Thank you to Net Galley and Troubador Publishing for a free e-ARC of 'You Can't Die' by Wendy Marston.

This was an interesting short read, however it wasn't what I had expected. I thought that it would be a collection of stories from different people but it read more like a memoir of Wendy's life with a few of her own stories around the 'spirit world' sprinkled in.

The direction of the stories, as well as the link to 'proof of life after death' often felt a little lacking. I am quite an open-minded person in relation to this area, however some of the suggested connections felt very tenuous, and the mention of aliens immediately lost me.

Overall, it was an interesting insight into Wendy's life and the importance of spirituality for her came across very well. Perhaps the marketing of this book just needs to be a little clearer of what it covers.

I went into You Can’t Die without knowing exactly what to expect, and it was definitely a unique read. This collection of very short stories attempts to provide proof of life after death, and while I found some of the accounts intriguing, my skepticism remained.

I was particularly drawn to the idea of communication after death—it’s something I’d love to believe in—and I appreciated the author’s perspective on life’s purpose, especially how she explains why some people leave early and how they continue to protect their loved ones. Some stories, like the message from her mum, felt genuinely moving and convincing.

However, many of the other stories felt more like personal anecdotes with a loose connection to spirits tacked on at the end. While interesting, some lacked the depth or exploration of spirituality that I was hoping for. Overall, a quick and intriguing read, but it didn’t fully convince me.

I have to say I have mixed feelings after reading this book. As a story about the authors early years, school life, and as a married woman with a family, I enjoyed it very much. The story of those years in the 1940/1950s were interesting to me. However, I thought there would have been more spiritual content than was given. I am fairly open minded, but I do believe in luck, and I do believe that coincidences can sometimes happen, and there wasn't enough content in the book to convince me otherwise. That said, I will look for other books by this author.

“You Can’t Die” is a collection of true stories that aims to provide evidence of life after death. It was inspired by the author’s visits to her local spiritualist church following her mother’s death.

Personally, I found that much of this book was given over to the author’s life story. Born in 1944, Wendy Marston’s story is filled with memories of years gone by, which I found really interesting. There were some great insights into school life in the late 1940’s/early fifties, when a teacher’s first choice of reprimand was the cane! The following years are also covered, which I found fascinating, but it left little time for the spiritual events.

The author indicates how the right person at the right time came into her life on many occasions, (albeit momentarily), just when she needed some help, and I pondered how that applied to my own life, and yes there have been times when something happened where I thought “ That was lucky “. Some would call it coincidence, something which the author doesn’t believe in, she believes it was spiritual intervention, but it’s impossible to prove either way.

I certainly found this to be an interesting read, but mainly as a piece of social history. There WERE a couple of convincing instances, one of which was that Wendy, her sister and mother and father all agreed two very secret code words known only to them, to be revealed via a Medium or other source as proof of life after death. Following her death, Wendy’s mother did indeed come through a Medium who gave the secret code, along with more evidence, which did give some food for thought. However, the spiritual side took something of a back seat for me.