Lincoln Crisler

Dr. Kim Paffenroth is one of many authors whose been on my virtual ‘need to read’ shelf for a few years now. During my recent signing at Eerie Books, I was assaulted tri-dimensionally by an irresistible whirlwind of small-press and mass-market fiction. As much as I enjoy supporting independent horror and bookstores in general, I was reduced by my unearthly compulsion to eat more than just Top Ramen for a month to purchasing only a few books. The result of one of my selections is a surprise that is both forthcoming and secret; the other two were Kim Paffenroth’s debut novel, Dying to Live, and his editorial fiction debut, History is Dead, both of which were published by Permuted Press.

I read the anthology first. I’ve wanted to read this since it first came out; in fact, I should probably mention, in the interest of full disclosure, that I was invited to submit to this anthology and was rejected. The rejected story went on to be published three times (in electric, print and audio versions) and the anthology was (if memory serves me right) nominated for the Bram Stoker Award, so I think it’s safe to say everything worked out for the best. What I do remember about my pink slip from the professor is Dr. Paffenroth’s keen insight and personal comments. I firmly believe that the best anthologies are edited by the sort of editor that works more as a collaborator than a critic, and History is Dead is the sort of anthology I can hold up in support of my belief. It is a collection of zombie tales set during various historical periods. The zombies between these covers are no mere mindless flesh-eaters; they grieve for their still-living lovers, crave earthly revenge and inspire art, novels and plays. As you might expect, some stories interested me more than others. Just about all of my favorite stories were contained in the first half of the book, but even the stories I considered to be ‘alright’ could probably be another reader’s standouts.

Christine Morgan’s The Barrow Maid (a Viking piece) and Carole Lanham’s The Moribund Room (Tudor England, I believe) are two of the best in the book; also, Theatre is Dead by Raoul Wainscotting gets special mention because I laughed repeatedly at the audience’s ignorance. John Maberry’s Pegleg and Paddy Save the World, which tells the “true story” of the Chicago fire, could have been written especially for me, with my love of whiskey and my Celtic heritage. All in all an easy 4.5/5.

Dying to Live is the first of a series of novels set in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse; the second novel has been available for some time, and the third is due out next spring. The story is told through the eyes of Jonah Caine as he kills a few zombies in brutal solo action before being rescued by members of a community of survivors. From there, the story progresses in a straight-forward, logical manner; each major chunk of the book is a direct result of what came before, etc. In this, the book differs from the typical novel format (conflict, climax, resolution) and would have made a distinctly unsatisfying standalone book. Since it isn’t one, though, I’m eagerly looking forward to reading the next installments.

This book is obviously written by a scholar and philosopher (the man has a doctorate in theology from Notre Dame, is affiliated with over a half-dozen theological associations and has a list of academic publications I can’t cover with both hands, despite the small font his university biography page uses) and is filled with references to the Bible and classic literature (though you’ll get no complaints from the guy that read encyclopedias cover to cover when he was ten), but don’t let me give you the impression that D2L is a dry, emotionless dissertation; it’s also packed with action and great characterization. The only point at which I think Dr. Paffenroth went a touch overboard was in the main character’s name (a little too over the top, really, and complete with analysis by another of the characters). Overall, I can’t wait to visit these characters and this setting again. 4/5.