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Pages: 35
Goes Well With: Pizza with garlic, tomato sauce, and fresh basil and a glass of grape soda
“Jolie Montgomery didn’t know how she died, but all of a sudden she stood over her body in an alley,” and neither God nor guardian angel seemed ready to respond to her cry for help. But Jolie was only twenty-one. She had plans for her life—the sort of plans that any young adult might have. She had dreams and aspirations, she loved the smell of pizza, and she hoped someday to get married to her boyfriend. What Jolie didn’t have, it seems, were any enemies who might have wanted to kill her. And so begins Chrys Fey’s short story, Ghost of Death.
Of course, it’s the job of the police to find out who Jolie’s enemies were and to rule out suspects one by one. Normally, that would be fine, but Jolie’s watching the famous Avrianna Heavenborn treat everyone she knew as if they were a suspect instead of looking for the real killer, whoever that may be. Avrianna’s good, but will she be good enough to make Jolie’s murderer pay? And what will happen when the killer is apprehended? Is Jolie condemned to an eternity of seeing and never tasting the pizza and pie? There’s an awful thought!
Chrys Fey’s Ghost of Death is a surprisingly fun and intriguing short story, told with good humor and a great sense of voice and humanity. The writing invites readers to follow a murder investigation from an intriguingly different point of view as the victim follows detective and clues. Details are thoroughly convincing, stark, and real. Emotions are powerfully honest without becoming maudlin or depressed. Descriptions are vivid. Pizza is mouthwatering. Dialogue is fun and believable. And the writing’s fast and furious. It all makes for a very upbeat lunchtime read, with a fine, honest ending and just that gentle hint of mystery behind it all.
Life is more than pizza—and more than a number of years set to end when the music of the funeral is done.
