Dicing with Death

by Beth Chambers

Max used to be an ordinary boy... until he offered himself up to Death in the place of his little sister, and somehow ended up as Death's assistant! Life in the Underworld isn't all bad though, despite housekeeper Liah's abysmal cooking.

Above ground, someone has worked out how to bring the dead back to life, with potentially universe-destroying consequences. Can Max and Liah stop the culprit in time? Or will Max get a lot more than he bargained for?

A darkly comic fantasy adventure in the Black Cats series: short, gripping stories for newly confident readers aged 8-12.

Genres: Fantasy

128 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Victoria Vivente · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beth Chambers’ Dicing with Death presents a genuinely clever and darkly charming premise perfect for the "Black Cats" series of short, gripping stories for newly confident readers. The concept of a boy becoming Death's assistant after a selfless act is immediately engaging and ripe with both comic and gothic potential.

[Drake Pharo · Rating 2 out of 5]

The promise of a strong premise and chilling beginning were let down by weak characters (aside from Liah) and an okay story that fizzled a bit with implausible motivation and a gimmicked ending. I wanted to like this, but wanted something bigger to get my teeth into.

[Sonja · Rating 4 out of 5]

Death as an employer who keeps his word :)
Our hero finds his father in Creta.
The writer does not explain that on Creta means they are in Greece.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

The promise of a strong premise and chilling beginning were let down by weak characters (aside from Liah) and an okay story that fizzled a bit with implausible motivation and a gimmicked ending. My 7-year old son wanted to like this, due to the premise, but wanted something bigger to get his teeth into.

[Wilde Sky · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young boy loses his sister and ends up making a deal with death.

The story was very good but the writing could have been sharper and the illustrations didn't grab me.

Real rating 3.5