Murder Mystery & Mayhem is a collection of the dark, the fear-inducing and the mysterious, written by the ingenious writers of Creative Quills Creative Writing Group. Some of the stories may be true, and some are not. Can you guess which are truth and which are lies? Who can tell?

First published in 1850, New York by Gas-Light explores the seamy side of the newly emerging metropolis: "the festivities of prostitution, the orgies of pauperism, the haunts of theft and murder, the scenes of drunkenness and beastly debauch, and all the sad realities that go to make up the lower stratum—the underground story—of life in New York!" The author of this lively and fascinating little book, which both attracted and offended large numbers of readers in Victorian America, was George G. Foster, reporter for Horace Greeley's influential New York Tribune, social commentator, poet, and man about town. Foster drew on his daily and nightly rambles through the city's streets and among the characters of the urban demi-monde to produce a sensationalized but extraordinarily revealing portrait of New York at the moment it was emerging as a major metropolis. Reprinted here with sketches from two of Foster's other books, New York by Gas-Light will be welcomed by students of urban social history, popular culture, literature, and journalism. Editor Stuart M. Blumin has provided a penetrating introductory essay that sets Foster's life and work in the contexts of the growing city, the development of the mass-distribution publishing industry, the evolving literary genre of urban sensationalism, and the wider culture of Victorian America. This is an important reintroduction to a significant but neglected work, a prologue to the urban realism that would flourish later in the fiction of Stephen Crane, the painting of George Bellows, and the journalism of Jacob Riis.

From murder and matchstick men to all-consuming fires, painted women, and Great Lakes disasters--and the wide-eyed public who could not help but gawk at it all--"Milwaukee Mayhem" uncovers the little-remembered and rarely told history of the underbelly of a Midwestern metropolis. "Milwaukee Mayhem" offers a new perspective on Milwaukee's early years, forgoing the major historical signposts found in traditional histories and focusing instead on the strange and brutal tales of mystery, vice, murder, and disaster that were born of the city's transformation from lakeside settlement to American metropolis. Author Matthew J. Prigge presents these stories as they were recounted to the public in the newspapers of the era, using the vivid and often grim language of the times to create an engaging and occasionally chilling narrative of a forgotten Milwaukee. Through his thoughtful introduction, Prigge gives the work context, eschewing assumptions about "simpler times" and highlighting the mayhem that the growth and rise of a city can bring about. These stories are the orphans of Milwaukee's history, too unusual to register in broad historic narratives, too strange to qualify as nostalgia, but nevertheless essential to our understanding of this American city.

Enthralling children's fiction for everyone who loves Robin Steven's Murder Most Unladylike Mysteries and Frances Hardinge's The Lie Tree. Twelve mysteries. Twelve authors. One challenge: can YOU solve the crimes before the heroes of the stories? These are twelve brand-new short stories from twelve of the best children's crime writers writing today. These creepy, hilarious, brain-boggling, heart-pounding mysteries feature daring, brilliant young detectives, and this anthology is a must for fans of crime fiction and detection, especially the Murder Most Unladylike Mysteries, The Roman Mysteries and The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow. The Crime Club are twelve UK-based authors who are mad about crime fiction. Clementine Beauvais, Elen Caldecott, Susie Day, Julia Golding, Frances Hardinge, Caroline Lawrence, Helen Moss, Sally Nicholls, Kate Pankhurst, Robin Stevens, Harriet Whitehorn and Katherine Woodfine can be found anywhere there is a mystery to be solved, a puzzle to be cracked or a bun to be eaten, and they are always ready for the next puzzling case.

Today's Charlotte is a fast-growing and well-respected city. but the Charlotte of yesteryear is rife with tales of the macabre, tragic and simply unexplainable. Prepare to be surprised and unnerved as the dark side of Charlotte is brought to life by native and long-time writer David Aaron Moore. Learn about Nellie Freeman, who nearly decapitated her husband with a straight razor in 1926. Discover how the ghosts of Camp Green infantrymen, the doughboys of World War I, still scream in the Southern night. Read about the seventy-one passengers who lost their lives as Eastern Airlines Flight 212 fell to the earth one foggy night in 1974. Come along and experience the grisly past of the City of Churches.

