine" by Raphael Ordoñez. Fantasy.
      "It was a good thing that Maugreth’s men mutinied when they did. Otherwise he would have gone mad like the rest and fled shrieking into the moss-forest at the river’s edge to be devoured by spiders. Of course he didn’t know that at the time. He just sat in the ship’s hold where his men had locked him, shaking his grizzled gray-blonde locks, watching the sunless banks slip slowly past the embrasure."

• At Mythic Delirium Books: "Echoes in the Dark" by Ken Liu. Historical Fantasy.
      “The Chinese speak of him as a great fighter,” my cousin said, “skilled in the ancient arts of combat. They call him by the honorific Ta Tsia, which I’m told means ‘Great Hero.’ Many are the tales of his prowess in battle and generosity towards the poor and helpless.”

• At Weird Fiction Review: "The Divinity Student: Part One" by Michael Cisco. 
      "Short but powerful, this neo-gothic novel, which is illustrated by Harry O. Morris, uses the crisp immediacy of the present tense to lead the reader on a hallucinatory journey from humanity to inhuman transcendence. After a miraculous recovery from near death, a young man known only as the Divinity Student is beset by strange dreams whose lingering effects further alienate him from his fellows. Abruptly, he is sent away from the chill, damp confines of the seminary to work as a word-finder in the vibrant, chaotic desert city of San Veneficio, scanning old texts to record any unknown words he may find." - Amazon.

Flash Fiction
• At Daily Science Fiction: "Flip Side" by Chip Houser. Science Fiction.
• At Every Day Fiction: "Following the Cow's Path" by Sarah Crysl Akhtar. Surreal.
• At Nature: "The Scent of Things to Come" by J. R. Johnson. Science Fiction.
• At SFFaudio: "The House" by H.P. Lovecraft. Poem.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "Runaway" by Duncan Shields. Science Fiction.
At Kazka Press: Fantasy.

• "The Last Pearl" by DeAnna Knippling
• "Warning Signs in Warning Signs" by Nicholas Stenner
• "Do Imaginary Dogs Bite?" by JC Sullivan

Audio Fiction
• At Beneath Ceaseless Skies: "Ill-Met at Midnight" by David Tallerman. read by John Meagher. Fantasy.
      "It was a good thing that Maugreth’s men mutinied when they did. Otherwise he would have gone mad like the rest and fled shrieking into the moss-forest at the river’s edge to be devoured by spiders. Of course he didn’t know that at the time. He just sat in the ship’s hold where his men had locked him, shaking his grizzled gray-blonde locks, watching the sunless banks slip slowly past the embrasure."

Comics

• At Atomic Kommie Comics: "A Story of the Stars" Sci-Fi. 1972.
• At Atomic Kommie Comics: "Flower of Death" Sci-fi. 1951.
• At The Comic Book Catacombs: "Space Bum" Sci-fi. Humor. 1958.
• At Diversions of the Groovy Kind: "One Man's Poison!" Sci-fi. 1972.
• At Four-Color Shadows: "The Unseen" Horror. 1953.
• At Four-Color Shadows: "Prisoner of the Ghost Ship" Horror. 1957.
• At The Horrors of It All: "Bride of Satan" Horror. 1974.
• At Pappy's Golden Age Comics Blogzine: "Jet Powers and the Interplanetary War" Sci-fi. 1951.
• At Secret Sanctum of Captain Video: Captain Video in "Island of Conquerors" Sci-fi. 1951.
• At True Love Comics Tales: "Asteroid Witch" Sci-fi. 1950.

Other Genres
Non-Fiction at Project Gutenberg:

• Female Warriors Vol 1 of 2 by Ellen C. Clayton. 1879. Mythology. History.
• Female Warriors Vol 2 of 2 by Ellen C. Clayton. 1879. Mythology. History.

Fiction at The Western Online:

• "The Weight of Memory" by Kenneth Mark Hoover. Western.
• "On the Path of Totality" by Nathaniel Lloyd. Western.
• "The Third Bull Run" by Elizabeth Esterholdt. Western.

Come On Read the Free Fiction, 'Cause It's Wild, Wild, Wild

It's a great start to weekend with some free fiction from great sites.  There's great horror audio from Pseudopod and Tales to Terrify (If you like horror, do yourself a favor and download their entire archives. They are "that good"). Escape Pod always great SF and this time it features a story by E. Lily Yu, one of the best young writers in any genre. Ad it goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway that other sites are all quite good and you'll do yourself a disservice if you miss them.  More soon.




Fiction
• At Daily Science Fiction: "A Change of Heart" by Rachel Halpern. Magical Realism.
     "Clara got her first clue in preschool, just before naptime one day, as Ms. Weston read aloud from a massive gleaming book of fairy tales. Clara knew most of them already, though the versions were different, and this Snow White was stabbed with a poison comb before she ever touched an apple. Others, though, were entirely new to her, stories of huts with chicken legs and beautiful forest women with hollow backs."

