Novellas
Novellas are shorter than novels but longer than short stories, offering focused storytelling with limited scope.
We Are All Completely Fine
This darkly inventive novella follows a support group for survivors of supernatural horrors—each carrying physical and psychological scars from their pasts. As they share their experiences, secrets unravel, and a hidden menace emerges. Gregory blends horror, psychological fiction, and sharp wit, using the group therapy format to explore trauma, identity, and the blurry line between sanity and reality. We Are All Completely Fine is a clever, unsettling story that deconstructs horror tropes while delivering a suspenseful, character-driven narrative. It’s both chilling and thought-provoking, with a haunting emotional core.
Clear
by Carys Davies
Set in 1843 during the Scottish Highland Clearances, Clear by Carys Davies tells the story of John Ferguson, a minister dispatched to evict Ivar, the last resident of a remote island. As their lives intertwine, the novel explores themes of isolation, resilience, and human connection against the backdrop of Scotland’s turbulent history. Davies' narrative is praised for its "exquisite, craggy detail" and deep reflection on themes of home and belonging, earning her the 2025 Ondaatje Prize.
A Leopard-Skin Hat
by Anne Serre
Anne Serre's "A Leopard-Skin Hat," translated by Mark Hutchinson, is a deeply moving and elegantly crafted novel that was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize 2025. It tells the story of an intense and complicated friendship between "the Narrator" and his childhood friend, Fanny, who battles severe psychological disorders. Written in the aftermath of the author's younger sister's suicide, the book serves as a poignant memorial to a tragically foreshortened life. Through a series of short, evocative scenes, Serre paints a portrait of Fanny's struggles and the Narrator's enduring, often anguished, attachment to her. The novel explores themes of mental illness, the unknowability of others, and the enduring nature of love and memory, even in the face of profound loss. It's a testament to the quiet power of human connection and a beautiful farewell.
Small Boat
Vincent Delecroix's "Small Boat" is a powerful and unsettling novel, longlisted for the International Booker Prize 2025. It's a fictionalized account inspired by a real-life tragedy in November 2021 when a dinghy carrying migrants capsized in the Channel, resulting in 27 deaths. The novel is narrated by a French coastguard operator who received calls from the sinking boat. Accused of negligence, she staunchly refuses to shoulder sole blame, arguing that responsibility extends far beyond her actions to wider societal indifference, systemic failures, and the crises driving migration. Delecroix masterfully explores themes of individual complicity, collective apathy, and the complex ethical dilemmas of modern society, forcing readers to confront uncomfortable truths about their own role as "spectators" to such tragedies.
Of Mice and Men
John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is one of the best loved novellas of all time. Two drifters - small, shrewd George and huge, simple-minded Lennie - get work on a ranch, planning to raise enough money to get a place of their own and live off the land, if George can save his childlike, bull-strong friend from getting into trouble. A powerfully moving story of friendship, Of Mice and Men is a simply told masterpiece.
A Letter From An Unknown Woman
by Stefan Zweig
Written in 1920s, Stefan Zweig tells the story of a woman who is unrecognised and unrequited lover in Letter From Unknown Woman. This nameless young woman reached her unaware lover with this long letter by telling their memories from first day. As reader, while appreciating the patience of life long silence and hiding we don't know this woman as her lover who read the letter never recognised her too. With Zweig's literary talent this book has an unforgetable importance in our literature by emotion of being effaced that derived from never known; based on depth psychological side and human's love feeling we can find out darker sides and obsessions of people via this short but impressive book. Every reader who knows Zweig's success will admiringly read this book which is less known considering the other novels.