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Memoirs of (The-Not-So) Grim Reaper: Who says Death doesn't have a sense of humor!
Robert Angus Dunbar, was born Mamagal (the boatman) in ancient Sumeria - 3017 B.C. The 2nd Reaper of the gods shares some of his life, memories and reaping of souls in a sarcastic, combative and foul-mouthed way. You will meet the original Reaper as the story of his becoming the Reaper is shared. The modern story begins in Springfield, where the Reaper, preparing to collect the soul of a local doctor, meets young Jonathan Winchester, a mortal with the ability to see the gods the Reaper serves. The Reaper takes a shine to the homeless teen and a unique friendship is born. The question Will it last, or is it doomed from the start. The first person narrative involves the reader along the way - in a sort of "Dead Pool" fashion with asides and comments. The journey leads to a day of reckoning for the Reaper when he must deal with the inevitable consequences of revealing his true nature to a mortal. You will laugh, and perhaps even shed a tear as this tales nears it's conclusion. Come along for the ride - hear what the Reaper has to say about the gods and "The Big Guy", as he seeks a way out of his folly.
213 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 17, 2018
18 people are currently reading
379 people want to read
About the author
Robert Ullrich
17 books89 followersRobert Ullrich
Born in Marshall, Minnesota,
October 30, 1953
Third of six sons of Ron and Jeri Ullrich.
Served in the USAF during the Vietnam War
My desire to become a writer was a direct result of my father’s influence, though he didn’t know it. He was a voracious reader, to say the least. When I approached him at the age of 8 or 9 for something to read, (wanting to be like dad, you know), He handed me Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs. I read almost all of them in the next two years.
When I finished the Tarzan series, he handed me a Louis Lamour western, I believe it was titled the First Fast Draw. I consumed all his Lamour’s in less than a year. Next was Earl Stanley Gardner and Perry Mason. The seeds for crime fiction were well planted by Mr. Gardner.
As a young teen I began to branch out on my own. I discovered Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings at thirteen. I read all three in less than a week, safely ensconced in our formal living room. It was the sanctuary in our home. No one could talk, or hassle one of his brothers, and I took full advantage.
Throughout the years I cannot even begin to count to number of novels I’ve read. In time, my favorites became Stephen King, James Clavell, James Michener, T.H. White, Anne Ric, John Sanford, Herman Wouk, Tolstoy and Dickens. It wasn’t until after writing my first novel, “Evolution of a Killer” that I heard of Lee Child. The very first review likened my main character, Lazarus Solaris to Lee Child’s Jack Reacher. I sort of panicked. (Fears of unintentional plagiarism or mimicking someone else’s MC would have forced me to pull my novel). Fortunately, though there are some similarities, their characters are nothing alike.
John Sanford’s Prey Series was my inspiration for the Lazarus Chronicles. I have read almost everything written by Mr. Sanford. I was fascinated by the continuity of his MC, Lucas Davenport. All the novels stand alone, but are also interconnected, as well as the Virgil (That effing) Flowers series.
My first publication was of poetry and musings, “Life and Death in a Single Breath” in 2016. I have been writing poetry for decades, and still do. I never intended to publish. My mother changed that when she asked me to promise I would share my work before she passed in 2010. I still don’t know if I am a good poet, or writer for that matter; simply because I am very hard on myself. I have received letters and emails from all over the world how one of my poems touched someone’s heart. That is good enough for me. If I touched only one person, and gave them hope, inspiration, comfort or encouragement I can ask for no better judgement as a poet.
The same has happened with my novels. I have been humbled by some of the reviews, and letters I’ve received. When I wrote “Evolution”, and my wife can bear witness, I simply hoped it didn’t suck. It didn’t. No, it’s not a literary masterpiece, but it ain’t bad from what the readers tell me.
The second of the Lazarus Chronicles, “Family Matters” did even better than Evolution at release, thanks to the readers base and fans I have now. I am presently on the first draft of the third installment, “Rogue Assassin.” It is scheduled for April 15th release, (my schedule anyway). I’ve also received input from some of my fans (and friends) to write faster. I take that as a compliment, but I must remind them I have a full-time job and am rebuilding life with my wife in Wisconsin after losing our home in Rockport, Texas – the setting for Evolution of a Killer – to Hurricane Harvey. It set me back 6 months on Family Matters as I worked on salvaging what I could and moving it to Wisconsin.
My personal favorite I’ve written is “Memoirs of the (not-so) Grim Reaper.” The reviews have been all over the board. One reader snort-laughed coffee, another had to work through the “cuss-words”, another skipped the middle and one just flat quit reading it 37% of the way in. All in all, the ratings have been good, and yes, there is a moral to th
Born in Marshall, Minnesota,
October 30, 1953
Third of six sons of Ron and Jeri Ullrich.
Served in the USAF during the Vietnam War
My desire to become a writer was a direct result of my father’s influence, though he didn’t know it. He was a voracious reader, to say the least. When I approached him at the age of 8 or 9 for something to read, (wanting to be like dad, you know), He handed me Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs. I read almost all of them in the next two years.
When I finished the Tarzan series, he handed me a Louis Lamour western, I believe it was titled the First Fast Draw. I consumed all his Lamour’s in less than a year. Next was Earl Stanley Gardner and Perry Mason. The seeds for crime fiction were well planted by Mr. Gardner.
As a young teen I began to branch out on my own. I discovered Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings at thirteen. I read all three in less than a week, safely ensconced in our formal living room. It was the sanctuary in our home. No one could talk, or hassle one of his brothers, and I took full advantage.
Throughout the years I cannot even begin to count to number of novels I’ve read. In time, my favorites became Stephen King, James Clavell, James Michener, T.H. White, Anne Ric, John Sanford, Herman Wouk, Tolstoy and Dickens. It wasn’t until after writing my first novel, “Evolution of a Killer” that I heard of Lee Child. The very first review likened my main character, Lazarus Solaris to Lee Child’s Jack Reacher. I sort of panicked. (Fears of unintentional plagiarism or mimicking someone else’s MC would have forced me to pull my novel). Fortunately, though there are some similarities, their characters are nothing alike.
John Sanford’s Prey Series was my inspiration for the Lazarus Chronicles. I have read almost everything written by Mr. Sanford. I was fascinated by the continuity of his MC, Lucas Davenport. All the novels stand alone, but are also interconnected, as well as the Virgil (That effing) Flowers series.
My first publication was of poetry and musings, “Life and Death in a Single Breath” in 2016. I have been writing poetry for decades, and still do. I never intended to publish. My mother changed that when she asked me to promise I would share my work before she passed in 2010. I still don’t know if I am a good poet, or writer for that matter; simply because I am very hard on myself. I have received letters and emails from all over the world how one of my poems touched someone’s heart. That is good enough for me. If I touched only one person, and gave them hope, inspiration, comfort or encouragement I can ask for no better judgement as a poet.
The same has happened with my novels. I have been humbled by some of the reviews, and letters I’ve received. When I wrote “Evolution”, and my wife can bear witness, I simply hoped it didn’t suck. It didn’t. No, it’s not a literary masterpiece, but it ain’t bad from what the readers tell me.
The second of the Lazarus Chronicles, “Family Matters” did even better than Evolution at release, thanks to the readers base and fans I have now. I am presently on the first draft of the third installment, “Rogue Assassin.” It is scheduled for April 15th release, (my schedule anyway). I’ve also received input from some of my fans (and friends) to write faster. I take that as a compliment, but I must remind them I have a full-time job and am rebuilding life with my wife in Wisconsin after losing our home in Rockport, Texas – the setting for Evolution of a Killer – to Hurricane Harvey. It set me back 6 months on Family Matters as I worked on salvaging what I could and moving it to Wisconsin.
My personal favorite I’ve written is “Memoirs of the (not-so) Grim Reaper.” The reviews have been all over the board. One reader snort-laughed coffee, another had to work through the “cuss-words”, another skipped the middle and one just flat quit reading it 37% of the way in. All in all, the ratings have been good, and yes, there is a moral to th
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
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April 11, 2023https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07G4FXSJS My new release is currently No. 1 in Religious Graphic Novels! It's a small genre but it's a first for me
October 25, 2020
This one sounded like a great idea for humour in Horror, but the amount of casual swearing in the narrative made the characters sound unintelligent and I quickly lost interest.
The idea itself had potential. Stories from the point of view of the Grim Reaper have a lot of scope and this one had him taking an interest in a geeky boy. Loads of fodder for an amusing story, but the delivery just didn't hold up.
The idea itself had potential. Stories from the point of view of the Grim Reaper have a lot of scope and this one had him taking an interest in a geeky boy. Loads of fodder for an amusing story, but the delivery just didn't hold up.
September 9, 2023
I could sum up my feelings for this book with fwo letters: OK
I liked the concept of all the Gods,( Jesus, Allah, Thor, Aries, etc) being involved with the cosmic balance of the universe but the rest of the story was just "Meh' The reaper seemed to be an annoying ass and the plot had a hard time holding my interest overall. Plus there seemed to be a lot of fuck bombs that I'm just in place for the sake of using fuck bombs.
I liked the concept of all the Gods,( Jesus, Allah, Thor, Aries, etc) being involved with the cosmic balance of the universe but the rest of the story was just "Meh' The reaper seemed to be an annoying ass and the plot had a hard time holding my interest overall. Plus there seemed to be a lot of fuck bombs that I'm just in place for the sake of using fuck bombs.
