Showing results by author "R. M." in All Categories

The Madman and the Pirate is a thrilling seafaring adventure about a shipwrecked crew who finds themselves at the mercy of a mysterious and seemingly mad castaway. As secrets unravel and alliances shift, this gripping tale of survival, redemption, and high-seas intrigue will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

A queen without a throne is still a queen ... In the treacherous world of the One Land, Esme Shelsor's journey from pampered queen to ruthless power-seeker is a tale of survival, ambition, and the brutal cost of seeking power. Widowed young and defeated in battle, Esme is torn from her throne and enslaved by the Chekaliga tribesmen—a twist of fate that would break most women. But Esme is no ordinary queen. Through cunning and charisma, she transforms her captivity, charming her way to becoming the Grand Sabiza and challenging the very men who sought to subjugate her. Then her own father, ...

Guys like Alex Sullivan don’t come around every day, but when they do, they aren’t looking for girls like Morgan. She is the unexpected one, the unplanned daughter of parents who don’t want her; she has always stood in the shadow of her beautiful-but-dead twin sister. So when Morgan lands a marriage proposal from the handsome businessman, she pounces on the opportunity.

Stan Armstrong dedicated his entire life to science. Branded as a maverick and a risk-taker by his colleagues, his unorthodox experiments and outlandish theories of time and space resulted in loss of funding and, ultimately, his termination from tenure at the university where he’d spent his entire career. Stan’s insatiable quest to explore extreme hypotheses and to prove the unproven were matched only by his neurotic lust to peel back the mysterious layers of time and space to expose the hidden secrets of the universe.

Good girl Danyelle Fitzgerald’s perfect image is shattered the moment she crashes into Ian Fogg’s car at a stop sign. An unexpected agreement and the lure of the handsome and witty Ian leave Danyelle's head spinning and her heart in danger. The more she tries to learn about Ian, the more he resists. What is he hiding and why does he have Danyelle questioning her own morals? Are his secrets too much for this good girl to handle?

A comprehensive and varied collection of the best vampire stories from the Victorian era by the greatest Gothic writers of the time. Includes: 'The Horla' by Guy de Maupassant; 'Mrs. Amworth' by E. F. Benson; 'La Belle Dame Sans Merci' by John Keats; 'Dracula's Guest' by Bram Stoker; 'The Bride of Corinth' by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe; 'Will' by Vincent O'Sullivan; 'Ken's Mystery' by Julian Hawthorne.

Ghost stories continue to be a popular audiobook genre, and this group of four stories brings together some of the best. Reader Stephen Critchelow has spent a lifetime collecting and reading works like these and, with carefully chosen music, brings a strong sense of atmosphere to the recordings.

“I read all ten books in this series in one go.” – Matt S., Amazon reader Gruesome murders are occurring in a fantastical city by the sea. Dark magic is returning to Calec’s world. For over a year killings have plagued Red Pike’s Landing. No one has been able to find the murderer who takes all the fingernails of their victims and tucks them into bed. Witnesses are unreliable… and for good reason. Perhaps dark magic lies at the heart of these deeds and covers the Necromancer’s tracks. Calec of the Woods is called upon for aid. And Serileen, Calec’s witch lover, must accompany...

In a city where every street holds a story and every melody whispers secrets, two lost souls find each other in the most unexpected of places. Damien Rousseau is a world-class pianist, but his music has lost its meaning. Haunted by a scandal that nearly destroyed his career, he plays only for others—never for himself. Ava Sinclair is a fiercely independent art curator, dedicated to crafting exhibitions that stir emotions she refuses to express in her own life.

A mournful cry, a well that echoes the past, and an invitation to remember the forgotten. In Wailing Well , M. R. James crafts a haunting tale of mystery and spectral terror, where the quiet of a rural landscape is disturbed by a cry from the past—an eerie wail that resonates through time. As James unearths the secrets buried in the forgotten well, he masterfully builds a sense of creeping dread and inevitable doom, reminding us that some things—once heard—can never be forgotten.

