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As I Died Laughing
He couldn't remember when he had stopped seeing himself in her eyes, their marriage becoming simply a collection of memories, where only the mundane held them together. It seemed so simple at first creation. Characters whose lives he carved out in his novel. And now this - a man created in his own image and likeness, stepping out of the virtual into the real, in order to seduce his wife. But Michael quickly loses control over his creation and slips into a world where he no longer knows where reality ends and fiction begins. And he begins to wonder if he is writing himself out of existence. At what point does fiction turn to lies? And lies themselves in turn become real?
214 pages, Paperback
First published September 20, 2011
About the author
David Lloyd
6 books10 followersOriginally from Canada, I now live in the Negev desert in Israel. I have pioneered the creation of community networks and models for integrating the Internet into education since the early 1990's. My work has taken me to many corners of the world where I've worked with students and teachers.
My virtual explorations have led to my first novel - As I Died Laughing (e-Book).
In exploring my mixed Canadian-Israeli identity, my second book (based on my blog) has been published: - Why I May Still Be Canadian (paperback)
My blog can be read online: Why I May Still Be Canadian
And I have started a book blog: The Virtual Muser eBook Review with an emphasis on reviewing the works of aspiring writers who still have not managed to "establish" themselves.
My virtual explorations have led to my first novel - As I Died Laughing (e-Book).
In exploring my mixed Canadian-Israeli identity, my second book (based on my blog) has been published: - Why I May Still Be Canadian (paperback)
My blog can be read online: Why I May Still Be Canadian
And I have started a book blog: The Virtual Muser eBook Review with an emphasis on reviewing the works of aspiring writers who still have not managed to "establish" themselves.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 7, 2012
The following review is by Steve Hellman (March 4, 2012)
Like millions the world over, David Llloyd's principal characters are only keystrokes away from challenging dilemmas and fantasies each time they sit down alone at their computers. No explicit explanation is offered as to why Michael and Julia set out to explore new aspects of their identities when they begin a secret virtual correspondence . It is here that I identify the strength of this book. Time and again I found myself thinking how easily so many of the people I know could take the same road. There is nothing about Michael to persuade me that given the right circumstances I might not well take similar decisions. Julia's responses are totally credible and logical. This is an intriguing tale of happenstance and impulse rather than of tragic personality flaws slowly unraveled by the plot.
The setting flits between Canada and Israel and adds some interesting sociological and cultural insights, not the least of which is the introduction of the lovely Layla. Is this a red herring or the foreshadowing of a political possibly even a terrorist element?
While there is plenty to think and surmise about in this book, the calm easy pace is deceptive. One needs to know how it will end. The ending however, is neither happy nor complete. It is entirely consistent with a plot which focuses on the uncertain journeys of its principal characters as they unwittingly put their everyday "real" relationships to the test. As I Died Laughing is one of the best reads I have had of late.
Merged review:
The following review is by Steve Hellman (March 4, 2012)
Like millions the world over, David Llloyd's principal characters are only keystrokes away from challenging dilemmas and fantasies each time they sit down alone at their computers. No explicit explanation is offered as to why Michael and Julia set out to explore new aspects of their identities when they begin a secret virtual correspondence . It is here that I identify the strength of this book. Time and again I found myself thinking how easily so many of the people I know could take the same road. There is nothing about Michael to persuade me that given the right circumstances I might not well take similar decisions. Julia's responses are totally credible and logical. This is an intriguing tale of happenstance and impulse rather than of tragic personality flaws slowly unraveled by the plot.
The setting flits between Canada and Israel and adds some interesting sociological and cultural insights, not the least of which is the introduction of the lovely Layla. Is this a red herring or the foreshadowing of a political possibly even a terrorist element?
While there is plenty to think and surmise about in this book, the calm easy pace is deceptive. One needs to know how it will end. The ending however, is neither happy nor complete. It is entirely consistent with a plot which focuses on the uncertain journeys of its principal characters as they unwittingly put their everyday "real" relationships to the test. As I Died Laughing is one of the best reads I have had of late.
Like millions the world over, David Llloyd's principal characters are only keystrokes away from challenging dilemmas and fantasies each time they sit down alone at their computers. No explicit explanation is offered as to why Michael and Julia set out to explore new aspects of their identities when they begin a secret virtual correspondence . It is here that I identify the strength of this book. Time and again I found myself thinking how easily so many of the people I know could take the same road. There is nothing about Michael to persuade me that given the right circumstances I might not well take similar decisions. Julia's responses are totally credible and logical. This is an intriguing tale of happenstance and impulse rather than of tragic personality flaws slowly unraveled by the plot.
The setting flits between Canada and Israel and adds some interesting sociological and cultural insights, not the least of which is the introduction of the lovely Layla. Is this a red herring or the foreshadowing of a political possibly even a terrorist element?
While there is plenty to think and surmise about in this book, the calm easy pace is deceptive. One needs to know how it will end. The ending however, is neither happy nor complete. It is entirely consistent with a plot which focuses on the uncertain journeys of its principal characters as they unwittingly put their everyday "real" relationships to the test. As I Died Laughing is one of the best reads I have had of late.
Merged review:
The following review is by Steve Hellman (March 4, 2012)
Like millions the world over, David Llloyd's principal characters are only keystrokes away from challenging dilemmas and fantasies each time they sit down alone at their computers. No explicit explanation is offered as to why Michael and Julia set out to explore new aspects of their identities when they begin a secret virtual correspondence . It is here that I identify the strength of this book. Time and again I found myself thinking how easily so many of the people I know could take the same road. There is nothing about Michael to persuade me that given the right circumstances I might not well take similar decisions. Julia's responses are totally credible and logical. This is an intriguing tale of happenstance and impulse rather than of tragic personality flaws slowly unraveled by the plot.