• At Escape Pod: "Loss, with Chalk Diagrams" by E. Lily Yu. Science Fiction.
      "She had been twelve years old when rewiring was first approved for use on a limited clinical population. The treatment involved a brew of sixteen neurotoxins finely tuned to leave normal motor, memory, and cognitive processes intact, burning out only those neural pathways associated with grief and trauma. It was recognized as a radical advancement in medicine, and the neuroscientists involved in its development had been decorated with medals, presidential visits, and a research foundation in their names."

• At HiLobrow: "The Man with Six Senses - Part 8" by Muriel Jaege. Science Fiction. 1923.
      "But she added, frowning a little, “We must take what help we can get, Ralph. I am beginning to be bothered about Michael. His fits of depression are getting worse. I don’t think he will stand his job at Harding’s much longer. He’s had nearly six months of it now, you know."

Flash Fiction

• At Beware the Hairy Mango: "Bottom Out" by Matthew Sanborn Smith. Audio. Weird.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "Oracle" by Desmond Hussey. Science Fiction.
• At Weirdyear: "Albeit of Salt" by Donal Mahoney. Weird.

Audio Fiction
• At Escape Pod: "Loss, with Chalk Diagrams" by E. Lily Yu. Science Fiction.
      "She had been twelve years old when rewiring was first approved for use on a limited clinical population. The treatment involved a brew of sixteen neurotoxins finely tuned to leave normal motor, memory, and cognitive processes intact, burning out only those neural pathways associated with grief and trauma. It was recognized as a radical advancement in medicine, and the neuroscientists involved in its development had been decorated with medals, presidential visits, and a research foundation in their names."

• At Every Photo Tells: "Ginnie Dare: Troubled Waters" by Scott Roche Science Fiction.
    "On her last day on Neptun, Ginnie has a date. But not the one she hoped she would."

• At Pseudopod: "Apotropaics" by Norman Partridge. Horror.
      "A grave, I thought, shivering. It wasn’t an ordinary grave, either, and not just because it was in the middle of a cornfield. Imbedded in this grave, punched into it like it was some weird pincushion, were dozens of stakes and knives, their hilts barely visible. Tent stakes, survey stakes. Boy Scout knives, ordinary silverware, putty knives, and fancy stuff that must have been pure silver."

 • At Tales to Terrify: "Sinner, Baker, Fabulist, Priest; Red Mask, Black Mask, Gentleman, Beast" by Eugie Foster. Horror.
      "Each morning is a decision. Should I put on the brown mask or the blue? Should I be a tradesman or an assassin today?" -text here.

Other Genres

• Audio at The Classic Tales Podcast: "The Call of the Wild, part 3 of 5" by Jack London.
• Fiction at Internet Archive: Wonderful Stories for Children by H. C. Andersen. Children's Fables.

It Doesn't Take Six Senses to Appreciate These Great Free Stories

Plenty of good free fiction this morning, including two ongoing Edgar Rice Burroughs serials, the latest from Escape Pod and Pseudopod, a limited time streaming audio fiction by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, the welcome return of weird year, and more.  And there's an even bigger post coming later today, so read or listen to all these as quickly as you can!





[Bizarre art from The Moon Men in fiction below]




Fiction
• At Daily Science Fiction: "The Black Bough" by Conor Powers-Smith. Science Fiction.
      "The room was dimly lit, and dominated by the bulky white tube of the scanner. It looked hungry, the proverbial gaping maw. That would make the narrow gurney projecting out into the room its tongue; projecting now, but soon to be sucked back into the monster's mouth."

• At Escape Pod: "Nutshell" by Jeffrey Wikstrom. Science Fiction.
       "Carpet ocean, stretching over miles; hills and valleys and ravines, all upholstered.  The green indoor-outdoor gives way to blue, as land gives way to sea, but the texture never changes.  When it rains, as it sometimes does, the drops pass through the carpet without making contact, as though they or it aren’t really there."

• At HiLobrow: "The Man with Six Senses - part 7" by Muriel Jaeger. Science Fiction. 1927.
     "I thought about him and his peculiarity and his affairs as little as I possibly could. I do not like oddities. And I could no longer conceal from myself that he was definitely an oddity. I even feared secretly that, as Hilda thought, he might be a momentous sort of oddity, though this I would never admit even to myself."

• At HiLobrow: "The Moon Men - Part 9" by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Science Fiction. Adventure. 1925.
      "We passed days of mental anguish — hearing nothing, knowing nothing — and then one evening a single Kash Guard rode up to father’s house. Juana and I were there with mother. The fellow dismounted and knocked at the door — a most unusual courtesy from one of these."

Flash Fiction

• At 365 Tomorrows: "Testimony" by Jae Miles. Science Fiction.
• At Weirdyear: "A Missed Opportunity" by Alex Munkacsy. Weird Fiction.

Audio Fiction
• At Escape Pod: "Nutshell" by Jeffrey Wikstrom. Science Fiction.
       "Carpet ocean, stretching over miles; hills and valleys and ravines, all upholstered.  The green indoor-outdoor gives way to blue, as land gives way to sea, but the texture never changes.  When it rains, as it sometimes does, the drops pass through the carpet without making contact, as though they or it aren’t really there."

• At Fantastic Worlds of Edgar Rice Burroughs: "Episode 4 - Out Of Time's Abyss"
     "Bradley has been captured by the eerie flying creatures. He discovers that the creatures can speak and reason and are named Wieroos. He is taken to a large island in the center of Caspak’s inland sea. His captor, Fosh-bal-soj, tells him he is to be taken before 'He Who Speaks for Luata.'"

• At Pseudopod: "The Easily Forgotten" by Philip M. Roberts. Horror.
       "You know how much money he’s invested in this whole state? Besides, I’ve seen him boot two people, one for stealing, and one for hitting someone else. Both went on their way with a black eye, probably a few other bruises. More embarrassing than painful I’d imagine."

• At WMG Publishing: "Geeks Bearing Gifts" by Kristine Grayson (AKA Kristine Kathryn Rusch). Paranormal Romance. Streaming only.
       "Bethanne Dupree runs a computer dating service and pretends she doesn’t need it too. She manages to separate her personal life from her business life until Ray Greco comes to the office of the dating service to make a video"

Other Genres

• Audio at Classic Tales Podcast: "The Call of the Wild - part 2 of 5" by Jack London. Adventure.
• Flash Fiction at Every Day Fiction: "David's Test" by Jesse Knifley. Mystery / Suspense.

Free Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror.

'nuff said





Flash Fiction

• At Beware The Hairy Mango: "The Joy of Manufacturing" Audio. Weird.
• At Daily Science Fiction: "The Traveling Raven Problem" by Ian Watson. Fantasy.
• At Nature: "Time Heals All Wounds" by Grace Tang. Science Fiction.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "Cops" by Bob Newbell. Science Fiction.

E-Books
At Free eBooks Daily:

• Knights of the Dragon by A. J. Gallant. Fantasy.
• Until the End by Tracey Ward. Zombie Romance.

At Smashwords:

• "Parasol" by T.C. Beckett. Fantasy.
• "My Afternoon with Garbo" by Richard Upton. Fantasy.
• "Tossing and Turning" by Esther Spurrill Jones. Fairy Tale.
• "Words" by Jacob Prytherch. Horror. Weird.
• "Silhouettes Of Dust And Bone" by Michael Carter. Horror. Ghost.
• Zero Point Energy by Sarit Hashkes. Hard SF. 80k words.

Audio Fiction
• At Clarkesworld: "Found" by Alex Dally MacFarlane. Science Fiction.
     "At this last asteroid, I had not traded for any. I had found its interior spaces open and airless, blast-marked, most of its equipment broken or gone, debris—shards of metal, rock, old synth materials, blackened bits of bone—still lodged in some deep crannies. In such a small asteroid, a sudden equipment failure could be unsurvivable. I knew this."

• At Drabblecast: "Hollow as the World" by Ferrett Steinmetz. Horror. Science Fiction.
      "One of the reasons Joshua loved Lydia as much as he did was all the secret rituals they’d devised. Their shared jokes were treasured secrets, never to be shared with the other kids at high school; some days, the way Lydia could send Joshua into high titters with a raise of her pierced eyebrow was the only thing that kept Joshua from slitting his wrists…"


Old Time Radio

• At Boxcars711: "Tom Corbett Space Cadet - Space Station Of Danger"  Pt. 1. Science Fiction. 
• At Boxcars711: "Child's Play" - Dimension X  (06-24-51). Science Fiction.
• At OTR Plot Spot: Part Two of  "Hunter's Moon" - Piccadilly Radio. 
• At Relic Radio: "Charlie, The Beautiful Machine" by Theater Five. Science Fiction.

Other

• Fiction at The Western Online: "The Ride to Baxterville" by John Laneri.
• Flash Fiction at Every Day Fiction: "Heavy Weather" by V.F. Elliott.

You Are About to Experience the Awe and Mystery Which Reaches from the Inner Mind to — The Free Fiction Limits.

Another collection of links to great free fiction.  There are new and classic stories with all-new audio readings, another cool eZine posted, and great text fiction.  And as the Governator once said, I'll be back with e-books and more.


 [Art from the Drabblecast reading of "The Lurking Fear"]

 


 Fiction
• At L5R: "Gates of Chaos, Part 3" by Seth Mason. Fantasy.
      "Two hundred trained Unicorn veterans stood in formation by their mounts as Akodo Dairuko walked slowly past the front line. The Champion of the Lion Clan inspected each soldier as she walked by, her eyes darting quickly and precisely to each detail on the armor, weapons, mount, and the soldier before moving on to the next."

• At Nightmare: "How Far to Englishman’s Bay" by Matthew Cheney. Horror.
     "Max had made the decision that April morning to close up the bookshop and go away for once and for all, but he hadn’t told anyone yet, and he needed somebody to take the cat, so it was a good thing Jeffrey showed up an hour before closing."

• At Planet Magazine: "Encounter at Midnight" by Irene Maschke. Science Fiction.
     "Mick stared open-mouthed into a long, green face with deep wrinkles and two spindly antennae on top. The alien was a little shorter than himself and looked rather plump in its silvery space suit."

• At Weird Fiction: "Buddha Nostril Bird" by John Kessel. Science Fiction. 1990.
      "After we killed the guard, Glaucon and I ran down the corridor away from the Well. Glaucon had been seriously aged in the fight. He limped and cursed, a piece of dying meat and he knew it. I brushed my hand along the wall looking for a door." 

• Now Posted: Cafe Irreal #47 Summer 2013. Weird. Surreal. Mostly Flash.

• "The Man with his Back Turned" by Agustín Cadena
• "Wanted & Dance of the Mad Flies" by Fredric Mitchem
• "It's Not What You Think It Is" by Brian Biswas
• "Where Are The Plans?" by Jean-Marc Agrati
• "The Magic Bucket" by Srinjay Chakravarti
• "THINGS" by Bird Marathe
• "Travel, A Life, & Investment" by Ian Seed
• "The Counter Has Begun To Move" by Peter Fagan

Flash Fiction

• At Daily Science Fiction: "The Dollmaker's Grief" by Michelle M. Denham.
• At Quantum Muse: "The Void" by Harris Tobias. Science Fiction.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "No Portraits" by Clint Wilson. Science Fiction.

Audio Fiction
• At Drabblecast: "The Lurking Fear" by H.P. Lovecraft. Horror.
      "There was thunder in the air on the night I went to the deserted mansion atop Tempest Mountain to find the lurking fear. I was not alone, for foolhardiness was not then mixed with that love of the grotesque and the terrible which has made my career a series of quests for strange horrors in literature and in life. With me were two faithful and muscular men for whom I had sent when the time came; men long associated with me in my ghastly explorations because of their peculiar fitness."

• At Nightmare: "How Far to Englishman’s Bay" by Matthew Cheney. Horror.
     "Max had made the decision that April morning to close up the bookshop and go away for once and for all, but he hadn’t told anyone yet, and he needed somebody to take the cat, so it was a good thing Jeffrey showed up an hour before closing."

• At 19 Nocturne Boulevard: "At the Sound of the Beep" by Julie Hoverson. Horror.
      "A woman's answering-machine tells a terrible tale of persecution."

• At PodCastle: "The Tree of Life" by C.L. Moore. Weird. Fantasy.
      "Over time-ruined Illar the searching planes swooped and circled. Northwest Smith, peering up at them with a steel-pale stare from the shelter of a half-collapsed temple, thought of vultures wheeling above carrion. All day long now they had been raking these ruins for him. Presently, he knew, thirst would begin to parch his throat and hunger to gnaw at him."

Other Free Fiction Linkers

• SF Signal
• Free SF Reader
• Free Speculative Fiction Online
• BestScienceFictionStories.com
• Variety SF
• SFFaudio

 Other Genres
• Flash Fiction at Every Day Fiction: "Real Charity" by Rhys Timson,

Quiet Weekend Freebies

Closing out the weekend with a few good speculative fiction freebies.  Back Monday with much more (I hope)




Fiction
• At The WiFiles: "Maternal" By David Massengill. Weird. Horror.
     "Talia usually saw the pregnant woman walking along the beach where the government workers had piled all the bodies. But today the young woman was coming out of Islanders Market with a bag of groceries in one hand. She had sky-blue eyes and wavy black hair that nearly reached her waist."

Flash Fiction

• At Every Day Fiction: "Watch Your World Crumble Around You" by Sierra July. Science Fiction.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "An Important Message" by Alex Sivier. Science Fiction.

E-Books
At Free eBooks Daily:

• Awakened by Ednah Walters. YA Paranormal Romance.
• The Warrior Queen by Lynda Williams. YA Fantasy.
• Aquifer by Gary Barnes. Science Fiction.
• The New Frontier by Ryan Kinzy. YA Science Fiction.

