Scale the mountain. Ring the bell. Buy your freedom. Or trade the prize to change the world.

Mia’s life is defined by the Surge. The race comes every five years, and she’s determined to win it. She’ll make it to the top first, ring the bell and set her family free.

But victory comes at a price. The faster she runs, the more people she’ll condemn to death in the valley below.
In Unterstrom, only the strongest survive.

I went into this short story pretty blind, but really enjoyed the world that Jaffrey crafted in its whort length. It follows Mia as from when she is a small child, living through something in her community called The Surge. What that actually is is revealed slowly throughout the story. If you’re a fan of Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery, this certainly has some similar tones and themes to it, but in a different way. Jaffrey’s writing, even in this short length, is engaging and I look forward to reading more of her stories.

Happy reading!