A name you know. A mood you’re in. Ten minutes to yourself. Start anywhere.
Where does the story take place?
A failing shopkeeper finally tells his wife they face ruin, just as a family catastrophe offers an answer neither can admit wanting.
The timid inventor of a working flying machine becomes a public hero—and discovers that everyone expects him to risk the first flight.
Alone in a remote Borneo observatory, an astronomer discovers that the darkness inside the dome holds a threat far closer than the stars.
After five years and most of his fortune, Monson must decide whether his flying machine is ready—or whether ridicule has forced the decision.
An ironmaster invites his wife’s lover on a midnight tour of the furnaces, where every display of heat carries a threat.
An abused laborer in a roaring power station begins to worship the largest dynamo as a god capable of judging his brutal supervisor.
A laboratory accident blinds Davidson to London and replaces it with a vivid view of a remote island that may be more than hallucination.
A nervous visitor steals a scientist’s deadliest culture and races across London with catastrophe—and fame—on his mind.
A mediocre painter watches his portrait acquire a devilish expression—and then hears the canvas criticize his art.
Over whisky, a taxidermist boasts that preserving nature is only the beginning of his art—and explains how easily collectors can be fooled.
A scientist activates a machine that reveals forms of life hidden beside us, trapping his former friend in the experiment.
A Wall Street copyist answers every request with "I would prefer not to" — and never leaves.
A mother manages her daughter’s concert engagement and presses the organizers to honor their contract.
Maria leaves the laundry for a Halloween visit with the family she helped raise.
After clashing with his boss, a Dublin clerk looks to an evening of drinking to restore his pride.
On the anniversary of Parnell’s death, campaign workers shelter from the rain and argue over Irish politics.
A shopkeeper develops feelings for a married locksmith and struggles with what her priest calls sin.
A plantation store clerk grows attached to a young woman whose family depends on the planter's credit.
A poor market worker supports an older woman from the family he once served.
A celebrated safecracker tries to build an honest life under a new name, but his old skills are not finished with him.
Two young artists quietly sacrifice for each other when money runs out and their shared creative life is threatened.
A shopgirl living on six dollars a week faces the glittering promise of dinner and the danger hidden behind it.
Two veteran swindlers target a Pittsburgh millionaire’s passion for antiquities, while one partner tries to keep his conscience intact.
A plain waitress mistakes one impulsive kiss for her long-awaited entrance into the glamorous world of romance.
