A couple of months ago, I met Shruti on Bookstagram. Shruti is a teenage author based in India, who writes amazing short stories. She has recently published her first Dark Fiction anthology, Long Story Short.

Long Story Short

Long Story Short is a collection of 20 short stories that Shruti wrote over the course of two years. While these can all be considered Dark Fiction, she included different sub-genres like horror, crime-fiction etc. The author was inspired by her nightmares, which she tends to overthink and turn into plots for stories.

Dark Fiction

I’m starting to really love Dark Fiction. The first story of the anthology plunges the reader immediately into the darkness and I loved how chilling it was. And the follow-up story? Well, I’ll let you discover that for yourself, but I can assure you you’ll get goosebumps.

Seeing that this is Dark Fiction, you can imagine that it deals with some heavy topics. Check out the trigger warnings below! The following quotations I found particularly intriguing, in their harshness and coldness:

She looked up and started crying. There were no birds flying that evening. She could relate to the sky so hard, empty and blue. Then she looked down, she could see peace of mind just 7-8 floors down, if she jumped.

~ Somewhere Else

Nobody will know who the real you was, because we tend to never actually show our true selves. We talk about grave secrets and all, but you know that the biggest grave secret you’re taking with yourself is you. When you die, you take your true identity with you.

~ His True Identity

My personal favourites were She Did It (and part two: Betty) and Time, Mystical Time.

Shruti might still be young, her author voice doesn’t sound young at all. Can you imagine the potential this woman has to bring to the literary table? Spoiler: a whole lot of potential if you ask me. I’m definitely looking forward to reading more of her stories!

A very well deserved four out of five gemstones!

Age Category: for a broad audience

Representation: mental health topics, including eating disorders

Trigger Warnings (click here, may contain spoilers)

Warnings for suicide, abuse, murder.

Do you want to discover more?

If my review inspired you to pick up the book, don’t hesitate to check it out at Goodreads or at the below online stores.

Amazon.nl: paperback edition

Amazon.nl: eBook edition

Similar to this

Are you also into Dark Fiction? Then definitely check out The Headsman by Cristina Mîrzoi. This is an anthology of interconnected short stories that all are somehow tied to one character, the village executioner. I was really impressed by this collection and it definitely sparked my love for the genre. You can find my Bookstagram review here.

Looking for something dark but more poetic? I would really recommend Cyanide Kisses by Jana O’Dell. This is a magnificent work of poetic art, exploring the works of a “manic, bipolar, dissociative mind”. This short poetry collection is made up of poems in a “no rules” format, to mimic the feelings brought about by mental illnesses. It consists of forty short poems that explore a wide range of human emotions. My Bookstagram review of this gem can be found here.

Last but not least, you might also like Dark Fantasy. In that case, I would recommend Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power. If I am honest, this book was a tad too scary for me, even though it’s a young adult dystopian tale. Nevertheless, if you are looking for truly dark stuff, I would tell you to check it out. My review can be found here.