If you’re racing to complete your Goodreads Challenge and need some quick but memorable reads, here’s a list of ten short books that pack a punch in under 300 pages. Each one offers something unique—whether it’s gripping action, emotional depth, or whimsical charm.
Never Die by Rob J. Hayes (247 pages)
The tyrannical emperor of Hosa, Henan WuLong, is to be killed to give freedom back to the people and this task was given to Ein. Ein has been commissioned by a shinigami, a death god, to kill the emperor, but Ein is an eight-year-old boy and must find heroes to complete the task. To bind the heroes to him, he must let each of them die and bring them back from the dead. Each of these heroes is offered a second chance at life if they help him kill the emperor. After he brings the first hero Cho back from the dead and binds her to the Oath, the path begins for Ein and Cho to find more heroes to stand against the cruel Emperor.
Anyone who has played the video game Sekiro knows exactly what kind of world the author wants to take us into here – an asian setting that is grotesquely altered in such a way that it conveys an eerie atmosphere but set in a supposedly real world. The dynamics of the book also emulated a video game like in the vein of Sekiro. You keep encountering bosses to take down and in between you must make the journey to that boss first. If you’ve ever played Dark Souls, you’ll know the exciting and eerie feeling when you’re standing in front of the fog and you know that now comes an enemy you can barely defeat. That’s exactly how I felt when I read the chapter headings where you can tell that a battle between two heroes lies ahead. Read my Full Review here.
Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher (128 pages)
There’s a princess trapped in a tower. This isn’t her story. Meet Toadling. On the day of her birth, she was stolen from her family by the fairies, but she grew up safe and loved in the warm waters of faerieland. Once an adult though, the fae ask a favor of Toadling: return to the human world and offer a blessing of protection to a newborn child. Simple, right? But nothing with fairies is ever simple. Centuries later, a knight approaches a towering wall of brambles, where the thorns are as thick as your arm and as sharp as swords. He’s heard there’s a curse here that needs breaking, but it’s a curse Toadling will do anything to uphold…
A dark retelling of Sleeping Beauty through the eyes of Toadling, a fairy tasked with guarding a cursed princess. But not everything is as it seems. What I loved is Kingfisher’s wit and fresh take on fairy tale tropes, with a protagonist you won’t forget. It’s a quiet and calm story mostly built on thoughtful introspection, guilt and regret. And resignation to fate that follows seeming inability to change things for the better with love, kindness and sensible hard work. It’s the bittersweet kind of sweetness here and not that of the sugary cotton candy variety that I can’t stand. It flows well, and as usual, Kingfisher/Vernon does some impressive magic with her seemingly easy and unforced writing that makes the words fall just right.
The Narrow Road Between Desires by Patrick Rothfuss (176 pages)
Bast knows how to bargain. The give-and-take of a negotiation is as familiar to him as the in-and-out of breathing; to watch him trade is to watch an artist at work. But even a master’s brush can slip. When he accepts a gift, taking something for nothing, Bast’s whole world is knocked askew, for he knows how to bargain—but not how to owe. From dawn to midnight over the course of a single day, follow the Kingkiller Chronicle’s most charming fae as he schemes and sneaks, dancing into trouble and back out again with uncanny grace. The Narrow Road Between Desires is Bast’s story. In it he traces the old ways of making and breaking, following his heart even when doing so goes against his better judgement. After all, what good is caution if it keeps him from danger and delight?
A journey into the realms of Patrick Rothfuss is always a joyous expedition. His unparalleled ability to craft emotionally resonant characters and clothe them in exquisite prose remains unmatched in my perspective. Once again, in this enchanting short story, Rothfuss effortlessly transports readers to alternate worlds, devoid of a conventional villain. Read my Full Review here.
A Pilgrimage of Swords by Anthony Ryan (128 pages)
A god gone mad destroyed the kingdom of Alnachim, originally full of magical beings and beauty. Now the once beautiful land has been turned into a wasteland inhabited by many ominous grotesque monsters. Yet despite the wounded land, people make pilgrimages in the hope of praying to the god and being heard. The pilgrimage to the centre of the cursed land will be a hurdle for the desperate souls. Pilgrim also wants to seek out the god to find redemption and sets out together with a teenage priest, a beast-charmer, a scholar, as well as an actor and two exiled lovers. The path to answer the prayer to the god is littered with madness and monsters, and yet even in the end it is not granted whether the prayer of the souls will be answered.
I have never read anything so dark by Anthony Ryan and after this book, I have to say that I would like to read more in this direction by him. He manages to build up such a dark, gloomy world in so few pages, adds the right characters who seem mysterious and equally dark and adds eerie creatures, and of course this is paired with a breathtakingly great writing style. This world is so unique, although I know video games that have this flair; I have yet to read a book that could give me this scary and confining feeling. Even if at the beginning you don’t know exactly what the story of this book is about, the end is completely convincing. You learn that it is not only about repentance, but that there is much more behind this journey and the destination. Despite the small number of pages, this story had so much atmosphere that it sweeps you along and you can’t even put the book aside. Read my Full Review here.
A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers (160 pages)
It’s been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the wilderness, never to be seen again; centuries since they faded into myth and urban legend.
One day, the life of a tea monk is upended by the arrival of a robot, there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of “what do people need?” is answered.
But the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how.
They’re going to need to ask it a lot.
