One Hundred: Words / Days / Stories - Ria Rees

-

Author: Ria Rees

Genre: SFF Anthology, Drabbles
Rating: 3.75 stars.

An interesting collection of tales written in the microfiction variant called a ‘drabble’, which indicates stories that are precisely one hundred words long.

The title and the tagline give you a clear idea of what the book contains: One Hundred Words / One Hundred Days / One Hundred Stories. Thus, this is a collection of a hundred stories, each exactly a hundred words long, written over a period of a hundred days beginning from February 2022.

The stories are divided across four sections: Science Fiction, Dark Fiction, Fantasy and Contemporary. Each section is introduced with a personal note by the author, which is thankfully more than a hundred words long so I could enjoy reading her thought process behind the drabbles in that section.

The variety in the stories is amazing, even though most fit under the broad SFF spectrum. The author makes it clear that her writing preference lies in the SFF and horror genre, and this shows. The weakest section in the book is the “Contemporary” section, though many stories therein also contain shades of SFF. Somehow, they didn’t leave me satisfied.

I can’t even write my reviews in one hundred words, so imagine writing sensible stories within that word constraint… I am in awe of the author’s talent for brevity! 😂 How amazing that she could deliver a complete story experience within that teeny word limit! Some stories left me with a smile on my face. Some elicited a wide-eyed shock. Some others left me befuddled, thinking "I didn't get it." (I still am clueless about a few of the stories!) Many stories even include a twisty ending. (These were my favourite, but obviously.)

I usually rate individual stories in an anthology, but surely you don’t expect me to do so for one hundred stories! So what I have this time is my top three favourites from each section:

➤ Science Fiction

👽 Special Operations (Loved the pun in the title too!)

👽 Alien Soil

👽 Kit

➤ Dark Fiction

👻 Dogs Hate Yellow

👻 The House

👻 Malfunction

➤ Fantasy

✨ The Curse of Silence

✨ Just a Butterfly

✨ Hired Assassin

➤ Contemporary

🌹 Twisting pencils

🌹 Scream it out

🌹 Dandelion Seed

Based on the overall feel of the book and my satisfaction level with the individual stories, I’ll rate it 3.75 stars. It would have been even higher had the Contemporary section worked out better for me. Nevertheless, it is an unusual anthology and well worth the time. Just don’t read it in one go but savour it over a long time. You will relish it better.

The book is available on KU.

My thanks to author Ria Rees and BookSirens for the DRC of “One Hundred: Words / Days / Stories”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

Comments

Post a Comment

Explore more posts from this blog:

Takeout Sushi - Christopher Green - ★★★★

-
Image
  AUTHOR: Christopher Green GENRE: Contemporary Short Story Collection, Japanese Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE:  May 2, 2024 RATING: 3.9  stars. In a Nutshell: An interesting collection of stories, with most of them set in Japan. Loved the writing style and enjoyed the diverse emotions. Much recommended! This story collection has, as the title suggests, a strong Japanese flavour. So let me begin by confessing that I am not a fan of Japanese literature. Most Japanese fiction that I tried hasn’t suited my reading tastes, so I generally keep away from this genre. The reason I picked this collection up is... No, no, the sushi had no role to play in my decision; I can’t stand even the thought of sushi! The reason I wanted to read this is that the author is NOT a Japanese! 😁 I know this sounds quite silly to declare, but had the author been Japanese, I would have resisted opting for this. But by virtue of his being an “outsider”, I thought it was a great opportunity to get a look at Japan witho
Read More»

Big Bad Wolf Investigates Fairy Tales - Catherine Cawthorne - ★★★★★

-
Image
AUTHOR: Catherine Cawthorne ILLUSTRATOR: Sara Ogilvie GENRE: Children's Nonfiction PUBLICATION DATE: April 25, 2024 RATING: 5 sparkly, scientifically accurate stars. In a Nutshell: This book and I were a match made in book heaven! Loved the approach that combines humour and logic to debunk the sillier elements of some fairy tales. Strongly recommended! I enjoy fairy tales. I love scientific thinking. I adore logic. I relish humour. Seeing all four of these together in a single work was almost a “bookgasmic” moment for me! 😆 Had the book not delivered on any of these factors, I might still have been happy reading it. But the content not only reaches but also surpasses the promise made by the title and cover. All of us know that there are several logically impossible elements in fairy tales. In childhood, we might have oohed and awwwed at the stories without overthinking the practicalities. In adulthood, we might have cringed at the gender bias, wealth bias, and the lack of conse
Read More»

The Great Divide - Cristina Henríquez - ★★★★.¼

-
Image
AUTHOR: Cristina Henríquez GENRE: Historical Literary Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: March 5, 2024 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A literary fiction focussed on Panama during the time of the construction of the Panama Canal. Note that this isn’t a book directly about the canal or its construction, but about the people connected to the canal in some way or the other during that period. A great book if you go in with the right expectations and enjoy character-oriented fiction. Plot Preview: 1907, Panama. Francisco, a Panamanian fisherman, hates the commercialisation of his country under the foreigners, and hence resents his son Omar’s joining the canal construction crew. Omar, however, wants to learn and earn more than his little village can offer him. Sixteen-year-old Ada has heard about Panama having many jobs. She has stowed away to Panama, hoping to get some work and earn enough for her ailing sister’s surgery back in Barbados. Her mother Lucille, a tailor, doesn’t yet know of her ru
Read More»

Making Up the Gods - Marion Agnew - ★★★★.¼

-
Image
AUTHOR: Marion Agnew GENRE: Contemporary Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: October 15, 2023 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: An indie drama with some quirky characters and a great setting in Lake Superior, Canada. Mellow in tone, genuine in content, thought-provoking in themes. I enjoyed this unusual novel. Plot Preview: Simone, almost 70, is a retired widow who lives an isolated life in her cottage on the banks of Lake Superior and still misses her husband, though he’s been dead for five years. While she is now active in her local church and finds solace in baking for those grieving, she is fiercely protective of her privacy. But when the local reverend asks her to take care of nine-year-old Chen while his widowed mother goes on a much-needed trip, Simone finds it tough to refuse a fellow-mourning widow. Just before Chen arrives, a stranger named Martin knocks at Simone’s door, claiming to be her cousin. Simone is suddenly handling two strangers at once, and she worries that they will dis
Read More»

Red Runs the Witch's Thread - Victoria Williamson - ★★★★

-
Image
  AUTHOR: Victoria Williamson GENRE: Historical Fiction, Horror. RATING:  4 stars. In a Nutshell: A psychological horror inspired by the last witch burning in Scotland in 1697. A disturbing yet compelling read. I wanted more closure at the end for my own peace of mind, but other than that, this was a satisfying book. Recommended! Plot Preview: 1722. Paisley, Scotland. Thirty-seven-year-old widow Christian Shaw is obsessed with perfecting her thread bleaching process. She wants to make the thread the purest white, so it can sell better and restore their family fortunes. In the absence of any male family members, it is up to her as the eldest daughter to ensure the security of their house, her mother and two younger sisters, and her late father’s social position as the laird (landowner.)  However, Christian’s mind is troubled. With the 25th anniversary of the witch burnings of 1697 approaching, Christian’s thoughts go frequently to the past, and to the role she played in the burning of s
Read More»