Free SF, Fantasy and Horror Fiction for 9/26/2013
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What’s special about today’s free fiction?
- Drabblecast #297 – “The Apothecary’s Apprentice”
In the back of the shop I scrubbed three large cauldrons clean,
stripping the seasoning from them because Master Aloz insisted on it
once the trade caravans stopped coming at the end of summer. Tallow,
he called me, on account of my paleness. I used a brush made of iron
bristles instead of horse hair, scraping away the brown muck inside,
various plant and animal parts rendered into sludge like droppings
from a sick bull. My book lay on the floor beside the cauldrons. Sir
Tannis and the Hydra. It seemed I wouldn’t get to read much of it
today. Even after these cauldrons were clean I’d still be scrubbing,
staged back here so when Master Aloz got some stragglers looking for
cure-alls he could show them how busy the shop was, tempting them to
buy what they could for surely the stock would not last.– Craig Lincoln
- Daily Science Fiction has flash fiction from David D. Levine
I can’t take my eyes off the customer’s back as he approaches my gallery. My emotions are strong and mixed: satisfaction, a sense of completion, a little sadness. I hope he is happy with the painting he is bringing me.
– “Artist’s Retrospective”
- Cast of Wonders starts an audio serialization with Chapter 1 of Camp Myth: Phoenix Watching
Written
- Drabblecast #297 – “The Apothecary’s Apprentice” by Craig Lincoln [Fantasy] (also available in audio)
- @Nightmare: “A Short Guide to the City” by Peter Straub [Horror – from 1990]
Written – Flash
- @365 tomorrows: [Science Fiction Flash]
- “Lost in Translation” by Bob Newbell
- “The Price Of Arrogance” by Clint Wilson
- @Daily Science Fiction: “Artist’s Retrospective” by David D. Levine [Magic Realism Flash]
Written – Micro
- @MicroSFF:
Rocket jocks send mineral-rich asteroids to crash at a safe distance. Here at Luna Base, we can only monitor. And warn, like now. Good bye.
(via twitter)
Written – Serialized
- @Gollancz: “The Log Book of the Ketty Jay” by Chris Wooding – Part 1 of 3 [Fantasy Short Story – Serialized in Three Parts]
- @HiLobrow: The Zayat Kiss by Sax Rohmer – Part 3 of 6 [Science Fiction Noir Serialization – from 1912]
Audio
- @Boxcars711: Beyond Midnight – “Something On His Mind” [Horror Radio Drama – from 1968]
- Drabblecast #297 – “The Apothecary’s Apprentice” by Craig Lincoln [Fantasy]
- PodCastle #279 – “Thorns” by Martha Wells [Fantasy]
- StarShipSofa #306 – “Automatic Diamante” by Philip Suggars and “iRobot” by Guy Haley [Science Fiction]
Audio – Serialized
- @Cast of Wonders: Camp Myth: Phoenix Watching by Chris Lewis Carter – Chapter 1 [YA Contemporary Fantasy Serialization]
- Our Fair City, Season Four: Episode 15 – “Lessons in Humility” [Campy Post-Apocalyptic Epic Serial]
Free eBooks (at time of listing)
- Speculative Fiction Collection:
- Desolation: Stories by Ken Brosky
[Amazon]
- Desolation: Stories by Ken Brosky
- Science Fiction:
- The Mall by Bryant Delafosse
[Science Fiction Thriller Novel – Amazon] - Record of Chaos: Ruin (The Records of Chaos) by Bradley Russell
[Science Fiction Adventure Novel – First of Series – Amazon] - Rosetta (Jim Meade: Martian P.I) by RJ Johnson
[Science Fiction Adventure Novel – Amazon] - Ships of My Fathers (The Father Chessman Saga) by Dan Thompson
[Science Fiction Adventure Novel – First of Series – Amazon]
- The Mall by Bryant Delafosse
- Fantasy:
- At the Behest of the Dead by Timothy W. Long
[Urban Fantasy Novel – Amazon] - “Away With the Fairies” by Jenny Twist
[Dark Fantasy Short Story – Amazon] - Blackstone & Brenwen: The Mirror & The Meretrix by Andrew D. Mellusco
[Fantasy Thriller Novel – Amazon] - Charming: A Cinderella Prequel (The Dark Woods Series) by Laura Briggs and Sarah Steinbrenner
[Fairy Tale Novel – Amazon] - @Project Gutenberg: The Fairy Book by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik
[Fairy Tale Collection – from 1863 – Project Gutenberg | Audiobook: LibriVox] - The Foundlings (The Swords of Xigara) by J. Mark Miller
[Sword & Sorcery Novel – First of Series – Amazon] - Immaculate Deception by Scott B. Pruden
[Contemporary Fantasy Comedy Novel – Amazon] - The Myatheira Chronicles: The Vor’shai: From the Ashes by Melissa Collins
[Sword & Sorcery Novel – First of Series – Amazon] - “The Necromancer’s Bargain” (The War of the Dead) by Latilya Sivar
[Urban Fantasy Short Story – First of Series – Amazon] - Torn by Christine Hughes
[YA Paranormal Fantasy Novel First of Series – Amazon]
- At the Behest of the Dead by Timothy W. Long
- Horror:
- A Life Transparent (Monochrome Trilogy, #1) by Todd Keisling
[Horror Novel – Amazon] - Awake by Matthew Blake
[Horror Novel – Amazon] - The Boat – Zombie Survivors by Christine Dougherty
[Horror Novel – Amazon]
- A Life Transparent (Monochrome Trilogy, #1) by Todd Keisling
- Post-Apocalyptic and Dystopian:
- Dead Highways: Origins by Richard Brown
[Post-Apocalyptic Novel – First of Series – Amazon | B&N | Smashwords] - Surviving the Fog by Stan Morris
[YA Post-Apocalyptic Novel – Amazon | B&N | Smashwords]
- Dead Highways: Origins by Richard Brown
- Steampunk:
- Gears of a Mad God by Brent Nichols
[Lovecraftian Steampunk Novella – Amazon | B&N | Smashwords]
- Gears of a Mad God by Brent Nichols
- Alternate History:
- In the Heart of Darkness (Belisarius Saga) by Eric Flint & David Drake
[Alternate History Novel – Second of Series – Amazon] - One Thousand Years by Randolph Beck
[Time Travel / Alternate History Novel – Amazon]
- In the Heart of Darkness (Belisarius Saga) by Eric Flint & David Drake
QuasarDragon Birthdays – Free Fiction from authors on the anniversary of their birth
- September 24th: Celebrating the Births . . . David Drake, John Brunner, John Kessel, Horatio Walpole, and Rhys Hughes
Excerpts
- @Boing Boing: Excerpt from A Cold Season by Alison Littlewood
[Horror Novel – Available Now] - @The Huffington Post: Excerpt from Doctor Sleep by Stephen King
[Horror Novel – Available Now] - @Tor: Excerpt from The Casebook of Newbury and Hobbes by George Mann – Chapter 1
[Steampunk Collection – Available Now]
For Post-Apocalyptic Lovers: The Post Apocalyptic Link Roundup for 9/26/2013
And For Writers: Speculative Fiction Writing Wroundup for 9/26/2013