Being Dead

by Richard Leise

I don't know if I'd pin one genre label to Rich's writing. His work is daring and inventive literary fiction, with mainstream appeal. His tone is introspective, mysterious, beguiling, dark, humorous, composed, yet provocative.—John McManus, Whiting Award Recipient and Author of Fox Tooth HeartLike that of Don DeLillo or Joy Williams, the work of Richard Leise hums with mystery and an almost cosmic kind of power. With a sincerity rarely found in contemporary literature, Leise explores the mysteries of the human experience in an increasingly uncanny world. He does this in exquisitely crafted, winding sentences that can encompass whole lives or spiral into the deepest moments of personal revelation. This is writing that lets the numinous shine through the seams of the everyday, writing that reveals to us secrets we never knew we had.—Kent Wascom, Author of The New InheritorsThe story of a girl begins with a boy. On Christmas morning, 1982, nine-year-old Jude Bendz survives the shocking and mysterious death of his twin sister, Mary. Bewildered by grief, he is comforted when, miraculously, Mary’s ghost appears, her spirit quickly informing a series of fantastic apparitions through which her life – and death – come into clearer focus. Problems soon arise, however, when his sister, promising salvation, places him at the center of a wide, yet narrowing plot that increasingly puts his life in mortal danger.A novel that transcends its historical moment, Being Dead brilliantly subverts the conventions of the traditional Ghost story. Reconstructing her own death through a series of spooky visitations and cryptic clues that, in time, seem to assume the shape of formal challenges, Mary creates for Jude a blueprint that blurs the line between truth and revenge, love and hate, an account that threatens to shatter their family’s perfect image.Luminous, evocative, and set amidst the decline of American exceptionalism and the nuclear family, this is at once an enthralling adventure, a stirring love story, and a work of striking power in the face of stark solitude. As Mary interweaves elements of a set past that portends a harrowing future, life rears up large and ripples against death’s certain pressures, generating mesmerizing suspense and surprising empathy. Yielding poignant insights into the nature of love and loss, savagery and splendor, Being Dead asserts itself as a new American gothic—hugely powerful, majestically unassuming, and keenly unsettling.

225 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 19, 2023

About the author

Richard writes and teaches outside Ithaca, NY. A Perry Morgan Fellow from Old Dominion University's MFA program, and recipient of the David Scott Sutelan Memorial Scholarship, his critically acclaimed debut novel, Being Dead, was published fall, 2023, and is available where books are sold. His short story, Of Ducks, was selected for 2025’s Best Microfiction Anthology. His award-winning second novel, Dry The Rain, was published October, 2027. His follow-up, DYING MAN IN LIVING ROOM, is forthcoming from ELJ Editions (January, 2027). A three-year Teacher of the Year recipient, he is @coy_harlingen on Twitter.

Reviews

[Megin (sharing_my_shelves)]

An overbearing mother, an untimely death, a spirit that lingers, and the boy caught in the midst of it all. This is a thought-provoking tale of grief and loss that is generously touched by spine tingling imagery.

I felt the read had much to offer and was completely drawn in by the first half. The premise was uber intriguing, and I was thoroughly enjoying the dynamic of the siblings. The second half, however, I found myself drifting...and often. While parts were utterly engrossing, others wandered far off the mark. I'd find myself pages in, lost, and wondering what I just read. I don't know if the disconnect was mine, but the book fell apart for me.

Final thoughts? Interesting narrative with vivid imagination, yet left me feeling messy and muddled.

A heartfelt thanks to both the author and publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced digital copy. I am voluntarily leaving my thoughts of that experience.

[Kelly]

I received an advance review copy for free,and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I did find this quite an eerie, chilling story. From the beginning, I was interested in the characters. I did find some of the themes quite dark, but that didn't deter me from reading - I was actually quite gripped by it. It was light enough for me to read in one sitting too.

Thank you to Booksprout and the author for a free copy to review.

[Victoria]

This was a great spooky story. It is told in a unique way and is unlike any other ghost story I've read which was a really pleasant surprise. I would recommend this! Special Thank You to Richard Leise, Brigid's Gate Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Donna]

If you're looking for a thriller that will keep you up all night, look no further. This one had me glued to the pages until dawn

[Rowan Creech]

This book was a maelstrom of grief, loss, and the paranormal. It was a book that kept you glued page to page because you just get so entrenched with the characters and the story. I really enjoyed it.

[Horror Reads]

I loved the concept of this book. A little boy who speaks to his dead sister after being accidentally "murdered" by their mother. It's a great premise for a horror novel and, for the most part, it works.

I loved the relationship between the siblings. It was heartfelt, sweet at times, and definitely more than a bit creepy at other times. The messages the dead sister gives to her brother are sometimes cryptic and confusing to him.

I also thought the other characters were well written and really enhanced the overall arc of the story. From the parents to the priest to the secretary at the church, they all add something to the narrative.

My only issue is the somewhat overbearing descriptions of everything. I mean EVERYTHING. While descriptions are necessary to set a tone or to allow readers to have a visual of the surroundings, these just went on for far too long for my tastes and would, at times, take me out of the book. I basically skimmed entire sections because they had a lot of detailed philosophical thoughts but they didn't really enhance or advance the main narrative. In my own personal opinion, this book would have been much tighter with some editing and "kill your darlings" mentality.

But, overall, the main story was solid, creepy, and made you want to keep reading to find out what was going to happen. There's a lot of great stuff in here and I would recommend it if you don't mind excessive details.

[Wyatt Brower]

Leise is one of the best wordsmiths I have had the pleasure of reading, and his skill with prose is phenomenal throughout the novel.

Growing up as a twin in Upstate New York, this book felt, in a weird way, written for me, and every chapter seemed to only prove that suspicion. Leise's take on the experience of loss, and what happens after death was familiar, yet brand new, and he throws us masterfully into a situation none of us would ever hope to endure.

The characters are profoundly human, even the ones you find yourself despising, and the plot was so well-paced and constructed that I found myself unable to put the book down.

An absolutely amazing experience, leaving me unbelievably excited for more projects!

[Kyann]

Raw, heartbreaking, with an ending that left my jaw on the floor and ice picks in my spine. An eerily accurate dance with grief. A narcissistic, overzealous, and simply atrocious mother and an aloof father, our main character lost the only confidant he had. A brutal freak accident or something far more sinister? The entire storyline has questions begging for answers with no way of knowing what to believe. Leise brings the reader into an unhinged, haunting atmosphere and he does it so well!

[Arthur Morrill III]

“Being Dead,” by Richard Leise (ISBN: 9781957537788), Publication Date: 19 September 2023, ears five stars.

An enthralling read…complex yet straightforward, full of twists and turns, and incisively written. A perfect length to read it straight through, which I did…it held me from the first page and didn’t let me go until the last. I’m still pondering what it revealed and the implications.