Showing results by narrator "Gerard Tim Reynolds" in All Categories

Each contributor presents a brand new story set in a distinct neighborhood. Brooklyn Noir mixes masters of the mystery genre with the best of New York’s literary fiction community - and, of course, leaves room for new blood. These brilliant and chilling stories see crime striking in communities of Russians, Jamaicans, Hasidic Jews, Puerto Ricans, Italians, Irish and many other ethnicities - in the most diverse urban location on the planet.

Blaine "Mick" McFadden managed to restore Donderath's magic partially, but not without a cost. He and the magic are now bound together, and the power remains dangerous and erratic - draining the life from him with every use. New threats are rising from the wreckage of the battered kingdoms, and warlords both mortal and undead vie for control.

Threadbare has not had a very good time of it recently. His little girl has been taken from him, and he must travel the kingdom, finding allies old and new, living and dead, to help him rescue Celia. Fortunately, he's got a voice now and access to all those fun skills he couldn't before use. He may only be a very small teddy bear, but he's got the persistence to plow through dungeons of rascally raccoon monsters, the wiles to turn a town full of undead on its ear, and the sanity to survive an encounter with a mediocre old one.

James was raised by some good men. What would have happened if twisted cultists like the Brotherhood had found him instead of Fathers McCartney and Thomas? It's time to find out more about the Unbelievable Mr. Brownstone.

Threadbare has been kidnapped by pirates! But this is just the first step in the plan of the malevolent and mysterious puppeteer who's manipulated the pirates into bear-nappery. Which was supposed to be a proper princess kidnapping. To uncover this strange mastermind's plan and properly thwart it, Threadbare must play along, keep his friends alive while they attempt to rescue him, make new friends, and help the old ones during this dangerous journey to parts unknown, all to confront the deadly and devious beastkin known only as the Phantom of the Lop Ear….

General Keith Brennan would rather face an army with his trusty rifle than attend another state dinner. When the president of the solar system is assassinated on Mars, Brennan is the obvious choice to investigate. If he comes up with the wrong answer, though, his career will be over.

Shay goes to a museum and consults with the AET. Then, she doesn't come home on time. Brownstone goes on a rampage when he learns what happens. Using his contacts, Brownstone gets Tyler involved when he learns that Lt. Hall is in trouble. The criminals are powerful and clever. It seems the hit on the Los Angeles Museum was planned far in advance. Well, planned or not, if you come into Brownstone's area and kidnap his woman, you have a problem.

Though I'm part of the most powerful family in Elantio, I failed to produce mana on my Manifestation day. Thus, I was relegated to the most shameful place for someone of my status: the Archives. What may have seemed like a sentence truly was a blessing in disguise. I may be a mule—one with the blood of a sorcerer yet unable to channel any magic—but what I lack in raw power I make up for with my tenacity. It's in those Archives that I searched and searched for a way to bypass my curse. Now, after years of study and browsing through hundreds of books, I may have found a solution.

The dark elves have come back to Earth. They want to find the half-Drow named Alison, and to get to Alison, they need to find James Brownstone. The Oriceran Consul doesn't want the Drow to mess up the fragile relationship between Oriceran and Earth. But he can only warn the obstinate Drow so many times. The professor needs a package picked up in Washington State and returned safely to him. He figures Brownstone is the man to do it. And he wants Shay to do him a favor, with a few zeros attached to the end of the request.

Meet the operatives of the Carnacki Institute - JC Chance: the team leader, brave, charming, and almost unbearably arrogant; Melody Chambers: the science geek who keeps the antisupernatural equipment running; and Happy Jack Palmer: the terminally gloomy telepath. Their mission: do something about ghosts. Lay them to rest, send them packing, or just kick their nasty, ectoplasmic arses....

The streets of eighteenth-century Dublin were rife with an appalling level of poverty. Desperate mothers regularly begged for alms to feed their children, and although passersby might have occasionally contributed a few coins, no large-scale remedy had proved remotely practical or effective.

Are you a god in dire need of followers, of some more faithful to bolster your ranks? Then I’m the one you’re looking for: a Demon Lord in all its glory! You may hire my services for a small fee, that is a small portion of your divinity. I will send my minions to terrorize the populace and give people a reason to pray to you. I will spawn horrors to drum up support or even trigger a holy crusade. Just sign the contract and I’ll take care of everything.

Trapped in hostile territory just after the resolution of the Avan-Thrak war, Gryl lives off the land and the spoils of his once-ally, the chaotic Thrak berserkers. When a chance encounter with a group of renegade Shytan knights offers him a chance at a warm meal and a few nights of relative peace, and the possibility of coin in his pouch, Gryl finds himself unable to refuse. He soon learns, however, that no matter how far removed from the war he might be, the past is never far behind.

Civil War tore across the Union Empire, leaving countless dead in its wake. It was a war started by one man once beloved by the Empire. His betrayal still lingers in the memory of those who lived through it. Decades later, his son, Felix Drake, is a Warden tasked with both protecting the ruling members of the Union Empire and its Council and bringing those powerful and influential people to justice should they break the law.

Matthew Bramble, a gout-ridden misanthrope, travels Britain with his nephew, niece, spinster sister, and man-servant, the trusty Humphry Clinker. In poor health, Bramble sees the world as one of degeneracy and raucous overcrowding, and will not hesitate to let his companions know his feelings on the matter. Peopled with pimps, drunkards, decadents, and con-men, Humphrey Clinker displays Smollett's ferociously pessimistic view of mankind, and his belief that the luxury of 18th-century English existence was the enemy of sense and sobriety.

Unfortunately, the Drow are looking to get hold of Alison. An order to locate the princess means they need to find and deal with Brownstone. They will have to go through him first. Brownstone is pulling his company together, working on his relationship, and dealing with bounties.

It's tough being a country girl in the big city, especially when werewolves are murdering their way through the underworld! Chase Berrymore must bring all her divination skills to bear in order to survive both wild werewolves and murderous mafiosos. She's got a shot at finding steadfast allies along the way, but at great cost; the mysterious entities that call themselves "players" are involved. And where they go, chaos follows....

He is plainly too young and too inexperienced for the mission, but on the advice of her aged adviser Natoum, and with her husband off at war, the queen reluctantly assigns the task of delivery to...Madrenga. Accompanied only by a runt of a pony and a scrap of a pup, he sets off to transport the royal message to its destination. No matter what it might take. But things are not always what they seem. Heroes are sometimes made of the strangest stuff, and love is to be found in the most unexpected places...if one doesn’t die while treading the lethal path.

Global war devastated the environment, a zombie-like plague wiped out much of humanity, and civilization as we once understood it came to a standstill. But that was a thousand years ago, and the world is now a very different place. Conflict between city states is constant, superstition is rife...

Three men search for some version of home; their lives move inexorably toward a reckoning that will draw them all together. For Farouk, family is all. He has protected his wife and daughter as best he can from the war and hatred that has torn Syria apart. If they stay, they will lose their freedom. Lampy is distracted; he has too much going on in his small town life in Ireland. He has the city girl for a bit of fun, but she's not Chloe. The game was always the lifeblood coursing through John's veins: manipulating people for his enjoyment. But it was never enough.