Fiction

The Strand’s Story of the Month for April is Optimize Us by Maria Kelson, featured in Down to the River, a new anthology of crime fiction from Down and Out Books. With classic elements of suspense and a twist […]

“What’s your new book about?” An author can write 100,000 words, create an insightful tale of terror, humor, adventure, romance, and mystery, yet when someone—in this case, a writer-friend—asks, “What’s your new book about?” all […]

Vig by R.G. Oram He just sat there, waiting. Sitting with his back gently resting on the chair. Hands on the table pressed together in the shape of a pyramid. His eyes looked straight at the […]

Murder for Christmas by Francis Duncan (Excerpts) The scream awakened him. Mordecai Tremaine sat up in bed with the sound of it ringing in his ears, and at first he could not tell whether it […]

Lestrade Solves the Case I’m Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street; I like my cases clear and neat. My friend Lestrade of Scotland Yard, by contrast, makes his casework hard. Just why this is seems to […]

Haunted Melody Melody awoke with a start, her sheets soaked. The dream. It was getting worse. She couldn’t shake these nightmares. She thought she’d never break free.She slid from bed and wrapped her housecoat around […]

Satisfaction Guaranteed by Jon Land “Does it really work?” Julia Burrell asked the clerk behind the counter.  “Because this is important.”The clerk held the dark bottle between flabby fingers that were fitting extensions of his […]