An experiment known as the Pandora Project or Kat escapes the corporation, which had been experimenting on her, trying to create the perfect killing machine. Kat runs into Kim, the Phoenix a Life Closer or Legal Assassin. At first, Kim is going to kill Kat for seeing her face while on a Closing, but she finds out that Kat is the key. The key to what, Kim does not know, but until she does, Kim will let Kat live, and so they form a shaky partnership. Kat has no memory beyond a year ago, and she wants to discover who she is. Kim discovers that her mother was murdered, and she wants to find out who killed her and end their life with her own hands. Shades Of Gray #1 Noir, City Shrouded By Darkness 2024 Edition: Noir was a mega-city plagued by a sun-blocking mass called Dry Clouds that had mysteriously appeared three decades earlier. The Dry Clouds covered half the planet and forced those living under them to live in endless night. In this world, corporations were in charge, and breaking your contract with them could mean the termination of your life. Kimberly Griffin a.k.a. the Phoenix existed in a world of death. She closed people for a living. It was a lonely demeaning existence, though, she wouldn't admit it. There was nothing to drive her in the bleak reality until one day she ran into Kat. Kat, also known as the Pandora Project, was hunted by bio-mechas called Un-Men. She was an experiment of the Sphinx Corporation, and they were testing her to see if she could become the ultimate weapon. Kat refused to be a killer and tried to discover the truth behind her existence. Could she be a new form of bio-mechas? Pandora of ancient times opened a box and let all good escape. Would Pandora be the hope the planet needed? Or would she destroy the world? **Shades of Gray Science Fiction Serial Series ** 1. Noir, City Shrouded By Darkness 2. From Moscow, With Love 3. Cerberus Versus Pandora 4. Sisters Enter this dystopian world where corporations rule the people like kings and queens and personal freedom is an unheard-of concept. The Earth is slowly dying as mile-thick clouds known as Dry Clouds prevent the sun from shining down on half the planet. They mysteriously appeared one day and slowly spread across the remaining planet, and if they are not stopped, the Earth is doomed. Many mysteries abound in this apocalyptic science fiction series. Where did the Dry Clouds come from and how can they be stopped? Who is Kat? And who killed Kim's mom? These are just a few of the unanswered questions that start this sci-fi action-adventure series. Prologue: On a parallel Earth, thick puffy barriercumulus also known as Dry Clouds covered the sky and prevented the glimmer of twilight from shining on the city of Noir. For three decades, the polluted high-troposphere looming clouds covered half the planet and left part of the world to live in endless night. The mile-thick clouds yielded petroleum-based contaminated water dubbed Tainted Rain and polluted the air, so they were named Dry Clouds for leaving half the planet without drinkable water. At first, scientists believed pollution caused the great cloud barrier but that theory proved to be false. What caused the Dry Clouds to form baffled scientists, and how to reverse them eluded reason, and only technology's constant battle with nature has kept the dark city alive. Man's need for conquest expanded Noir to cover more than half a continent of what would have been called North America, and Noir became a Mega-city. It was the only one in the world. Over the last twenty years, Transgenics and bio-mechas evolved at a breakneck pace. Transgenics were genetically modified organisms with an extra-genome and were mostly plants produced to survive without the sun. Bio-mechas were robots resembling living things. In this world, corporations not governments ruled the people, creating a society where profit set policy and dictated life. Those who resided in Noir were touched by darkness, and the light of goodness seemed a forgotten memory and they... they lived in the gray —Shades of Gray.

Type: action adventure short story 860 words A glimpse into the apocalyptic science fiction series Shades of Gray. A little girl, who will be known as the Pandora Project in the Shades of Gray Universe, investigates what is causing the loud noise in a special hospital. Her discovery will only be the beginning of the mystery.

Type: flash fiction about 700 words A Bit Of Sweet Spice Mystery is a free cozy mystery book and part of the Ronin Flash Fiction Mystery 2023 series. The ronin, the female detective, must solve a mystery surrounding missing sweet spice. Very quick reads, so sit back and enjoy this mystery short story. Maji… a world fusing East and West cultures, during an era before the emergence of the steam engine. The sword was the ultimate weapon and brought order to the planet under the Emperor. Enter this alternate reality of Japan and see a fusing of two cultures. Travel through the world of 'Ronin: Have Sword Will Travel' and see a glimpse of the age of the samurai full of intrigue and suspense. More books in the series Ronin: Have Sword, Will Travel Mystery Series: 1. The Missing Japanese Chin Mystery ( dog mysteries novel ) 2. How To Frame A Murder: Part One: Cat Painting Mystery 3. How To Frame A Murder: Part Two: Household Of Death Mystery Ronin Flash Fiction Mysteries 2023 series 1. The Tea Set Mystery ( Craft Of Tea, Not Brewing Coffee 2. The Koi Pond Murder Mystery ( Fish Of Intrigue 3. A Bit Of Sweet Spice Mystery ( Baking Mystery Into Cooking 4. The Rice Paddy Murder Mystery ( Food, Baking, And Cooking With Oil Of Mystery 5. Midnight Blue Valerian Murder Mystery ( A Flower And A Strawberry Of Suspense 6. Killer Azure Hornet Murder Mystery ( Bug Of A Thriller And An Insect Mystery 7. Calico Japanese Bobtail Cat Mystery ( Catnap! Kitty Missing! Kitten in trouble mysteries with cats 8. Ivory Jade Cat Statue Mystery ( Stolen kitty-cat statue 9. Scarlet Ibis Fever Murder Mystery ( infectious contagion 10. Scarlet Lovers Murder Mystery ( death of a merchant 11. I Spy With My Little Cat’s Eye Mystery ( a stray cat is a witness to a crime 12. Cat With One Eye Closed Mystery ( rare feline coins cat mystery 13. The Hammer And The Egg Murder Mystery ( man dead beside poached egg cooking up some murder 14. Who Is Guilty? The Kitten Or The Puppy Murder Mystery ( young cat and dog stand accused 15. The Kimono With The Red-Crowned Crane Mystery 16. The Cat Who Ate The Dog Murder Mystery 17. The Illuminated Fruit Mystery 18. What The Old Dog Saw and Heard Mystery ( dog mystery book 19. A Hawkeye View Of Murder, A Vexed Archer Mystery ( archer kills a priestess 20. The Guilty Blowfish Mystery, A Recipe For Murder ( fugu pufferfish 21. The Sword Of Death, Part One Of The Cursed Katana 22. Sharper Than A Blade, Part Two Of The Cursed Katana 23. The Leopard-Spotted Orchid Flower Mystery (plant mystery 24. The Horse And Carriage Murder Mystery Meet the mysterious ronin detective who with sword in hand solves mysteries and helps those in need. The Ronin: Have Sword-Will Travel Mystery book series is action mixed with mystery with a slash of thriller thrown in. Very quick whodunit mysteries. Be immersed in an alternate reality of the Japanese culture of the samurai mixed with a steampunk era of the American Wild West. Action-adventure thriller in a parallel world. An alternate history of Japan. An alternate reality with action adventure mysteries. Whodunnit mysteries mixed with Japanese culture. New to Flash Fiction? Flash Fiction are very very short books to tickle your fancy. They are a great way to see a writer's style and be introduced to the worlds they create and envision. Samurai detective and ronin gumshoe all rolled into one. Enjoy female sleuths mysteries then check out this crime thriller series. If you enjoy police detective mysteries, check out this ancient world where the tool of the trade was the mind. A female detective from an intriguing era. International mysteries and horrendous crimes. Ruthless murders, relentless mayhem, unthinkable secrets, malicious riddles, and merciless masterminds will not be overlooked by the Ronin Detective.

Type: flash fiction about 650 words The Rice Paddy Murder Mystery is a free cozy mystery book and part of the Ronin Flash Fiction Mystery 2023 series. The ronin, the female detective, must solve a mystery surrounding a body found in a rice paddy. Very quick reads, so sit back and enjoy this mystery short story. Maji… a world fusing East and West cultures, during an era before the emergence of the steam engine. The sword was the ultimate weapon and brought order to the planet under the Emperor. Enter this alternate reality and see a fusing of two cultures. Travel through the world of 'Ronin: Have Sword-Will Travel' and see a glimpse of the age of the samurai full of intrigue and suspense. Ronin: Have Sword-Will Travel Mystery Series: 1. The Missing Japanese Chin Mystery ( dog mysteries novel ) 2. How To Frame A Murder: Part One: Cat Painting Mystery 3. How To Frame A Murder: Part Two: Household Of Death Mystery Ronin Flash Fiction Series: 1. The Tea Set Mystery ( Craft Of Tea, Not Brewing Coffee ) 2. The Koi Pond Murder Mystery ( Fish Of Intrigue ) 3. A Bit Of Sweet Spice Mystery ( Baking Mystery Into Cooking ) 4. The Rice Paddy Murder Mystery ( Food, Baking, And Cooking With Oil Of Mystery ) 5. Midnight Blue Valerian Murder Mystery ( A Flower And A Strawberry Of Suspense ) 6. Killer Azure Hornet Murder Mystery ( Bug Of A Thriller And An Insect Mystery ) 7. Calico Japanese Bobtail Cat Mystery ( Catnap! Kitty Missing! Kitten in trouble mysteries with cats) 8. Ivory Jade Cat Statue Mystery ( Stolen kitty-cat statue ) 9. Scarlet Ibis Fever Murder Mystery ( infectious contagion ) 10. Scarlet Lovers Murder Mystery ( death of a merchant ) 11. I Spy With My Little Cat’s Eye Mystery ( a stray cat is a witness to a crime ) 12. Cat With One Eye Closed Mystery ( rare feline coins cat mystery) 13. The Hammer And The Egg Murder Mystery ( man dead beside poached egg cooking up some murder ) 14. Who Is Guilty? The Kitten Or The Puppy Murder Mystery ( young cat and dog stand accused ) 15. The Kimono With The Red-Crowned Crane Mystery 16. The Cat Who Ate The Dog Murder Mystery 17. The Illuminated Fruit Mystery 18. What The Old Dog Saw and Heard Mystery ( dog mystery book ) 19. A Hawkeye View Of Murder, A Vexed Archer Mystery ( archer kills a priestess ) 20. The Guilty Blowfish Mystery, A Recipe For Murder ( fugu pufferfish ) 21. The Sword Of Death, Part One Of The Cursed Katana 22. Sharper Than A Blade, Part Two Of The Cursed Katana 23. The Leopard-Spotted Orchid Flower Mystery (plant mystery) 24. The Horse And Carriage Murder Mystery Meet the mysterious ronin detective who with sword in hand solves mysteries and helps those in need. The Ronin: Have Sword-Will Travel Mystery book series is action mixed with mystery with a slash of thriller thrown in. Very quick whodunit mysteries. Be immersed in an alternate reality of the Japanese culture of the samurai mixed with a steampunk era of the American Wild West. Action-adventure thriller in a parallel world. An alternate history of Japan. An alternate reality with action adventure mysteries. Whodunnit mysteries mixed with Japanese culture. New to Flash Fiction? Flash Fiction are very very short books to tickle your fancy. They are a great way to see a writer's style and be introduced to the worlds they create and envision. Samurai detective and ronin gumshoe all rolled into one. Enjoy female sleuths mysteries then check out this crime thriller series. If you enjoy police detective mysteries, check out this ancient world where the tool of the trade was the mind. A female detective from an intriguing era. International mysteries and horrendous crimes. Ruthless murders, relentless mayhem, unthinkable secrets, malicious riddles, and merciless masterminds will not be overlooked by the Ronin Detective.

Type: flash fiction about 650 words Midnight Blue Valerian Murder Mystery is a free cozy mystery book and part of the Ronin Flash Fiction Mystery 2023 series. The ronin, the female detective, must solve a mystery surrounding a death supposedly enacted by an old blind woman. Very quick reads, so sit back and enjoy this mystery short story. Maji… a world fusing East and West cultures, during an era before the emergence of the steam engine. The sword was the ultimate weapon and brought order to the planet under the Emperor. Enter this alternate reality and see a fusing of two cultures. Travel through the world of 'Ronin: Have Sword-Will Travel' and see a glimpse of the age of the samurai full of intrigue and suspense. Ronin: Have Sword-Will Travel Mystery Series: 1. The Missing Japanese Chin Mystery ( dog mysteries novel ) 2. How To Frame A Murder: Part One: Cat Painting Mystery 3. How To Frame A Murder: Part Two: Household Of Death Mystery Ronin Flash Fiction Series: 1. The Tea Set Mystery ( Craft Of Tea, Not Brewing Coffee ) 2. The Koi Pond Murder Mystery ( Fish Of Intrigue ) 3. A Bit Of Sweet Spice Mystery ( Baking Mystery Into Cooking ) 4. The Rice Paddy Murder Mystery ( Food, Baking, And Cooking With Oil Of Mystery ) 5. Midnight Blue Valerian Murder Mystery ( A Flower And A Strawberry Of Suspense ) 6. Killer Azure Hornet Murder Mystery ( Bug Of A Thriller And An Insect Mystery ) 7. Calico Japanese Bobtail Cat Mystery ( Catnap! Kitty Missing! Kitten in trouble mysteries with cats) 8. Ivory Jade Cat Statue Mystery ( Stolen kitty-cat statue ) 9. Scarlet Ibis Fever Murder Mystery ( infectious contagion ) 10. Scarlet Lovers Murder Mystery ( death of a merchant ) 11. I Spy With My Little Cat’s Eye Mystery ( a stray cat is a witness to a crime ) 12. Cat With One Eye Closed Mystery ( rare feline coins cat mystery) 13. The Hammer And The Egg Murder Mystery ( man dead beside poached egg cooking up some murder ) 14. Who Is Guilty? The Kitten Or The Puppy Murder Mystery ( young cat and dog stand accused ) 15. The Kimono With The Red-Crowned Crane Mystery 16. The Cat Who Ate The Dog Murder Mystery 17. The Illuminated Fruit Mystery 18. What The Old Dog Saw and Heard Mystery ( dog mystery book ) 19. A Hawkeye View Of Murder, A Vexed Archer Mystery ( archer kills a priestess ) 20. The Guilty Blowfish Mystery, A Recipe For Murder ( fugu pufferfish ) 21. The Sword Of Death, Part One Of The Cursed Katana 22. Sharper Than A Blade, Part Two Of The Cursed Katana 23. The Leopard-Spotted Orchid Flower Mystery (plant mystery) 24. The Horse And Carriage Murder Mystery Meet the mysterious ronin detective who with sword in hand solves mysteries and helps those in need. The Ronin: Have Sword-Will Travel Mystery book series is action mixed with mystery with a slash of thriller thrown in. Very quick whodunit mysteries. Be immersed in an alternate reality of the Japanese culture of the samurai mixed with a steampunk era of the American Wild West. Action-adventure thriller in a parallel world. An alternate history of Japan. An alternate reality with action adventure mysteries. Whodunnit mysteries mixed with Japanese culture. New to Flash Fiction? Flash Fiction are very very short books to tickle your fancy. They are a great way to see a writer's style and be introduced to the worlds they create and envision. Samurai detective and ronin gumshoe all rolled into one. Enjoy female sleuths mysteries then check out this crime thriller series. If you enjoy police detective mysteries, check out this ancient world where the tool of the trade was the mind. A female detective from an intriguing era. International mysteries and horrendous crimes.

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Thursday Next series comes a “laugh-out-loud funny” (Los Angeles Times) and “brilliantly original” (Booklist, starred review) novel of a man attempting to navigate a color-coded world. “A rich brew of dystopic fantasy and deadpan goofiness.”—The Washington Post Welcome to Chromatacia, where the Colortocracy rules society through a social hierarchy based on one’s limited color perception. In this world, you are what you can see. Eddie Russet wants to move up. When he and his father relocate to the backwater village of East Carmine, his carefully cultivated plans to leverage his better-than-average red perception and marry into a powerful family are quickly upended. Eddie must content with lethal swans, sneaky Yellows, inviolable rules, an enforced marriage to the hideous Violet deMauve, and a risky friendship with an intriguing Grey named Jane who shows Eddie that the apparent peace of his world is as much an illusion as color itself. Will Eddie be able to tread the fine line between total conformity—accepting the path, partner, and career delineated by his hue—and his instinctive curiosity that is bound to get him into trouble?

Film noir is more than a cinematic genre. It is an essential aspect of American culture. Along with the cowboy of the Wild West, the denizen of the film noir city is at the very center of our mythological iconography. Described as the style of an anxious victor, film noir began during the post-war period, a strange time of hope and optimism mixed with fear and even paranoia. The shadow of this rich and powerful cinematic style can now be seen in virtually every artistic medium. The spectacular success of recent neo-film noirs is only the tip of an iceberg. In the dead-on, nocturnal jazz of Charlie Parker and Miles Davis, the chilled urban landscapes of Edward Hopper, and postwar literary fiction from Nelson Algren and William S. Burroughs to pulp masters like Horace McCoy, we find an unsettling recognition of the dark hollowness beneath the surface of the American Dream. Acclaimed novelist and poet Nicholas Christopher explores the cultural identity of film noir in a seamless, elegant, and enchanting work of literary prose. Examining virtually the entire catalogue of film noir, Christopher identifies the central motif as the urban labyrinth, a place infested with psychosis, anxiety, and existential dread in which the noir hero embarks on a dangerously illuminating quest. With acute sensitivity, he shows how technical devices such as lighting, voice over, and editing tempo are deployed to create the film noir world. Somewhere in the Night guides us through the architecture of this imaginary world, be it shot in New York or Los Angeles, relating its elements to the ancient cultural archetypes that prefigure it. Finally, Christopher builds an explanation of why film noir not only lives on but is currently enjoying a renaissance. Somewhere in the Night can be appreciated as a lucid introduction to a fundamental style of American culture, and also as a guide to film noir's heyday. Ultimately, though, as the work of a bold talent adeptly manipulating poetic cadence and metaphor, it is itself a superb aesthetic artifact.

Crime fiction set in Iran—including a finalist for the Shamus Award for Best PI Short Story. “Tehran Noir is not only a solid crime collection, but an illuminating look into day-to-day life in the Middle East, with religious and political implications galore, as well as racial tensions bubbling just beneath the surface. . . . The stories in Tehran Noir aren’t always easy to read, but they are engaging in the extreme.” —San Francisco Book Review Includes brand-new stories by Gina B. Nahai, Salar Abdoh, Lily Farhadpour, Azardokht Bahrami, Yourik Karim-Masihi, Vali Khalili, Farhaad Heidari Gooran, Aida Moradi Ahani, Mahsa Mohebali, Majed Neisi, Danial Haghighi, Javad Afhami, Sima Saeedi, Mahak Taheri, and Hossein Abkenar. “A stellar and diverse cast of Iranian writers. . . . A collection such as this is able to bring Iran to life for the foreign reader in a way other fiction and non-fiction cannot. . . . Superb.” —PopMatters

Stories of crime and corruption set in this Caribbean country by Edwidge Danticat, Roxane Gay, Dany Laferrière, and more. These darkly suspenseful stories offer a deeper and more nuanced look at a nation that has been plagued by poverty, political upheaval, and natural disaster, yet endures even through the bleakest times. Filled with tough characters and twisting plots, they reveal the multitude of human stories that comprise the heart of Haiti. Classic stories by Danielle Legros Georges, Jacques Roumain, Ida Faubert, Jacques-Stephen Alexis, Jan J. Dominique, Paulette Poujol Oriol, Lyonel Trouillot, Emmelie Prophète, Ben Fountain, Dany Laferrière, Georges Anglade, Edwidge Danticat, Michèle Voltaire Marcelin, Èzili Dantò, Marie-Hélène Laforest, Nick Stone, Marilène Phipps-Kettlewell, Myriam J.A. Chancey, and Roxane Gay. “Skillfully uses a popular genre to help us better understand an often frustratingly complex and indecipherable society.” —The Miami Herald “Presents an excellent array of writers, primarily Haitian, whose graphic descriptions portray a country ravaged by corruption, crime, and mystery. . . . A must read for everyone.” —The Caribbean Writer

The New York Times bestseller “The Shadow of the Wind is ultimately a love letter to literature, intended for readers as passionate about storytelling as its young hero.” —Entertainment Weekly (Editor's Choice) “One gorgeous read.” —Stephen King Barcelona, 1945: A city slowly heals in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, and Daniel, an antiquarian book dealer’s son who mourns the loss of his mother, finds solace in a mysterious book entitled The Shadow of the Wind, by one Julián Carax. But when he sets out to find the author’s other works, he makes a shocking discovery: someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book Carax has written. In fact, Daniel may have the last of Carax’s books in existence. Soon Daniel’s seemingly innocent quest opens a door into one of Barcelona’s darkest secrets--an epic story of murder, madness, and doomed love.