Little Deaths All in a Row: Essays on Sex and Death

by Elizabeth Earley

“What do you think happens after we die?” has been Elizabeth Earley’s favorite conversation starter since the motorcycle accident that almost killed her. In Little Deaths All in a Essays on Sex and Death, Earley delves into memories of past lovers and offers vivid portraits of the hospice patients she has worked with after recovering from her own near-fatal injuries. Tracing the many connections—philosophical, scientific, ethical, and spiritual—between sex and death, these lyric essays ponder the afterlife, pain and pleasure, quantum entanglement and love, and the “strange and painful goodness of being alive.”

Genres: Essays

Audible Audio

Published November 17, 2025

About the author

Elizabeth Earley is the author of two novels, A Map of Everything, which was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award, and Like Wings, Your Hands, which won the Women's Prose Prize at Red Hen Press (judged by Aimee Bender). Earley holds a BA in Creative Writing and an MFA in Fiction from Antioch University Los Angeles. Her stories and essays have appeared in Glimmer Train, Time Out Magazine, The Chicago Reader, Geek Magazine, Outside Magazine, Gnome Magazine, Hyper Text Magazine, The Windy City Times, Hayden’s Ferry Review, The First Line Magazine, Fugue, Hair Trigger, Role/Reboot, Ms. Fit Magazine, Hoot, and other publications. Earley won the David Friedman Memorial Prize for fiction, was a finalist for the 2011 Able Muse Write Prize for Fiction and for the Bakeless Literary Prize for Fiction. She is also an editor at Jaded Ibis Press.

Reviews

[Nicole Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Little Deaths All in a Row reads like the diary of a scientist—a little nerdy, deeply poetic, and utterly unafraid to examine the rawest corners of intimacy, regret, and mortality. Earley isn’t fearless; she’s brave in the face of her fears, blending scientific inquiry with spiritual musings in a way that is both intellectually compelling and profoundly human. Collaborating on the 17 illustrations for this book over the past year was an incredible journey, and I’m honored to have contributed to such an honest and luminous work.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the very first paragraph, this book drew me in completely. I had no idea what to expect, but the author’s storytelling immediately made me feel welcomed into her world. It was as if she reached out and invited me on an unforgettable journey—a testament to truly exceptional writing. Bravo! It is refreshing to encounter a book that not only captivates but also reminds us of the beauty of well-crafted prose. I met her at the feminist bookstore and got a signed copy of her book. Thank you truly 💛

[Wayne Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I mean, first of all, that cover by Nicole Roberts; those lovely illustrations throughout the text. What an entry to this collection of homilies on sex and death, which are much more connected that one would think before communing with this author.

Earley is elegant, insightful writer, equally steeped in art and science. There's a deep, fearless honesty here that will move you.

Thanks to Jaded Ibis for the review copy at AWP!