Audio Fiction
• At LibriVox: "The City in the Sea" and "Tamerlane" by Edgar Allan Poe in Short Poetry Collection 122. Dark Fantasy.
     "LO! Death has reared himself a throne / In a strange city lying alone / Far down within the dim West, / Where the good and the bad and the worst and the best"

•At Radio Drama Revival: Alice in Wonderland by Lewiss Carroll. Children's Fantasy.
     "This week we follow the adventures of Alice in Wonderland, a full cast Voices in the Wind production which features a new original song, “My Garden Back at Home”. Georgia Lee Schultz stars as Alice; Barbara Rosenblat is featured as the Queen. Sibby Wieland from Sound Stages Radio and Noir Dame Productions guest hosts."

RPG eZine
• At DriveThruRPG: Pathways #29 - Pathfinder Compatible.
     "a free 'zine packed with plenty of Open Gaming Content for you to take to the table."


Other Genres
• Audio at Selected Shorts: "Love and Cake"

Free Fiction for a Dark and Stormy Night

Well it has to be a dark and stormy night somewhere.  We have a fee good horror stories today, including "The Companion" by Ramsey Campbell and "A Terror" by Jeffrey Ford (illustrated to the left). There are some other good ones, so get them all.









Fiction
• At Nightmare Magazine: "The Companion" by Ramsey Campbell. Horror.
     "When Stone reached the fairground, having been misdirected twice, he thought it looked more like a gigantic amusement arcade. A couple of paper cups tumbled and rattled on the shore beneath the promenade, and the cold insinuating October wind scooped the Mersey across the slabs of red rock that formed the beach, across the broken bottles and abandoned tyres."

• At HiLobrow: "The Clockwork Man  Part 19" by E.V. Odle. Science Fiction. 1922.
      "It must remain for ever a question for curious speculation as to what action might have been taken by Doctor Allingham and Gregg in conjunction, had they been able to pursue their investigation of the Clockwork man upon a thorough-going scale; for while their discussions were taking place the subject of them escaped from his confinement in the coal cellar."

• At Tor.com: "A Terror" by Jeffrey Ford. Dark Fantasy / Horror.    
      "She pulled back the counterpane and moved to the edge of the bed. There, she rested; her bare feet on the cold floor, letting the night’s hush, like between the heaves of storm, settle her. Only when a fly buzzed against the windowpane did she remember everything."

Flash Fiction

• At Daily Science Fiction: "The Negotiation" by D. Thomas Minton. Fantasy.
• At Every Day Fiction: "Idiot Robot" by Shane D. Rhinewald. Science Fiction.

E-Books
At Free eBooks Daily:

• The Bride of Casa Dracula by Marta Acosta Vampire Fiction.
• The Second Veil by Kinga Paine. Metaphysical Horror. 
• Eternal Hunger by Francene Carroll. Paranormal Romance.
• The Survivors by Daniel Harvell. Fantasy.
• Dawn of Destiny by Lee Stephen. Science Fiction.
• Blood Myth by Stacy Moran. Paranormal Romance.
• Dumping Grounds by Lila Beckham. Horror. 

At Smashwords:

• "Peary" by Andrzej Galicki. Fantasy. 
• "Assisted Suicide" by Adam Moon. Weird Fiction.
• "Daughter of Llathe: A Tale of the Two Rings" by Ben Cassidy. Space Opera.
  
• "The Soulcore" by James K. Ngubiah. Fantasy.
• "Feel" by Stephen Craig. Horror. 
• "Water is Thicker than Blood" by Julie Ann Dawson. Science Fiction. Apocalyptic. 
• "The Collector" by Kassandra Alvarado. Ghost.
• "How Dabney Got His Hat" by Caitlan Burns. Science Fiction. 
• "Saints of the Void: Atypical" by Michael Valdez. Science Fiction. 
• "Return To Sender" by Jack Schlimazlnik. Science Fiction.

Audio Fiction
• At Nightmare Magazine: "The Companion" by Ramsey Campbell. Horror.
     "When Stone reached the fairground, having been misdirected twice, he thought it looked more like a gigantic amusement arcade. A couple of paper cups tumbled and rattled on the shore beneath the promenade, and the cold insinuating October wind scooped the Mersey across the slabs of red rock that formed the beach, across the broken bottles and abandoned tyres."
• At StarShipSofa: "Running on Two Legs" by Eugie Foster.Magical Realism.
      "My mother used to tell stories of how I talked to animals when I was a little girl. And then she’d laugh when she described how indignant I got because no one believed they talked back." Text here.

The Free Fiction Maneuver

There's some great free fiction this morning, including an audio reading of the SF classic "The Cold Equations," new fiction at Lightspeed, e-books, and much more.  And be sure to check out SF Signal for more free fiction posts by my honorable peer, Sir Regan Wolfrom.







