Scot Gardner

"The Dead I Know" surprised me. From the blurb, l thought I'd bought an Australian Urban Fantasy novel. I was more than half way though this short little book before. I finally understood that I was reading mainstream fiction.

By then I was hooked and quite happy with my accidental selection of the story of Aaron Rowe, an isolated, broken teen, plagued by a recurring nightmare and prone to walking in his sleep, who may find salvation through his job as a funeral director in training.

The story show more is a first person account of Aaron's first few weeks working in a funeral home, coming to terms with caring for the bodies of the dead and drowning in the grief and distress of the living left behind. Aaron's natural reticence is so pronounced that,even living inside his head, it took a long time to mine the pieces of his past and weld them together into a story that gives the true context for his actions.

The descriptions of Aaron's work are detailed, even when dealing with the most unpleasant aspects of his job but there is nothing voyeuristic about these scenes. In fact, the time Aaron spends with the dead starts to feel like a sanctuary of calm compared to the mystery, stress and violence in the rest of Aaron's life

in the end, this is a book about the damage death can do to the living and the power kindness has to heal and create hope.

These big themes are handled with a simple realism that amplifies the emotional impact of the story without lapsing into melodrama or cliche. It was a compelling read with a distinctive voice..

The audiobook is narrated by the author. He also has a very distinctive voice. The first time his working class Australian drawl hit my sesnsitve, over-educated, English ears, I thought, "Good grief. He sounds like he can barely construct a sentence, never mind write a novel." I wondered if I could get through five hours of listening to a voice like that. Within a few minutes, Scot Gardner's talent shone through and I set my prejudices aside and settled into the rhythm of the story show less

To anyone considering this book, please do yourself a favor and completely ignore the blurb. Go into The Dead I Know with no preconceptions, and just let it sweep you up and away. I can't believe how easy this read was. For the first time in my reading life, a book that dealt with monumentally heavy topics felt like it flew by. That might not make any sense now, but trust me when I say you'll see what I mean if you choose to add this to your reading list.

Aaron's past started as this vast show more and empty space. I was presented with a boy I knew nothing about. A troubled boy who others looked at with mistrust or disdain. Slowly, little pieces of him began to come to the surface. Gardner expertly led me into the gritty truth that surrounded Aaron's past, into the darkness that he tried so hard to keep suppressed, and finally I was able to see why our main character was so broken inside. I honestly believe that this was the perfect way to tell this story. Aaron felt real. He intrigued me. This book just wouldn't let me go.

I'm not sure what else to say here. This review is short, but my words have dried up. I've waited this long to write a review, simply because I couldn't figure out how to express how this made me feel. It was unlike anything I've read so far, and for that it garnered five stars without a second thought. show less

Scot does it again. From page one I was hooked on Will's story. Will works as a shopping centre trolley boy in the Western suburbs of Sydney. While there he meets Jules who (after a punch up over a purse) decides to make it his life's mission to work out what has happened to Will to make him go from boarding school prefect rich boy, to living homeless under a bowling alley and showering in the local gym before work.
When Will loses his "home" after some cops show up, Jules takes Will into the show more spare room in his bungalow. What is the mystery behind Will's demise?
A great, true to life story for older readers - has sex, pot and swearing - as well as violence, with lots of humour and pathos. (The antics of the trolley boys when their supervisor is away are classic - they make as long a train of trolleys as they can and one jumps up to "surf" it. I loved the trolley boys themselves - 2 disabled boys, a Sudanese refugee and a Muslim boy and Joannie - the rough as guts tractor driver. Threw in Sandy, Jule's hugging estranged father and Nishi his very bright and beautiful girlfriend and you have a wonderful mix of characters who show Will that he is not alone in the world.
SPOILER ALERT: Will's father is a very famous commentator and Will has filmed him having sex with Claire (Will's girlfriend) on his i-phone. Will in his anger has punched a boy at school and basically run away - with no family to turn to. show less

THE DEAD I KNOW by Scot Gardner was not what I was expecting, and that’s completely okay! A book more character driven than focused on action, THE DEAD I KNOW was hard to put down, despite being a bit of a quieter book.

Aaron has started work at a funeral home, apprenticing to the funeral director John Barton. The beginning of the story details the beginning of his job, the dead that Aaron goes with John Barton to pick up, and glimpses of John’s family. Aaron is incredibly difficult to show more grasp, and yet not, at the same time. He rarely speaks to others, and seems very timid. He’s remarkably comfortable with the dead, but has trouble being around the mourners. As the story continues we get glimpses into Aaron’s problems with sleepwalking and the nightmares that are causing it. John Barton and his family, including daughter Skye (who, despite being a kid, I found incredibly annoying. A little bit endearing, she really appeared to help Aaron and some information comes to light that explains a bit about the way she is, but still annoying), draw Aaron out of his shell and discover the cause of his night time escapades.

Scot Gardner’s writing style and character voice is descriptive, a tad abrupt and just very…different, than what I’m used to. It was jarring in the beginning but by the end of the story you can see how well it fits the narrative and just works with the premise of the novel. The mystery behind Aaron’s sleepwalking is handled really well. It takes the course of the book to discover the reasons, with glimpses and hints throughout the story that eventually combine into Aaron’s backstory.

THE DEAD I KNOW by Scot Gardner is a quiet, intense look into the psyche of the main character, and despite the lack of huge action or complex secrets, the story draws you in and gets you thinking. One quote I really loved is found on page 92 of the paperback and showcases a bit of Aaron’s character:

“The police protected the living, ambulance officers protected the injured and we protected the dead. All as it should be.” show less