Peek into the mind and dreams of award-winning editor and author Jennifer Brozek. Travel from the weird west to the hidden worlds of Kendrick all the way to the far reaches of space. This collection contains twenty previously published short stories and includes the brand new Kember Empire story Found on the Body of a Soldier. Enjoy your journey and don't forget your survival gear. Apocalypse Girl is waiting. Includes a foreword by science fiction author Jody Lynn Nye. "A treat for military SF, weird western, and urban fantasy readers...fans of Brozek's Karen Wilson Chronicles won't want to miss this one." —Lucy A. Snyder, author of SPELLBENT "Like opposite shores, the realm of Jennifer Brozek's stories are bounded on one front by beautiful magic and on the other by nebulous horror, and the tireless swell of her imagination surges against each with equal force." —Eric J. Guignard, editor of AFTER DEATH...and author of BAGGAGE OF ETERNAL NIGHT "Jennifer Brozek's stories immediately draw you in and leave you wanting more. A well written and diverse collection, Apocalypse Girl Dreaming has something for everyone." —Janine K. Spendlove, author of the War of the Seasons series.

What if man's thirst for knowledge resulted in it's own destruction? Richard Draven is a scientist interested in the healing properties of primates and transferring them to humans. When he discovers a new species of monkey with amazing regenerative powers, he has no idea that his report will set off a chain of events with dire consequences. Six years later, and Draven's research has been put into practice. The government has engineered a virus which has begun human trials. It's job - to make the armed forces of the world better, stronger, faster in their numerous conflicts across the globe. Something however is not right. Disturbing reports about the behaviour of those modified by the virus are growing in number raising concerns amongst those in charge that something has gone wrong. As the Apex teams go dark and stop responding to orders, the government discover that there is a much more sinister force at work. Joshua Cook is the alpha male, the first man to be administered the virus and bond with it successfully. Joshua is tired of the human race, tired of their self-destructive nature. He has a plan, one which involves wiping the slate clean of the 'lesser' edition of the human machine and repopulating the earth with his own kind. As the full and devastating scale of Joshua's plan begins to unfold before the eyes of the world, the government are forced to turn back to Richard Draven in an effort to find a way to stop Joshua and his growing army before he can eradicate humanity from the planet. A tense, global thriller taking place across multiple countries, from the government-centric streets of Washington to the slums of Mumbai and the burning heat of the Iraq desert, Project Apex features a rich and varied cast of characters each with their own motivations and sub plots through the main narrative as they tell the very human story of a disaster on an unprecedented global scale where people are forced to do things they never imagined possible, and in some cases revert back to the instinctive savagery long repressed by our species as society starts to crumble the world over.

This anthology collects some of the best original short fiction published in Apex Magazine over the past six years. The stories include our numerous award-nominated works, our readers' Story of the Year selections, and personal favorites chosen by Apex Magazine editor-in-chief Jason Sizemore and managing editor Lesley Conner. TABLE OF CONTENTS Jackalope Wives by Ursula Vernon Going Endo by Rich Larson Candy Girl by Chikodili Emelumadu If You Were a Dinosaur, My Love by Rachel Swirsky Advertising at the End of the World Keffy R.M. Kehrli The Performance Artist by Lettie Prell A Matter of Shapespace by Brian Trent Falling Leaves by Liz Argall Blood from Stone by Alethea Kontis Sexagesimal by Katharine E.K. Duckett Keep Talking by Marie Vibbert Remembery Day by Sarah Pinsker Blood on Beacon Hill by Russell Nichols The Green Book by Amal El-Mohtar L’esprit de L’escalier by Peter M. Ball Still Life (A Sexagesimal Fairy Tale) by Ian Tregillis Build a Dolly by Ken Liu Multo by Samuel Marzioli Armless Maidens of the American West by Genevieve Valentine Pocosin by Ursula Vernon She Gave Her Heart, He Took Her Marrow by Sam Fleming Also includes a foreword by Jason Sizemore and afterword by Lesley Conner.

Strange. Beautiful. Shocking. Surreal. APEX MAGAZINE is a digital dark science fiction and fantasy genre zine that features award-winning short fiction, essays, and interviews. Established in 2009, our fiction has won several Hugo and Nebula Awards. We publish every other month. Issue 122 contains the following: EDITORIAL Editorial by Jason Sizemore ORIGINAL FICTION Barefoot and Midnight by Sheree Renée Thomas The Amazing Exploding Women of the Early Twentieth Century by A.C. Wise Black Box of the Terraworms by Barton Aikman If Those Ragged Feet Won't Run by Annie Neugebauer A Love That Burns Hot Enough to Last: Deleted Scenes from a Documentary by Sam J. Miller Las Girlfriends Guide to Subversive Eating by Sabrina Vourvoulias REPRINTED FICTION She Searches for God in the Storm Within by Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali The Eight-Thousanders by Jason Sanford INTERVIEWS Interview with Author Sabrina Vourvoulias by Andrea Johnson Interview with Author Annie Neugebauer by Andrea Johnson Interview with Cover Artist Thomas Tan by Russell Dickerson NONFICTION Jimi Hendrix Sang It by ZZ Claybourne Telling Stories of Ghosts by Wendy N. Wagner Words for Thought: Short Fiction Reviews by A.C. Wise

They exist in myth and legend dating back to the earliest history of man. Different cultures have different names for the same creature, which has haunted the dark places of our collective psyche. Loup Garou, Werewolf, Lycanthropes, Rougaru, Michigan Dogman, The Beast of Land Between the Lakes, Oolonga-Doglalla, Shunka Warak'in, Skinwalker. The beast is known by many names, but they all lead to the ultimate Apex Predator. A predator that has no equal. A predator that preys on man.Horrific murders plague a rural county, leaving bodies torn and partially eaten in their wake. Detective William Greyeagle of the Lacland County Sheriff's Office is assigned to the case. What he believes to be animal attacks awakens a dreaded fear from deep in his subconscious. It draws him deeper into his own heritage and the lore of beasts that prey on men. To find the killer, he must delve deeper into the teachings of his grandfather, a Lakota Medicine Man. Things he believed to children's stories are proven to be hauntingly true. There are things in the darkness that haunt the world of men. Humans are not the Apex Predator that they believed themselves to be. There is something far worse waiting just outside the light.The deep valleys and forests of the Ozarks prove to be the perfect hunting grounds. Predator versus prey in the ultimate game of life and death. Who will be the victor? Who will be the Apex Predator?

When the mutilated corpses of Florida's top-line predators start washing ashore, it becomes apparent to wildlife warden Antoine Jackson that something deadly is staking a claim on the Everglades. Enlisting the help of local herpetologist Alex Scott, the pair set out to solve the bloody mystery before its too late. They'll soon discover however that they have bitten off more than they can chew. It'll take the help of someone more experienced than themselves- someone with a history of confronting monsters- to solve this mystery.