As no stranger to sifting through books to read and round up, it suddenly dawned on me that R.L. Stine's Fear Street series helped introduce me to the brilliance that are short story collections. There were several endearing elements about friendships in those books that I loved, but the horror and thriller aspects kept me on the edge of my seat. Now that I'm older (and more well-read), I realize that R.L. Stein isn't the only one killing the short story game — there are so many other talented authors who have unique and gripping tales to tell outside of novels.
I'd obviously be remiss if I didn't share some of the stunning short story collections I've found since then. Here are 7 amazing short stories that will have you edge of your seats, so be sure to grab your reading journal to jot them down! From learning how to love someone in spite of their flaws, reclaiming your life after heartache, and facing your fears before they swallow you completely, these stories truly have it all.
What lies beneath the surface of a pool's shimmery surface? It's something Louise Marburg seeks to answer with three short story collections in No Diving Allowed.
Two brothers are seemingly unable to move past tension that's followed them since their childhood in "Identical" and it's revealed how much this has taken a toll on them. On the other hand, "Let Me Stay With You" shows how assumptions can paint a negative picture of someone that's not true while "Minor Thefts" shines a glaring light on one family's drama.
The people found in this story are imperfect, but love still finds a way to help them stay afloat.
Have Mercy On Us is similar to No Diving Allowed, but the stories found in its pages focus more on people who are fighting to live a life that's meaningful to them. From an older man who's determined to rescue his son in Kenya to a woman who decides she's not going to let her spouse's infidelity crush her, these stories will change the way you look at love and forgiveness. You'll also feel a renewed call to choose how you want to live your life.
Short story collections are meant to grab your attention and sometimes they break your heart because their message is received long before their tale ends.
You'll meet a woman whose desperation for a child causes her to make a drastic decision, two teens who truly begin to see each other in a new light, and more characters who must come to terms with the roles they've taken on.
It'll only be a matter of time before you find yourself reaching for a few tissues while reading this book.
Brenda Peynado explores the relationship people have with being considered an outsider and how far people are willing to go for those they love. Whether from a personal or political standpoint, the characters you'll come across will make you shake your head in disbelief and have hope for them at the same time. You'll come across families who believe that worshipping angels is the answer to their prayers in one story and children whose ability to fly causes them to have a very close relationship with rocks.
There's hints of magic, mysticism, and the human ability weaved throughout each tale that we know you'll love.
For even more reading recs, be sure to check out our storefront to see all our fave books right now!
Brit + Co may at times use affiliate links to promote products sold by others, but always offers genuine editorial recommendations.
Lead images via Amazon
Nothing's more irritating than having to throw out fresh fruit you just bought because it either ripened too fast or was already festering with mold. And what food is the biggest culprit? Usually, it’s bananas. Unless you're fitting bananas in your everyday meal routine, it’s difficult to keep up with how quickly they brown (which can be anywhere from 24 hours to five days, depending on how green they were at the store when you grabbed them).
The good news is that there’s actually a lot you can do with overripe bananas. We turned to chefs for top tips (both creative and delicious) that will prevent you from throwing speckled bananas in the trash!Image via Butternut Bakery
One of the most widespread baking recipes to make with overripe bananas is banana bread. Why? Because it’s simple, delicious, and an automatic crowd-pleaser. Check out our one bowl gluten-free banana bread recipe, our chocolate banana pumpkin bread, or these 40 recipes of banana bread that you need to make this weekend (the options are endless!).
(Writer’s note: My go-to recipe is the chocolate chip banana bread from Butternut Bakery — but I use dark chocolate chips instead!)Image via Half Baked Harvest
When in doubt, put your overripe bananas in the freezer. Then you’ll at least have time to think on what to do with them—and you can throw them in your morning smoothies. Bananas last up to three months in the freezer ideally, and pair well with a variety of different flavor profiles, like caramel, blueberry, chocolate, or orange.
