
This Is How You Die
Stories of the Inscrutable, Infallible, Inescapable Machine of Death
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
3 months free
Buy for $28.79
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
If a machine could predict how you would die, would you want to know? This is the tantalizing premise of This Is How You Die, the brilliant follow-up anthology to the self-published best seller, Machine of Death.
The machines started popping up around the world. The offer was tempting: with a simple blood test, anyone could know how they would die. But the machines didn't give dates or specific circumstances - just a single word or phrase. Drowned, cancer, old age, choked on a handful of popcorn. And though the predictions were always accurate, they were also often frustratingly vague.
Old age, it turned out, could mean either dying of natural causes, or being shot by an elderly, bedridden man in a botched home invasion. The machines held onto that old-world sense of irony in death: you can know how it's going to happen, but you'll still be surprised when it does. This addictive anthology - sinister, witty, existential, and fascinating - collects the best of the thousands of story submissions the editors received in the wake of the success of the first volume, and exceeds the first in every way.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.
©2013 Matthew Bennardo, David Malki, Ryan North (P)2013 Hachette AudioListeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
"Machine of Death is a marvelous collection, riddled with intelligence, creative reach, and a frankness that makes the best use of the central gimmick." (The Onion A.V. Club)
"Recalls the best writings of Harlan Ellison and Charles Beaumont...Machine of Death brought me laughs, terror and tears.... Highly recommended." (Paradox Magazine)
Failed to keep my interest
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Naturally, there are a number of logical, philosophical, and moral implications that can arise from the premise, and the various authors get pretty creative in exploring them. How would you act if you knew your death? What if your friends or family knew? What if your government knew? A few pieces are set in the present day, but the genres of most of the others run the gamut from sci-fi to dystopian to fantasy to zombie horror to time travel to Sherlock Holmes. There's even a choose-your-own-adventure. The most interesting ones, for my money, tend to weave in some other issue.
The tone of the stories ranges a lot as well. Some are witty, some are serious, some dark, some absurd, some poignant, some melancholy, and some cryptic. Some feature better writing than others, but there was a good deal of talent and imagination on display. Similarly, the various audiobook readers range from competent-but-unremarkable to skilled. I particularly enjoyed the voices done by the guy who narrated the story told from the point of view of an orc.
In sum, a collection I could recommend to any adult who enjoys creative short fiction (I say "adult" because of some profanity and a few grown-up topics). I would note that this is the followup to any earlier anthology, called Machine of Death. I haven't read that one, but the grapevine (well, the Internet) says that this is the more inventive of the two.
Fate Inescapable
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I really like a handful of them but almost all were at least good. The amount of directions and potential uses for knowing of your death is amazing and he world building each other did with the concept is impressive.
Like 30+ stories and most were at least good, some very special. Worth your time.
If you like the show Black Mirror
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Soooo Good!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
in my opinion, both the editors of the book and the narration have failed.
their are good stories and 'not worth your time' stories.
and the same thing for the narration, their is good productions and narrators and their are some that are just ruined the stories.
I did finished listening to this collection, but in some parts it was just waiting for the next story.
heterogeneous quality
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Almost speechless...
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I previously have ready the original Machine of death book and this is a very different set of stories so it isn’t just a rehash of the same material :)
Machine of death
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Seriously was amazed with what was done with this premise and the different type of stories that were told.
This was great junk food in that the stories being so short and sweet really satisfied that need for quick and instant entertainment. Nothing was particularly so outstanding that I'll remember forever but that's ok because I did totally still get enjoyment out of this. My particular favorites were the 10th and 11th story.
Good junk food read for short and rapid fun
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Some are great, some are "meh"
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Not my cup of tea
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.