Fantasy
The Naming at the Pool by Aliette de Bodard (fantasy)Rhana only meant to help: the man she found in the forest, nameless and lost, was simply too pitiful to leave unaided. But she forgot the power of naming in such a powerful place: and in naming him for a long-lost king, she finds she has brought to life a very dangerous creature with some very powerful cravings.
Copenhagen or Anywhere by Hanne Blank (fantasy)
Canta's lost all the easy things in this new life, it seems; tables with china, hot food, peace. It's very different from the fantasy, after all - Canta gave up her legs to become a mermaid, not the other way around. But in trading the thin, lifeless air of land for the density of the sea, in joining the ranks and killing alongside them, she finds the war is something very different than she had expected...
The Desert in the North by JoSelle Vanderhooft (fantasy)
The desert is fond of her catches: and this one, bound beneath snow, is no less hungry. Vanderhooft returns with another lyrical piece from the land's own viewpoint, where the Earth enjoys the slow death of her victims in the icy north.
Charlie is My Darling by William K. Carlson (fantasy/science fiction)
It's not every day that a man declares himself Charles Dickens, especially in 21st century New York. Jan can't help herself - as an amateur Dickens scholar and a TV producer, she has to meet the man, whatever kind of crook (or mental case) he may be. But what she finds is something all together unexpected. The man she meets doesn't even remotely resemble Dickens, and his accent is pure midwestern America - yet his mind is witty and perfectly Victorian, and in all other respects as Dickensian as could be. Unable to believe him either an impersonator or a lunatic, Jan begins to prepare the world for something all-together impossible.
The Lord of Feathers by David Tallerman (fantasy)
Isabella, daughter of the Fourfold Baron, has lost her heart to the Lord of Feathers. Without having spoken a word to him, she chooses to give up her life and follow after him to the ugly, forgotten town of Lantern, where she begs audience in his court. Denied this visitation, her money dwindles and her servants vanish, and Isabella focuses feverishly on the question that haunts her: what will it take to make the Lord of Feathers love her?
Silver Threads by Patricia Correll (fantasy)
The Oracle has prophecies for every bride and groom, and as sister to the bride, little Irix enjoys the special priviledge of attending the joyful foretelling. But what Irix sees is far from joyful - a girl, captive and bound, eyes sewn shut and prisoner to everyone who serves her. Horrified by what she has seen, Irix decides it is time to take action - but there are problems Irix has not foreseen...
Catch and Release by Bryan Wang (fantasy/horror)
Fishing is a pleasant thing - at the Little Akron in particular, where the river is delightful and the fish plentiful. The stories of a man who lost his finger to an improbable fish leave it, perhaps, a little less enticing - but certainly aren't enough to stop his son from trying his hand at it when he returns to old Center Run. But a simple day of fishing dissolves into strange happenings - a prehistoric beast in the Little Akron's water only a prologue to a wild town filled with revelers, where the price of entry is not so clearly defined as visitors might wish...
Headlamps by A.S. Morgan (fantasy)
Vauxhall has condescended to allow wingless 12-year-old Lilly Mikasa into its ranks - a fact which Lilly is daily reminded of at school, teased as she is by her fellow classmates. The symbols of the school follow her everywhere, its white wings and golden scales, her inadequacy plainly written in its image - a fact clearly lost on her parents, who are lost in their own ecstatic congratulations to their daughter for gaining entrance to such an institution. Seething with anger and frustration, stuck in a society where she is hopelessly embedded in the lower caste, Lilly begins to lash out.
What Uncle Howard Did by David C. Kopaska-Merkel (horror/fantasy)
Rob and his new stepdaughter, Lindsey, are two of a kind - good, old-fashioned adventurers. So when Rob's Uncle Howard unexpectedly leaves him an old property complete with log cabin, it's clear they have to investigate. But as they make their way into the dilapidated structure, down a tunnel behind a bolted door, and into a mad mushroom kingdom, they begin to wonder if it wouldn't have been a better idea to stay very, very far away...
The Ship of Silk on the Calmest Sea by Daniel Ausema (fantasy)
Elderly Tima commands a powerful magic as she sews cloth into great boats for the Suzerain. But at times it seems the magic commands her instead - and without question, the Suzerain's demands keep her bound to land and labor. That is, until she decides to create her ship of silk to sail the Calmest Sea...
Cliff's Edge by Mike Moran (fantasy/myth)
Enoch craves escape - escape from slavery, torture, and everything that chases him. Hamiel offers freedom, if Enoch is brave enough: sanctuary, reached by a hopeless dive off the edge of a cliff. As Enoch trains to do the impossible, he wonders - is it worth the risk?
