Getting The Electric 🎮

By Louise Hegarty.

Getting the Electric by Louise Hegarty is a strange, inventive, and cleverly structured collection of short stories that plays with narrative form in ways that feel fresh and unpredictable.

Each chapter presents a completely different story, yet what makes the book particularly compelling is the way each one is told through a unique storytelling style or narrative device.

Rather than following a single traditional structure, Hegarty experiments with perspective, tone, and form, creating a reading experience that constantly shifts and surprises.

The result is a book that feels playful but also quietly unsettling.

Some stories drop you straight into bizarre or surreal situations. One moment you might be worrying about a mysterious pain while scrolling endlessly through your phone, and the next you are confronted with an axe wielding troll disrupting your day.

Other stories explore eerie moments such as encountering a perfect double of yourself on the street, or the unsettling idea of a costume that fuses permanently to your skin.

Another thread that stood out was the story titled If, which follows an unnamed character who is constantly glued to their phone while obsessively worrying about their health. Beneath the humour and absurdity there is a strong sense of underlying anxiety bubbling through the narrative, which makes the story feel oddly relatable despite its strange premise.

Across the collection there are moments that feel surreal, eerie, or quietly absurd. Children vanish from a village, mysterious sounds echo from basements, and ordinary situations slowly twist into something much darker or more surreal.

What I appreciated most was the creativity behind the storytelling. Each chapter feels like its own experiment, and the author clearly enjoys pushing the boundaries of how stories can be told. Despite the unusual structures, the writing remains accessible and engaging, making it easy to move from one strange scenario to the next.

For readers who enjoy inventive narrative techniques and unusual storytelling, Getting the Electric offers something genuinely original. It is clever, well crafted, and full of imaginative ideas that keep the reader curious about what the next chapter might bring.

Thank you to the team at Picador Books for sending a copy of the book out! The book is out now and available to purchase!

Support a local and independent bookshop and buy the book here.

Buy the E-Book here.