Fiction
•  At The Colored Lens: "Primordial" by Jamie Killen. Speculative Fiction.
     "For a moment, he feared that Magda would stand up and slap him. After a few seconds of staring at him in icy rage, she looked away and bit a thumbnail. “Don’t know where people get these stupid ideas, like I’m a witch or something."

•  At Daily Science Fiction: "Tell Them of the Sky" by A. T. Greenblatt. Magic Realism.
        "She is too small, Kitkun thinks, the first time she enters his tiny workshop tucked between the market's stalls. Too young to have left the nest alone. Yet, despite the years of waiting, he still feels a prick of hope as she steps out of the city's unrelenting smog and over the threshold, thinking, perhaps she will be the one. Perhaps she will ask."

•  At Lightspeed: "Cancer" by Ryan North. Science Fiction.
      "Not everyone got tested at birth, and Tina hadn’t. Not getting tested had been her parents’ choice, but in university it had become her choice. She and Helen were hanging out in Helen’s dorm room, alone, lying side by side on her bed. It was the only comfortable place in the room."

•  At Lightspeed: "Ushakiran" by Laura Friis. Fantasy.
      "The earliest movements she knows are not her mother’s movements but the sea rocking her mother, who lies unconscious on the ship’s deck, rescued. In that way, the sea can be said to be her mother. She is born under the morning star, and so is named Ushakiran. The surgeon delivers her into a world of storms and blood, of darkness and creaking wood, of a blanket wrapped close around her, cold arms that cannot hold her."

•  At The Night Land: "Lute" by Don Webb. Dark Fantasy.  [via SF Signal]
     "The People gave me an ugly human name Lute. I am very ugly, for I am the product of twelve generations of breeding made to pass for human. I have their hateful symmetry. I have been surgically altered to have only two eyes, and unlike the People I cannot see what is behind me. When I was newly harvested, the other young ones took great pleasure in sneaking up on me. My Teacher Alvan would punish them and tell them that I was the one who would be the Trojan Horse."

•  At Weird Fiction Review: "Wunderkindergarten" by Marc Laidlaw.
     "I used to start talking right after an injection, when everyone else was sitting around addled and drowsily sipping warm milk from cartons and the aides were unfolding our luxurious padded mats for nap-time. The words would start pouring out of me in a froth, quite beyond my control, as significant to me as they were meaningless to the others"

Flash Fiction

• At Every Day Fiction: "The Dark" by Yancy Caruthers. Surreal.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "Inferiority Complex" by Bob Newbell. Science Fiction.

E-Books
At Free eBooks:

• The Exile's Violin by R.S. Hunter. Fantasy.
• Mortality by Kellie Sheridan. YA Zombies. 
• The 13th by Shadow Stephens. Fantasy.

At Smashwords:

• "Stumped: A Tale of Taloria" Samuel J. Plum. Fantasy.
• "Carpe Diem" by Michael Loring. Fantasy.
• "Divine Blood: Smoke over Grimsvotn" by Luke Green. Urban Fantasy.
• "Divine Blood: Serious Matter" by Luke Green. Urban Fantasy.
• "Divine Blood: High School Hel" by Luke Green.Urban Fantasy.
• "Return to Bryn Mairwyn" by Daniel Huber. Fantasy.
• "The Horror From The Blizzard" by Morris Kenyon. Horror.
• "The Svinnvif" by David Hunter. Fantasy. Horror.
• "The World Was Too Small" by E.S. Wesley. Horror. Weird.

Audio Fiction
•  At 19 Nocturne Boulevard: "No Moving Parts" by Murray F. Yaco. Science Fiction.
      "Hansen was sitting at the control board in the single building on Communications Relay Station 43.4SC, when the emergency light flashed on for the first time in two hundred years. With textbook-recommended swiftness, he located the position of the ship sending the call, identified the ship and the name of its captain, and made contact."

•  At Drabblecast: "The Cold Equations" by Tom Godwin. Science Fiction.
      "There was nothing to indicate the fact but the white hand of the tiny gauge on the board before him. The control room was empty but for himself; there was no sound other than the murmur of the drives — but the white hand had moved"

•  At Lightspeed: "Cancer" by Ryan North. Science Fiction.
      "Not everyone got tested at birth, and Tina hadn’t. Not getting tested had been her parents’ choice, but in university it had become her choice. She and Helen were hanging out in Helen’s dorm room, alone, lying side by side on her bed. It was the only comfortable place in the room."

Other Genres

•  Audio at Protecting Project Pulp: "The Hand of the Mandarin Quong" by Sax Rohmer. Noir.

Begin the Day with Friendly Free Fiction

Some great free speculative fiction links to start your week with!  There are some great selections in fiction, flash fiction, and audio fiction this morning. More later.  And be sure to check out our peers listed in "Free SF Sites" in the right hand column.