This strawberry-banana colada smoothie from Half Baked Harvest may just be your new fav, or the cloudy summer smoothie which doubles as an Erewhon smoothie dupe. Chef Chris Morgan of Joon restaurant in Washington D.C. advises using overripe bananas and other raw fruits for your children at home (he makes little smoothies for his 7-month old baby—pure genius!).Image via Food Faith Fitness
Image via Kathryn's Kitchen Blog
There is nothing better than sorbet or ice cream in the summer months. All you really need is frozen ripe bananas, any other frozen fruit you prefer, milk (whichever kind you enjoy— almond, oat, etc.) and some sweeteners like honey or vanilla extract. To fit your health goals, you can even throw in protein powder. This strawberry nice cream from Kathryn’s Kitchen Blog only has five ingredients!
Image via Butternut Bakery
Photo by Anna Tarazevich/PEXELS
Don’t leave out your furry friends— they love bananas too! Making long-lasting dog treats “relieves the pressure on the idea of food waste, plus there is a bonus that your pets are spoiled, happy, and nutritiously rewarded,” says pastry chef Susan Bae of the critically-acclaimed restaurant, Moon Rabbit in Washington D.C. Check out her go-to dog treat recipe below:
Chef Susan Bae’s Dog Treat Recipe:
250g organic whole wheat flour
240g organic peanut butter
70g organic, unsweetened apple sauce
56g mashed overripe banana
113g organic plain bone broth
25g organic shredded cheddar cheese
25g freeze dried blueberries
Preheat oven to 350F.
1.) Mix to combine whole wheat flour, peanut butter, apple sauce, bone broth and banana. Until a dough is lightly formed.
2.) Fold in shredded cheese and dried blueberries to evenly distribute in dough.
3.) Roll dough out to 1/4” thickness and use your favorite cookie cutters to cut out treats.
4.) Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and bake dog treats until firm and dry to touch (this varies with each oven) Check at 45 minutes.
5.) Store at room temperature for up to 1 week in an airtight container or in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.
Need more recipe inspo? Sign up for our weekly email newsletter for even more!
Header image via Half Baked Harvest
Though Elena Ferrante is a pen name, and while the author prides herself on anonymity, her books shouldn't be a mystery to you. The Italian author's beautiful work transcends the need for a face attached, as raw emotions, complex characters, and unforgettable narratives define Ferrante's unique voice. From the intense friendship at the heart of the Neapolitan Novels to the unsettling psychological depths plumbed in The Days of Abandonment, prepare to be surprised, challenged, and utterly engrossed by the brilliance of Elena Ferrante.
Though Ferrante's entire body of work is worth a read, the first thing that should be on your list is the Neopolitan Novels. This is a four-book series that explores the complex female friendship between Lila and Elena. The two start off as young girls who are being raised in a poor and tough neighborhood of Naples in the aftermath of World War II. The novels chart their complex bond as the two girls grow up, start families, begin careers, and deal with societal pressures and personal struggles.
The Lost Daughter is a brilliant standalone novel of Ferrante's that is centered around a middle-aged woman named Leda. While on a solitary vacation on the coast, Leda observes a young mother named Nina who is struggling with her relationship with her daughter. This awakens memories of Leda's own struggles with motherhood, making for a raw and honest depiction of the complexities of parent-child relationships.
In The Days of Abandonment, Ferrante delves into the raw emotions of a woman named Olga after her husband abruptly leaves her and their two young children. The story follows Olga's descent into despair and rage as she grapples with his sudden absence and tries to maintain a sense of normalcy for her kids. Faced with a challenge she never expected, Olga goes on a quest to learn about her own identity and find strength within herself.
Incidental Inventions isn't a novel, but a collection of essays that were originally published in The Guardian. Here, Ferrante offers a glimpse into her thoughts and observations on a variety of topics. Expect insightful and thought-provoking reflections on everyday experiences, personal fears, and the creative process itself!
