Read Time: 2 Minutes
I See You’ve Called in Dead is a dryly funny, oddly uplifting slice-of-life tale that hits somewhere between existential crisis and offbeat workplace comedy. It follows Bud Stanley, an obituary writer who is barely scraping by emotionally when he accidentally publishes his own obituary after a drunken night of self-loathing and bourbon. As far as midlife wake-up calls go, it’s one for the papers.
Bud’s life has been circling the drain for a while. From getting divorced, losing his spark for his job writing obituaries for a syndicated news outlet, to getting essentially stood up on a blind date when the girl he was supposed to meet got back together with her ex as the date was about to start.
Bud isn’t exactly the kind of guy you’d expect to root for if we’re being honest. He’s grumpy, self-sabotaging, and pretty convinced that things won’t get better. While attending the funeral of his ex-mother-in-law, he bumps into Carla who, reminiscent of Marla Singer from Fight Club, attends funerals for fun. Carla convinces Bud to meet her at another funeral in a few days’ time.
I enjoyed how it gave me a vaguely uneasy feeling of being stuck. A kind of midlife inertia and professional burnout, but without feeling preachy. Instead, it wraps it all in this oddly charming existential haze. Bud’s journey doesn’t promise a full transformation, but it leans into the idea that it’s never too late to take the wheel, even if you’ve been asleep at it for a while.
It balances humour and melancholy surprisingly well. There are plenty of snarky observations and one-liners, but they’re undercut with an emotional vulnerability. The humour for me wasn’t laugh-out-loud but certainly gave me some chuckles along the way.
The narration by Sean Patrick Hopkins was both excellent and frustrating. He brings Bud to life with a weary sarcasm and emotional depth where I think he nails the quieter, more reflective moments… but at the same time there wasn’t much variety in voices or tone between many of the characters which did make some parts a little difficult to follow.
Overall, this was an enjoyable listen. If you’re into stories that blend wit with a healthy dose of emotional truth, and you don’t mind your humour a little dark and your protagonists a little lost, I See You’ve Called in Dead is worth checking out.