Suicide in Tiny Increments: A Tragic Comedy

by Riya Anne Polcastro

The smartest decision Daniel Long ever made was to take a hit out on his own life.

Too scared to kill himself but also too scared to live, he is a sad, pathetic man; a miserable martyr of depression. A year after he was dumped by his self-centered alcoholic girlfriend, he still wallows in the hole she left behind. And, except for the cubicle that he spends forty hours a week in, Daniel rarely leaves the bare white walls that make up his apartment. Trapped in his self-made ennui, his only escape is to hire a hitman.

But when one of his few friends kills herself Daniel realizes the error of his ways. He tries to cancel the hit but in the process he offends his contracted killer. Now his impending death is personal and his life is about to get more exciting than he could have ever imagined.

Genres: Fiction

221 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 24, 2014

Reviews

[Rebecca Gransden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this was all kinds of fun. Suicide isn’t usually the starting point for a gamboling escapade that takes in full force insane frivolity amongst the deadest deadpan and derisive sniggers but it is the jumping off point we get. Here the tone is set early on with lots of technicolor violence and lashings of lowlife sex. Our characters exist in a fluid between world, leaping from a grey existence to one peppered with the obvious destinations for deprived senses. When the desperation to exit takes such a bizarre turn in the hiring of a hitman to carry out the final act then things are going to get weird.

But weird is just the start as things get crazy pretty quick. I suppose that can happen when you are trying to kill yourself via hitman. As we enter a vortex of mental it becomes clear that the compulsion to end a life through the ultimate twisted logic solution may have the potential to backfire. This book takes these extreme situations and adds the farcical, the repulsive and, at times, a real sense of pathos. These characters could’ve so easily been cartoonish but they are real flesh and blood, blood that sprays everywhere! As they run from one hapless and misjudged event to another it is a relief to be presented with the real world regrets and sadnesses of characters that are chaotically human. The relationships between the main characters are defined by everyday miscommunications that domino into unforeseen consequences, and when the stakes are this high trouble is an inevitability.

There are some genuinely touching reflections against the backdrop of people caught up in desperate lives, with razor sharp observations on the vagaries and confused rationales that human nature can come up with. This may make you laugh, it may make you cry, it will definitely make you wince, and probably heave. But in a good way.

[Joan Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

To be honest, I didn not really think this book would be that good,but once I started I couldn't put it down. Some of the characters could have been people I know. The book handled the subject of suicide in a serious yet at times humorous way. I received this book from Goodreads.

[Kayla Krantz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniel is depressed. Living the monotony of his day to day life, he yearns for love but doesn’t think he’ll ever find it. Though he lives, he doesn’t really feel alive. Until one day he makes a mistake that can’t be easily undone.

Even though Daniel was kind of an annoying MC in that he didn’t have much in the way of a personality, I think the way the author detailed depression was very well done. A lot of people live in the depressive monotony of their lives, and this book gives insight into what it’s like for people suffering through something similar.

As someone who has struggled with depression all their life, I could relate to Daniel even if I didn’t personally like his character. This book deals with a lot of difficult topics like that, but in a way that’s easier to digest. There are some laughs, here and there, but not many.

The narrator had a monotone drawl which in any other book would’ve been hard to listen to. In the case of this book though, I felt it was perfect because it mirrored Daniel’s depression in a way.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

[Booklover · Rating 5 out of 5]

The title and premise certainly caught my attention, for many reasons. I had never heard of this book nor the author and was pleasantly surprised at how funny it was. I really enjoyed it from start to finish and will look for more by this talented and funny author.

[Keith Nixon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Daniel Long lives a sad, lonely existence. So much so he decides to hire a hitman to end his miserable life because he’s not brave enough to do it himself. But then one of his friends kills herself and he realizes things aren’t as bad as he thinks. Unfortunately the hitman doesn’t agree…

I was drawn to this novel because of the interesting blurb and title. Unfortunately the contents didn’t quite match up.

Daniel has a dead end job and a minimal circle of friends. He’s attracted to Tina, but can’t seem to get close to her. His previous relationship was a mess – Cindi was bisexual and free with her body.

Then he finds the hitman, who happens (unknown to Daniel) to have a connection with him that later arises in the story – which is quite neat. Daniel decides he has to say goodbye to his few friends – including Jennifer. His news makes her commit suicide – she’s in love with him. When Daniel learns this after her death he decides he doesn’t want to die and hides at Tina’s house.

Then it all goes a bit haywire as Tina and Daniel turn the tables on the hitman and hunt him down.

It’s written in the present tense which gave the story a sense of urgency. However, some readers may struggle with this – I did. There are long stretches of life observations – in particular Daniel considering his ‘time’ with Cindi, often graphically.

None of the characters are particularly likable, which was probably the aim. Unfortunately this meant I couldn’t empathise with them and situations that were supposed to be amusing bordered on irritating. The conclusion is a similar affair – a ‘what the?!’ event. A somewhat frustrating read.

**Originally reviewed for Books & Pals blog.**

[Joshua Hair · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a Goodreads win. This was an interesting enough little book. The main character is a man both too afraid to kill himself yet too afraid to live. To combat the issue, he takes a hit out and hires an assassin to kill himself at an undisclosed time before eventually becoming paranoid of the idea. Unfortunately, his change of heart comes too late into the deal and he must face death around every corner. Structurally, the book is odd in that it's written in present tense, but under the circumstances I suppose this makes sense. There were a few grammatical or syntactical errors here and there, however, overall the editor cleaned it up quite well. It's a solid enough read for those who are curious; just don't expect it to blow you away.

[Chris Eells · Rating 1 out of 5]

I won this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy on the condition that I give a fair and unbiased review.

I get this was dark humor, but to keep a reader's interest one usually tries to provide something that will connect the reader to the main character. In this case, the only feelings that popped up were pity and disgust. Not feelings that tend to hook a reader. On the technical side, it seems well written.

[Nedermier · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise of this novel caught my eye and I enjoyed it for the most part. I thought the writing was solid, though I found the use of present tense awkward and because of that, it sometimes took me out of the story.

[Jamie Barringer (Ravenmount) · Rating 4 out of 5]

(I received my copy of this book free in exchange for a fair review, which is posted elsewhere.)

[Isaac Macfarlane · Rating 1 out of 5]

filth

This book is horrible. It seems like it was written to have shock value and any literary value. Definitely avoid this one.