Troubling Love centers around Delia, who returns to her childhood home after her mother, Amalia, is found dead under mysterious circumstances. As Delia grapples with grief, she confronts repressed memories of her childhood that were made difficult by her mother's volatile relationships with abusive men. The narrative unfolds as Delia pieces together the events leading up to her mother's death and confronts the lingering effects of her complicated upbringing.
"Frantumaglia" is a word borrowed from Ferrante's mother and means "a jumble of fragments". This collection of Ferrante's writings does not feel like a jumble, but rather a rich body of work that provides insight into the challenges and joys of her writing process and the inspirations behind her novels.
Looking for more book inspo? Be sure to check out our storefront for more fab reading recs!
Brit + Co may at times use affiliate links to promote products sold by others, but always offers genuine editorial recommendations.
Header image via Amazon
Are you a small business owner looking for a good loan to grow your business? California Small Business Loan Match makes it easier to find the right loan for you. Loan Match pre-vets mission-driven lenders and matches you with the best lender for your business, at no-cost. Get started in less than 10 minutes with a brief pre-application and no credit check required!
Loan Match is powered by IBank, a state government agency that helps to promote healthier economies and improve quality of life in California communities. All lenders are enrolled in IBank’s Loan Guarantee Program, which helps bridge the gap between responsible lenders and small businesses.
Photo by RDNE Stock project
Wondering if you're eligible? Any business operating in the state of California, with 1 to 750 employees, is eligible. You just need to be a business entity (Sole Proprietor, LLC, Cooperative, Corporation, Partnership, S-Corporation, or Not-For-Profit), and operate in an eligible industry according to the 2022 NAICS codes (read: a legit business).
Step 1: Fill out a short pre-application questionnaire that takes just minutes to complete. No credit check required!
Step 2: Based on your eligibility, they’ll match you with lenders who fit your needs.
Step 3: Review details about each lender, select the one you like, and they’ll connect you with them.
Step 4: The lender will reach out within three business days to complete the application process. (You’ll also get their contact info so you can follow up directly.)
Most California Small Business Loan Match lenders are certified as Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), which means they offer competitive rates but specialize in helping borrowers who don’t meet the rigid lending criteria of traditional banks — for example, small businesses that have a lower credit score, a prior defaulted loan, or no up-front collateral. CDFIs specialize in helping people in lower-income communities too, and offer a much more flexible and affordable repayment plan than online lenders or Merchant Cash Advance (MCA) loans.
Check them out to help you grow your business, meeting our mission to help you succeed! Good luck!
Hero photo by Amina Filkins
I am the opposite of a casual Reputation fan. Four of my five most-listened-to songs on Spotify are from the 2017 album, I wore a Rep-inspired outfit to my Eras Tour show, and I am constantly analyzing (and talking about) its symbolism. I stand by the fact that this album, as misunderstood as it is, is actually the key to understanding Taylor Swift herself, which is why its rerelease is the one I've been most looking forward to. With TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and Reddit, it feels like there's a new theory every day about when we'll get Reputation (Taylor's Version), but I'm pretty sure Taylor's been telling us the announcement date the whole time.
Image via Source Pictures & Taylor Swift Productions
The cappuccino Easter egg from the "Karma" music video.
We don't have an official Reputation (Taylor's Version) release date yet, but all signs were originally pointing to an announcement on February 16, 2024. When the music video for "Karma" from Midnights came out, featuring a shot of Taylor holding a cappuccino, Swifties immediately picked up on the symbolism. The blue nail (which represents 1989 (Taylor's Version)) lines up with the 8 on the clock, and the black nail lines up with the 2 on the clock. Taylor ended up announcing 1989 TV on August 9 — and then announced The Tortured Poets Department(also known as TS11) onstage at the 2024 Grammys in February!
