Rural Stories

[Set in Eilos, the world of 'Echoes of the Reach', and can be read standalone.] Where ripples of the past lead, the tidal waves of history soon follow. Jaster Brand is an artificing prodigy. From enchanted tools to automaton companions to his own right arm, his passion for arcane engineering has carried him to the Malkest Throne's biggest cities in search of work. Working with his fellow travelling apprentice, the rookie hunter Astrid Forrester, they scrape up enough money to support themselves and their families. On Jaster's latest visit home, however, something changes. The road to Flatsands transforms into a sunken cove, a seabound scape of sand and shells cut off from the wider world. Worse still, the village itself is abandoned, its residents vanished and their homes claimed by an insidious dark coral. Mysteries rise at every turn, yet none more startling than the sudden reappearance of Calypso, Jaster's one-time imaginary friend pulled back by forces unknown. Stranded together in a drowning village, the three must race to find the missing villagers, undo the curse that has befallen Flatsands, and face the ancient threat that stirs beneath the blackened waves. *** Cover and chapter-end banner skilfully crafted by the wizard of legend @-DeeIsDead- (thank you so much again, Dee!)

Naliang is quiet. Too quiet. Ankita, 22, arrives for a short research trip- and the village shifts the moment she steps in. People watch her. Too long. Too still. Faces repeat. Stories loop. Rooms move when she isn't looking. Something in Naliang is wrong. Deeply wrong. Something that hides behind kindness and slips into the empty spaces of her life. The longer Ankita stays, the less she trusts her memory, her instincts, her own reflection. Because in Naliang, danger doesn't chase you. It waits. And it learns. And it gets closer. This is my first time writing and publishing a psychological thriller story, and it is a slow burn horror so I hope you trust the story as it will be worth it. I hope you will like it and help me improve. Thank you all for reading! Disclaimer: There are themes of violence and gore in the later chapters which might upset a few readers. Copyrights © by aniya_lee

သစ်ခွစာပေ အပိုင်း ၁မှ၁၀၀ အထိ သစ်ခွစာပေရဲ့ တယ်လီချန်နယ် ORCHIDSARPAYFREENOVELS မှာ ဖတ်ရှုနိုင်ပါတယ်။ ပေးဂရုမှ စ-ဆုံး ပြီး။

Shakira Vialva wasn't one to back down, not even when a gun was placed between her lips. Known for her attitude and mouth that could start wars, she never expected to catch the attention of Malikie-aka Six-a street-slicked hood gangster an with danger in his veins and lust in his eyes. What starts as a threat turns into something messier: obsession, fear, attraction, and a power neither of them understands. But Shakira isn't your average ride-or-die chick... and Malikie isn't just another bad boy. This is not your typical love story. This is Ms. Unruly & The Ghetto.

A 1976 rural supernatural horror rooted in dark folklore, featuring an original river-dwelling creature. 河鱼怪的传说，你听说过吗？ 小心水流，他们就在下面。

I was sleeping deeply in my bed. It wasn't too hot or too cold for an Australian summer night, yet I woke drenched in sweat. I wasn't sure if it was just my body's strange rhythm or something else - something in the air of Harden that made me feel it wasn't entirely natural.

Tully was a young boy that grew up his ma and pa on their own private land.

There were always two of them--Calla Lilly Bell and her older brother, Bowie Cole. She was the spark, and he is just trying to keep her safe. But when a fall into an old, flower-filled mining shaft leaves Bowie trapped and Calla helpless above, the balance they've always known begins to shift. In the hush of the Virginian summer countryside, a brother learns to let go, and a sister learns what it means to carry someone else's fear.

For the month of November, sit back and relax on a couch while thumbing the pages of this new anthology. Small Town Magic is a collection of stories about the rustic life in the magical highlands and what sort of troubles the rural folk deal with. Within this anthology, we want stories that tackle the wonders and dangers of magic in the rural setting. Cozy tales of small town shenanigans featuring ordinary folk in a pastoral lifestyle are welcome. Laid-back vibes, flourishing nature, a cottage in the woods, as well as strange and ancient forces-compose a story perfect for a cool afternoon by the porch with these elements. Grab your magic tools, visit the local library, and journey into the untouchable woods, and together, enjoy the quiet life away from civilization. But beware, it may not be as quiet as you think.

[ONC 2023 Shortlister] ['23 RGAs Overall Winner] When the storm comes, who will you choose to ride it out with? In the sleepy coastal village of Porthdruro, the most excitement literature student Sally Tremaine experiences is the coming and going of the tide. So, when she runs into carefree photographer Flick Scott on a routine errand, the waves the girl makes in her life are beyond anything she's seen before. Flick is confident, passionate, and just plain fun - in short, she's everything Sally had never expected to find in her small world. Things aren't all fun and games, though. The rest of the village wants nothing to do with the boisterous traveller, and Sally senses there's something lurking beneath Flick's impulsive character, something she doesn't want Sally to see. And when another stranger follows hot on Flick's heels, Sally faces a choice between staying true to the place she calls home and protecting the girl that could take her beyond the horizon. As the storm draws ever closer, the questions rumbling in Sally's mind grow louder. What brought someone so full of life to a place like Porthdruro? Why is she so possessive of a simple camera? And will the toll of trusting Flick Scott be more than Sally can take? *** Written for #ONC2023. 50. "An attractive, mysterious stranger moves to your small town. While everyone is desperate to make an impression, only you notice something a bit odd about them." 51. "The problem with red flags is that I'm attracted to them." Stunning cover by the equally stunning @MiniMoxx. Adorable chapter-end graphic by the equally adorable @Metalcanine.

