Other books that might interest you

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  The Emerald Storm - An Ethan...

  William Dietrich

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  The year is 1803. Swashbuckling, ribald, and irreverent hero Ethan Gage has outsmarted wily enemies and survived dangerous challenges across the globe. Now the rakish hero finds himself in the Caribbean with his wife, Astiza, on a desperate hunt to secure the lost treasure of Montezuma - a legendary hoard rumored to have been hidden from Cortes's plundering Spanish conquistadors. Hot on his heels are British agents who want the gold to finance a black slave revolt in Saint-Domingue, robbing hostile France of its richest colony. The French, too, seek the treasure for the secrets it contains, the key to an incredible new means of invasion that can ensure Britain's defeat - on its own land.

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  The Five Jars

  M. R. James

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  The Five Jars is the only novel written by James, who is best known for his ghost stories. It is a peculiarly surreal fantasy apparently written for children. While he is out walking, the narrator is drawn to a remote pool, and finds a small box that has been hidden since Roman times. He gradually learns how to use its contents, fighting off a series of attempts to steal it, and becomes aware of a strange world hidden from our own. (Summary by Peter Yearsley)

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  Poirot Investigates

  Agatha Christie

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  Follow the greatest detectives of all time in this short story collection featuring 11 adventures around the world, this collection shows Christie’s famous character Hercule Poirot at his best, as he travels and unravels mysteries of all sorts. 
   
  This mystery collection will leave readers delighted by the charm and wit of Hercule Poirot as he solves case after case at a clipping pace. 
   
  This edition of Poirot Investigates follows the original UK edition of the collection, and includes the following captivating stories: 
   
  “The Adventures of the Western Star” 
  “The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor” 
  “The Adventure of the Cheap Flat” 
  “The Mystery of Hunter’s Lodge” 
  “The Million Dollar Bond Robbery” 
  “The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb” 
  “The Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan” 
  “The Kidnapped Prime Minister” 
  “The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim” 
  “The Adventure of the Italian Noble-Man” 
  “The Case of the Missing Will”

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  Three Short Stories by E G Swain

  E. G. Swain

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  Edmund Gill Swain (1861-1938) was an English cleric and author of ghost stories. He was a longtime friend of M. R. James, and his ghost stories show James' influence.- The Eastern Window- The Man with the Roller- The Rockery

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  Female Short Story The - A...

  Vernon Lee, Edith Nesbit,...

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  A wise man once said ‘The safest place for a child is in the arms of his mother’s voice’.  This is a perfect place to start our anthology of female short stories. 
   
  Some of our earliest memories are of our mothers telling us bedtime stories. This is not to demote the value of fathers but more to promote the often-overshadowed talents of the gentler sex. 
   
  Perhaps ‘gentler’ is a word that we should re-evaluate. In the course of literary history it is men who dominated by opportunity and with their stranglehold on the resources, both financial and technological, who brought their words to a wider audience.  Men often placed women on a pedestal from where their talented words would not threaten their own.   
   
  In these stories we begin with the original disrupter and renegade author Aphra Behn.  A peek at her c.v. shows an astounding capacity and leaves us wondering at just how she did all that. 
   
  In those less modern days to be a woman, even ennobled, was to be seen as second class.  You literally were chattel and had almost no rights in marriage.  As Charlotte Smith famously said your role as wife was little more than ‘legal prostitute’.  From such a despicable place these authors have used their talents and ideas and helped redress that situation.   
   
  Slowly at first.  Privately printed, often anonymously or under the cloak of a male pseudonym their words spread.  Their stories admired and, usually, their role still obscured from rightful acknowledgement. 
   
  Aided by more advanced technology, the 1700’s began to see a steady stream of female writers until by the 1900’s mass market publishing saw short stories by female authors from all the strata of society being avidly read by everyone.  Their names are a rollcall of talent and ‘can do’ spirit and society is richer for their works.   
   
  In literature at least women are now acknowledged as equals, true behind the scenes little has changed but if (and to mis-quote Jane Austen) there is one universal truth, it is that ideas change society.  These women’s most certainly did and will continue to do so as they easily write across genres, from horror and ghost stories to tender tales of love and making your way in society’s often grueling rut.  They will not be silenced, their ideas and passion move emotions, thoughts and perhaps more importantly our ingrained view of what every individual human being is capable of.    
   
  It is because of their desire to speak out, their desire to add their talents to the bias around them that we perhaps live in more enlightened, almost equal, times.   
   
  Within these stories you will also find very occasional examples of historical prejudice.  A few words here and there which in today’s world some may find inappropriate or even offensive.  It is not our intention to make anyone uncomfortable but to show that the world in order to change must reconcile itself to the actual truth rather than put it out of sight.  Context is everything, both to understand and to illuminate the path forward.  The author’s words are set, our reaction to them encourages our change. 
   
  01 - The Female Short Story. A Chronological History - An Introduction - Volume 5 
  02 - The Death Mask by H D Everett writing as Theo Parker 
  03 - The Story of 'The Spaniards', Hammersmith by Kate and Hesketh Pritchard 
  04 - A New England Nun by Mary E Wilkins Freeman 
  05 - A Dream of Wild Bees by Olive Schreiner 
  06 - The Hired Baby, A Romance of the London Streets by Mary Mackay writing as Marie Corelli 
  07 - The Runaway by Marion Hepworth-Dixon 
  08 - Amour Dure by Violet Paget writing as Vernon Lee 
  09 - My Flirtations by Ella Hepworth Dixon writing as Margaret Wynham 
  10 - Irremediable by Ella D'Arcy 
  11 - When the Devil Was Well by Gertrude Ather

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  The Car Dog & the Girl - A Short...

  Kevin G. Chapman

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  A short story from award-winning thriller author Kevin G. Chapman. 
    
  This simple job just went way off the rails. 
    
  Lenny wants to get into the good graces of the guys who have connections. He's willing to do anything. His cousin, Eddie, sets him up with a simple job — drive a classic red convertible from Boston to Brooklyn. Nobody told him there would be a dog involved. Or a girl. And when the girl's husband shows up, Lenny is in way deeper than he ever wanted. It's not his fault, or is it? If he ever gets out of this scrape, he's going to kill cousin Eddie.

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