Becky Chambers has revived a genre we need now more than ever: pure, unapologetic utopian fiction. Where most modern media try to outdo each other with the ironic deconstruction of past ideals, her work reminds us that we can indeed imagine better worlds – unironically, but not naively either.
Archive of the Godeater – Demon by Rob J. Hayes (168 pages)
Kind of heart and quick in temper, Dien expects to lead a simple life, learning her father’s trade. But unbeknown to her, he was not always a carpenter. He’s an exile, a traitor once known as the Peace Breaker. When nightmarish demons attack the village of Berrywhistle, her father is murdered. Dien and the survivors are taken as thralls to live out the rest of their days in squaller and back-breaking labour. But Dien’s blood boils with the need to escape and take her revenge. They try to break her body. They try to break her spirit. Will Dien take up her father’s hammer and unite her people?
In this compact epic fantasy novel, Hayes masterfully delivers a story brimming with vivid intensity, shadowy darkness, flickers of hope, and a cast of characters who evoke both sympathy and disdain. Themes such as kindness, determination, pride, and the essence of evil are skillfully woven into the narrative. Hayes himself has described the God Eaters saga as his magnum opus and most ambitious endeavor to date. Dien, the female protagonist, shines as an exceptional lead—intelligent, relentless, and utterly unafraid to set the world ablaze in pursuit of her vengeance. Truly my favorite kind of character.
A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher (300 pages)
Fourteen-year-old Mona isn’t like the wizards charged with defending the city. She can’t control lightning or speak to water. Her familiar is a sourdough starter and her magic only works on bread. She has a comfortable life in her aunt’s bakery making gingerbread men dance. But Mona’s life is turned upside down when she finds a dead body on the bakery floor. An assassin is stalking the streets of Mona’s city, preying on magic folk, and it appears that Mona is his next target. And in an embattled city suddenly bereft of wizards, the assassin may be the least of Mona’s worries…
What a fantastic imagination T. Kingfisher has. I had so much fun reading this book. It’s labeled a middle school book, but don’t let that discourage you (if you’re old like me). If you’re in the mood for a light, fun read I would highly recommend this one. Kingfisher’s description of baking and pride and joy in work is comforting and heartwarming. Reading about a small wizarding girl preparing a bakery to serve customers with a delicate care reserved for a passion of life was delightful.
The Emperor’s Soul by Brandon Sanderson (175 pages)
Shai is a forger. With the help of her abilities, she is able to change the soul of things by rewriting their past with a seal. Forgers painstakingly create soul stamps to change the being of things. To do this, the forger must know the past, the material and the history of the thing. Souls of people can also be changed. This is basically illegal and punishable by death, although some branches of this kind of magic are tolerated. Now, unfortunately, after a failed assassination attempt, the emperor is no longer the same, for a severe head injury has rendered him soulless. And suddenly faces the task of a lifetime: she is to forge the king’s soul.
I had goosebumps and enjoyed listening to the whole story until the very end. Sanderson could have stretched this story over 600 pages, because I found this aspect of magic so interesting and Shai is also a great protagonist. In conclusion, I can say that my first Brandon Sanderson book was a highlight. Read my Full Review here.
The Bookshop and the Barbarian by Morgan Stang (235 pages)
Running from strife in her homeland, Maribella Waters becomes the new owner of the fabled Cozy Quill. After finding squatters on her property, she employs Asteria Helsdottir, a giant, barbarian warrior woman more accustomed to swinging an axe than opening a book. Together, the odd couple must make a success out of the bookshop—and survive a dizzying procession of seasonal festivals. But the local evil noblewoman has other plans in mind. Threatened with being run off the land, Maribella and Asteria must use their wits to outsmart Lady Malicent and keep their business open. Along the way, the whole town lends a hand, friendships are forged, and mysteries are revealed.
This book really has exactly everything you want from a short book. It’s sweet and funny and also delightful. It always makes you smile, because of the overall story about a Lady who wants to run a Bookshop, but also because of the many different and funny characters. So there are goblins, bookworms, giant warriors and some kind of wicked witches and these crazy characters all meet in the bookshop. Also, the book has a funny narration style, where the narrator himself adds comments to the story every now and then, which loosens up the whole book and brings the necessary wit.
The Deep by Rivers Solomon (166 pages)
Shai is a forger. With the help of her abilities, she is able to change the soul of things by rewriting their past with a seal. Forgers painstakingly create soul stamps to change the being of things. To do this, the forger must know the past, the material and the history of the thing. Souls of people can also be changed. This is basically illegal and punishable by death, although some branches of this kind of magic are tolerated. Now, unfortunately, after a failed assassination attempt, the emperor is no longer the same, for a severe head injury has rendered him soulless. And suddenly faces the task of a lifetime: she is to forge the king’s soul.
“The Deep” by Rivers Solomon weaves together historical events, folklore, and culture to explore the importance of remembering and sharing history, no matter how painful it may be. The narrative emphasizes the vital role of preserving history, culture, and identity, while also examining the profound consequences of their loss. In African culture, the historian and storyteller of a community is known as a griot. This position, regarded as one of the most esteemed roles within the community, carries the responsibility of safeguarding and recounting the collective stories and events of that group.
Your Turn: Have you read any of these? What short, binge-worthy books would you recommend? Let’s share ideas and swap favorites!
The Reading Stray 