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26
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Cropper's Cabin [MultiFormat]
by Jim Thompson
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Tommy Carver was a raw nerve, an angry young Okie sharecropper. Sharing the narrow confines of a hot and steamy cabin with a violent father. But his stepmother was the one that was really pushing his buttons. And her affections were way beyond maternal. The heat of the situation was making Tommy boil over. It was just a matter of time before he'd do something he regretted.
Words: 52306 - Reading Time: 149-209 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime
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27
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D-99 [MultiFormat]
by H.B. Fyfe
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EARTHMEN IN TROUBLE Harris was caged in an underwater "zoo" by a pack of blue lobsters. Maria drew a five-year sentence on a puritanical planet for trying to buy a souvenir--and for being excessively feminine. Taranto & Meyers had committed the crime of being shipwrecked on a planet that didn't like strangers. Gerson was simply kidnapped. And nobody had any idea why five citizens of Terra were being held on other worlds--and the ultra-secret Department 99 existed only to set them, and others lik... more info>>
Words: 57073 - Reading Time: 163-228 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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28
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Dark Revenge [MultiFormat]
by Rex Stout
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What's a lawyer to do when beautiful Delia Brand confesses of her plans to kill Dan Jackson and Jackson soon turns up dead. Accused of murdering him with her father's .38 in the town of Cody, Wyoming, Delia Brand sets out to find the real killer, and along the way, discovers the truth about her father's unsolved murder. Dark Revenge was first published in 1939. Later appeared in an expanded novel version as Mountain Cat and The Mountain Cat Murders.
Words: 26625 - Reading Time: 76-106 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime
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29
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Death Pulls a Doublecross [MultiFormat]
by Lawrence Block
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She was a beautiful girl with a talent for two-timing: she led two lives, tormented two men--but the one thing she couldn't doublecross was murder! I'm Ed London, PH. D.--PHILANDERER IN DANGER Nailing killers is my racket But hiding their victims' corpses, from the law? Better conjure up Houdini, buddy, I'm not the man you want. That's what I should have sai. But I've got a heart as big as a bawdy house. When I saw my sister's marriage going up in smoke because her husband's extramarital flame g... more info>>
Words: 52041 - Reading Time: 148-208 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime
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30
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Death Quotient and Other Stories [MultiFormat]
by John D. MacDonald
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Martin Rhode, a distinguished soldier of one of Earth's warring states, has been unwittingly captured by aliens after innocently exploring a hole caused by what was perceived to be enemy warfare. As it turns out, the aliens are being pursued by natives of an enemy planet and they have sought refuge on Earth. They do not plan on staying long, however, but actually intend to lure their rivals in so that they may all be destroyed along with everyone else on the planet, by a special weapon they are ... more info>>
Words: 44445 - Reading Time: 126-177 min.
Category: Science Fiction/Mystery/Crime
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31
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Death Takes the Bus [MultiFormat]
by Lionel White
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A tale of men whose trade is violence, whose tools are guns, whose wage is death. The plan was well made. The bus carrying Hardin to the death house was commandeered precisely on schedule. Hardin, free of handcuffs, backed by his number-one thug, forced the bus out into the desert toward the rendezvous with the black sedan. And then the plan exploded. The sand storm rose--one of the worst in Southern California's history--and the bus mired down hopelessly. Hardin's gunman raped a girl. The... more info>>
Words: 45692 - Reading Time: 130-182 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime/Suspense/Thriller
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32
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Dirge for a Nude [MultiFormat]
by Jonathan Craig
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Grooving on the Spineret in a new club in the Village, Marty Bishop was feeling pretty good. He had a date with the gorgeous coat check girl that night and the crowd was enjoying the scene. But when Marty's old flame comes in, all eyes turn to her with her blue-black hair and her sultry good looks. She's got a wad of money in her bra and she wants Marty back. Marty agrees to meet her in his car, but when he shows up and finds her naked and dead, he knows he's in a heap of trouble. Jonathan Craig... more info>> (Published: 1952)
Words: 6336 - Reading Time: 18-25 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime/Suspense/Thriller
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33
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Dominion [MultiFormat]
by Arthur J. Burks
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Deep in the heart of South America's jungles, explorers Leyson and Horton found the source of the fantastic rumors which had been alarming government officials. And the facts they found were stranger than the wildest stories they had heard, for here were a race of metal men, the New People. And here, behind the scenes, was Von Glauber, sworn follower of the swastika, making a madman's dream come true. For the metal giants had been made to rise and conquer, and have dominion over the entire world... more info>>
Words: 20645 - Reading Time: 58-82 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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34
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Don't Go Near [MultiFormat]
by Craig Rice
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John J. Malone had had some peculiar clients in his past, but never a 550-pound carnivore. He was hired to protect Leopold, a large circus lion. Someone has been murdering the circus's lions, and the suspects are all carny folks. Malone was going to put himself between a ferocious lion and a killer. Only he didn't no which one was more dangerous! A vintage detection tale from 1953. (Published: 1953)
Words: 8868 - Reading Time: 25-35 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime
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35
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Down to Earth and Other Stories [MultiFormat]
by Harry Harrison
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From one of the best, Science Fiction Grand Master Harry Harrison, comes seven fantastic stories of space, aliens, war, and robots. And his stories always have the backbone of the human condition to support them.
