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pammy_taylor's review against another edition
5.0
Like the first one, not every story in this collection is 5 stars but the premise and experience of reading all these short stories by different authors on the machine of death prompt is 5 stars for me!
thisqueerreadstoomuch's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
megadeathvsbooks's review against another edition
3.0
This one wasn't as good as the first. It seemed to get kind of schticky. After a while I felt like most of the stories were the same general plot.
albon's review against another edition
4.0
2018 review:
This is How You Die is an anthology, with short stories all about the same concept: a machine that tells people how they will die. It's a sequel to Machine of Death, an anthology with the same concept. (And while I would recommend going out and buying the book, the people behind these books are offering Machine of Death to you for free on their website (legally).) In Machine of Death, a lot of the stories deal with the machine's backstory and the the immediate effect it has on the world. This is How You Die has a lot more creative stories about the various ways the world can adapt to a machine like this.
The main thing that has struck me with both of these books is how many ways the prompt can be interpreted. A "machine that tells people how they will die" sounds like such a straightforward concept, and yet in these books I've seen so many authors portray it wildly differently. It makes for a lot of very fascinating stories.
The rest of this review will be individual reviews of the stories, because I feel like the authors did such great jobs and I want to highlight all of the stories.
Shiv Sena Riot by Ryan Estrada: Takes place at a call center in India. I felt like it was a bit too anticlimactic, but it was interesting and kept me reading. ★★★/5
Zephyr by George Page III: I really loved this one! It had everything, a futuristic setting, space battles, and funny moments. ★★★★★/5
Execution by Beheading by Chandler Kaiden: what the fuck 👀 This was very unrealistic, but at the same time very unsettling. Deals with racism. ★★★★.5/5
Lazarus Reactor Fission Sequence by Tom Francis: I didn't understand this one. It was too much science for me. This probably would've worked better as full-length novel. I liked the characters. ★★/5
Drowning Burning Falling Flying by Grace Seybold: A lot of focus on science again, but a lot more understandable than the last story. It was pretty interesting, but nothing special. There were aliens in here! ★★★/5
Conflagration by D. L. E. Roger: It's the end of the world, and they can't stop it. I liked it a lot after it hit the halfway point. The main character annoyed me in the beginning. ★★★★.5/5
Screaming, Crying, Alone and Afraid by Daliso Chaponda: Yes! Female detectives! Thieves and killers and mysteries! A perfect story. ★★★★★/5
Apitoxin by John Takins: Basically a Sherlock Holmes-fanfic. I wasn't a huge fan of the ending, but I understand why he wrote it like that. It did have some fun twists. ★★★.5/5
Blue Fever by Ada Hoffman: Now this I LOVED! Interesting characters with good dynamics, a peek into a world I would've loved to read more about, but didn't leave me feeling like this really should have been a full-length novel. This is how you write a short story! Who doesn't love deathsongs, politics and alliances? ★★★★★/5
Tetrapod by Rebecca Black: ♫ It's friday, friday, gotta get down on friday ♫ Oh, wrong Rebecca Black? Sorry! This story is about an english teacher in Japan. It was a quiet story, without a lot of substance. Still, it was alright. ★★★.5/5
Machine of Death by Karen Stay Ahlstrom: This just didn't do anything for me. ★★/5
Monsters from the Deep by David Malki: Super odd. It went to a lot of weird places, but I enjoyed it. ★★★★/5
Toxoplasmosis (...) by Gord Sellar: Set in an AIDS-camp in Africa. I thought the concept and reasoning behind the camp was interesting. I really liked the story's reflection on how the cards only told them how they would die, not how they would live. It's really basic of course, but it's not something I saw the other authors spend a lot of time reflecting in, at least not explicitly. The relationships felt very realistic. I would've liked a different ending, maybe a sadder one. (view spoiler) ★★★★.5/5
Cancer by Ryan North: I really loved Helen and Tina! All in all a good story, but it felt slightly weird how it was lifted from a real person's story. I appreciated the acknowledgement of that in the end. ★★★★/5
Two One Six by Marleigh Norton: Creepy! This didn't always make sense, but it kept me on my toes. ★★★★/5
Blunt Force Trauma Delivered By Spouse by Liz Argall: Sad story about domestic abuse. I liked the characters, but the writing wasn't great. ★★★.5/5
Meat Eater by John and Bill Chernega: Not really a story, but still an interesting addition to the anthology.
