My Side of the World and Other Tales of Death

<p><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)>Death takes the lead in this collection of eight disparate tales exploring how the loss of loved ones affects us how surviving close calls with death shape us how the fear of death motivates us and how we can be either lifted up or let down by our communities in dealing with lingering grief. The genres vary between stories including science fiction magical realism and suspense.  </span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>My Life with Death:</em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)> A child becomes friends with Death and later serves as Death's assistant constantly grappling with how much her relationship with Death limits her ability to enjoy her own life. </span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>The Patron Saint of Pianos: </em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)>A 1980's homicide detective exhausted by working on too many cartel and gang-related deaths moves from the southern border to a quiet one-stoplight northern town for a fresh start.</span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>My Husband's Fathers: </em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)>A marriage strained by a husband habitually using the death of his mother to dismiss anyone else's pain or trauma endures a new challenge when the couple fosters two young brothers.</span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>The Girl Who Sold the World: </em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)>Humanity faces an existential threat when an alien collective arrives at Earth to judge the worthiness of all species on the planet. </span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>My Sister Agnes:</em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)> A 1990's suburb is shaken by an unexpected death which brings neighbors together for one summer and forever shapes one of the families. </span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>The Shattered Glass Girl: </em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)>A teenage girl in the 1920's dies due to her father's cruel discipline leaving her spirit bonded to the house enabling her to have a second chance at happiness when a new family moves in. </span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>My Side of the World:</em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)> A married woman in her midlife discovers evidence that a former paramour may be dead leading her to obsess over confirming his demise in the present while also reexamining her past and the influence he had in shaping her present life. </span></p><p><strong style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)><em>The Red Lights: </em></strong><span style=color: rgba(17 17 17 1)>When a young girl has a recurring nightmare of being murdered her grandmother convinces her that it is a factual depiction of what will happen.</span></p><p></p>