Bite Sized Stories

From a creepypasta horror farm to a bullish love tale and from the bloody metal deck of the ESS Arclight to superhero octopus food trucks, you can transform your shortest stolen moments into utter delights with this diverse collection of 33 flash fiction stories. Commuting to work? Grabbing a quick coffee? Each story tells a complete tale in but a few short minutes with the added promise of a lifelong introduction to new indie writers. You never know, you might just find your next favorite author. This collection, the first in the Flash Flood series, is a special selection of master works with a variety of genres and voices guaranteed to keep you engaged. Sign up now for future flash fiction anthologies themed for Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day, May the 4th and Independence Day.

Inspired by an experiment on Twitter, these 300 moving stories are no bigger than a sentence or two, on themes like love, death, and family. In this one-of-a-kind collection, author Sean Hill has crafted hundreds of engaging stories that conjure an entire novel in just a sentence or two. Sometimes sad, often humorous and always creative, these tales touch on a wide range of life experiences from romance and family to death and sex. Nana rocked in her old wooden rocking chair. “Timmy, you have always been my favorite,” she said. He looked at her. “Nana, I’m Bobby.” Read your diary, discovered your secret. I thought I loved you, but now I’m not sure. Don’t know what to do, you look so human. Clowning was Daryl’s profession, cooking was his passion. Stella thought he was perfect. She liked to laugh and never learned to cook. Alex bought Sharon a ring for Valentine’s Day, which she sold to buy the gun that stopped him from loving her. In 2009, Sean Hill combined his love of writing and technology by creating @VeryShortStory, a Twitter feed where he interacts with his readers and shares his 140-character stories. Praise for Very Short Stories “Some are touching, some ring true, but most are laugh-out-loud funny.” —Seattle Times “The book is a treasure-trove of fascinating exploration into the craft of language and storytelling.” —Summit Daily “Story telling is his bag, pure and simple.” —Austin American Statesman “The best of the stories might rival Hemingway's classic six word story in their descriptive brevity and their ability to tell a complete and affecting tale.” —Short and Sweet NYC “Witty, well-crafted and always thought-provoking.” —Salt Lake Tribune

Sometimes what you read depends on how much time you have. Bite Size Reads is a collection of 23 short stories of murder, revenge, time travel and creepy things, all flavor enhanced with a dash of irony and a sprinkling of humor. The cool thing is, the stories are grouped by an Average Read Time and all are 15 minutes or less. There's something for everyone and every time of day. So get off social media and delve into alternate worlds, well-deserved revenge, and twists of fate. All in 15 minutes or less. Because a good read can happen one bite at a time.

This celebration of Chinese Science Fiction — thirteen stories, all translated for the first time into English — represents a unique exploration of the nation’s speculative fiction from the late 20th Century onwards, curated and translated by critically acclaimed writer and essayist Xueting Christine Ni. From the renowned Jiang Bo’s ‘Starship: Library' to Regina Kanyu Wang’s ‘The Tide of Moon City, and Anna Wu’s ‘Meisje met de Parel', this is a collection for all fans of great fiction. Award winners, bestsellers, screenwriters, playwrights, philosophers, university lecturers and computer programmers, these thirteen writers represent the breadth of Chinese SF, from new to old: Gu Shi, Han Song, Hao Jingfang, Nian Yu, Wang Jinkang, Zhao Haihong, Tang Fei, Ma Boyong, Anna Wu, A Que, Bao Shu, Regina Kanyu Wang and Jiang Bo.

Charlotte died to shore up her master's house. Her bones grew into the foundation and pushed up through the walls, feeding his power and continuing the cycle. As time passes and the ones she loved fade away, the house and the master remain, and she yearns ever more deeply for vengeance. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

A "delicious" (Dorie Greenspan), "genial" (Kirkus Reviews), "very cool book about the intersections of food and history" (Michael Pollan)—as featured in the New York Times "The complex political, historical, religious and social factors that shaped some of [France's] . . . most iconic dishes and culinary products are explored in a way that will make you rethink every sprinkling of fleur de sel." —The New York Times Book Review Acclaimed upon its hardcover publication as a "culinary treat for Francophiles" (Publishers Weekly), A Bite-Sized History of France is a thoroughly original book that explores the facts and legends of the most popular French foods and wines. Traversing the cuisines of France's most famous cities as well as its underexplored regions, the book is enriched by the "authors' friendly accessibility that makes these stories so memorable" (The New York Times Book Review). This innovative social history also explores the impact of war and imperialism, the age-old tension between tradition and innovation, and the enduring use of food to prop up social and political identities. The origins of the most legendary French foods and wines—from Roquefort and cognac to croissants and Calvados, from absinthe and oysters to Camembert and champagne—also reveal the social and political trends that propelled France's rise upon the world stage. As told by a Franco-American couple (Stéphane is a cheesemonger, Jeni is an academic) this is an "impressive book that intertwines stories of gastronomy, culture, war, and revolution. . . . It's a roller coaster ride, and when you're done you'll wish you could come back for more" (The Christian Science Monitor).

This is a comprehensive guide to the Oxford of Morse, Lewis and Endeavour. Nobody else has attempted it and it marks thirty-five years since the first Morse on ITV in 1987. The 2021 series of three Endeavour episodes may well be the last iteration of the Morse franchise. Lips are sealed on that. At the centre piece of this guide is a walk by the doyenne of Oxford Walking Tours, Heidi Boon Rickard. In eight stops in central Oxford, she covers the filming of the three series very well. Use it as your bible. It is essential and full of surprises. Tucked on to that is a short guide to the Jericho - ten minutes' walk from the city centre - of Morse (and Lewis). It is after all the scene of the very first TV Morse, 'The Dead of Jericho' and a district interesting in its own right. I know - I live there. But this is much, much more than a dry tourist guide. It is also an informative guide to Morse's creator Colin Dexter: his writings, his leisure activities, his pub-goings, and their place in the city. There is much exciting and stimulating reading in these ten extra chapters. They range from a revealing interview with Dexter to an analysis of the first Morse novel Last Bus to Woodstock to the reflections of his editor at Macmillan on their partnership to the inspiration he provided for the writer Cara Hunter and her 'New Morse', Inspector Adam Fawley. We also examine the credentials of Morse, the policeman, with the former Chief Constable of his force and a retired 'Morse' - and an Oxford DI. We compare the 'late Morse' with the 'early Endeavour' through the eyes of two academics. We enter the Morse Universe through the eyes of one of the biggest fans of the franchise and look at whether Oxford is missing many tricks in not developing Morse tourism. Imagine Stratford without Shakespeare, Bath without Jane Austen - then that would be Oxford without Endeavour Morse. And for the true believers we set out in two appendices the filmography of the Morse franchise and a fuller location guide to the settings for the three series. By the end, you should be thoroughly immersed in all the facets of 'Morseland'. Enjoy the journey. Start it with Heidi Boon Rickard in St Giles in the city centre just outside those great Oxford landmarks, the Randolph Hotel and the Ashmolean Museum.

A masterful introduction to world mythology, shedding light on the impact it has had on cultures past and present and untangling the complex web of deities, monsters and myths.