This story is based on the premise that a blood test mandated for U.S. citizens at age 40 will predict the time frame and cause of their eventual deaths. The author is an Edgar short story winner published in speculative and mystery genres among others.The greatest tragedy the world has ever known turned out to be the ultimate catalyst for change. In the wake of World War III, which decimated most of the world’s population, the remaining survivors vowed to not continue to repeat the same mistakes of the past. Fortunately, they had something previous generations did not have – advanced technology.The year is 2117 and this once shattered civilization has become prosperous again. Innovative forms of technology have enabled them to abandon the old model and re-engineer a better way of living for all. Brain implants and genetic modifications have made an entire population educated, healthy, and kind.Despite the benefits of this technology, it has created some unforeseen side effects that threaten humankind’s existence. When technology proves to be inept at solving the world’s problem, a new hope emerges in the unlikeliest form – a young orphan girl.

When a man is found dead at his doorstep on the edge of Walden Pond, naturalist and writer Henry David Thoreau follows his highly developed moral compass to track down the killer. A short story by an Edgar short story winner.Tom is pleased with the direction that his life has taken him, and enjoys his structured life as a young American soldier stationed overseas. Alyse is a beautiful young Canadian on summer vacation far from home. A chance meeting between the two while in Germany sets off a mysterious chain of events that will take them across continents and place them at odds with the most powerful people in the world. What the two uncover will shake their faith in the institutions that they believe in, and uncover shocking secrets that could cost them their lives.

The first short mystery story in the continuing saga of amateur detective Miriam Obadah, a woman from Ghana who lives in Harlem with her husband, Kofi, and co-wife, Nana. Download the anthology for other good reads. Five of the 11 stories in the anthology appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.Emily Moore’s life will never be the same, especially when you have a magical amulet everyone wants, an enchanted wall to destroy, and follow messages left by her deceased mother. But Emily is far from alone. With the magic implement securing alliance known as the Blackbirds, she not only finds their help, but a connection to them she never guessed. Now in Eutopia, Emily’s Receptor abilities strengthen as she tries to find the Black Abyss—the only place to secure her amulet. What she finds there isn’t what she expected. There’s more to the amulet than just magic and it’s up to Emily to decide what to do with it. Separated from Gabe, Emily is drawn into Eutopia and the inhabitants there—especially an Outlander that is half beast and half human and sworn to protect Eutopia’s wall. With the fate of many worlds in the balance, it is up to Emily to look beyond her own desires, save magic from evil, and do it before it’s too late.