Following the great success of 2015's Gothic Fantasy, deluxe edition short story compilations, Ghosts, Horror and Science Fiction, this latest in the series is packed with hard-boiled detectives, monsters, psychopaths and a high body count. Tales of death and destruction from classic authors are cast with previously unpublished stories by exciting contemporary hardcore crime writers. New, contemporary and notable writers featured are: Sara Dobie Bauer, Michael Cebula, Carolyn Charron, James Dorr, Tim Foley, Steven Thor Gunnin, Kate Heartfield, David M. Hoenig, Liam Hogan, Patrick J. Hurley, Michelle Ann King, Claude Lalumière, Gerri Leen, K.A. Mielke, Alexandra Camille Renwick, Fred Senese, Donald Jacob Uitvlugt, Dean H. Wild, and Nemma Wollenfang. These appear alongside classic stories by authors such as Ambrose Bierce, Wilkie Collins, Dick Donovan, Edith Nesbit, Edgar Allan Poe and Bram Stoker.

The shocking story of the turn-of-the-century Atlanta Ripper and six other notorious cases from the dark side of Georgia’s capital city. Throughout 1911, Georgia’s Gate City was terrorized by a serial killer whose gruesome murders mirrored those of London’s Jack the Ripper. Only Atlanta’s Ripper claimed nearly three times as many victims—African American servant girls who, week by week, fell prey to the mysterious slasher. Like Jack, he was never found. His killing spree was just one in a century of appalling Atlanta crimes that would make national headlines. This chilling volume also includes the story of thirteen-year-old factory worker Mary Phagan, whose brutal slaying led to one of the most infamous trials in Georgia history. Journalist Corinna Underwood also explores the facts behind what came to be known as the Atlanta Child Murders and the conviction of perpetrator Wayne Williams; as well as the inexplicable vanishing of newlywed, Mary Shotwell Little. Still being investigated after forty years, the case of the “disappearing bride” haunts Atlanta to this day.

Murder and Misfortune in Minnesota This book contains stories of early crimes of disturbing proportions -- the weapons used to commit these dastardly deeds, the proceedings of the justice system at the time, early prison conditions and treatment of prisoners during their incarceration, and the judge's sentencing of the convicted. Most slayings in the 19th century started as disagreements among farmers in the field. They struggled to make a better life and many times took the law into their own hands. Insults to one's honor were taken seriously and violence was the method of settling disputes. The knife or a bludgeoning tool were the common weapons of choice, but later on, a good pistol could do a quick job in an unfortunate situation. Farm tools could also be used as weapons -- the ax, the pitchfork, the rope, the potato masher, the bolting pin, and even strychnine, which was used to poison vermin -- these were all at the ready and highly effective when needed. This book reveals how various types of lethal weapons were used to commit murder and misfortune in rural Redwood County in the early years. Eventually, official justice was established by the courts, replacing private vengeance committed as a result of feuds, fights or fraud. After reading these stories though, one might wonder -- is there truly any justice in this world!

Military wife, mother, and professional organizer Ellie Avery investigates the death of her husband's squadron commander, uncovering clues that lead her to believe her husband may be the killer's next victim.

Brother detectives Frank and Joe go full-steam ahead to find the truth in the twenty-third book in the thrilling Hardy Boys Adventures series. The Hardys and some of their friends hop aboard an old train that’s been restored and turned into a murder mystery experience. A cast of actors will perform an immersive theatrical production while passengers dine in style, assume roles in the game, and ultimately try their hand at solving the case. This should be a cakewalk for Joe and Frank! The production is a mess. The actors are lousy, fumbling their lines and spelling out obvious clues. At least the food is pretty good. But just as the Hardy Boys are trying to make the most of a disappointing situation, one of the cast members goes missing. At first, the audience thinks that the show is taking a turn for the better, but it quickly becomes clear that this is not part of the act. For the Hardys, the mystery has gone from good fun to deadly serious. And trapped on a train full of people who aren’t who they say they are, everyone is a suspect. Will Frank and Joe be able to figure out how someone can vanish into thin air on a moving train before this case goes completely off the rails?