April 15, 2019
As for stories of the Grim Reaper, this one is in a class of its own. The Reaper becomes attached to a boy, Jonathan Winchester. I like the name, Winchester, from my favorite TV series, Supernatural.
Jonathan meets gods along the way. There is even the mention of Lucifer Morning Star, whom I love on the TV show, Lucifer. I won't mention TV again.
The Reaper's affection for Jonathan causes him troubles. The boy can't live after meeting gods and knowing the divine secrets. He must fight The Grim Reaper to the death.
During the bloody battle, a few gods help the boy. No one wants him to die. The ending threw me.
Sections of the book are strange such as references to gods of real religions and the death of Hitler. Otherwise, the story is unusual and twisted.
Jonathan meets gods along the way. There is even the mention of Lucifer Morning Star, whom I love on the TV show, Lucifer. I won't mention TV again.
The Reaper's affection for Jonathan causes him troubles. The boy can't live after meeting gods and knowing the divine secrets. He must fight The Grim Reaper to the death.
During the bloody battle, a few gods help the boy. No one wants him to die. The ending threw me.
Sections of the book are strange such as references to gods of real religions and the death of Hitler. Otherwise, the story is unusual and twisted.
April 19, 2019
Not my cup of tea. I'll be upfront, I read only 37% before deciding it just was not sparking joy so I Marie Kondo'd it to my DNF shelf. The plot was very, very, very thin at best; and was secondary to the Reaper character either ranting or up on a soap box about various topics (mostly, religious or gods based). And these rants were directed to the reader. Yep, not part of the storyline to other characters ... just to the reader.
I gave this two stars instead of one though because the author was able to write a character (the Reaper) in such an obnoxious and unlikeable way it seemed ... well, fitting for a reaper.
I gave this two stars instead of one though because the author was able to write a character (the Reaper) in such an obnoxious and unlikeable way it seemed ... well, fitting for a reaper.
May 22, 2019
An entertaining mix of Deadpool and all religions. Not a book I would read if you are easily offended.
July 5, 2019
Unique
This is a very unique and unexpected memoir. I liked the Reapers sense of humor. All audiences will enjoy this.
This is a very unique and unexpected memoir. I liked the Reapers sense of humor. All audiences will enjoy this.
July 28, 2019
This was a GoodReads giveaway of a Kindle Edition ebook.
I have a bias against ebooks in general. I am working my way past that bias. This book could also use some additional proofreading/editing.
This was a very tongue in cheek, irreverent story told by the Grim Reaper. I liked the major character. This book was a good way for the author to pass along some food for thought about philosophy in a very non-threatening manner. He poses questions for the reader to reflect upon. It was worth the short read.
Have a GoodReads.
I have a bias against ebooks in general. I am working my way past that bias. This book could also use some additional proofreading/editing.
This was a very tongue in cheek, irreverent story told by the Grim Reaper. I liked the major character. This book was a good way for the author to pass along some food for thought about philosophy in a very non-threatening manner. He poses questions for the reader to reflect upon. It was worth the short read.
Have a GoodReads.
June 11, 2019
I would like to thank Goodreads, Phantom Scorpio Productions and Robert Ullrich for a really fun read. I like the mash-up of all the different mythologies, religions and cultures. This was a fun read Thanks
May 9, 2019
Won this book in a giveaway!
What I really loved about this book was the voice of the Grim Reaper. Robert Ullrich has done an amazing job turning Death into an amusing narrator. I love reading sarcastic, sort of "dark" voices, and it's done well here. I also think that he's done a creative job turning gods into characters, it's funny seeing what the Grim Reaper thinks about the gods he's met.
However, I had a hard time staying intrigued throughout the whole story. The plot didn't really captivate me, and I found it to be weak.
Overall I would give it a 3/5. I am interested in reading more from this author and I liked several elements in this book, even if it wasn't anywhere near perfect to me.
What I really loved about this book was the voice of the Grim Reaper. Robert Ullrich has done an amazing job turning Death into an amusing narrator. I love reading sarcastic, sort of "dark" voices, and it's done well here. I also think that he's done a creative job turning gods into characters, it's funny seeing what the Grim Reaper thinks about the gods he's met.
However, I had a hard time staying intrigued throughout the whole story. The plot didn't really captivate me, and I found it to be weak.
Overall I would give it a 3/5. I am interested in reading more from this author and I liked several elements in this book, even if it wasn't anywhere near perfect to me.
November 22, 2019
Adorable. I mean, to me anyway.
I have always enjoyed the personifications of death in literature and this one really steps it up. The Reaper is not shown as some well, grim creature burdened by the weight of their job but instead as a snarky and sarcastic. I haven't had this much fun with a reaper character since Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey.
Although I was hooked within the first 20 pages and loved the last act of the book, the middle seemed to meander a little bit too long for me. Sure, watching Reaper bond with the human boy is interesting at first but after 70 pages it gets a little yawn inducing. However, I would still recommend this book to anyone who wants some sass from their favorite guide to the afterlife.
I have always enjoyed the personifications of death in literature and this one really steps it up. The Reaper is not shown as some well, grim creature burdened by the weight of their job but instead as a snarky and sarcastic. I haven't had this much fun with a reaper character since Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey.
Although I was hooked within the first 20 pages and loved the last act of the book, the middle seemed to meander a little bit too long for me. Sure, watching Reaper bond with the human boy is interesting at first but after 70 pages it gets a little yawn inducing. However, I would still recommend this book to anyone who wants some sass from their favorite guide to the afterlife.
November 19, 2018
Tah dah
What a fun and potentially offensive read (hey sarcasm isn't for everyone). If you have a great sense of humor, and want to read an alternative and snarky take on the Grim Reaper genre, then this book is for you!
What a fun and potentially offensive read (hey sarcasm isn't for everyone). If you have a great sense of humor, and want to read an alternative and snarky take on the Grim Reaper genre, then this book is for you!
March 14, 2020
MEMOIRS OF THE NOT SO GRIM REAPER:WHO SAYS DEATH DOESN'T HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR?BY ROBERT ULRICH is, in this humble readers opinion very different from the usual memoirs I have read!
First: Fair warning: this book is chocked full of foul language,but hey its the Grim Reaper so I guess he's entitled to it . and Second: it ain't everyone's cup of tea,so I suggest you all read the reviews and the book clips before buying it!
The Reaper has met and befriended a normal everyday acne marked teen and takes him into his confidence to the point where he honestly answers the kids questions about himself and the Gods he works for : Zeus/Athena/ Loki and of course the BIG GUY himself,who tries to stay out of the Reapers business unless called upon! According to Reaper, Athena and Aphrodite are hot babes and Loki is a prankster and yes, the Reaper calls God the BIG GUY even though God really doesn't like it ,he does. Reaper has told the kid everything and now says the kid has to die because he knows the secrets. The kid tells him that it might not be him who dies and that is as far as I go with the plot line folks!
I honestly laughed out loud at this book and found it totally entertaining! Some people wont like the language but to me the plot and the story was so crazy that I overlooked the language.
I recieved this book free from Goodreads in exchange for an honest review.
First: Fair warning: this book is chocked full of foul language,but hey its the Grim Reaper so I guess he's entitled to it . and Second: it ain't everyone's cup of tea,so I suggest you all read the reviews and the book clips before buying it!
The Reaper has met and befriended a normal everyday acne marked teen and takes him into his confidence to the point where he honestly answers the kids questions about himself and the Gods he works for : Zeus/Athena/ Loki and of course the BIG GUY himself,who tries to stay out of the Reapers business unless called upon! According to Reaper, Athena and Aphrodite are hot babes and Loki is a prankster and yes, the Reaper calls God the BIG GUY even though God really doesn't like it ,he does. Reaper has told the kid everything and now says the kid has to die because he knows the secrets. The kid tells him that it might not be him who dies and that is as far as I go with the plot line folks!
I honestly laughed out loud at this book and found it totally entertaining! Some people wont like the language but to me the plot and the story was so crazy that I overlooked the language.
I recieved this book free from Goodreads in exchange for an honest review.
March 3, 2020
An Entertaining Read!
I enjoyed author Robert Ullrich's characterization of the grim reaper as a witty sarcastic, foul mouthed, almost regular Joe, but a badass who uses a lot of cliche one liners. I found myself chuckling throughout the book at the way the Reaper interacted, spoke and thought. Who ever would have known the Reaper had such a personality? I found the story interesting, entertaining and fun.
I enjoyed author Robert Ullrich's characterization of the grim reaper as a witty sarcastic, foul mouthed, almost regular Joe, but a badass who uses a lot of cliche one liners. I found myself chuckling throughout the book at the way the Reaper interacted, spoke and thought. Who ever would have known the Reaper had such a personality? I found the story interesting, entertaining and fun.
January 12, 2021
Dull and VERY boring,the author tries to sound like a hip-hop rap star explaining how it is to be the "grim reaper". Don't waste your time on this-'watching grass grow is more enjoyable AND meaningful.
May 23, 2019
Enjoyable story. Came recommended as irreverent fluff and that is truly what it is.
June 3, 2019
Should have been a DNF.
May 11, 2020
I have to say, this was not what I was expecting. The Reaper is cocky, foul-mouthed and disrepects most of the Gods he interacts with - but not all. As this story goes the Reaper is chosen to do what the Gods are not allowed to do by the Creator, take the life of humans. I found it very entertaining and original. I would suggest you read the prologue or other reviews first. If you tend to get offended over religious humor or foul language I would think twice, but you would be missing out on a unique perspective of the typically dark and murky Grim Reaper.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews