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vonderbash's review
4.0
This might be my favorite collection of short stories that I've read! I loved the variety and writing styles. R.L. Stine's story may have been my favorite, but I would give all the stories between 3 and 5 stars. Highly recommended!
jolierice99's review
3.0
Really great for non readers and fun stories but you can totally tell some are written by adults trying way too hard to seem like teenagers which is annoying but some are so so good so it all evens out in the end but fun!
hitbooksnotgirlz's review
4.0
Better than the last novel of horror themed shorts I read, but just not great. I liked some stories, and didn’t like others.
aprilalwayswithabook's review against another edition
2.0
Started strong but as the stories went on, I liked less and less of them.
broncoannee's review
“But Gramma was also crazier than a cat in a laser pointer factory.”
biblio_amy's review
4.0
I really enjoyed these short stories. Some more than others like usual, but they all have their own charm.
lovelymisanthrope's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I have had this book on my shelves for a few years and finally decided October was the perfect time to enjoy it.
"Life Is Short and Then You Die" is a collection of short stories that follows a myriad of different teenagers and their first exposures to murder. Some of the teens actually commit murder, while some are only a witness to a grizzly crime.
By far, my favorite story in this anthology was the first one. In the first story a girl realizes she has been murdered, and she quickly discovers her death was because of someone very close to her. The reader gets to follow her down a rabbit hole of remembering so that she can figure out who betrayed her and why. This was such an engaging story, and a great kick off for this type of anthology. Reading from the perspective of a ghost while they try to piece together their death was heartbreaking. I was so invested in figuring out what happened.
Most of the other stories I did not find nearly as captivating, but I had a fine time reading them. I think part of the problem for me was that a lot of the stories are very short, so as soon as I was getting interested in the story, it was over. It is a true skill to write something terse, but powerful. I would have much rather had a handful of short stories that were fleshed out more.
I did appreciate that this collection really encompassed all different angles of murder. As a reader, you can read from the perspective of a murderer and from the perspective of someone witnessing a murder. Each story is so unique and attempts to tackle a different angle of the crime of murder.
Overall, this was a fine read, and I recommend it to anyone looking to read a YA take on murder.
"Life Is Short and Then You Die" is a collection of short stories that follows a myriad of different teenagers and their first exposures to murder. Some of the teens actually commit murder, while some are only a witness to a grizzly crime.
By far, my favorite story in this anthology was the first one. In the first story a girl realizes she has been murdered, and she quickly discovers her death was because of someone very close to her. The reader gets to follow her down a rabbit hole of remembering so that she can figure out who betrayed her and why. This was such an engaging story, and a great kick off for this type of anthology. Reading from the perspective of a ghost while they try to piece together their death was heartbreaking. I was so invested in figuring out what happened.
Most of the other stories I did not find nearly as captivating, but I had a fine time reading them. I think part of the problem for me was that a lot of the stories are very short, so as soon as I was getting interested in the story, it was over. It is a true skill to write something terse, but powerful. I would have much rather had a handful of short stories that were fleshed out more.
I did appreciate that this collection really encompassed all different angles of murder. As a reader, you can read from the perspective of a murderer and from the perspective of someone witnessing a murder. Each story is so unique and attempts to tackle a different angle of the crime of murder.
Overall, this was a fine read, and I recommend it to anyone looking to read a YA take on murder.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Death, Grief, Toxic relationship, Child death, Murder, Violence, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Gore