He was only a lonely old used-book seller. But when he finds a mysterious message in an old book he quickly becomes embroiled in a life and death struggle against unknown forces.

In an "Alternate Kennedys" history where Joe Kennedy lives to become president, things go horribly wrong as the rivalry between ex-president Joe and his now-president brother Jack turns violent. Hug... more »

A man struggling to understand how he became a success visits himself as a child, only to discover that you can't go home again.

If you steal the pennies off a dead man's eyes, you send him to hell, for he has no way to pay for his passage. Who is this woman who dares to take the pennies from a dead man's eyes? The foundling ... more »

A man's life is shattered as he meets a better version of himself. This story was made into an episode of "The New Twilight Zone" and starred a young Bruce Willis. Nebula Award® Nominee more »

Wolfgang Silverstone is certain Gailla will marry him for his castle's secret library of a thousand lost and unknown books. What he's not sure of, however, is why he would marry a woman he thinks he... more »

Richard didn't write to his wife during the two years he was fighting the war in Vietnam, and now Carol suspects Richard's recently unpredictable behavior is connected to the carved dragon he still ... more »

Jacqueline is visiting her girlfriends in LA when they see Tad Braun, the fat, awkward boy they mercilessly teased back in high school. Tad is now a muscled, golden-haired hunk with a very good memo... more »

The great god Dis rose from the dark circle of Stonehenge every 100 years, and the Bronze Age Wessex ancients dutifully performed the sacrificial ceremonies. Then came the Age of Sleep ... and now i... more »

It the time of Myths and Legends, Cretin the Beggar teams up with a tentacled, fire-breathing monster named Steeljaw to kill Krotan, the Usurper King of Agabenzzar. They must perform three tributes ... more »

In 1918, Sidney Reilly, who had worked as a British agent against the Germans and Japanese, returns home to the newly formed Soviet Russia. Now he is again working for England and her allies, but th... more »

Catherine Lemaitre is a full-blooded Mohawk living with her adopted French family in Montreal. She goes to school and learns her tribe had been murderers, pagans, and eaters of human flesh, but Nawi... more »

This story is written in a Kafka-esque, nightmarish style, and is filled with rich language and symbolism. If you like a heavy dose of surrealism every now and then, if you occassionally like to rea... more »

The election of 1956 is at stake and the remorseless thug known as the President has his operatives out in the field making sure there are no surprises.

Thomas was in the 'slow' classes at school, and so far he has seen six dragons. His sister Margaret said you have to see seven for it to count, but she didn't say what would happen then? more »

A Teddy Roosevelt story. Roosevelt, now retired from the presidency, makes a request of Woodrow Wilson. He asks to be allowed to reactivate the Rough Riders and personally lead them into the battlef... more »

When his father wanted him to leave the school in Munich because of his poor grades, his mother used her own money to pay for his violin lessons. Now at 75, the old music teacher looks back at his l... more »

Marmorth and Krane chose to enter the Silver Corridor, no one forced them. And now they are in a duel that will pit their theories against one another in a deadly game of illusions that is all too r... more »

In a far future Earth, John Skein's skills as a Communicator bring him wealth and fame. He uses his mind as a conduit for joining the intellects of his clients to solve business or technical problem... more »

Drake's round-the-world-voyage in 1578 threatens to have an unexpected effect on the history of California.

In Satan's Kingdom, an unhappy Gilgamesh hunts the demonic beasts of Hell alone, without his lifelong friend Enkidu, for they have parted ways following a disagreement. He joins Robert Howard and H.... more »

The hospital room of a 15-year-old boy becomes a gathering place for deceased patients.

Trente was the paingod; appointed by the all-powerful Ethos gods to provide pain and suffering across the entire universe. But now, Trente has committed the worst possible offense: he cares. And he ... more »

They lived in a world of beauty, but were shunned by all for they were not beautiful. When they had a child with eyes of dust, they knew they must hide him forever. But then the terrible thing began... more »

[A Fictionwise Original] In a fantasy land where horses rule as masters over humans, an experiment to 'Improve' a young girl is assisted by Jonathan Swift's legendary visitor from across the water.<... more »