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A review by resareads
After Death by Bentley Little, John Langan
4.0
This is the second anthology I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing edited by Eric Guignard, the first being Dark Tales and Lost Civilizations. While Guignard cannot take credit for the individual stories themselves as they’ve all been written by authors’ talented in their own right, the man knows how to put together an excellent anthology. Unlike his first anthology After Death includes stories that detail the multiple possibilities of what happens to the spirit after the body is dead (or in some cases what can happen to a recently deceased body as well). The stories vary from the entertaining, to the literary, to the bizarre so while not every story might be for you, there’s at least one story for everyone.
Some of the stand outs (and my personal favorites) include:
The Resurrection Policy by Lisa Morton which explores the possibility of paying for “after death” insurance, and the somewhat disturbing results of defaulting on your payments.
Sea of Trees by Edward M. Erdelac that’ll make you think twice before ever thinking twice about suicide, and will make you grateful for your ability to make changes in your life, and the opportunities being alive offers you.
The Devil’s Backbone by Larry Hodges detailing what happens when a bad person reformed gets sent to hell…with an ice cream truck.
Not all of these stories are excellent, and there were several I had to force myself to finish, but overall this anthology provides enough interesting tales to make it worth the effort. But, while not all of these stories kept me glued to my seat, they all give you something to think about. Who hasn’t thought, even briefly, about what happens to us when we die? Have you thought about where your recently departed loved ones are and whether or not they’ll meet you on the other side? To believe that a deity will be waiting to usher you into paradise (or the alternative…)? Or are you a non believer, who wants to know what science can do to keep our consciousness alive?
Whatever the questions you’ve asked yourself about life after death, this anthology provides you with a possible answer, whether or not it’s the answer you’re hoping for. There’s one thing this anthology is not, and that is a bunch of stories about creatures who survive after death. You will not find stories detailing the lives of vampires, zombies, mummies, or ghost. If there’s one thing all these stories have in common it’s that all of these characters, at least before their death, were human and these are the stories of what await us beyond.
Some of the stand outs (and my personal favorites) include:
The Resurrection Policy by Lisa Morton which explores the possibility of paying for “after death” insurance, and the somewhat disturbing results of defaulting on your payments.
Sea of Trees by Edward M. Erdelac that’ll make you think twice before ever thinking twice about suicide, and will make you grateful for your ability to make changes in your life, and the opportunities being alive offers you.
The Devil’s Backbone by Larry Hodges detailing what happens when a bad person reformed gets sent to hell…with an ice cream truck.
Not all of these stories are excellent, and there were several I had to force myself to finish, but overall this anthology provides enough interesting tales to make it worth the effort. But, while not all of these stories kept me glued to my seat, they all give you something to think about. Who hasn’t thought, even briefly, about what happens to us when we die? Have you thought about where your recently departed loved ones are and whether or not they’ll meet you on the other side? To believe that a deity will be waiting to usher you into paradise (or the alternative…)? Or are you a non believer, who wants to know what science can do to keep our consciousness alive?
Whatever the questions you’ve asked yourself about life after death, this anthology provides you with a possible answer, whether or not it’s the answer you’re hoping for. There’s one thing this anthology is not, and that is a bunch of stories about creatures who survive after death. You will not find stories detailing the lives of vampires, zombies, mummies, or ghost. If there’s one thing all these stories have in common it’s that all of these characters, at least before their death, were human and these are the stories of what await us beyond.