Dark thirst

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Sherrilyn Kenyon

See how it all began… Have you ever wanted to know what it’s like to be immortal? To journey through the night stalking the evil that preys on humans? To have unlimited wealth, unlimited power? That is my existence, and it is dark and dangerous. I play hero to thousands, but am known to none. And I love every minute of it. Or so I thought until one night when I woke up handcuffed to my worst nightmare: an accountant. She’s smart, sexy, witty, and wants nothing to do with the paranormal. My attraction to Amanda Devereaux goes against everything I stand for. Not to mention the last time I fell in love it cost me not only my human life, but also my very soul. Now I find myself wanting to believe that love and loyalty do exist. Even more disturbing, I find myself wondering if there’s any way a woman can love a man whose battle scars run deep, and whose heart was damaged by a betrayal so savage that he’s not sure it will ever beat again. Kyrian of Thrace

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M.D. Spenser

Nicole and her sister Casey move into an old house. Nicole thinks the nighttime noises she hears are nothing more than the scurrying of mice. Then she starts to hear eerie music coming through her ceiling. She realizes with a cold, clammy shiver that something far more terrifying than mice must be in the house. . . . And it is up to her to find out what it is, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!!!

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Cynthia Leitich Smith

Quincie Morris has never felt more alone. Her parents are dead, and her hybrid-werewolf first love is threatening to embark on a rite of passage that will separate them forever. Then, as she and her uncle are about to unveil their hot vampire-themed restaurant, a brutal murder leaves them scrambling for a chef. Can Quincie transform their new hire into a culinary Dark Lord before opening night? Can he wow the crowd in his fake fangs, cheap cape, and red contact lenses — or is there more to this earnest face than meets the eye? As human and preternatural forces clash, a deadly love triangle forms, and the line between predator and prey begins to blur. Who's playing whom? And how long can Quincie play along before she loses everything? TANTALIZE marks Cynthia Leitich Smith's delicious debut as a preeminent author of dark fantasy.

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Charles L. Grant

Contents: • Introduction (Final Shadows) • essay by Charles L. Grant 1 • The Boarder • shortstory by Wendy Webb 12 • Magpie • shortstory by Stephen Gallagher 29 • Fastening • shortstory by Julie R. Good 39 • Past Tense • shortstory by Brian Hodge 50 • Under the Boardwalk • shortstory by Lori Allen [as by Lori Negridge Allen ] 58 • The Picnickers • novelette by Brian Lumley 79 • Fry Day • shortstory by Melanie Tem 89 • Out Behind the Shed • shortstory by Bill Pronzini 95 • Fear a' Ghorta • shortstory by Peter Tremayne 108 • The Sweetest Rain • shortstory by Nancy Holder 120 • Wrong Side of the Road • shortstory by Norman Partridge 136 • Island of the Seals • shortstory by Samantha Lee (variant of The Island of the Seals 1977) 143 • Thirteen Lies About Hummingbirds • shortstory by Michael Bishop 162 • The Stone Face • shortstory by Colin Greenland 181 • Medusa's Child • shortstory by Kim Antieau 191 • The Tape • shortstory by Jessica Palmer 200 • The Dark Places in Between • shortstory by Karen Haber 216 • I'll See You on Saturday Night • shortstory by Guy N. Smith 227 • Beijing Craps • novelette by Graham Masterton 250 • Samhain • shortstory by Bernard Taylor 268 • The Mermaid • shortstory by Tanith Lee 279 • Rescheduled • shortstory by Mike Chinn 285 • Going Away • shortstory by Craig Shaw Gardner 296 • A Father's Dream • shortstory by Chet Williamson 307 • The Magic House • shortstory by Lynn S. Hightower 320 • When They Gave Us Memory • shortstory by Dennis Etchison 336 • A Sailor's Pay • shortstory by Jack Cady 354 • Something About Camilla • shortstory by Juleen Brantingham 366 • Parallax • shortstory by Nicholas Royle 378 • The Door • shortstory by Sharon Webb 391 • Photo-Call • shortstory by David Sutton 403 • Against the Skin • shortstory by Mark Morris 418 • Of Natural Causes • shortstory by Ashley McConnell 432 • Mulberry's Crystal • shortstory by Brian Mooney and Stephen Jones 441 • Together • shortstory by David Garnett [as by David S. Garnett ] 456 • The Beautiful Uncut Hair of Graves • novelette by David Morrell