Histories of the Dead and Other Stories

by Math Bird

A beautiful collection of tender, sad, and hauntingly dark crime stories.

West of the River Dee, lie the borderlands of north-east Wales, an in-between place caught between two countries.

Travel inland and you’ll pass through the towns and villages, where ancient relics and abandoned factories harbour the ghosts of past glories. The tree-clad hills snake up from the valley where secrets and dark deeds whisper through the tall trees.

Whether they are fearful of the future, or worried that their best years are behind them, the characters of this striking short story collection are haunted by the past; they live on the periphery, because sometimes to live, love, or just survive, vengeance is the only option.

116 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 1, 2022

About the author

Math Bird is a multi-genre novelist and short story writer, and his work has aired on BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio Wales, and BBC Radio 4 Extra.

He also writes and presents the BIRD's EyeView of Books Podcast.

Check out or subscribe to Math's Newsletter at mathbird.substack.com. Here, you can listen to Math's regular Podcast, access new and exclusive stories and articles and catch up on the latest book news and releases.

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

British noir has a slightly different edge to it than American noir. It has a slightly different twang, a different rythm. It's not always as easy to get into, but in this slim volume of tales, Bird gives us tales of varying lengths that are sharp-edged, filled with dark sardonic humor, chilling twists, and insight into the human condition, the dark dreariness, despair, and a bit closed in and unable to escape

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cymric Noir Masterpiece

Math Bird's Histories of the Dead is a stunning collection of Welsh noir. These stories are the work of a master craftsman and populated with down-on-their-luck characters who have enough heart to compel you to flip the pages and follow them through the moor to an unhappy end. I'll definitely be on the watch for more from Bird. Highly recommended.

[Sid Stiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished it - great collection! The first story absolutely blew me away. Not a bad one in the bunch - solid, gripping tales. Highly recommended.

[Al · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like your stories short, crime-ridden, and dark, this is the book for you. Those are qualities all seven of the stories in this collection share. Other things they have in common are, as the description indicates, a setting in Wales and being solidly written, entertaining reads.

**Originally written for "Books and Pals" book blog. May have received a free review copy. **

[Kate Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this volume of Welsh noir tales in one long sitting. Like a string of dark pearls, they mesmerize with the broken beauty of Math Bird's deftly portrayed characters and finely wrought prose. My favorite is The Devilfish, the study of Louisa, an unwitting and unconscious murderess with dementia and the sensibilities of her fisherfolk ancestors.

[Lyle Boylen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice collection of gritty crime stories.

[Walter bull · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short stories

I read short story collections usually between two or three full length novels,,,the genre I prefer is southern noir,,Appalachian noir etc. Here a British author writes British based tales and what a wonderful offering it turned out to be. Definitely worth a read,best British writer I have come across for some time. Good themes with twists and mysteries thrown into the mix. Worth checking out for sure.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best one was only two pages The Darkness And The Light, I felt like I’d been slapped in the face.