SBI covers a wide array of topics, often delving into controversial or unconventional subjects. Discussions are informative, entertaining, and occasionally humorous, as M A E S T R O and his guests explore ideas, share personal experiences, and exchange viewpoints on various issues.

In The Bleak Midwintertells the whole story of ten-year-old Merrie Frances Callahan's 1975 abduction, and the present day murders that are somehow intricately linked to that event. SA Constance Mandalay is assigned what appears to be a 7-year-old cold case that echos the events of the 35-year-old child abduction. Unfortunately for all involved, the case heats up for a short time each year with a brutal murder that appears eerily staged, and occurs under impossible circumstances.

What History Forgets, Legend and Folklore Remember. An Enchanting Sumptuous Short Story inspired by Japanese and Shoshone Folklore. At the western edge of Japan's Shimane Peninsula lies Izumo, a place steeped in mystical legend. Here, nestled along the serene shoreline, one is welcomed by enchanting landscapes of sandy beaches and towering headlands reaching out into the vast sea, where breathtaking views of the sun setting await. Hidden deep within the soaring mountain sanctuaries, the Oni wields a mystical club glowing with amethyst hues, symbolizing his formidable control over thunder ...

Bring history back to life through Jim Hodges' historically accurate, exciting, and edifying audio recordings. R. M. Ballantyne, a devout Christian and outspoken advocate for Christian boyhood, changed the lives of hundreds of thousands with his globe-trekking adventure stories that emphasized Christian character in the face of adversity. In The Coral Island, three Christian boys, shipwrecked in the South Pacific, rely on godly wisdom, biblical insight, and plucky courage to outwit and overcome pirates and cannibals.

Something ancient lingers beneath the surface of Castringham Hall. In the stillness of the Suffolk countryside, a presence takes root—silent, watchful, and patient. The Ash-tree is M.R. James at his most unsettling: a precise exercise in creeping dread, where history never rests easy and vengeance grows in shadow.

There are rooms best left unopened. In Rats, M. R. James guides us into one such space—silent, neglected, and waiting. Known for his restrained, academic horrors, James delivers here a tale that creeps up slowly and lingers uncomfortably. With a master's touch, he suggests far more than he shows, letting unease breed in the shadows and silence. This story is a quiet descent into something primal and cold, where the mundane turns menacing, and a moment's curiosity opens a door to ancient fear. Listen carefully—some noises can't be explained.

A gentleman stumbles upon a curious old diary—an innocent discovery, or the key to something far more disturbing? In The Diary of Mr. Poynter, M. R. James once again conjures an atmosphere thick with dread, beauty, and the uncanny. This is a tale where the most ordinary object can become a gateway to forces beyond reason, and where curiosity may lead to quiet terror. With James's trademark subtlety and scholarly unease, the story whispers rather than screams—unsettling the soul long after the final word. Haunting, intricate, and elegantly unnerving.

A sacred volume, a forgotten ritual, and the lingering presence of something not entirely gone— The Uncommon Prayer-book whispers of devotion turned to dread. M. R. James crafts a world where piety and peril overlap, where quiet study leads not to understanding, but to unease. This tale moves with the hush of cloisters and the rustle of ancient pages, all the while drawing the listener ever closer to an encounter best left unwritten. Dark, refined, and utterly disquieting.

A young orphan. A sprawling country estate. A distant relative with unsettling interests. This is a tale where quiet dread builds behind closed doors, and the line between scholarly pursuit and ancient ritual begins to blur. Twelve-year-old Stephen Elliott arrives at Aswarby Hall expecting safety—but the deeper he explores its halls, the more he senses that something watches from the shadows. Whispers of vanished children, strange dreams, and spectral figures at the window speak of a secret both chilling and deliberate.

This is an unabridged audio collection of the "best of the best" science fiction stories published in 2013 by current and emerging masters of the genre, edited by Allan Kaster, as narrated by top voice talents. In "Zero for Conduct," by Greg Egan, an Afghani teenager, living in a near-future Iran with her exiled grandfather, makes a game-changing superconductor discovery. A young girl struggles to survive on a planet, with a stringent class structure, where Doors are used to go off-world in "Exile, Interrupted," by C. W. Johnson.