The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
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
lissysadventures's review against another edition
Anthology, so a variety of ratings and tws.
brandinh's review against another edition
4.0
There are a few standouts in this anthology featuring short stories centered around murder. Many genres are represented and some diversity is included - notably the hero with ADHD in A Different Hero’s Day.
Floater by Kelley Armstrong ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Day I Killed Coach Duffy by R.L. Stine ⭐️⭐️⭐️
In Plain Sight by Y.S. Lee ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Daddy’s Girl by Melissa Marr ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Summer Job by Amanda Witt ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Boy in the Red Vans by Rachel Vincent ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Company I Keep by Jeff Somers ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Concealment by Eileen Rendahl ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Night of the Living Dog by David Bart ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Murder IRL by Jeff Soloway ⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Killer Story by Julie Tollefson ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Gnat by Joseph S. Walker ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Different Hero’s Day by Anthony Franze and Barry Lancet ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
First Party Back by Emmy Laybourne ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
What I Did on My Summer Vacation by Jonathan Maberry ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Things We Don’t Talk About by Stephen Ross ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Enemy Lines by Caleb Roehrig ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Six Ways to Kill Your Grandmother by Barry Lyga ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Floater by Kelley Armstrong ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Day I Killed Coach Duffy by R.L. Stine ⭐️⭐️⭐️
In Plain Sight by Y.S. Lee ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Daddy’s Girl by Melissa Marr ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Summer Job by Amanda Witt ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Boy in the Red Vans by Rachel Vincent ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Company I Keep by Jeff Somers ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Concealment by Eileen Rendahl ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Night of the Living Dog by David Bart ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Murder IRL by Jeff Soloway ⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Killer Story by Julie Tollefson ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Gnat by Joseph S. Walker ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Different Hero’s Day by Anthony Franze and Barry Lancet ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
First Party Back by Emmy Laybourne ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
What I Did on My Summer Vacation by Jonathan Maberry ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Things We Don’t Talk About by Stephen Ross ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Enemy Lines by Caleb Roehrig ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Six Ways to Kill Your Grandmother by Barry Lyga ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
b10tch's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
4.0
Some of the stories were not good but most were (at differing levels).
Best stories I’d give five stars, worst probably two to three.
Overall it was enjoyable.
Best stories I’d give five stars, worst probably two to three.
Overall it was enjoyable.
kitkat1225's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
jlaz_13's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Grief
Moderate: Car accident, Violence, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Confinement, Death of parent, and Blood
Minor: Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Dementia, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Toxic friendship
nylee's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
2.75
zoemig's review against another edition
2.0
I don't read a lot of short story collections, it's just not my favourite genre, but Kelley Armstrong is absolutely one of my favourite authors so when she edits a collection--which includes a story from her--I'm definitely going to have to make an exception. Life is Short and Then You Die: Mystery Writers of America Presents: First Encounters with Murder includes stories from 18 different authors, most of whom I hadn't read from before, but there are some familiar names such as Armstrong, Melissa Marr, R. L. Stine, and Emmy Laybourne.
I'm definitely not going to review every story in the collection but I will say that unfortunately my favourite was Armstrong's, which starts off the book, and then meant everything afterwards was somewhat disappointing. In "Floater" a teen girl see a body found floating in the water and works to figure out what happened. It was really well-written, and had a lot of character depth for such a short story, and just continues to remind me why I love Armstrong's writing so much. The second story, "The Day I Killed Coach Duffy", was by Stine, and it was weird but still wonderful. I also liked "The Boy In the Red Vans" by Rachel Vincent, which had a fun (albeit predictable) twist. Unfortunately, the majority of the stories were brief, expected, and felt pretty repetitive. I did think there would be more mystery in a collection about murders. If you like short story collections you might enjoy this more than I did, but despite liking some of the stories Life is Short and Then You Die the only author whose full works it left me wanting to pick up was Armstrong's--and I was going to do that regardless.
I'm definitely not going to review every story in the collection but I will say that unfortunately my favourite was Armstrong's, which starts off the book, and then meant everything afterwards was somewhat disappointing. In "Floater" a teen girl see a body found floating in the water and works to figure out what happened. It was really well-written, and had a lot of character depth for such a short story, and just continues to remind me why I love Armstrong's writing so much. The second story, "The Day I Killed Coach Duffy", was by Stine, and it was weird but still wonderful. I also liked "The Boy In the Red Vans" by Rachel Vincent, which had a fun (albeit predictable) twist. Unfortunately, the majority of the stories were brief, expected, and felt pretty repetitive. I did think there would be more mystery in a collection about murders. If you like short story collections you might enjoy this more than I did, but despite liking some of the stories Life is Short and Then You Die the only author whose full works it left me wanting to pick up was Armstrong's--and I was going to do that regardless.