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The Business of Death
Life is tough at the top when work is a matter of life or death.
It's one thing to run Mortmax International as head of a team, but it's quite another to rule alone. Staff fatalities have left Steven by himself on the Throne of Death, and there's no time to get comfortable. The Stirrer god's arrival is imminent, threatening life as we know it. Plus Steven has managed to mortally offend the only ally strong enough to help out.
And how can he ask someone to marry him when the End of Days seems inevitable? As if they're going to think he's committed. The portents don't look good as a comet burns vast and looming in the sky and Steven can almost hear a dark clock ticking. He will have to play nice if he wants his ally back, and must address the madness of the Hungry Death within himself if he even has a chance at defeating the Stirrer god.
If he fails, Hell and Earth are doomed and wedding bells will be quite out of the question.
It's one thing to run Mortmax International as head of a team, but it's quite another to rule alone. Staff fatalities have left Steven by himself on the Throne of Death, and there's no time to get comfortable. The Stirrer god's arrival is imminent, threatening life as we know it. Plus Steven has managed to mortally offend the only ally strong enough to help out.
And how can he ask someone to marry him when the End of Days seems inevitable? As if they're going to think he's committed. The portents don't look good as a comet burns vast and looming in the sky and Steven can almost hear a dark clock ticking. He will have to play nice if he wants his ally back, and must address the madness of the Hungry Death within himself if he even has a chance at defeating the Stirrer god.
If he fails, Hell and Earth are doomed and wedding bells will be quite out of the question.
225 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 21, 2014
1 person is currently reading
84 people want to read
About the author
Trent Jamieson
49 books216 followersTrent Jamieson is a science fiction and fantasy writer.
Trent works as a teacher, a bookseller, and a writer, and has taught at Clarion South.
Trent works as a teacher, a bookseller, and a writer, and has taught at Clarion South.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 19, 2020
Actual rating 3.75 stars.
This was the cinematic ending (sort-of) I had been anticipating. I say sort-of because, though touted as a trilogy, there is a forth novella in this series, which supposedly re-boots the Mortmax universe. Leaving the series open for more possible sequels, or just concluding with a more open-ended and hopeful tone. The ending of ‘The Business of Death’ concluded with a PERIODT. It’s very final. Very satisfying in a romantic sort of way if you follow the tone set throughout the series, it makes sense. But I can see some readers not getting the sayonara they wanted.
In this instalment, Steven de Selby has gotten another promotion to Orcus as the managing directors of the worlds regional chapters of Pomps (grims) committed suicide, and transferring their collective power to Steven so he would stand a chance in fighting off a war of the coming Stirrer god. A god. One who rules over the dead, who is forcing an apocalypse and plans to decimate and take over the Earth.
There is all the sarcastic wit I’ve come to love from this series. I liken it to the Buffy franchise with the dark comedic tone. There were a few elements that held me back from truly getting sucked into the narrative this time around however: the first half of the novel is clunky. It didn’t have that flow, which made it feel like the plot was floundering even though it wasn’t. Because of this the pacing was patchy and I put the book down a lot. When things start to get really interesting in the second half the plot is magnificent, though I was pulled from the narrative again with really short and consecutive chapters. It was almost like Trent Jamieson really struggled in writing this conclusion. But that is the worst of it – some pacing and formatting issues. Jamieson’s writing is a pleasure to read, he can weave a great plot, surprise you, make you holler and laugh, and craft appealing and flawed characters, all wrapped up in Australiana – set in and around Brisbane (where I currently reside.) So the story strongly resonated with me, and I was so proud to have this calibre of writing come from my home town.
I was surprised to see even more character development from Steven as a main character, drying out from his alcohol addiction, facing death at least four times with consternation. He wasn’t this confident hero, blustering with bravado, Steven is a normal man, out of his depth, floundering for a victory with nothing but his determination. I really loved this trait and had me rooting for the underdog all the way through this series. I feel like we have an undervalued writer and under-hyped series on our hands. I’d really like to see this collection get more exposure internationally. A strong recommendation from me.
This was the cinematic ending (sort-of) I had been anticipating. I say sort-of because, though touted as a trilogy, there is a forth novella in this series, which supposedly re-boots the Mortmax universe. Leaving the series open for more possible sequels, or just concluding with a more open-ended and hopeful tone. The ending of ‘The Business of Death’ concluded with a PERIODT. It’s very final. Very satisfying in a romantic sort of way if you follow the tone set throughout the series, it makes sense. But I can see some readers not getting the sayonara they wanted.
In this instalment, Steven de Selby has gotten another promotion to Orcus as the managing directors of the worlds regional chapters of Pomps (grims) committed suicide, and transferring their collective power to Steven so he would stand a chance in fighting off a war of the coming Stirrer god. A god. One who rules over the dead, who is forcing an apocalypse and plans to decimate and take over the Earth.
There is all the sarcastic wit I’ve come to love from this series. I liken it to the Buffy franchise with the dark comedic tone. There were a few elements that held me back from truly getting sucked into the narrative this time around however: the first half of the novel is clunky. It didn’t have that flow, which made it feel like the plot was floundering even though it wasn’t. Because of this the pacing was patchy and I put the book down a lot. When things start to get really interesting in the second half the plot is magnificent, though I was pulled from the narrative again with really short and consecutive chapters. It was almost like Trent Jamieson really struggled in writing this conclusion. But that is the worst of it – some pacing and formatting issues. Jamieson’s writing is a pleasure to read, he can weave a great plot, surprise you, make you holler and laugh, and craft appealing and flawed characters, all wrapped up in Australiana – set in and around Brisbane (where I currently reside.) So the story strongly resonated with me, and I was so proud to have this calibre of writing come from my home town.