Made Into Delicious Cheeseburger by Sarah Pavis: Made me laugh, as it was supposed to. I know it was meant as a bit of a joke, but I still think this could've been a few paragraphs longer. If you want me to go vegan you have to pack some more punch. But I still love cows! ★★/5
Your Choice by Richard Salter: About a parent who has split up from their partner and wants contact with their son, Henry. A choose your own adventure-story. I liked how everyone except from Henry had gender neutral names (Alex, Sam, Robin), and the story never used gendered pronouns. Anyone can be a part of this adventure! The concept was interesting, but the story was kind of lacking. ★★★/5
In Battle, Alone and Soon Forgotten by Ed Turner: About an orc in a world much like the world in Lord of the Rings. It was cute, but could've been better. ★★★.5/5
Lake Titicaca by M. Bennardo: Again, not great. About a bunch of kids who get to the arcade to get their results. ★★★/5
In Sleep by Ren Warom: This was the only story I skipped most of. The beginning was annoying and pretentious, and of course confusing. ★/5
Cecile by Hollan Lane: I didn't like the writing in this at all. The concept had potential as an opposite to "Blunt Force Trauma Delivered by Spouse". In both stories the death is said to be caused by the main character's significant other, but in this story the main character has found peace with that. All inn all I found this to be very underdeveloped. ★★/5
La Mort D'un Roturier by Martin Livings: Another story I loved! It was set right before the french revolution, and there was a masquerade. What more can a girl want? I also really want this as a full-length novel. ★★★★★/5
Not Applicable by Kyle Schoenfeld: Confusing, but all in all I liked it a lot. It gave me strong Back to the Future-vibes, I'm not sure if that was on purpose or not. ★★★★/5
Peacefully by M. J. Leitch: I liked this one too! Interesting characters, a cool concept, and zombies. Great work. ★★★★/5
Old Age by Brigita Orel: I didn't really love this one, but at the same time it wasn't bad, just too short for me to get a proper impression. Won't rate it.
Furnace by Erika Hammerschmidt: It's the future, and all futuristic humans know about us is learned through erotic novels we left behind. People think the ancient Machine of Death predicts things that will turn you on. Hilarity ensues and people die. A good story to end the collection on. ★★★★/5
This is How You Die is an anthology, with short stories all about the same concept: a machine that tells people how they will die. It's a sequel to Machine of Death, an anthology with the same concept. (And while I would recommend going out and buying the book, the people behind these books are offering Machine of Death to you for free on their website (legally).) In Machine of Death, a lot of the stories deal with the machine's backstory and the the immediate effect it has on the world. This is How You Die has a lot more creative stories about the various ways the world can adapt to a machine like this.
The main thing that has struck me with both of these books is how many ways the prompt can be interpreted. A "machine that tells people how they will die" sounds like such a straightforward concept, and yet in these books I've seen so many authors portray it wildly differently. It makes for a lot of very fascinating stories.
The rest of this review will be individual reviews of the stories, because I feel like the authors did such great jobs and I want to highlight all of the stories.
Shiv Sena Riot by Ryan Estrada: Takes place at a call center in India. I felt like it was a bit too anticlimactic, but it was interesting and kept me reading. ★★★/5
Zephyr by George Page III: I really loved this one! It had everything, a futuristic setting, space battles, and funny moments. ★★★★★/5
Execution by Beheading by Chandler Kaiden: what the fuck 👀 This was very unrealistic, but at the same time very unsettling. Deals with racism. ★★★★.5/5
Lazarus Reactor Fission Sequence by Tom Francis: I didn't understand this one. It was too much science for me. This probably would've worked better as full-length novel. I liked the characters. ★★/5
Drowning Burning Falling Flying by Grace Seybold: A lot of focus on science again, but a lot more understandable than the last story. It was pretty interesting, but nothing special. There were aliens in here! ★★★/5
Conflagration by D. L. E. Roger: It's the end of the world, and they can't stop it. I liked it a lot after it hit the halfway point. The main character annoyed me in the beginning. ★★★★.5/5
Screaming, Crying, Alone and Afraid by Daliso Chaponda: Yes! Female detectives! Thieves and killers and mysteries! A perfect story. ★★★★★/5
Apitoxin by John Takins: Basically a Sherlock Holmes-fanfic. I wasn't a huge fan of the ending, but I understand why he wrote it like that. It did have some fun twists. ★★★.5/5
Blue Fever by Ada Hoffman: Now this I LOVED! Interesting characters with good dynamics, a peek into a world I would've loved to read more about, but didn't leave me feeling like this really should have been a full-length novel. This is how you write a short story! Who doesn't love deathsongs, politics and alliances? ★★★★★/5
Tetrapod by Rebecca Black: ♫ It's friday, friday, gotta get down on friday ♫ Oh, wrong Rebecca Black? Sorry! This story is about an english teacher in Japan. It was a quiet story, without a lot of substance. Still, it was alright. ★★★.5/5
Machine of Death by Karen Stay Ahlstrom: This just didn't do anything for me. ★★/5
Monsters from the Deep by David Malki: Super odd. It went to a lot of weird places, but I enjoyed it. ★★★★/5
Toxoplasmosis (...) by Gord Sellar: Set in an AIDS-camp in Africa. I thought the concept and reasoning behind the camp was interesting. I really liked the story's reflection on how the cards only told them how they would die, not how they would live. It's really basic of course, but it's not something I saw the other authors spend a lot of time reflecting in, at least not explicitly. The relationships felt very realistic. I would've liked a different ending, maybe a sadder one. (view spoiler) ★★★★.5/5
Cancer by Ryan North: I really loved Helen and Tina! All in all a good story, but it felt slightly weird how it was lifted from a real person's story. I appreciated the acknowledgement of that in the end. ★★★★/5
Two One Six by Marleigh Norton: Creepy! This didn't always make sense, but it kept me on my toes. ★★★★/5
Blunt Force Trauma Delivered By Spouse by Liz Argall: Sad story about domestic abuse. I liked the characters, but the writing wasn't great. ★★★.5/5
Meat Eater by John and Bill Chernega: Not really a story, but still an interesting addition to the anthology.
