An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge
Ambrose BierceA Confederate sympathizer stands on a railroad bridge with a rope around his neck. Then the rope breaks.
17 min · Suspenseful
The story shelf
Follow your curiosity.
A name you know. A mood you’re in. Ten minutes to yourself. Start anywhere.
In Another Country
Ernest HemingwayIn a Milan hospital after the fighting, wounded soldiers submit their bodies to machines while trying to imagine who they will be afterward.
10 min · Melancholy
In Our Time: Interchapters
Ernest HemingwayWar, revolution, bullfights, and executions flash past in hard-edged scenes where courage and brutality become nearly indistinguishable.
12 min · Chilling
The Revolutionist
Ernest HemingwayA young Hungarian revolutionary crosses postwar Italy with no money, a party credential, and an unwavering faith in the world revolution.
2 min · Adventurous
A Tale of the Passions
Mary ShelleyA young emissary enters hostile Florence with a plea that could alter a kingdom's fate.
54 min · Tragic
Euphrasia
Mary ShelleyA reckless English volunteer joins Greek fighters and survives a battle beside their grieving young leader.
25 min · Tragic
Ferdinando Eboli
Mary ShelleyA Neapolitan officer's secret mission makes him a stranger to everyone he loves.
32 min · Suspenseful
The Brother and Sister
Mary ShelleyA banished young Sienese entrusts his sister to the rival who toppled their family.
53 min · Melancholy
The Dream
Mary ShelleyAn embattled French countess seeks a dream that will decide whether she can forgive the man she loves.
25 min · Romantic
The False Rhyme
Mary ShelleyA king's cruel rhyme inspires his sister to prove a missing lady's fidelity.
5 min · Playful
The Heir of Mondolfo
Mary ShelleyA despised prince secretly marries the peasant woman who restores his faith in the world.
56 min · Suspenseful
The Pilgrims
Mary ShelleyTwo young pilgrims seek shelter with a Swiss baron haunted by the daughter he drove away.
40 min · Solemn
The Sisters of Albano
Mary ShelleyTwo devoted sisters face the terrible cost of loving an outlaw.
28 min · Tragic
The Swiss Peasant
Mary ShelleyA Swiss orphan torn between gratitude and love must reckon with a revolution gathering in her valley.
36 min · Romantic
Rashōmon
Ryūnosuke AkutagawaIn a ruined Kyoto gate, a hungry servant encounters a stranger whose desperate act forces him to decide what survival permits.
12 min · Eerie
Story of a Fallen Head
Ryūnosuke AkutagawaWounded in a cavalry clash during the Sino-Japanese War, a Chinese soldier rides alone through the Manchurian fields with death suddenly close.
16 min · Solemn
The Pipe
Ryūnosuke AkutagawaA powerful daimyo’s magnificent gold pipe is the perfect emblem of status—until court attendants discover they can simply ask for one.
14 min · Humorous
17 stories