[Art from "The Highwater Harbor - Part One" linked below]



Fiction
• At Black Gate: "The Highwater Harbor - Part One" by Aaron Bradford Starr. Fantasy.
     "While not exactly fugitives from justice, Gloren, Yr Neh, and I have found ourselves fleeing from various legal entanglements better resolved in our absence from West Rotthe. Arising, as they will no doubt prove, from unfounded allegations of sundry flavors of negligence, we agreed last night that the best course would likely be to take some form of long journey, far from the misplaced grievances of the Viscount of Amberle and his vengeful wife."

• At HiLobrow: "Theodore Savage part 19" by Cicely Hamilton. Science Fiction. 1922.
      "When war breaks out in Europe — war which aims successfully to displace entire populations — British civilization collapses utterly and overnight. The ironically named Theodore Savage, an educated and dissatisfied idler, must learn to survive by his wits in the new England, where 20th-century science, technology, and culture are regarded with superstitious awe and terror." Prior chapter at same link.

• At Short-Story.me: "The Priory Sunday" by Daniel Ayiotis. Horror.
      "The Priory of St. Anthony had appeared unannounced and unnoticed at first in the old three story house on Dublin’s North Circular Road.  From the outside, the house looked like any other, but it was what went on inside that attracted the interest of the Gardaí, not to mention the concerned families and friends of those who counted themselves amongst the believers within."

• At Tor.com: "The Monsters of Heaven" by Nathan Ballingrud.
     "For a long time, Brian imagined reunions with his son. In the early days, these fantasies were defined by spectacular violence. He would find the man who stole him and open his head with a claw hammer. The more blood he spilled, the further removed he became from his own guilt."

• At Wily Writers: "Profiles in Survival" by Simon McCaffery. Alternate History.
      "An iconic president and band of survivors fight for survival after the USSR launches a biological weapon at the mainland during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis."

Flash Fiction

• At Beware the Hairy Mango: "Bravissimo" by Matthew Sanborn Smith. Audio. Weird.
• At Daily Science Fiction. "Of Ash and Old Dreams" by Sarah Grey. Fantasy.
• At Quantum Muse: "Welcome" by Harris Tobias. Science Fiction.
• At 365 Tomorrows: "The Lion" by J.D. Rice. Science Fiction.
• At Toasted Cake: "The Moon's Wife" by Cheryl A. Warner. Audio.

Audio
• At Author's Site: "Kissyman & The Last Song" by Scott Sigler. Horror.
      "Here it is, folks, the free serialization of our short story collection BONES ARE WHITE. The eBook is available for purchase, but you're getting the podcast even before the audiobook is in stores."

• At Beam Me Up: Episode #374. Science Fiction.
      "the last of Ed McKeown’s story, 'In the Mourning.'"

• At Cthulhu: "The Shadow over Innsmouth - conclusion" by H.P. Lovecraft.
     "During the winter of 1927-28 officials of the Federal government made a strange and secret investigation of certain conditions in the ancient Massachusetts seaport of Innsmouth. The public first learned of it in February, when a vast series of raids and arrests occurred, followed by the deliberate burning and dynamiting - under suitable precautions - of an enormous number of crumbling, worm-eaten, and supposedly empty houses along the abandoned waterfront." Parts one, two, three, and four.

• At Every Photo Tells: "The Voyage Home"  by Jeffrey Hite. Science Fiction.
     "In a distant future, the journey back to earth is not an easy one."

• At LibriVox: "Gladiator" by Philip Wylie. Science Fiction.
      "Gladiator by Philip Wylie is the story of a man who although normal in all other ways, through the genius of his Father a biologist attains the strength and impregnability of a superman. The problems he encounters in trying to fit into a society of normal human beings who show fear and hatred whenever they view his abnormal strength and physical ability pains him to the point of having to leave civilization."

• At LibriVox: "The Magic Skin" by Honoré de Balzac. Fantasy.
       "Set in early 19th-century Paris, it tells the story of a young man who finds a magic piece of shagreen that fulfills his every desire. For each wish granted, however, the skin shrinks and consumes a portion of his physical energy." - Wikipedia.

• At Wily Writers: "Profiles in Survival" by Simon McCaffery. Alternate History.
      "An iconic president and band of survivors fight for survival after the USSR launches a biological weapon at the mainland during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis."

Other Genres

• Audio at Crime City Central: "Who Killed Skippy" by Paul D Brazill. Mystery.
• Audio at Decoder Ring Theatre: "Crogan Adventures 05 - Incomplete Sentences" Mystery.
• Flash Fiction at Every Day Fiction: "Queen for a Day: What She’ll Say Twelve Years from Now, on a Therapist's Couch in Winnipeg" by Bonnie Ditlevsen.