Riding Ten Thunders by Joćo-Pierre S. Ruth (fantasy)
Jagantha was already aware of the tenuous nature of the peace between his parents' tribes, but with the arrival of the plainsmen, things become even more strained. An evening that begins with politics becomes a very dangerous night as gods and monsters enter the game.
Above the Stars of El by Justin Stanchfield (fantasy/science fiction)
Usher is born with a purpose - even if he's not entirely sure what that purpose is. Newly-made with almost infinite powers, he awaits the humans' arrival, dreading something he can't quite remember. As his memory clears (and lust intensifies), he struggles with the question he has faced so many times before: will the gifts he so desperately wishes to give them in fact destroy them?
The Temple Bells by Hazel Marcus Ong (fantasy/faery tale)
Chung-shen wants more than anything to hear the mythic monks' bells, heard only by those who truly listen. His life grows magical in search of them, with the silver-skinned Jiang Yue from the sea; but will that be enough, if he never hears the bells? A faery tale/fable written with melodic prose.
The Rope by Joanna Gardner (fantasy)
Sylvie wakes with the evening mist, just as the morning fog puts her to sleep; always alone, each day collecting the rope that binds the Green. But one day, she sees someone else: someone she almost knows. And Hugh, seeing her, begins to remember, too, and wonder as each day he lays the rope to bind the Green...
Mrs. Charles' Bookshop by Hanne Blank (fantasy)
Mrs. Charles is a sweet woman; kind, quiet, and sturdy, not unlike the books that line her home's walls. Her husband, on the other hand, might be said to be most like a warthog - loud, vile, and generally nasty. But Mr. Charles quickly becomes the least of her problems when Mrs. Charles' books develop some startling new behaviors of their own - coming to life in a most unexpected fashion.world.
The Carver by Guy Adams (horror/fantasy)
The Carver is a gentleman, an artisan, re-creating the living as they lie blankly on his tables: with the touch of his hands they break open, or come together, all in the wave of a finger. A vignette comprised of powerful images and strange occurrences.
The Carp's Proposition by Emily M. Z. Carlyle (fantasy)
One young girl is given the chance that everyone dreams of: three wishes, hers for the price of asking. But, conversational as she may be, her wish-granting carp can't seem to get her to make a wish - any wish. The complicated seduction of a very cautious, and very impertinent, young girl.
Father by Matthew Lee Bain (horror/dark fantasy)
A child who never knew his father could easily idealize him; the perfect parent who was lost. This fatherless boy, however, dreams less of a darling daddy and more about a monster desirous of revenge and religious adoration. A dark tale of obsession.
Defender of the Faith by Dru Pagliassotti (fantasy)
Belladonna, the divine iguana, doesn't like visitors - especially undead ones that are preying on her mistress. An unsuspecting vampire meets an unlikely adversary.
Giving Back the Dead by Stephen Cavitt (fantasy)
Kevin's grandfather isn't the only dead man walking through the town; others are dredging themselves out of the Altoona river with alarming regularity. But Kevin, at least, knows who to go to send them back: the witch, Selena - also known as his classmate with the pretty red hair and problems with math. An atmospheric story blending levity with thoughtful observation.
Private Land by David L. Duggins (dark fantasy/erotica)
Julianne isn't exactly afraid of sleeping with her new boyfriend, Clark; but as a 28-year-old virgin, she's not exactly fearless, either. On the day she and Clark go out walking, however, a luscious private garden seems somehow exactly made for their lust - despite the shadow Julianne can feel running through it...
The Chocolate Lover by Susan A. O'Doherty (science fiction/fantasy)
Carla didn't mean to end up a thief, a liar, and a runaway bride - but then, who would expect the world to freeze in place, leaving her stuck in time? As she tries to explain the situation to her fiancé, Carla begins to plan what she can do to take back her life.
Sing the Siren Song (And Then Clap Your Hand) by T.S. Miller (adventure/fantasy)
The Three are a fearsome trio - so long as they make curfew, anyhow. O., Che, and Kaykos are conquering the world one boy at a time, with almost unlimited success, in this quirky tale filled with wry commentary.
Heart Notes by Rio Le Moignan (fantasy)
The birds were called by the scent of the perfume: a savage, freezing scent that Ilmari created for his mysterious patron, Siegfried. Swarming outside his window in a kaleidoscope of blue, Ilmari knows there is something special, something powerful, about this creation: and the imminent arrival of Siegfried will soon show just how powerful.
Space Cowgirl by Jennifer Gomoll (fantasy)
Some people call her a space cowgirl - some just call her weird. Crystal Lynn is having a bad day, no question: from her hand turning translucent to the horse that's complacently chewing away at her heart, it was complicated even before she saw the town gossip. Sometimes it's hard to be an outsider - and sometimes it's just hard to get out.