Includes the stories: DOWN TO EARTH, SIMULATED TRAINER, WELCOMING COMMITTEE, WORLD IN THE BALANCE, THE K-FACTOR, THE WORLD OTALMI MADE
Words: 46816 - Reading Time: 133-187 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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36
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Dude Ranch Nurse [MultiFormat]
by Arlene Hale
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It would have been simple for Jan to stay there in Jackson City, to work at General Hospital in Monroe, to settle down to two dates a week with Tom and an eventual marriage, to fall into a dull, humdrum routine. It would have been safe, secure. But no, she had to chase her rainbows and satisfy her dreams and search for that elusive thing called happiness. So Jan Gordon came to Deer River, with its dude ranches deep in the Rockies, in order to thrust aside all the unpleasant memories of the past ... more info>> (Published: 1963)
Words: 43465 - Reading Time: 124-173 min.
Category: Romance
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37
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Duke [MultiFormat]
by Hal Ellson
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He ran a Harlem Brothel and age 15. Girls, to Duke, meant cash before pleasure. In his vice-ridden world they rated lower than liquor or marijuana. He ran his gang of teenage hoodlums with fists, feet and a gun. His operations included rape, murder, pimping and smuggling dope. He made his own law. And his code was the savage code of the slum-jungle that was the only home he knew. This novel is shocking--and true. It is the day-to-day story of the life of a teen age Harlem gang boss. It is grim a... more info>>
Words: 50009 - Reading Time: 142-200 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime/True Crime
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38
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Earthman, Beware! and Others [MultiFormat]
by Poul Anderson
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Three stories by Science Fiction Grand Master, Poul Anderson. EARTHMAN BEWARE! What if you were an alien child orphaned on earth. You look human enough to masquerade as human, but what if your mind was vastly different? Different in more ways than you can imagine. DUEL ON SYRTIS.... Although it was illegal to hunt Martians for sport, when one had a enough money the laws could be circumvented. Riordan had the money now he wanted the skin of Martian to hang on the wall of his trophy room. Of cours... more info>> (Published: 2009)
Words: 24997 - Reading Time: 71-99 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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39
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Everybody Had A Gun [MultiFormat]
by Richard Prather
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Shell Scott is not an easy guy to mistake for someone else, with his blondish hair, whitish eyebrow, grey eyes, broken nose, and missing ear tip. He's a sucker for a damsel in distress, a guy with a pistol in his pocket and a murder on his mind. When Shell is in the state of Denmark, he finds that he is dodging bullets and it seems like everyone is holding a smoking gun. Somebody is doing his best to make him the late, lamented Shell Scott, six feet under. But who would want to take a shot at su... more info>>
Words: 60502 - Reading Time: 172-242 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime
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40
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Everybody's Watching Me [MultiFormat]
by Mickey Spillane
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When Joe Boyle delivered the message to Renzo, one of the toughest crime lords in the city, he didn't expect to be beaten to within an inch of his life. But the message was from Vetter, one the most dangerous underworld figures. No one had ever seen Vetter, but all the crime lords knew his reputation―whatever city he came to, he took over to his advantage leaving a pile of corpses in his wake. Joe is going to be lucky to stay alive when they realize that he maybe the only chance the city's... more info>> (Published: 1953)
Words: 29344 - Reading Time: 83-117 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime/Suspense/Thriller
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41
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Fear Is A Cold Black: The Early Science Fiction of Kate Wilhelm [MultiFormat]
by Kate Wilhelm
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If you are in a plague-ridden spaceship with no idea what is killing off your passengers and crew one by one, what do you do? How will you deal with the panic and the fear, and your own feelings of despair that you may not be able to save the people you love? The protagonist's sense of helplessness in this story--one of Kate Wilhelm's early science fiction work--leaps off the page, making it clear why Wilhelm is considered one of the great writers of her time. She provides psychological depth t... more info>>
Words: 34350 - Reading Time: 98-137 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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42
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First Contacts: Tales From The Vintage Years of Science Fiction [MultiFormat]
by Poul Anderson, James Gunn, Marion Zimmer Bradley
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Countless stories have been written about this first meeting, this first established contact between aliens and human beings. Who are they? Where are they from? What do they look like? And more importantly, will they come in peace or war? This unique collection of short stories deals with that imagined first contact. It gathers both well known writers in the field as well as lesser known authors whose work nevertheless speak for themselves. Are all meetings successful? It ultimately depends on h... more info>> (Published: 2011)
Words: 102453 - Reading Time: 292-409 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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43
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Flight to Darkness [MultiFormat]
by Gil Brewer
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I murdered my brother with a sculptor's mallet. But it was only a dream. It was a dream I always had. I hated my brother. I was going home to see him now, get it out of my system, and then spend the rest of my life hunting Leda. She was my wife and she belonged to me. All I remember of that searing journey was the sun blazing down. And there, framed in the doorway, were my brother Frank and Leda, my lovely Judas wife. So when they found my brother with his head battered in by a sculptor's mallet... more info>> (Published: 1952)
Words: 57956 - Reading Time: 165-231 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime
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44
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Forever After [MultiFormat]
by Jim Thompson
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The life insurance money--wasn't that reason enough for Ardis Clinton to kill her husband? That and his annoying neglect of his loving. But Ardis has the plan--with her dimwitted boyfriend and a meat cleaver she'll be on easy street. But sometimes the best laid plans of mice and unfaithful women often go astray. (Published: 1960)
Words: 2736 - Reading Time: 7-10 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime/Suspense/Thriller
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45
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Gateway to Darkness [MultiFormat]
by Fredric Brown
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Crag was a no good drunk and deviant, now facing life in prison. But the good judge Jon Olliver offers him his freedom--plus a million credits!--in exchange for a small favor: steal a harmless tool from a rich scientist in Mars. Crag suspects a catch, but he finds it so hard to resist ? especially when he knows that Olliver's beautiful wife, Evadne, will be joining them in the adventure! A great 1940s novella from a master of the form.
Words: 15499 - Reading Time: 44-61 min.
Category: Science Fiction/Mystery/Crime
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46
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Gimlet Eye Gunn [MultiFormat]
by H. Bedford-Jones
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How can a 300 year-old ghost know so much, from the past, to the present -- even the future? Larsen had no idea, but he had to find out. It would mean knowing whether Gimlet Eye Gunn was for real, or he was the one going crazy. First published in Weird Tales, September 1951. (Published: 1951)
Words: 19189 - Reading Time: 54-76 min.
Category: Fantasy/Horror
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47
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Gunfire at Salt Fork [MultiFormat]
by William Hopson
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He had a five-notch past and plenty more room on his gun. Carr was coming back and along the silent dusty street of Salt Fork you could almost smell death in the air. In the gray light of morning the four Kendalls waited for him, gun-hot and swaggering--but thinking, too, of the five dead outlaws strung out down Jonathan Carr's back trail. The morning grew brighter--and so did the knowledge that by sundown in Salt Fork there would be burying to do.
Words: 49423 - Reading Time: 141-197 min.
Category: Historical Fiction
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48
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Gunman's Chance [MultiFormat]
by Luke Short
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A tale of big Texas, of cattle, ranges and saloons; of punchers, cowboys and Ute Indians; and where the possibilities of fulfillment are as endless as the desert, and just as unpredictable. Jim Garry is a hard, embittered cowboy, who believes there is no hope left for his soul. But the headstrong and impulsive Amy Lufton proves him wrong! His erstwhile friend Tate Riling, prodded by greed, invades Sun Dust with the perfect rip-off scheme involving extortion, bribery, coercion and deceit. The tar... more info>> (Published: 1941)
Words: 69653 - Reading Time: 199-278 min.
Category: Historical Fiction/Classic Literature
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49
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Hang By Your Neck [MultiFormat]
by Henry Kane
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Peter Chambers is a private richard who has a real affinity for trouble. He hasn't any notion at all who polished off the nasty blonde with the round hole between her eyes--or the little man swinging by the neck from a bedroom window. Peter has strong incentives for finding out the answers--partly because the only thing he can do is break the case wide open before the going gets too rough; but mainly because his fee is Miami Moonbeam, six feet of ravishing, red-haired woman. (Published: 1949)
Words: 62222 - Reading Time: 177-248 min.
Category: Mystery/Crime/Suspense/Thriller
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50
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Heel & The Wounded [MultiFormat]
by Philip Jose Farmer
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Two stories from Science Fiction Grand Master, Philip José Farmer. Heel--There's a great movie being made thousands of years in our past. The Director is Zeus and the screenplay writer is Apollo. Their actors are Achilles and the cast of the Trojan war. Only they're not aware of even what a movie may be. The gods/crew of the movie all have different motives. But it should all make for a great epic. The Wounded--What happens when the Master of Love gets smitten? (Published: 1954)
Words: 7399 - Reading Time: 21-29 min.
Category: Science Fiction
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