I was surprised to see even more character development from Steven as a main character, drying out from his alcohol addiction, facing death at least four times with consternation. He wasn’t this confident hero, blustering with bravado, Steven is a normal man, out of his depth, floundering for a victory with nothing but his determination. I really loved this trait and had me rooting for the underdog all the way through this series. I feel like we have an undervalued writer and under-hyped series on our hands. I’d really like to see this collection get more exposure internationally. A strong recommendation from me.
May 20, 2024
A brilliant modern fantasy trilogy, set in an alternative contemporary Brisbane (Australia) where a corporation is responsible for safely ensuring the passage of dead souls to the afterlife. The plot describes what happens when a hostile corporate takeover takes place, and the results are weirder and more brutal than the reader could possibly predict. This was a fantastic read, and one I'd recommend to anyone who loves modern urban fantasy, particularly the darker stuff.
July 6, 2022
And here we have the third in the trillogy.
I did really enjoy this one, it is most certainly, a third book and under no circumstances, do I believe it would work for someone who has not read all three so I strongly recommend getting the trilogy as one. This one here; https://www.goodreads.com/review/edit...
There were some good things, some bad ones and some great ones about this book. The author is a Brisbane author, and as with the first two, I loved the setting and the use of the city of Brissie. The headquarters of the Regional Death being on George st? That will never grow old for most Brisbane residents. The Queen street mall getting torn apart is something I wish I could one day see on film. These books could make a great series.
I think the third one was an able finish to the series and had a great ending. Though, similarly to the second book, there was a bit of a lull in the plot around the half way mark, during which it was hard to hold my attention to what was occurring.
Everything else I have to say is spoilers so don't read on unless you have already read it. Morrigan coming back to be the bad guy... AGAIN? Not sure about that, it was amazingly predictable and I guess I can see why the author went with that. Morrigan made a great villain in the first book, but I struggled to believe in the villain of the second one, so Morrigan reanimated did make a kind of sense. And I did totally love the notion of the ink sparrows caught in a book bringing him back - could have done with more of an explanation there TBH.
Steven did develop a fair bit in this one, I liked that, but I am not sure that I liked how badly the secondary characters receded. Lisa for example, a VERY important character, became a bit cardboard cut-out, because there was so little interaction with her.
The Death of the water... what a marvellous character and realm! Aquaman, move aside for a real star. I could absolutly seen more of that theme and I was astonished when De Selby did not hand Morrigan's book into HIS keeping, because that would have made a whole heap of sense.
And speaking of the Death of the Water; that ending... It was strange, surprising and ultimately felt final. Not sure that Stephen can't be resurrected from it, but I do get the sense that he is not meant to be. I like an ending with conviction.
I would have liked to see Stephen developing more, I think as a character he had a lot of potential that he never actually grew into and I did find that just a little sad. Still, a very satisfying ending to a really special trilogy.
I did really enjoy this one, it is most certainly, a third book and under no circumstances, do I believe it would work for someone who has not read all three so I strongly recommend getting the trilogy as one. This one here; https://www.goodreads.com/review/edit...
There were some good things, some bad ones and some great ones about this book. The author is a Brisbane author, and as with the first two, I loved the setting and the use of the city of Brissie. The headquarters of the Regional Death being on George st? That will never grow old for most Brisbane residents. The Queen street mall getting torn apart is something I wish I could one day see on film. These books could make a great series.
I think the third one was an able finish to the series and had a great ending. Though, similarly to the second book, there was a bit of a lull in the plot around the half way mark, during which it was hard to hold my attention to what was occurring.
Everything else I have to say is spoilers so don't read on unless you have already read it. Morrigan coming back to be the bad guy... AGAIN? Not sure about that, it was amazingly predictable and I guess I can see why the author went with that. Morrigan made a great villain in the first book, but I struggled to believe in the villain of the second one, so Morrigan reanimated did make a kind of sense. And I did totally love the notion of the ink sparrows caught in a book bringing him back - could have done with more of an explanation there TBH.
Steven did develop a fair bit in this one, I liked that, but I am not sure that I liked how badly the secondary characters receded. Lisa for example, a VERY important character, became a bit cardboard cut-out, because there was so little interaction with her.
The Death of the water... what a marvellous character and realm! Aquaman, move aside for a real star. I could absolutly seen more of that theme and I was astonished when De Selby did not hand Morrigan's book into HIS keeping, because that would have made a whole heap of sense.
And speaking of the Death of the Water; that ending... It was strange, surprising and ultimately felt final. Not sure that Stephen can't be resurrected from it, but I do get the sense that he is not meant to be. I like an ending with conviction.
I would have liked to see Stephen developing more, I think as a character he had a lot of potential that he never actually grew into and I did find that just a little sad. Still, a very satisfying ending to a really special trilogy.
September 11, 2019
Typical Selby to leave the matter of proposing to his girl friend -- whom he brought back from the underworld BTW -- until the last moment. The world is about to end, a new god is rising, those creepy soul-sucking stirrers are rising to the surface and Selby keeps delaying. Then he goes and sacrifices himself to save the world and leaves Lisa with a piece of Hungry Death in her. I could see the underworld clearly as I read because that is how good the author is at descriptions. Even though, the ending dragged a bit, I liked this book!
Original take on Reapers and the Death Business by an Australian author in an authentic voice of the character. Small series and not-too thick books that are full of action. Read it!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 10, 2017
A solid improvement on the first two. I definitely recommend the series to those who are keen for a bit of badassery and head-thumping. Deep thinkers need not apply.
August 29, 2021
The third in the series, this book shows that Steven has grown into his role as Death and takes on saving the world. I enjoyed the trilogy.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews