Twenty-seventeen is almost gone. The bright days are behind us, the dark days in front of us. The time has come to huddle around the fireplace–or the Christmas tree, the Yule log, the Menorah, or, in extremis, a can of sterno–with a good book or ten and savor the darkness and the quiet as the embers of the old year disintegrate into ash.

In that spirit, I’m pleased to be holding up the dark end of the spectrum in the new Chrstmas Cheer book bundle from Storybundle.com. Dean  Wesley Smith curated this one, and, being the kind of guy he is, he’s packed it with everything from ghost stories to romances to sweet-and-sentimental pieces to deeply bizarre and funny to murders cozy and dark. There’s something in this one for every mood and taste, and if you stack the books right you can run yourself through the whole holiday gamut before Christmas itself rolls around. By the time you’re done with these books, you’ll be prepared to deal with everything from discovering the love of your life to having your brother murdered in front of you to traveling through time to discover your true destiny.

This one has two of my very favorite up-and-coming authors, as well as a number of friends and colleagues who all tell rip-roaring good yarns. And, like with all Storybundles, a chunk of the proceeds go to charity and all of the books are DRM-free. Head on over and check them out now!