Short Stacks #1 // From Discworld to Worst Dates and Pigs

Here are the first five short stacks I am sharing with you that I never really reviewed.

Pages counts are calculated based on aprox. 250 words a page. Especially that last one cut off at 180 pages is iffy at best. Some novella’s are over 200 pages. But this is just meant as a guideline. 

Title: Death and What Comes Next (Discworld 10,5) by Terry Pratchett
Release Date: 2002
Type: Flash Fiction
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Can Be Read Here

Death and What Comes Next focuses on one of Pratchett’s best known and loved Discworld characters. Death. He comes to take a philospher away and ends up discussing Death with interesting concepts of Heaven and Hell. This was one of the first things I read after having read The Colour of Magic and what made me want to read the Death books next. I think it shows how Pratchett writes, what kind of charactes are reoccuring in the series and how he approaches the more difficult topics. With a bit of humor. Great read for new and old Discworld readers.

Title: Leave the Windows Open (The Archived 2,5) by Victoria Schwab
Release Date: 2015
Type: Flash Fiction
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Can Be Read Here

Another flash fiction addition to a series. While I quite love the ADSOM trilogy by Schwab I have a special place in my heart for The Archived series and am forever sad that we will not likely be getting a third book. This book is set a little after the ending of the second book and is just incredibly heartwarming.

Title: Of Swine and Roses by Ilona Andrews
Release Date: 2009
Type: Short Story

A YA short story by the hand of the team Ilona Andrews (because yes they are two people). It is a witty paranormal romance of a first date, a girl…and a pig? Yes it is funny. A great read. It doesn’t seem to specifically fall into any of their series.

Title: The Boy Who Cast No Shadow by Thomas Olde Heuvelt
Release Date: 2011
Type: Novellette

So far my favorite bit of what I have read by Thomas Olde Heuvelt. The Boy Who Cast No Shadow won the Dutch Paul Harland price and was nominated for the Hugo Award Best Novellette. The title is quite literal and seems to be a very loose retelling of Pinochio. I found it very strong thing in friendship and finding yourself.

Title: The Audition (Seraphina 0.5) by Rachel Hartman
Release Date:  2012
Type: Short Story
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Can Be Read Here

The Audition is a prequel story to Seraphina. In Seraphina music plays a big role for our main character and in this she auditions for the job she has in the book. I think this is best read after Seraphina because it makes it just a bit easier to understand the various interactions that surround the audition. But in that it is a lovely addition to the duology, seeing a more innocent Seraphina, before everything heads off.