Made Into Delicious Cheeseburger by Sarah Pavis: Made me laugh, as it was supposed to. I know it was meant as a bit of a joke, but I still think this could've been a few paragraphs longer. If you want me to go vegan you have to pack some more punch. But I still love cows! ★★/5
Your Choice by Richard Salter: About a parent who has split up from their partner and wants contact with their son, Henry. A choose your own adventure-story. I liked how everyone except from Henry had gender neutral names (Alex, Sam, Robin), and the story never used gendered pronouns. Anyone can be a part of this adventure! The concept was interesting, but the story was kind of lacking. ★★★/5
In Battle, Alone and Soon Forgotten by Ed Turner: About an orc in a world much like the world in Lord of the Rings. It was cute, but could've been better. ★★★.5/5
Lake Titicaca by M. Bennardo: Again, not great. About a bunch of kids who get to the arcade to get their results. ★★★/5
In Sleep by Ren Warom: This was the only story I skipped most of. The beginning was annoying and pretentious, and of course confusing. ★/5
Cecile by Hollan Lane: I didn't like the writing in this at all. The concept had potential as an opposite to "Blunt Force Trauma Delivered by Spouse". In both stories the death is said to be caused by the main character's significant other, but in this story the main character has found peace with that. All inn all I found this to be very underdeveloped. ★★/5
La Mort D'un Roturier by Martin Livings: Another story I loved! It was set right before the french revolution, and there was a masquerade. What more can a girl want? I also really want this as a full-length novel. ★★★★★/5
Not Applicable by Kyle Schoenfeld: Confusing, but all in all I liked it a lot. It gave me strong Back to the Future-vibes, I'm not sure if that was on purpose or not. ★★★★/5
Peacefully by M. J. Leitch: I liked this one too! Interesting characters, a cool concept, and zombies. Great work. ★★★★/5
Old Age by Brigita Orel: I didn't really love this one, but at the same time it wasn't bad, just too short for me to get a proper impression. Won't rate it.
Furnace by Erika Hammerschmidt: It's the future, and all futuristic humans know about us is learned through erotic novels we left behind. People think the ancient Machine of Death predicts things that will turn you on. Hilarity ensues and people die. A good story to end the collection on. ★★★★/5
lotusmaker's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Domestic abuse
wonder_kinder's review against another edition
5.0
this book was a really neat compulsion of fiction around a single premise. the comics were interesting, the diversity in story type, length, genre and timeframe was really compelling. I would recommend it to almost anyone who likes any sort of fiction.
lkthomas07's review against another edition
5.0
Oh my goodness, I loved this book. Can't wait to read book #1. Definitely pick it up and read it. And don't forget to read the contributors' bios at the end - just as hilarious as the book itself!
cortjstr's review against another edition
4.0
When they first asked for submissions for this book they specifically said they didn't want repeats and retreads of the themes from the first book. I think they did a good job of choosing stories that covered new ground, some obvious (the prediction never changes but what if it did), some less so (Not Applicable). There was only one story I found myself liberally skimming through. I even read the one about zombies which is one of those subjects that's normally an automatic deal-breaker.
jrfbz's review against another edition
4.0
Once again, a great setting, but once again, each story is hit or miss. Ryan North's ode to HeLa is fantastic and compelling. David Malki's weird scifi thing is unfathomably stupid. (No, I will not encourage his exclamation point.) Repeat for the rest of the book.
Beautiful illustrations, and I loved the addition of the comics between chapters.
Beautiful illustrations, and I loved the addition of the comics between chapters.