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Author: Shirley Jackson. A summary of the plot: A small town holds an annual lottery where one individual is selected to be stoned to death by the townspeople, a ritual suggested to ensure a good harvest.

Author: Charlotte Perkins Gilman. A summary of the plot: A woman suffering from postpartum depression is confined by her husband to a room with yellow wallpaper. She descends into madness, believing there are women trapped within the patterns.

Author: William Faulkner. A summary of the plot: The reclusive and mysterious Emily Grierson, a once-respected Southern lady, lives out her days in a decaying mansion in Jefferson. After her death, the townspeople discover a dark secret involving her long-dead lover's corpse lying in her bed.

Author: Edgar Allan Poe. A summary of the plot: The narrator tries to convince the reader of his sanity while describing how he murdered an old man with a 'vulture eye'. His guilt leads him to believe he hears the old man's heart still beating, which drives him to confess to the murder.

Author: Saki (H.H. Munro). A summary of the plot: Framton Nuttel visits the countryside for his health and encounters a young girl, Vera, who tells him a fabricated story of her uncle's tragic death, which leads to a psychological shock when the 'ghosts' of the story appear.

Author: Ambrose Bierce. A summary of the plot: Peyton Farquhar, a Confederate sympathizer, is sentenced to hang from Owl Creek Bridge. In the moments before his execution, he imagines his escape and return to his family but the twist ending reveals it was only a fantasy.

Author: H.P. Lovecraft. A summary of the plot: A student traveling through New England stops at the decrepit fishing town of Innsmouth, where he uncovers a disturbing secret about the townspeople and their pact with undersea creatures known as Deep Ones.

Author: Charles Dickens. A summary of the plot: A traveler encounters a railway signal-man who is haunted by a ghostly figure that appears at the mouth of a train tunnel. The figure seems to warn of impending disasters, and the story ends tragically with the signal-man's death.

Author: Edgar Allan Poe. A summary of the plot: The narrator is sentenced to death during the Spanish Inquisition and endures multiple forms of torture, including the titular pit and a swinging pendulum with a razor-sharp edge.

Author: Edgar Allan Poe. A summary of the plot: Prince Prospero and his nobles seclude themselves in an abbey to avoid a deadly plague known as the Red Death, but during a masquerade ball, a mysterious figure appears, leading to the death of all present.

Author: Richard Connell. A summary of the plot: Shipwrecked on an island, Rainsford discovers General Zaroff, a man who hunts human beings as game. Rainsford becomes the hunted but turns the tables on Zaroff in a deadly game of cat and mouse.

Author: H.P. Lovecraft. A summary of the plot: A mysterious narrator describes living alone in a dark castle. When he finally escapes to the surface, he horrifies those he meets and realizes that he is a grotesque undead creature.

Author: Edgar Allan Poe. A summary of the plot: Montresor lures Fortunato, who insulted him, into the catacombs under the guise of tasting a rare wine. Montresor walls up Fortunato alive, enacting a chilling revenge.

Author: Guy de Maupassant. A summary of the plot: The protagonist becomes convinced that an invisible, supernatural being called the 'Horla' is slowly having an increasing influence over him, leading to deepening madness and loss of control over his own life.

Author: Washington Irving. A summary of the plot: Schoolmaster Ichabod Crane competes for the hand of Katrina Van Tassel, but is frightened away from the village of Sleepy Hollow by an encounter with the Headless Horseman, who is rumored to be the ghost of a Hessian soldier.

Author: H.P. Lovecraft. A summary of the plot: A man discovers documents relating to a cult worshipping an ancient being known as Cthulhu and learns about the creature's potential return, leading to global panic and madness.

Author: H.P. Lovecraft. A summary of the plot: Set in the rural town of Dunwich, the story follows the bizarre events surrounding the Whateley family, particularly Wilbur Whateley, and his quest for an ancient and dangerous tome, resulting in the summoning of a monstrous entity.

Author: Bram Stoker. A summary of the plot: Originally meant to be the first chapter of 'Dracula', this story follows an Englishman's experience in Germany where he encounters strange occurrences, including a forceful warning to return to his hotel before dark, ultimately leading him to a dangerous encounter in a graveyard.

Author: H.P. Lovecraft. A summary of the plot: The narrator investigates a series of horrific events in the Catskill Mountains associated with the cursed Martense family. He discovers a degenerate clan living in underground tunnels, devolved from isolation and interbreeding.

Author: H.P. Lovecraft. A summary of the plot: A scientific expedition in Antarctica uncovers strange fossils and the remnants of an ancient, alien city. The horror grows as they learn about the city's original inhabitants—the Elder Things—and their battle with even more terrifying creatures.

Author: W.W. Jacobs. A summary of the plot: A family receives a cursed monkey's paw that grants them three wishes, but with dire consequences for interfering with fate.

Author: Edgar Allan Poe. A summary of the plot: The narrator visits his childhood friend Roderick Usher, who is suffering from a strange illness. As the narrator stays in the decaying house, he becomes involved in the terrifying events leading to the ultimate collapse of the house and death of the Usher family.