Order DEAD MAN's SWITCH here
It was easy to kill if you were a killer, but once you'd done it, you'd always be a killer. There was no turning back.
I don't review all that many short story collections anymore, to be honest. It's challenging because it requires you to reinvolve yourself emotionally with an entire new cast of characters every couple pages or so, until the very process of getting involved with characters becomes meaningless and the tones of each narrative are often so different, there are going to be some that miss. Sometimes a more than a couple in a row. Short Story collection I like to read have cohesion of themes. They exist within the same universe and have an overarching logic. The enjoyment I had reading Liam Sweeny's collection DEAD MAN'S SWITCH stemmed from how originally it all comes together. It's not the strongest emotional journey, but Sweeny created something that evokes such precise emotions, it cannot be replicated.
There are about 40 short stories to DEAD MAN'S SWITCH, including several flash fictions that count just a couple pages. I think there are five or six longer pieces, which are almost worth the asking price for DEAD MAN'S SWITCH alone, including the award nominated GOD'S COUNTRY (originally published in ALL DUE RESPECT), a story where Liam Sweeny displays the power of his narrative voice and his mastery of first person point of view. It was my favourite read of the collection alongside SOBRIETY CHECKPOINT, ABSOLUTION, THE PROPHET and UNLIKELY MEMORIAL. DEAD MAN'S SWITCH is not a collection where standout stories matter all that much though, It's a book where the repetition matters as much as the high points.
"The truth will set you free."
The Prophet's voice boomed. That's what he called himself; the prophet. He stood six foot tall. Bigger than life, it seemed to the three hostages cuffed to a steel railing in the abandoned meat-packing plant. Or maybe it was the .357 magnum, its chrome shining in the fluorescent lights overhead.
This is what I thought was really cool about DEAD MAN'S SWITCH. In the beginning, I thought the succession of flashes made it difficult to care, especially with Liam Sweeny's tendency of trying to shove as much background information as he can into them (a mistake every author does with short stories) but I just kept reading them and it started making more and more sense. The plot twists of Liam Sweeny's flash fiction make more sence when read one next to the other, because they're so bold and daring. Taken out of context, they can feel forced and obvious, but put together, these plot twist take a life of their owns, like they were a character in each of Liam Sweeny's stories. DEAD MAN'S SWITCH turned out to be a fascinating study in the delicate art of the plot twist.
It's not as true as it once was, but one of the greatest thing about being a night owl is late night television. It used to be a glorious mystery box filled with reruns of the best and most ludicrous programming of the last couple decades. Reading Liam Sweeny's DEAD MAN SWITCH felt like zapping through the most glorious schedule of late night television of all-time. Once I had that oddly precise image in my mind, some of the weaknesses of the collection (such as the incredibly short format) turned into strengths because I never really had to suffer through a story I didn't like, the collection just zapped to another by itself. DEAD MAN'S SWITCH made me nostalgic for the bygone era of late night cable television. I know it's a little random, but it's part of the appeal.
It's not as true as it once was, but one of the greatest thing about being a night owl is late night television. It used to be a glorious mystery box filled with reruns of the best and most ludicrous programming of the last couple decades. Reading Liam Sweeny's DEAD MAN SWITCH felt like zapping through the most glorious schedule of late night television of all-time. Once I had that oddly precise image in my mind, some of the weaknesses of the collection (such as the incredibly short format) turned into strengths because I never really had to suffer through a story I didn't like, the collection just zapped to another by itself. DEAD MAN'S SWITCH made me nostalgic for the bygone era of late night cable television. I know it's a little random, but it's part of the appeal.