Mrs Death Misses Death cover art

Mrs Death Misses Death

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options

Mrs Death Misses Death

By: Salena Godden
Narrated by: Salena Godden
Try for £0.00

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £11.71

Buy Now for £11.71

Season's Savings | £0.99/mo for 3 months

£5.99/mo after 3 months - terms apply. Cancel monthly

SHORTLISTED FOR THE GORDON BURN PRIZE

Mrs Death tells her intoxicating story in this life-affirming fire-starter of a novel

Mrs Death has had enough. She is exhausted from spending eternity doing her job and now she seeks someone to unburden her conscience to. Wolf Willeford, a troubled young writer, is well acquainted with death, but until now hadn’t met Death in person – a black, working-class woman who shape-shifts and does her work unseen.

Enthralled by her stories, Wolf becomes Mrs Death’s scribe, and begins to write her memoirs. Using their desk as a vessel and conduit, Wolf travels across time and place with Mrs Death to witness deaths of past and present and discuss what the future holds for humanity. As the two reflect on the losses they have experienced – or, in the case of Mrs Death, facilitated – their friendship grows into a surprising affirmation of hope, resilience and love. All the while, despite her world-weariness, Death must continue to hold humans’ fates in her hands, appearing in our lives when we least expect her . . .

 Fiction Friendship Genre Fiction Grief & Loss Literary Fiction Metaphysical & Visionary Personal Development Relationships Heartfelt
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

"A fantastically imaginative story about life, death and everything in between – a potent reminder that life is short and every second should be cherished" (IDRIS ELBA)
"A modern-day Pilgrim’s Progress leavened with caustic wit . . . This is not light-hearted stuff, yet Godden has produced a miraculously light-hearted novel . . . an elegant, occasionally uproarious, danse macabre"
"Exquisite. A daring, poetic offering that establishes Godden as one of our most exciting voices. I loved it" (IRENOSEN OKOJIE)
"A rhythmic and powerful poetic meditation on death, life and love and the hidden mysteries of the universe; both playful and sombre, hilarious and human" (NIKESH SHUKLA)
"In this timely and exquisite meditation on breath and its best rhyme, we see a stunning performance poet crowding all the energy, wisdom, passion and laughs of her live work into the solid ingot of this astounding novel, as profound as Cohen, as playful as Brautigan. Salena Goddess, more like" (ALAN MOORE)
"It’s light, it’s dark, it’s twisted and it’s brilliant. As we all encounter life, so too we should all encounter Mrs Death. Poetry, prose, life and death. Salena Godden brings them together with ease. She is a wordsmith of the highest order" (BENJAMIN ZEPHANIAH)
"Dark at times – with compelling stories about miscarriages of justice, murder and racial oppression – it is nonetheless celebratory and life-affirming, aglow with love, fortitude and compassion"
"I love Salena Godden and I love Mrs Death Misses Death. Salena, like the lead character, is a force to be reckoned with. If the page were a stage, Mrs Death is its star. She soaks in the spotlight, commanding the eye of the audience. It is an assured debut by a poet whom I hold in the highest regard" (LEMN SISSAY)
"A witty, angry, warm and elemental combination of poetry and prose . . . an exhilarating combination of allegory, poetry and very real fury"
"Salena Godden’s pin-sharp ability to mine the intricacies of human nature fuels her long-awaited debut novel, a life-affirming and unflinching treatise on death and its stark realities. Always playful, infused with her trademark humour and commitment to truth, Godden reinvents the form while staying true to an emotional honesty that’s as forthright as it is courageous. Mrs Death’s finale is some of the most powerful writing I’ve read in years. Here is necessary, beautiful work. Thank God for Godden" (COURTTIA NEWLAND)
All stars
Most relevant
I was blown away by this book. It was not what I expected at all and at points made me sob! Such powerful writing and beautifully read by the author. Highly recommend!

Incredible book!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I'm actually blown away by this novel. It's never occurred to me that Death could be a woman and yet it makes perfect sense that death would be a woman. A woman gives us life so why can't they also take it away? Yes, I know this book is fiction but if Death exists I bet she's a woman.

I love how this book is written. It just flows so smoothly through the chapters. I couldn't put it down. It raises a lot of interesting questions about life and death which I won't go into due to spoilers. I'd recommend consuming this book via audiobook as it adds an extra dimension to it and the author is a brilliant narrator for audiobooks.

Loved it.

Ms Death Misses Death

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I bought this on the strength of the write-up because I thought the premise of death as a black woman was original and fascinating. I tried several times to get into it but I failed. Some of the writing is absolutely beautiful, but the story just didn’t get going, The narrator has the most beautiful voice but her slow delivery combined with the repetitive nature of the prose made the book terribly boring. My mind kept drifting. I tried speeding the narration up but sadly that didn’t work either.
Sadly not for me, and I would recommend people buy the book as that may be better.

Sleep inducing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I managed to listen to the whole thing. There were moments when I thought this was excellent: erudite and beautifully worded. But then I found myself losing concentration and having no idea what was going on. It felt too clever for itself at times.

I loved the synopsis, hence choosing it. The start was so unusual: Death as a Black Woman. Though I have to say: I really dislike the title, the forced wordplay there.

But upon finishing, I couldn't actually tell you what had happened. I would normally stop reading/listening to a book that had this effect on me, but I persevered because I had so liked the sound of this. Yet it kept happening.

Other reviewers give this a very Marmite rating. Lots of people raving, lots very cool indeed, little in between.

I liked the voice of Mrs Death, the author's own voice. But the style of this is going to be 'love it or hate it', and for me, the audio version didn't do justice to the writer's efforts, it was too hard to follow. I wanted to savour the parts I was really enjoying and was not able to.

Maybe one to attempt again on paper.

With thanks to Nudge Books for providing a sample Audible copy.

Not for me, sadly

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
completely fantastic, Salena Godden has such a way with words and their performance is absolutely breathtaking too.

thought-provoking and fabulous

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews