The Dead Club

by Kate Rigby

An edgy, contemporary tale about death and suicide and its effects on two families. Death is a fact of life for the principle characters and especially for Marina Reed who wishes to join her loved ones at ‘the dead club’, a place she and her sixth form friends obsessed about in their youth. Ultimately her mortido becomes more urgent until it takes her over the edge. The novel is in fact very much about where the ultimate edge is between life and death.Written in bite-sized sections in a colloquial style with elements of black humour and surrealism. A lot of it takes place along the iconic devon railway line, passing through Dawlish and Teignmouth.

200 pages, Paperback

First published April 7, 2015

About the author

I've been writing for nearly forty years. Good gracious, that long? I realized my unhip credentials were mounting so decided to write about it. Little Guide to Unhip was first published in 2010 and is now updated and republished.

However I'm not totally unhip. My punk novel, Fall Of The Flamingo Circus was published by Allison & Busby (1990) and by Villard (American hardback 1990). It's now been re-kindled.

I received a Southern Arts bursary for my novel Where A Shadow Played (now Did You Whisper Back?)

Skrev Press published my novels Seaview Terrace (2003) Sucka! (2004) and Break Point (2006) and other shorter work has appeared in Skrev’s avant garde magazine Texts’ Bones including a version of my satirical novella Lost The Plot.

Thalidomide Kid was first published by Bewrite Books (2007)

The following books are available in paperback at the following place (or by following the Amazon links below):

Far Cry From The Turquoise Room:
https://www.createspace.com/3634041

Savage to Savvy:
https://www.createspace.com/4210694

Little Guide To Unhip:
https://www.createspace.com/4847276

Down The Tubes:
http://www.amazon.com/Down-Tubes-Kate...

She Looks Pale & Other Stories:
https://www.amazon.com/She-Looks-Pale...


E-books available:

Fruit Woman:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013...

The Dead Club:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00V0Y73DC

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Fall Of The Flamingo Circus:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0088E29H2

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14...

Suckers n Scallies (Formerly 'Sucka'):
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004WTARYY

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11...

Down The Tubes:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004UC51NK

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11...

Seaview Terrace:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004SV2DBG

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11...

Break Point:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TNGRBU

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11...

Thalidomide Kid:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008N3I904

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11...

Far Cry From The Turquoise Room:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004ZF80N0

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11...

Little Guide to Unhip:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C121N2E

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/86...

Savage To Savvy
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006ASBQAE

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

She Looks Pale:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00821360A

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13...

Did You Whisper Back?:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0077E2M26

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13...

Lost The Plot:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12...

Tales By Kindlelight:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005J0HNSI

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12...


Short stories of mine have been published and shortlisted including Hard Workers and Headboards in various collections and anthologies:

On Your Half Century:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00SJIR2OW

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Sharing Sarah:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PNVD5I0
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Cutting Edge:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P1AQGLQ

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Coats:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P1A47SU

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Family Tradition:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RARWYS2

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Hard Workers:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009JW4OZM

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

I'm also a reader - quit

Reviews

[Linda Strong · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

It all started with one question ... How would you kill yourself?

The Dead Club starts with a group of young people talking about suicide and how they would ccomplish it. Poison? Sleeping Pills? Throwing one's self off a high building? Jumping in front of a moving train?

Death becomes an obsession for some of these young people.... and then they grow up. This is a story of how death and suicide affects two families.

This is a rather dark read with a bit of black humor thrown in the mix. The characters are a mixed bad of emotions that take them to an uneven balance of life and death.

I'm not sure I would recommend this to anyone who has lost someone to suicide, but it was an interesting take on what must have been a hard subject to tackle.

Many thanks to the author and TBC Reviewer Request Group (FB) for the digital copy of The Dead Club. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

THE DEAD CLUB is a contemporary read by Kate Rigby, dealing with the effects of death and suicide on two families. As advised this was not an easy book to read.

NB - trigger warnings - deals with death and suicide.

There is a fine line between life and death.

Have you ever thought about death? I am sure you have.

The premise of this book revolves around a bunch of young people talking about suicide…and how would they do it. Would they make it painless, easy and fast like taking an overdose of pills or something slow and painful. like being in a car accident.

In later years, death becomes a fascination for a few of these characters, especially for Marina Reed, who wishes to join her friends that have passed on from The Dead Club.

This is a dark read mixed with black humor, the characters walk a fine line between life and death.

While I recognize that this is a difficult subject to address, I have to say that this book is not for everyone, and for those that have lost someone to suicide, it would be difficult to read. I can say that it made me more aware of the problem, and the effects of death and suicide on a family.

Many thanks to the TBC Reviewer Request Group (Facebook) for my digital copy.

[Neats · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Dead Club is a contemporary tale about death and suicide and the effects it has on two families.

Marina Reed is a member of "The Dead Club", a group of sixth formers who are obsessed with death and often sit and discuss suicide and fantasise about the ways in which they would do it.

The story is told in the form of sections rather than chapters and it's in these sections that we are introduced to more characters all of which are dealing with life and the prospect of death in their own way.

The first few sections left me feeling slightly confused as I couldn't see anything to link them together but the more I read the more things started to become clearer and I was soon absorbed by the characters lives.

Don't be put off by the subject matter of this book as Kate Rigby has written an engaging story that cleverly knits together the past and present alongside the main characters without being ghoulish, there are some nice touches of humour sprinkled throughout (I loved Topsy the cat's story) and the update on the main players was a lovely touch at the end.

Kate Rigby has been writing for over thirty years and her experience shone through to me in this book. Her descriptions of the Devon coast made me want to hop on a train and see it for myself and I could almost smell the sea breeze. If you're looking for something a little different why not give The Dead Club a try.

With kind thanks to author Kate Rigby for the review copy.

[Chantelle Atkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is exactly what I have come to expect and love about Kate Rigby's work. Dark, edgy subject matter written with spiky black humour, interjected with the most brilliant, rounded and fascinating characters. The Dead Club starts with a group of young people discussing suicide, and how they would do it. The story then jumps forward to the present day, where a multitude of characters are dealing with life and death in different ways. It soon becomes apparent how Marina, one of the main characters is linked to the dead club of the past. What then transpires is a magnificent weaving of tales, past and present, and families. I particularly loved the first person poetic prose chapters from Zion's point of view. Just brilliant. Like all Kate Rigby books, I soon cared about these people, all of them, even the less likeable ones like Jim. This latest offering from the author did not disappoint in any way. I can't wait for more.

[ClaireMS · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warning: Discussion of death, suicide and bereavement.

How would you kill yourself? ask a group of sixth form students lounging in their common room whilst eating lunch. So begins this interesting look at an inevitable part of life by Kate Rigby. The opening scenes are a flashback to a group of young people drawn together through a morbid curiosity with death - so The Dead Club is formed and at its heart is Marina Reed.
The story brings us back to present day and the introduction of individuals who head up each section. From the young Railway Poet to the Doom & Gloom Merchant to Mrs OG, they are all experiencing trauma in their lives. The sections of the book gradually come together as the relationships between the individuals become apparent. These are two dysfunctional, modern families who are trying to deal with dying, death and suicide. Their stories become entwined as they face life and death...

Disclaimer: I am an ex palliative care nurse and so talking about dying, death and bereavement is not alien to me. But I do recognise that for many Kate Rigby's dark and at times macabre writing might be disturbing - death is the one inevitable of life, yet remains a taboo subject amongst so many cultures. However I would urge you to read this cleverly crafted piece.

Initially I found the narrative quite confusing, I think due to the chopping and changing between characters and being unable to work out how they fitted with each other. But as the book progressed, I could see the parallels between the dysfunctional book sections and the dysfunctional families being portrayed. The sections about the different characters, some written in the first person, started to dovetail together as the overall picture was slowly built, something like a jigsaw puzzle.

The theme binding the individual stories together is death. A curiosity about death, death in old age, the death of a child, the premature death of a young father, preoccupation with death, suicide. The author explores with sensitivity and without judgement how each family deals with bereavement, depression and the breakdown of relationships. The individual characters became absorbing for me as I became more and more familiar with them - it is they who struggle to be sensitive to each others feelings, are judgemental and at times are unforgiving of themselves and each other.

There are some great light touches throughout too, providing humour and relief within heavy subject matter. One of the characters who has her own sections is Topsy the cat and I loved her journeys on the train and being carried in a baby sling.

The writing is clever, quirky and contemporary - the sections written by 18 year old poet Zion are quite inspired and very current. The subject matter might be dark but it is edgy, full of colourful characters and interspersed with humour, making it a great contemporary study of life!

Thanks to the The Book Club on Facebook for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review

[Lynsey Spedding · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Dead Club, written by Kate Rigby is a contemporary read surrounding two families and the effects of death and suicide.
The book tells the story of a group of young people discussing suicide and how they would do it. The subject becoming an obsession for a few of the characters, especially Marina Reed, who wishes to join the other members that have passed from The Dead Club.


The subject matter is not for everyone, suicide and death are difficult subjects to address however Kate has written an engaging story with some nice touches of humour.

Thank you to Kate and TBC Reviewer Request Group for my digital copy of The Dead Club.