I Read Seven Short Stories In Seven Days
And here are my top three
As a huge fan of full-length novels, I rarely gravitate toward short stories. However, at the beginning of the year, I read a short story by Fredrick Backman - The Answer is No - and enjoyed it immensely. I was awestruck by how much a well-crafted sentence can pack.
In my opinion, pages, not sentences, were required to craft a bond between the reader and the characters or the story. However, I fell hard for Backman’s characters from the get-go. Being proved wrong had never felt so good.
Motivated by this experience, I went looking for other short stories. This led to the discovery of multiple collections of short stories available on Kindle Unlimited under the banner of “Amazon Original Stories“.
One such short story collection is “Into Shadows“. It hosts 7 stories by various authors as listed below:
The Garden by Tomi Adeyemi
Persephone by Lev Grossman
The Six Deaths of The Saint by Alix E Harrow
What The Dead Know by Nghi Vo
Undercover by Tamsyn Muir
The Candles are Burning by Veronica G Henry
Out of The Mirror, Darkness by Garth Nix
Although the underlying theme of mystery and darkness permeated all the stories, the collection offered a good variety of writing styles and narrative devices.
Since there were seven stories in the collection, I decided to sample a story every day for seven days. The idea was to give each story an equal amount of time to brew in my head and then decide which were my favorites.
Each story had something different to offer, and I enjoyed every flavor.
Nevertheless, I did enjoy a few flavors more than the others.
This article deals with three stories from the collection that left a lasting impression. These three stories left me amazed at the author’s imagination, their writing, and storytelling capabilities.
The Six Deaths of The Saint
The Six Deaths of The Saint by Alix E Harrow was my favorite in the collection. Without this story, I would not have continued with the series.
At 30 pages, this story packs a punch. I never thought one can fit lifetimes in mere 30 pages, but Alix E Harrow did. With her writing, she cemented the fact - “less is more” - in my psyche. She forged a connection between the main character and the reader right at the beginning, which made it easy to feel for the main character. The storytelling and the narrative style are also quite refreshing, which add to the overall charm.
The story is about a servant girl who gets rescued and is trained into the most fierce warrior of the realm. She fights and wins many accolades for the king, and eventually comes to question the need for all the fighting, her decisions, and her loyalties.
Saying anything more than this will spoil the fun. If you could, please read this story, even if it is the only story you read from the collection.
What The Dead Know
Another 30 page story that grips you in its claws and doesn’t let go.
What The Dead Know by Nghi Vo follows two con artists who pretend to be mediums and converse with the dead. During a performance, things go south when one of the con artists uncovers a terrible truth and witnesses a horrific chain of events.
The concept and execution of the story were commendable. The writing created an environment of dread, darkness, and gloominess, which was impressive. You can feel the ominous chills while reading the story, which I especially adored.
This is another story that you can read and be satisfied about reading a well-executed and well-contained tale.
Undercover
Undercover by Tamsyn Muir is a story about a “new woman in town“ who agrees to become a bodyguard for a ghoul. Yes, a ghoul.
This is the longest story in the collection, at 59 pages, and it deals with multiple themes. The tale is packed with past secrets and betrayals, mafia and gang rivalry, and a fair share of gore. The main plot is a patchwork of multiple subplots, and somehow it all comes together to paint an amazing picture.
I was both intrigued and confused by the story. At times, I couldn’t figure out who was talking to whom. But still the mystery of the story kept me hooked. And I did not see the end coming. The reveal at the end blew my mind away. All the confusing narratives scattered throughout the story made sense in the end, and that feeling when everything clicked was second to none.
Honorable Mention
The Candles Are Burning by Veronica G Henry deserves a shout.
This story follows a young widow and her daughter, and the evils they face.
The main character comes from a family of Seers but never had the sight herself. However, she is plagued by visions of misfortune after the sudden death of her husband. In an attempt to understand her visions and to get to the bottom of everything, she comes face to face with some horrible truths.
I was captivated by the concept of the story. However, I did find the execution a bit lacking. I wish the background of the main character’s family and their skills were explored more. I have qualms regarding the ending too as it felt abrupt and rushed.
For these slights, this story didn’t make the cut, but it is still a great read for the atmosphere it creates.
I enjoyed reading the short story collection tremendously. Inspired by the adventure, I am now ready to pick up other short story collections available under the umbrella of “Amazon Original Stories”.
A few lucky candidates for this escapade are:
Once Upon A Time Bookshop - A collection of four short stories by Alice Hoffman. Three stories are out now and the fourth is coming out in May.
Creature Feature - There are six stories in this collection, each by a different author - Joe Hill, Grady Hendrix, Josh Malerman, Paul Tremblay, Jason Mott, and Chandler Baker
Black Stars - Another collection with six stories by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Nnedi Okorafor, Nisi Shawl, C T Rwizi, Nalo Hopkinson, and Victor LaValle.
If you have read from any of these collections, please let me know in the comments. Also, if you have any short story recommendations, kindly hit me up in the comments. I’m all ears.