Kittensplodge and the Awful Correspondence by Mari Ness (fantasy)
Kit isn't happy - and neither is her mutating sink, apparently, which is developing a penchant for Barry Manilow and destruction. An increasingly desperate series of emails for plumbers, police, and possibly dinner.
World in a Bubble by Rochita Loenen-Ruiz (fantasy)
Jim was just looking for a drink- and instead he swallowed the world. Or at least that's what he's telling Argo, who's more worried about his wife and his little girl leaving him than the pain Jim might be enduring. A quick glance at impossibility that feels more than a little probable in a bar.
Ganymede of the Thames by JoSelle Vanderhooft (fantasy)
Muses are handy things - if you can get them to talk to you. A river god reveals too much to a mortal man searching for stories and begins to consider darker actions to keep him bound forever.
Swing Sets and Stormclouds by Kurt Kirchmeier (fantasy)
Every child has secret dreams of magic: flying horses, magic rings, other worlds. Justin is a boy who dreams of such things - and then disappears. When his sister, Madison, sees a boy disappear on the exact same swing her brother used to play in, she begins to wonder if there might be answers, after all.
Midnight by Clinton Lawrence (fantasy)
Nicholas dreamed of mountains; Elvin remembered the plains, and Krystal, Serena, and Eric saw the stars above. As this team of explorers go deeper into the night in search of the land they dreamed, time grows short and the view more and more beautiful.
The God of the Gaps by Adrian Firth (science fiction/fantasy)
With a lifetime that dwarfs a star's, Cyrix's race is fast approaching its extinction, as well as the end of their reality. As he creates and destroys worlds time after time in an attempt to learn to save his people, others find the price of their salvation to high, and instead attempt only to stop him.
A Bedtime Story by Julia Rios (horror/fantasy)
There's nothing more frightening than the monster in the closet - unless, perhaps, it's the monster out of the closet, which your mother fails to acknowledge and insists on calling Uncle Steve. A story of a childhood nightmare with the complication of its being real.
The Tragedy of Ferdinand by JoSelle Vanderhooft (fantasy)
An obsessive lycanthrope wearies of hiding his nature in this delicately drawn portrait of a night spent watching the woman who cannot be his.
The Hammer by Joshua Moses (fantasy)
Returning author Joshua Moses delivers a comic tale of the misbehaving god Loki, who just wants to make a buck and land a few dozen pretty girls. Simple enough goals for a god - or at least, until the prophet Moses shows up.
In the Rainy Season by Hanne Blank (fantasy)
A biologist comes to a dying planet in an attempt to know its people and save its ecology, only to become part of it. As the rains approach and her body swells to bursting, she begins to let go her attachment to her previous life, even as those who once knew her are chasing after her.
King of Bavaria by Sam Douglas (fantasy/mystery)
A series of deaths years apart become increasingly mysterious when a disappearing husband reappears at the scene of a crime. A stubborn detective interogates the man as it becomes clear that the matter of life and death is more than it appears.
Skipfa by Laurie Tom (fantasy)
Childhood is always hard to leave behind - especially when that entails the loss of flight. One girl's wishes to stay a child forever are challenged by the men of her village as she questions whether any gift could be worth the price of soaring.
My Uncle Told Me a Story by Joseph P. Dougherty (fantasy)
Some country boys remember good old times fishing; this one remembers the good old days of his uncle's faery-tale people. A once-bitter man finds hope in a different people and begins a strange tradition of family disappearances.
The Tale of the Scorpion Prince by JoSelle Vanderhooft (fantasy/faery tale)
Blasted by sand, eroded by time, detested by gods. In this powerful retelling of the myth of Prometheus, a forsaken man remembers the birth of a new era - and the loss of an old intimacy.
Check-in Between by Chris Wiltz (fantasy)
It's easy to lose seconds and minutes, even hours, to the mundane: brushing your teeth, doing the laundry. But Kendrick seems to be losing quite a bit more, from entire days to the laws of physics.
El Valle Encantado by Allen Hope (fantasy)
In a land where gardens grow effortlessly and ghosts argue over chess, a bizarre land-based attack from some angry fish develops interesting results.
Salamander by Corinna Sara Bechko (horror/fantasy)
A strange creature makes demands and threatens terrible consequences if its demands are not satiated. With her trusty Keds ready, this woman leads a double life as she tries desperately to control it.
The Subconcious by Zdravka Evtimova (science fiction/fantasy)
Everyone needs a hobby - though not everyone rents out her mind. Jane, in a fit of boredom or in an attempt to rebel, puts out her subconscious for rent with complicated results.
Hearing the Thinking by Zoe Lea (fantasy)
Death can give you a new perspective on life. After a lifetime of misunderstandings, a deceased mother finally begins to understand her silent daughter.
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