Erik Larson's gifts as a storyteller are magnificently displayed in this rich narrative of the master builder, the killer, and the great fair that obsessed them both. Two men, each handsome and unusually adept at his chosen work, embodied an element of the great dynamic that characterized America's rush toward the twentieth century. The architect was Daniel Hudson Burnham, the fair's brilliant director of works and the builder of many of the country's most important structures, including the Flatiron Building in New York and Union Station in Washington, D.C. The murderer was Henry H. Holmes, a young doctor who, in a malign parody of the White City, built his "World's Fair Hotel" just west of the fairgrounds—a torture palace complete with dissection table, gas chamber, and 3,000-degree crematorium. Burnham overcame tremendous obstacles and tragedies as he organized the talents of Frederick Law Olmsted, Charles McKim, Louis Sullivan, and others to transform swampy Jackson Park into the White City, while Holmes used the attraction of the great fair and his own satanic charms to lure scores of young women to their deaths. What makes the story all the more chilling is that Holmes really lived, walking the grounds of that dream city by the lake. The Devil in the White City draws the reader into a time of magic and majesty, made all the more appealing by a supporting cast of real-life characters, including Buffalo Bill, Theodore Dreiser, Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and others. In this book the smoke, romance, and mystery of the Gilded Age come alive as never before. Erik Larson's gifts as a storyteller are magnificently displayed in this rich narrative of the master builder, the killer, and the great fair that obsessed them both.

After losing her job, twenty-nine-year-old Abigail Ritter isn't looking forward to returning to her hometown of Magic Lake, Wisconsin, for her grandmother's birthday party. All she has to offer her family is her own special fruit juice and tea blend. But when Grandma suffers a fatal accident in her apartment building, The Grand, Abigail's cousin Brian is blamed. Abigail will have to step up and investigate with the help of her best friend Sam, an intriguing detective, and a magical stuffed fox named Sherlock. Abigail's got a plan for the Grand and its shuttered restaurant, but will she solve the case or drown in a sea of suspects?

Before he was an Elfin Lord—before he even joined that secret group of Mages—Jamie Riley was a Mage recruited by the FBI and the Office of Supernatural Policing and Investigation. A new-minted Inspector sent into one of the most complicated supernatural regions in the country: Los Angeles. The rest of OSPI’s LA team has grown comfortable with allowing politics and pragmatism to decide which cases they pursue, which criminals they charge—but when Jamie’s investigation suggests that a pillar of the supernatural community has killed in cold blood, he will let nothing get in the way of getting the murderer. Not even his career. **

Based on real magic, real mystery, and real murder: A fictionalized account of one family’s incredible experience with Santeria, Voodoo, a demon, and a book of great magical power. One man distorted the power for criminal purposes and human sacrifice. When I turned his story into a novel, he cursed this book. And so every life touched upon by this villain, including my own, became spellboundBecause this tale is based on real events, this manuscript was cursed to keep the tale of real magic, real mystery, and real murder from being told. This is a fictionalized account based on one family’s incredible experience and the magical practices in Hispaniola and the United States. It is a tale of Santeria and Voodoo, and a book of great magical power, which if mishandled, could harm the user and spellbind the unwary. Such books are the Grand Grimoires of the Dominican Republic and their magic is contained by burying the book when not in use.The wrong person inherits the power and distorts it for criminal purposes and human sacrifice. And there were those who said he could take the form of a black horse or a dog. When I turned this story into a novel, I was told, “This is such a common occurrence in Dominica, why would anyone even bother writing it down?”Then he cursed this book. And every life touched upon by this villain, including my own, became spellbound.

Nola isn't much of a witch. She can work only a few useless spells, like the one that lets her spy on people by enchanting a bucket of water. But there's no spell for keeping her mother-who hears voices and is a magnet for witch-hunters-out of trouble. The two of them evade the authorities by traveling from town to town, taking odd jobs and moving on-until the day Nola magically witnesses a murder. . . .

For a decade, the Magic Box game store in Marysburg, Indiana, has hosted a twenty-four-hour gaming marathon as a fund-raiser for a local charity. Shockwaves go through the town when the newest marathon champion is strangled less than an hour after the event's conclusion. In the parking lot right behind the game store. Marysburg resident and record store owner Darcy Gaughan isn't convinced the police are correct when they label the murder a robbery gone wrong. When the Magic Box's owner asks her to look into the case, she finds not everybody believes in fair play, especially when gamer reputations are at stake.

This Sidewise Award-winning series starring detective Lord Darcy and his sorcerer sidekick, Sean O Lochlainn, takes us into an alternate reality where Richard the Lionheart's descendants rule the Anglo-French Empire and the laws of magic have developed in place of the laws of physics. Murder and Magic, comprised of the first four stories of the acclaimed Lord Darcy series, finds Lord Darcy solving murders using his wits, a keen eye for observation, and a few choice magic tricks. In "The Eyes Have it," Lord Darcy must figure out who killed the taciturn playboy, the Count D'Evreux.In the political thriller "A Case of Identity," Lord Darcy picks apart the disappearance of the Marquis of Cherbourg, especially mysterious considering the escalating cold war with Poland.Lord Darcy and Master Sean investigate a body coated in blue paint already occupying a coffin built for the late Duke of Kent in "The Muddle of the Woad."Literary humor is at the heart of...

Stories from the DylanED Project, the education programme of the University of Wales Dylan Thomas Prize. Stories produced by Year 8 pupils from Bro Myrddin, Tre Gib, and Cwrt Sart schools.Mona Jenks is 37, divorced two times and widowed once. She is short in stature, but long on sarcasm. She is conceited, selfish, and snooty. She always wants more than whatever she deserves. She’s a small town reporter with big dreams. Fame and fortune are her goals. Analytical, and raised to spurn myths and legends, she has no belief in the supernatural, but she’s about to be proven wrong--in the worst possible way as she sets out for her ordinary, boring job on a day that will change her life forever – Friday the thirteenth.

Charm McCall, armed with a library full of Agatha Christie stories and her unique witchy gifts, knows how to solve a small-town murder... Charm McCall, the oldest of the McCall triplets by a whole day—or one minute before midnight if one's being picky—is the designated driver for her whole town. Why, if it wasn't for her Snowy Lake would incinerate or fall into Hudson's Bay. Now add her Salem Witch heritage that's gifted her with some unique abilities and she's all set to keep her family and town safe and on its proper course. That is, until a hot Mountie moves into town, a busload of strippers breaks down on Main Street and Mrs. Hurst goes and gets herself murdered with poisoned jam. Jam crafted by Charm's family at the Tea & Tarot café. Now it's up to her to solve the murders—yes, plural, when another local business owner ends up dead. Charm knows just what to do. What's breaking a few laws if she can sleuth out the culprit? She...

When his partner is discovered in a frozen alley with eight bullets in his chest, Niagara Falls Police Detective Roger Frey swears vengeance. But Detective Chief Woodward has forbidden him or anyone else on the detective squad to work the case. Emlyn Goode knows Roger will disobey his boss, which will cost him his job and his freedom. Because she cares for him more than she’ll admit, she needs to stop him. Desperate, she can think of but one way. Emlyn recently learned she’s a direct descendant of a woman hanged as a witch in 1692. She has a book filled with arcane recipes and chants passed down through her family. Possessed of, or perhaps by a vivid imagination, she intends to use these to solve Jimmy’s murder before Roger takes revenge on the killer. But she’s new to this “witch thing,” and needs help from her friend Rebecca Nurse, whose ancestor also took a short drop from a Salem tree. Rebecca’s not much better at deciphering the ancient directions, and while the women stumble over spell after spell, the number possible killers grows. When Chief Woodward’s wife is shot and a bottle bomb bursts through Emlyn’s window, it becomes clear she’s next on the killer’s list.**

Petunia Patterson's life was turned upside down when she discovered a body in her new neighbor, Noah Becker's back yard. It's bad enough that her cat, Pansy, had gotten into his house - especially when Pansy wasn't a cat at all, but Jeremy Walters, a man she gave a love potion to, which transformed him into a cat. Soon Petunia was a person of interest and she teams up with Noah to clear her name when all the evidence points to Petunia. If they don't figure who the Knitting Needle Killer was, and soon, would she be the one that would have to answer for the crimes?  

This anthology features 20 original stories of murder by acclaimed and award-winning science fiction and fantasy writers.

As a new year begins, things are going smoothly for Kate Reed. Business is booming at Sky High Pies, the popular bakery café that she runs in Crescent Creek, Colorado. She’s adjusting nicely to small town life after 10 years as a private investigator in Chicago. And a blossoming romance with Zack Hutton has her walking on sunshine. Everything seems as perfect as a slice of Nana Reed’s Chocolate Hazelnut Pie! Until one afternoon when Kate is delivering a special order at the Crescent Creek Lodge—and a lifeless body is found on the grounds of the popular hotel. While local authorities work to identify the victim, a friend asks Kate to conduct an informal inquiry to protect the reputation of a possible suspect. As she strives to fulfill her mission, Kate encounters a pair of secretive siblings, a curious medical condition, a cranky blue-haired beautician and an unsolicited business proposal. When Magic is Murder, Book 4 in the Sky High Pies Cozy Mystery series, includes a tasty trio of Nana Reed’s Sky High recipes! **

An innocent man is arrested for a murder committed by a woman. A guilty killer confesses to a murder—but the police arrest an innocent woman. A man finds the woman of his dreams—only to discover that he's entrapped in a nightmare. The tenants of a new block of flats are so delighted with their home that they don't ever want to leave—little realizing that they CAN'T leave. A husband and wife find that their wishes can come true—but with death as the price. Eight great macabre stories of murder, mystery...and magic!

Introducing amateur sleuths Frances Black and Tom Dod in the first of an intriguing new historical mystery series set in the north of England. 1929.The night before she's due to make a speech to the Robert Barnaby Society on the subject of the famous writer's 'magic chair', committee member Linda Dexter disappears. When her body is discovered two days later, fellow members Frances Black and Tom Dod determine to find out the truth about her death.Could Linda have discovered something about Robert Barnaby that got her killed? Or does the answer lie in the dead woman's past? As they pursue their investigations, Fran and Tom find the Barnaby Society to be a hotbed of clashing egos, seething resentments and ill-advised love affairs – but does a killer lurk among them?

For more than a century, the horrific, fascinating mystery of Jack the Ripper has endured. The ghastly crimes of the world's most notorious serial killer have gone down in history as the most nauseating acts one man could ever inflict upon his fellow human beings; and since they were committed, contemporary sleuths have spent many lifetimes attempting to identify the man behind the myth. Bizarrely, nobody has yet revealed the identity of the true murderer to the satisfaction of ripperologists everywhere. This book seeks to change this. Taking the reader on a step-by-step journey through the precise events at the core of the Ripper's reign of terror, the text covers a sickening, twisted melange of murder and black magic, aiming to change forever the way these crimes are perceived

Libby Sarjeant and her friend Fran Wolfe are asked to look into the sudden and unexplained death of a devoted churchgoer. The police appear to have lost interest, but the villagers are certain that their new lady vicar has something to do with it! But if it is murder, how was it done? Could it be - magic?

This anthology features 20 original stories of murder by acclaimed and award-winning science fiction and fantasy writers.