TaylorNation just teased the Reputation (Taylor's Version) release date by hopping on the latest internet trend, which uses the "You wouldn't last an hour in the asylum where they raised me" lyric from "Who's Afraid Of Little Old Me?" Their Instagram carousel features images that have sent Swifties spiraling in the past, but there are two pics I'm paying special attention to: the "five holes in the fence" image from the Lover era, and a "Bejeweled" music video still of Taylor Swift pressing 3 in an elevator. May 3 (5/3) comes two weeks after the TTPD release, and since Taylor has been emphasizing her lead single "Fortnight" with the "For a Fortnight" challenge, it looks like it could line up perfectly.
There are plenty of other potential summer release dates too! Swifties know Taylor Swift lives and breathes the number 13, and that she's been making her recent rerecording announcements at her Eras Tour shows.
Well, this summer, Taylor is heading to Milan for a show on Saturday, July 13. X user @roranotaurora points out that the symbol for Milan is a snake (it's also a symbol for Rep!) AND that on July 13, 1977, there was a blackout across New York City. When Taylor announced the original Reputation in 2017, the "Don't Blame Me" singer blacked out all her social media. If she announced the album in July, there's a good chance we'd get it just in time for autumn, chilly weather, and Daylight Savings Time, all three of which go perfectly with the Reputation aesthetic.
There's another 13 we need to pay attention to as well: December 13, which is also Taylor Swift's birthday. The popstar had the date front and center in her Tortured Poets Department pop-up installation. Since the date falls on a Friday, it's the perfect day to drop some new music...
Image via Amy Sussman
Taylor Swift attends the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton on January 07, 2024 in Beverly Hills, California.
Recently, Taylor showed up to the 81st Golden Globe Awards in an all green ensemble, which is already so Reputation-coded to begin with. However, fans noticed one teeeeeeeny tiny detail about her look that really leans into all the theories that Rep (TV) is next. If you zoom in on her rings, one of them is a snake that's wrapped around her finger. 🐍
And after Taylor Swift released a video teasing her new album, Swifties are analyzing all the snakeskin patterns (on the curtains, the floor, and the green couch), as well as the dark visuals. While the video moves from the dark room to a bright one for TTPD, I'm convinced we'll be returning — or continuing down the hallway where you can see a dark picture frame waiting for us...
All the surprise songs at her Tokyo Eras Tour shows referenced falling apart, and a huge part of the Reputation era was related to a quote from Taylor that says "when she fell, she fell apart." Before playing "The Outside" as her piano surprise song on February 9, she made a joke that the song was 175 years old — which has Swifties thinking August 2 (175 days from February 9) could be the album's release date. Considering "The Outside" is off her first album, it's also possible we're getting Taylor Swift (Taylor's Version) in August!
A recent Disney+ ad that paired the Eras Tour film and Disney Pixar's Cars went viral on Twitter because its tagline is "Getaway Car," one of the most beloved songs on Reputation (Taylor's Version)! No matter when the album drops, having Taylor Swift's final two re-recordings be her name and her reputation is literally so iconic and I can't wait to listen.
Image via Kevin Winter/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management
We know that, based on previous re-recordings, Reputation (Taylor's Version) will have the original tracklist and an unknown number of vault tracks that Taylor wrote ahead of the Reputation era. PEOPLE also confirmed we'll be able to hear Taylor Swift's "Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version)" in the new docuseries for the New England Patriots! You can also hear a snippet in the trailer for Ashley Benson's Wilderness ;). Here's what you can expect on Taylor Swift's Reputation (Taylor's Version). I'm really hoping the vault tracks include "I Don't Want To Live Forever"!
Image via Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Taylor Swift showed up to the 2024 Grammys in a sculptural white gown from Schiaparelli Couture. I love how Taylor has hopped on the corset trend. This is my favorite neckline in recent years! Even though the dress is white instead of black or green — and ended up going along with the Tortured Poets Department (or TS 11) announcement — I think it's still a Reputation (Taylor's Version) Easter egg. White is, of course, the opposite of black, so I think it's a more unexpected reference to the album, with black accessories like gloves, shoes, and jewelry being a direct nod. Plus, the watch necklace pays homage to Midnights! At the 2022 VMAs, Taylor wore another Reputation-coded outfit before she announced Midnights, so I think it's definitely a pattern.