Greer Dane swore she'd never go back. But after her mom's death, the curse her grandmother laid starts to evolve-dragging Greer into a darker world. Something ancient is waking. And it wants her back.

Marta Díaz Aponte, a city-born caretaker working in Hayatozca's sole orphanage, is met with the grim sight of a young man found dead in the playground with strange marks on his neck. Terrified, yet determined to keep her orphanage safe, she teams up with a paranormal investigator who is as mysterious as the killer she seeks. Her fiery resolve may be both a blessing and a curse, as she unearths secrets buried within the rural town she calls home, grows closer to her scarfed collaborator, and faces a supernatural murderer threatening both her loved ones and her sanity. ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ Updates bimonthly on Thursdays ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ Current cover made by me Chapter banners created by the talented @VeraChendra © 2025 Nightingale257 || Available only on W a t t p a d.

The story follows Ezekiel Willoughby, a young journalist whose latest assignment drags him and his tight-knit friend group to an infamous rural town with an abandoned church in the mountains. What begins as a simple documentation trip quickly unravels into something far stranger---quiet warnings from locals, a sacred book buried underneath the altar, and a creeping sense that something ancient has been waiting in the dark. After everything had gone wrong, Ezekiel tries to recount the events in interviews. However, his memories are clouded by fear, devotion, and the weight of what he thinks he saw. The story spirals through friendship, belief, and the terrifying space between what's real and what we choose to trust, leaving one question hanging above everything: "How much of what he believes should we believe, too?"

High school graduation and an unsolved murder rip apart childhood sweethearts Barlow and Pet. Ten years pass and they get a second chance to rekindle their romance. When they team up to solve the murder, the killer resurfaces bent on parting them again, this time forever. Copyright 2019 by Dennis Royer All Rights Reserved.

A perfect girl named Horace walks onto a farm, hoping for a change in her boring, corporate life, when she meets Alejandro. A horse with a... human head?! Follow Horace as she navigates this new life, and meets many different people (or horses) along the way. Sponsored by Bus Phillip Seat™.

Isaurinha sempre desconfiou, ainda quando Isidro era vivo, que valia menos que os irmãos. Não porque lhe houvessem dito ― não se falava muito em casa dela. Depois que Isidro morreu, veio a certeza. Mas não precisava ser assim. Ela não tinha que ser desimportante para sempre. Afinal, ela também poderia ser homem, como João, Pedro e Isidro, se passasse por baixo de um arco-íris. A professora do grupo escolar lera uma história assim para eles mês passado. Desde então, Isaura vinha se preparando, fazendo planos.

Philippine Literature (mostly short stories)

Skye is a 12-year-old girl living with an alcoholic mother and struggling to take care of her younger brother and herself. When they face eviction from their apartment, Skye gives up. What's the point of trying to get good grades at school, and getting your little brother to his soccer practices on time, if you don't even have enough to eat or a place to live? When her mother sees Skye hit bottom, in a rare act of parenting, she makes a phone call that changes their lives forever. They board an airplane and find themselves dropped in the middle of nowhere: Lemmon, South Dakota, population 1,200. A tiny town bordering the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. It's home to Skye's grandparents, uncle, and cousins, whom she has never met. As she struggles to find her place in this a family, she also begins to untangle the web of her mother's life and uncover the mystery of the disappearing Charlie Linxten.

Katherine Day is the queen of the dragon shifters. She took over her father's kingdom and has done everything in her power to keep it up and running. After visiting a local wolf pack she discovers her mate. Taking him home with her wasn't the only thing developing in her life. Katherine discovers there are enemies behind kingdom lines and must figure out who it is before they can take her life and throne.

Who would name their town Hell's Center, and why are people vanishing without a trace from the place? Johnny sticks out worse than a Bears fan at Lambeau Field when he moves to the small rural town. Only black kid in an all-white community. Johnny and the few teens he manages to befriend think they know what's behind the disappearances - a haunted house. Officer Corbin tries to solve the disappearances, but he doesn't trust the new kid in town. Though he soon discovers everything the teens claim is true. Only the house isn't what they think it is. And somehow Johnny is the key. A unique stand-alone modern fantasy with a plot that slowly intensifies until it seems the world might end. Can a way be found to stop the canavar? This is a complete story, and I promise not to hang you out to dry. I will keep uploading chapters until it is finished even if there is only one reader reading it.