It's Free To Read When You Want Any Old Time

More good free fiction for you.  Some links were blatantly stolen from the hard-working Regan Wolfrum, at SF Signal who put no more resistance than Canada did during the second Canadian-Icelandic war of 2029, which, as you may recall was started when Icelandic Fisherman were kidnapped and tortured by being made to participate in curling competitions. Then .. Wait, it's only 2013, you don't know about this yet. Please look into the light *FLASH.*  Luit vain spekulatiivista fiktiota linkkejä täällä. Luuletko Dave on suuri. Lähetät hänelle kaikki rahat ja käytettyjä kirjoja.


[Art from Mirror Dance]

Fiction
• At Author's Site: "Spanner Jack: Chapter Four" by Keith Melton. Science Fiction
     "Brenna McClain, an unlicensed engineer and Jack-of-all-trades, has carved out a place for herself working with Dr. Annabel Price on a highly unorthodox, highly dangerous project. The job keeps her wrench busy, and food in her dog Tau’s dish. She doesn’t think they have much of a chance to open a wormhole to the nexus city of Entropy from Earth, even under the guidance of a shadowy benefactor referred to only as the Emissary." Earlier Chapters at same link.

• At Dargonzine: "For A Slice of Apple Pie" by Joseph Carney. Fantasy.
      "The Ober night air was cool. A dense fog rose from the Coldwell filling the streets alongside the river. Despite the nasty conditions, the weather did nothing to stem the traffic along Coldwater Street. Ever since the collapse of the causeway, people crossing the Coldwell River had to pass through the streets of Old Town in the shadow of Dargon Keep on their way to the ferry beneath Coldwell Height."

• At Dargonzine: "The Killing Time" by Liam Donahue. Fantasy.
      "Kryna woke to sunlight streaming through the open slats of a shuttered window. Where was she? She tried to remember the night before, but her mind was still foggy with sleep. She closed her eyes against the glare of the sun and tried to clear her head. Had there been a man last night? She thought so. She remembered a man coming into Maxim's, tall, broad, and dark just like she liked them. Had she gone home with him?"

Now Posted: Mirror Dance Summer 2013 "Watchers: Stories of Angels and Demons" Fantasy.

• "Behold" by James Lecky. Fantasy.
      "I regret to tell you, your majesty," the Doctor said to the Queen. "That the child has been born ugly."

• "On Festival Road" by Jonathan Olfert. Fantasy.
       "The Festival of Forbidden Arts came every seven years to Allsoulsanchor, that most diverse and liberated of cities. Aalem couldn't quite remember the last time caravans of aloof, argumentative magicians passed his family's roadhouse"

• "Old Rootling" by Trevor Shikaze. Flash Fantasy.

• "Hagia Sophia" by Chandler Groover. Fantasy.
      "One late afternoon, a youth named Michael, not twelve years old, was charged with standing guard at the half-finished narthex of the church while the builders went off for their dinners. You might imagine how the dusk must have been settling over the landscape, and how the clouds might have been turning purple, when a stranger began to approach the church from some way down the road"

• "Caught in the Weave" by Mike Phillips. Fantasy.
       "Screaming in anguish, the girl turned and writhed as she lay on the bed, struggling to free herself from her bonds. But there was nothing she could do, the strips of cloth held firm on her wrists and ankles. Tormented beyond words, her fingernails tore at the sheets, her clothes, anything within reach. She screamed again, a sound to shatter glass and make the ears bleed."

• And Poetry by Sandi Leibowitz, Alicia Cole, Glenn Halak, and Deborah Walker

Now Posted On The Premises #20. Speculative and non-genre stories.

• "Pet Protection Laws and Poodle Impact" by Sonny Zae. Science Fiction.
      "Homeowners desperate to keep robo-salesmen out were the best targets, as it was a sure sign of low sales resistance."

• "Whispers" by Daniel Goldberg.
     “God works in mysterious ways.” That was what his fellow church-goers told him. He was having trouble with God these days, as those who can’t sleep often do.

• "Blended" by Yin Lin.
     "I am Australian and Australians aren’t supposed to be afraid of China."

• "Doll’s House Darkness" by Richard Zwicker.
     "Salazar put his hands in his pockets, a dangerous act in my world. ' We’re hoping somewhere inside you is the answer to what happened to Nate.'"

• "Haze" by Anne Carly Abad.
     "The very first Beast in the country sired itself within a womb of billowing black smoke."

E-Books

• At Amazon: Alien Hunter, Star Trooper by David Scholes. Science Fiction. 
• At Amazon: Slow Boat To Purgatory by Vernon Baker. Fantasy. [via Pixel of Ink] 

At Free eBooks Daily:

• Admiral's Lady: Eyes of Ice, Heart of Fire by Luke Sky Wachter. Space Opera. 
• Host of the Armageddon by Ken Scott Smith. Supernatural Thriller.
• The Master of the Hunt by Susan G. Charles. Paranormal Romance.
• The Witches of Dark Root by April Aasheim. Paranormal.