Image Paul Kane/Getty Images
Taylor Swift performs at Optus Stadium on October 19, 2018 in Perth, Australia.
Yes, we're getting a Reputation (Taylor's Version)! Taylor Swift has been very vocal about the fact she's rerecording her first five albums. However, she's been less direct about the order or the release schedule, which is honestly more fun! The official Taylor Nation account added fuel to the fire when they posted a photo of Taylor rehearsing for The Eras Tour — because, like @nashs_mom on TikTok says, the pose doesn't match up with any of the songs. While all the photos they've previously posted match up with numbers like "Enchanted" or "Illicit Affairs," the new pose seems to match up with "I Did Something Bad" (which is both the last Reputation surprise song left AND the perfect song to announce the rerecording).
"Hear me out," another TikTok user commented. "['I Did Something Bad'] was not part of the set list in 2023 but what if the first night of the tour in 2024 she performs [it] and announces REP TV."
"I literally ratatatataed as soon as I saw it," another user says, referencing the iconic production at the beginning of the song. We have less than a month before the Eras Tour starts up again, so I'm excited to see when we'll finally get a Reputation (Taylor's Version) announcement!
Image via Def Jam/UMG
Cover art for Kanye West's The Life Of Pablo, which features "Famous."
The primary catalyst for Taylor Swift's Reputation era was a phone call with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian. After Taylor said Kanye did not have her permission to say he "made that b-tch famous" in "Famous," a video leak from Kim seemed to show Taylor did actually give her permission (it was later revealed the video was edited, and Taylor gave her permission to be mentioned, NOT to be called a b-tch).
"#TaylorSwiftIsOverParty" began trending on Twitter, and everyone from the media to the general public began calling her a snake. So she disappeared from the public eye for over a year, and Reputation was born. The era was moody — and full of snake imagery. Taylor says in her TIME interview that the album came from "a goth-punk moment of female rage at being gaslit by an entire social structure," and told Rolling Stone in 2019 that Reputation was a "metaphor" and her "playing a character."
Image via Christopher Polk/Getty Images for TAS
Charli XCX, Camila Cabello and Taylor Swift perform onstage during opening night of Taylor Swift's 2018 Reputation Stadium Tour at University of Phoenix Stadium on May 8, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona.
Taylor began writing Reputation in 2016, when she was 27. However, the stories she's telling go back farther than that since "Dancing With Our Hands Tied" talks about a relationship from when she was 25.
Image via Big Machine Records
Cover art for Taylor Swift's Reputation.
While Reputation is sassy, moody, and satirical, I stand by the idea that it's actually a love album at its core. While the general public talked most about "Ready for It?" and "Look What You Made Me Do," songs like "Delicate," "Call It What You Want," and "New Year's Day" are all about healing after the media turned against her. The message of the album is all about how she wants to spend the the ins and outs of life with people she loves, because they make the boring days beautiful, which is also the sentiment running throughout "Lover."
"I want your midnights, but I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day" and "We can leave the Christmas lights up 'til January" are the same!!
Image via Warner Bros. Entertainment
A Horcrux from Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part I
While we don't have the tracklist for Reputation (Taylor's Version) yet, she did mention in her TIME interview that the vault tracks will be "fire."
"I’m collecting horcruxes,” she says of the rerecordings. “I’m collecting infinity stones. Gandalf’s voice is in my head every time I put out a new one. For me, it is a movie now.”
I'm going to be real honest, this is the line that sent me into a tailspin because the idea that Taylor loves stories like Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and the MCU as much as I do is too much!! But it makes sense because after all, she IS a storyteller.
Do you think we'll get Reputation (Taylor's Version) in February 2024? Check out our Facebook for the latest Taylor Swift news and browse ourUltimate Taylor Swift Gift Guide!
Lead image via Big Machine Records
This post has been updated.