The setting flits between Canada and Israel and adds some interesting sociological and cultural insights, not the least of which is the introduction of the lovely Layla. Is this a red herring or the foreshadowing of a political possibly even a terrorist element?
While there is plenty to think and surmise about in this book, the calm easy pace is deceptive. One needs to know how it will end. The ending however, is neither happy nor complete. It is entirely consistent with a plot which focuses on the uncertain journeys of its principal characters as they unwittingly put their everyday "real" relationships to the test. As I Died Laughing is one of the best reads I have had of late.
September 6, 2016
It is interesting that the first book I read on the phone has much about modern communication: email, chat rooms, WebQuests etc… and the difficulties of communication between people online and offline.
There was a comment about blogs that struck me:
(I have a blog for my book reviews )
The main story is about relationships between people, especially one particular relationship: Michael feels his marriage has become mundane and lacks something and creates a virtual character Guy, to seduce his wife Julia. This, as you can imagine, is a bad idea, particularly when Julia starts to fall for this alt, who she knows only through emails.
The action flits between Canada and Israel, not too much of a surprise, as the author is a Canadian now living in the Negev Desert. The author himself even makes a couple of appearances, interacting with his protagonist Michael. David Lloyd is not the first author to do this, Clive Cussler, Stephen King and even W. Somerset Maugham have done this. It is intriguing in a way, the author visiting his own creation as his protagonist is also the creator of a fictitious character.
Michael is a teacher in Toronto, invited to a conference in Tel Aviv to present some ideas about teaching Shakespeare with WebQuests. At the conference he meets Merav, an attractive young student, with whom he begins email correspondence on returning to Canada. A lot of the novel relates to communication by means of cyberspace.
The plot is quite contrived like Shakespeare or Dickens. The penultimate chapter entitled “Everything that rises must converge”, sees many of the plot strands drawn together in Israel: “It appears that everything leads back here.” Julia surprises Michael by making a trip to Israel, the location of the fictitious Guy. Michael also heads to Israel for a liaison with Merav. Even a Toronto barmaid/erotic artist is drawn to Israel for an exhibition of her paintings, one entitled “The Last Pint” has a naked Michael drinking with two companions, one male, one female. Speaking of last pints, there is a lot of drinking throughout the book, almost every page has the characters pouring coffee, red wine, whiskey, beer, Guinness, even sherry but sadly no tea.
For a book entitled “As I Died Laughing”, I was hoping for more humour. The style is easy to read and quite chatty, once I started it was quite a pageslider (on my device pages are slid not turned).
There was a comment about blogs that struck me:
“It’s like the blogs you write.”
“What about them ?”
“It’s not as if people are flocking to read them.”
(I have a blog for my book reviews )
The main story is about relationships between people, especially one particular relationship: Michael feels his marriage has become mundane and lacks something and creates a virtual character Guy, to seduce his wife Julia. This, as you can imagine, is a bad idea, particularly when Julia starts to fall for this alt, who she knows only through emails.
The action flits between Canada and Israel, not too much of a surprise, as the author is a Canadian now living in the Negev Desert. The author himself even makes a couple of appearances, interacting with his protagonist Michael. David Lloyd is not the first author to do this, Clive Cussler, Stephen King and even W. Somerset Maugham have done this. It is intriguing in a way, the author visiting his own creation as his protagonist is also the creator of a fictitious character.
“Maybe I just don’t know what is real and what isn’t“
Michael is a teacher in Toronto, invited to a conference in Tel Aviv to present some ideas about teaching Shakespeare with WebQuests. At the conference he meets Merav, an attractive young student, with whom he begins email correspondence on returning to Canada. A lot of the novel relates to communication by means of cyberspace.
The plot is quite contrived like Shakespeare or Dickens. The penultimate chapter entitled “Everything that rises must converge”, sees many of the plot strands drawn together in Israel: “It appears that everything leads back here.” Julia surprises Michael by making a trip to Israel, the location of the fictitious Guy. Michael also heads to Israel for a liaison with Merav. Even a Toronto barmaid/erotic artist is drawn to Israel for an exhibition of her paintings, one entitled “The Last Pint” has a naked Michael drinking with two companions, one male, one female. Speaking of last pints, there is a lot of drinking throughout the book, almost every page has the characters pouring coffee, red wine, whiskey, beer, Guinness, even sherry but sadly no tea.
For a book entitled “As I Died Laughing”, I was hoping for more humour. The style is easy to read and quite chatty, once I started it was quite a pageslider (on my device pages are slid not turned).
January 9, 2012
As I Died Laughing is a wonderful story that is told from multiple points of view. I have classified it as a psychological foray into a variety of interesting characters, all with unusual quirks, as they attempt to separate reality from the virtual. It is a complex book and for many with short interest spans it will seem too complicated. It is definitely a book you have to re-read to fully understand all the twists. I found it a fascinating story but sometimes felt I was at a party where people kept coming and going.
David Lloyd is obviously a talented writer and I look forward to his next book
David Lloyd is obviously a talented writer and I look forward to his next book
November 18, 2011
This is an amazing read. Once you get into "As I Died Laughing", you are led through a tale of deception, fiction, fact and truth, the lines becoming ever more blurred as you progress into a vortex of different layers.
It is more than just a good story. It forces you to think, not just about what is happening within the suspense that David Lloyd has built, but also about the difference between fact and fiction, between what is "truth" and what is not.
There is so much more here than meets the eye. Warning: this book can seriously mess with your head.
It is more than just a good story. It forces you to think, not just about what is happening within the suspense that David Lloyd has built, but also about the difference between fact and fiction, between what is "truth" and what is not.
There is so much more here than meets the eye. Warning: this book can seriously mess with your head.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews