Something Strange This Way Comes! We have been told, from the earliest days of our childhood, to be wary of strangers. From a fear of strangers who stalk their prey in their homes as darkness descends, and one mother's valiant attempt to protect her family, to an eerie encounter of two strangers in a seemingly innocent chance meeting on a lonely rural bus stop bench, and to an awkward transient who needs to avoid eye contact with the strangers he encounters lest they fall victim to his death curse, all three stand-alone shorts in this collection involve unexpected strangers meeting. Join Mark Leslie as he introduces you to Mary, to Rupert and to Peter; three people that he calls friends, but folks that are still strangers to you, and you should be weary of. At the end of the ficional jaunt, he also shares the inspiration and story behind each tale. If you enjoy weird and strange Twilight Zone, Outer Limits or Black Mirror styled dark and eerie tales, then you're sure to enjoy this collection of short tales that run about 12,000 words.

Screams echo through the thick darkness of night in this collection of three short horror tales from the dark mind of Mark Leslie. Taste of Darkness: Sensory deprivation takes on a new meaning when you let the darkness completely consume your senses of sight, sound, touch and smell, leaving you with the bitter taste of the encroaching darkness. And you'll be surprised what you find lurking there just beneath the surface and the cold, clear light of day. The Pizza Man: A group of students keep getting pizza deliveries that they never ordered. Is it a strange prank, or is there something more to the mysterious stranger who keeps showing up at their door? Little Things: Strange little creatures appear in the middle of the night, but Daniel is the only one who can see them. His wife, Joy, becomes distraught at the bizarre way her husband is acting, but, more horrifying is what the tiny little things are doing to her. If you're looking for three quick jaunts into worlds where darkness mingles with the echoes of cries in the night, you'll want to crack open the pages and start listening for the nocturnal screams. The stories and accompanying "behind the screams" notes from the author come to approximately 15,700 words.

Are you ready to be infected? The walking dead take center stage in these three decidedly different takes on the reanimated corpses of the recently deceased. These original tales are about mindless, flesh-seeking shells of former humans, about the still sentient undead, and about a unique and daring bet made on a boys' night out. THE ZOMBIE WHISPERER: Taking a dare and winning is everything to Robert LaChance. He lives up to his name by doing almost anything to win a bet; but what happens when his friends dare him to French-kiss a zombie? VENGEANCE IS A DELICACY BEST SERVED COLD: Martin Hecht no longer possessed a human consciousness; but all he knew is he could hear a woman screaming and it hurt his brain HIDE AND ZEKE: He was engaged in a high-stakes game of "Hide & Seek" when the zombie apocalypse began, but are his skills at hiding and evasion enough to keep Zeke alive against an army of the undead? If you enjoy weird and strange Twilight Zone, Outer Limits or Black Mirror styled dark and eerie tales, then you're sure to enjoy this collection of short tales from the dark mind of Mark Leslie. You can read the Nocturnal Screams story collection series in any order. Each volume is a stand-alone.

Screams mingle with the dark shadows in this third collection in a series of short horror tales from the dark mind of Mark Leslie. THE SHADOW MEN: The bogeymen of the New Hampshire wilderness known as "The Shadow Men" lurk in the shadows of the trees and only come out at night in order to lure and trick children into their clutches. FOLLOW THE SHADOW: Isn't it funny how a person's shadow follows every single movement a person makes? Or could it perhaps be the other way around? What if a person was forced to follow the lead of their shadow? A MURDER OF SCARECROWS: A small east coast community becomes over-run in the middle of the night by a growing army of scarecrows that seem to appear out of nowhere. If you're looking for three quick jaunts into worlds where darkness mingles with the echoes of cries in the night, you'll want to crack open the pages and start listening for the nocturnal screams. The stories and accompanying "behind the screams" notes from the author come to approximately 14,000 words.

The screams that echo through the thick darkness of night from the dark mind of Mark Leslie are an ode to the classic masters of short fiction and horrific tales. MEMENTO MORI: A CURIOUS NIGHTMARE: Inspired by the short story "A Curious Dream" by Mark Twain, this tale draws from the same sentiment Twain was projecting regarding the ill regard the living have with "taking care" of the deceased. Only, in this tale, the repercussions of such neglect are far more serious. THE RITUAL OF THE DRAWING: Inspired by the small-town rituals that made Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" such a memorably chilling tale, this tale explores how a town might attempt to survive in peace and prosperity with a monster in their midst. PROSPERO'S GHOST: When, decades after his death, university employees begin to digitally replicate the precious copy of Shakespeare's 1861 folio edition, renowned scholar Dr. Marshall Emerson returns from beyond the grave to put a stop to the blasphemy. Volume 2 of Nocturnal Screams contains three short tales of terror designed to both send a chill down your spine as well as allow you to reflect upon the original texts and storytellers who helped inspire them. The stories and the accompanying "behind the screams" notes from the author comprise approximately 14,000 words.

CAUGHT BETWEEN THE MOON AND NEW YORK CITY Being a werewolf isn't all about howling at the moon. Or running carelessly through boundless fields feeling the wind in your fur. Not when you live in the most populous city in the US. For Michael Andrews, a Canadian living in Manhattan and afflicted with lycanthropy, there are odd side effects to being a werewolf in the middle of a bustling metropolis. Such as waking up naked in Battery Park with absolutely no memory of the night before as a wolf and trying to figure out why there is a bullet hole in his leg. Just another day in the life of a man living with the odd side effect of his werewolf affliction. (This 10,000 word short story is the original short story written by Mark Leslie that eventually inspired the full length Mark Leslie Novel: A Canadian Werewolf in New York) Keywords: Free, wolf, superhero, Spider-Man, urban fantasy, action and adventure, reluctant hero

Peter O'Mallick isn't just having a bad day; he's having a bad life. Walking around with a powerful death curse it seems like everyone Peter knows or gets close to meets an untimely fate. But when Peter realizes he can use his powers for good, being a harbinger of death might not be so bad. Provided he's not worried about collateral damage. "Collateral Damage" is a stand-alone short story of about 5400 words set in the SIN-EATER universe that unrolls in the Mark Leslie novel I, DEATH, released in late 2013 by Atomic Fez Publishing. This eBook file also contains "behind the story" and "about I, DEATH" notes as well as a preview of I, DEATH -- Total word count is approximately 10,000 words.