You Have Been Murdered and Other Stories by Andrew Kozma
You Have Been Murdered and Other Stories is a collection of weird, speculative fiction containing four stories dealing with the end of the world, both in terms of the death of the individual soul and the running down of the universe as a whole.
The title story presents a woman who’s been murdered and still has a dinner party to prepare for. In “Teller of Tales,” a young girl must take on the responsibility of being the necessary conscience of her city. “Breach of Contract” describes the plight of an oil man who just wants to insure production quotas, but is roped into saving the world. Lastly, “The Trouble-Men” details what happens when a man trying to survive the end of the world meets up with those who are ending it.
Purchase Link: Amazon.com
You Have Been Murdered and Other Stories on Goodreads
Review
*I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review *
Rating: 3 stars
You Have Been Murdered and Other Stories is a collection of four short and strange stories.
The first ‘You have been murdered’ is my favourite of the tales. It tells the story of a woman who has been murdered and tries to cover up this fact and her denial by still continuing to prepare for a dinner party that she had planned before her death. The author conveys her feelings regarding her death and her anxiety very well and you get a real sense of the pain and confusion that she is going through.
I enjoyed reading the other stories in the collection too, told through the eyes of a variety of different protagonists.
The collection is well-written and the author knows how to build plenty of atmosphere. The twists are surprising and unexpected. A great short read for fans of speculative fiction.
Shari Sakurai 