
Death and Other Occupational Hazards
by Veronika Dapunt
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Pub Date 10 Apr 2025 | Archive Date 10 Apr 2025
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Description
'Get ready to fall in love with this likeable and flawed version of the not-so-grim reaper’ CULTUREFLY
An original and darkly comedic debut about a female personified Death whose sabbatical gets rudely interrupted by a string of unplanned murders. A runner-up for the Comedy Women in Print Prize and perfect for fans of Good Omens.
'Funny and smart . . . one of my favourite books of any year' IAN MOORE, bestselling author of Death and Croissants
'Gripped me from the start and kept me hooked to the end' DAILY MAIL
'A total SCREAM' JANICE HALLETT, bestselling author of The Appeal
'Wickedly irreverent and clever' IRISH INDEPENDENT
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Her job is to die for. Literally.
Most people think that when they meet Death, it’ll be a skeleton in a black potato sack. Maybe with a scythe. Truth is, she’s just a woman doing a job, and she’s very good at it.
But when Death takes a much-needed break to live on earth, things start to go terribly wrong. Someone’s killing people not on her list (well, not yet anyway) and it's down to her to find the culprit before it’s too late.
To make matters worse, her sanctimonious sister, Life – whom Death hasn’t got on with in millennia – won’t stop blaming her . . . And then there’s the slight problem of the charming (sexy) parasitologist she’s suspicious of.
But she’ll be fine, right?
After all, who better to investigate a murder than Death herself?
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READERS CAN'T STOP TALKING ABOUT DEATH!
'Darkly funny, uniquely absurd and madly entertaining . . . I could practically hear Louis Armstrong crooning What a Wonderful World in the background' 5-STAR Reader Review
'An absolute joy to read. . . beautifully bonkers' 5-STAR Reader Review
‘A beautiful bittersweet tribute to life’ 5-STAR Reader Review
'Thought-provoking and extremely moving' 5-STAR Reader Review
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More praise for Death and Other Occupational Hazards:
'Gloriously absurdist, darkly comic and utterly readable' HELEN LEDERER
'Wonderfully observed and brilliantly imagined. . . it made me fall more in love with life' LUAN GOLDIE
'Original and clever. . . a tour de deathly force' ALICE BELL
'Dark humour reminiscent of Austrian crime humour' CRIME TIME FM
Available Editions
EDITION | Other Format |
ISBN | 9780857506863 |
PRICE | £16.99 (GBP) |
PAGES | 384 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews

Most people think that when they meet Death, it’ll be a skeleton in a black potato sack. Maybe with a scythe. Truth is, she’s just a woman doing a job, and she’s very good at it.
But when Death takes a much-needed break to live on earth, things start to go terribly wrong.
Someone’s killing people not on her list (well, not yet anyway) and it's down to her to find the culprit before it’s too late. To make matters worse, her sanctimonious sister Life – whom Death hasn’t gotten along with in millennia – won’t stop blaming her. . . and there’s the slight problem of the charming (sexy) parasitologist she’s suspicious of.
But she’ll be fine, right?
I really really enjoyed this book, it was engaging from the first chapters. I would thoroughly recommend

Such an unusual and unique concept, Death's sharp voice will linger in your mind long after you've read. Don’t you just want to grab this, switch off the phone and curl up on the sofa
By far one of my favourite books I've read this month…

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld for this ARC.
Death feels burnt out and underappreciated so puts in for a sabbatical in London in the body of a young woman, Delara Donn, that her sister Life provides her with. Yes, Life and Death are women.
The problem is that in this body, Death is suddenly mortal, and just as some Unplanned deaths occur - deaths that she is not responsible for and which consequently threaten the fabric of life and try to bring about the apocalypse.
So Death tries to find out what's going on and why the Italian mafia wants to poison people with food while the Vice President for Pandemonium & Perdition or in other words the Devil is sabotaging her at every turn.
The Boss (God) isn't very interested but she gets help from the Human Communications Director (Jesus, who makes shampoo adverts and every now and then dies for three days) and a human parasitologist named Marco. Is there romance in the air? Can Death actually fall in love, and what does that mean for her job?
This is a darkly funny, uniquely absurd and madly entertaining debut novel about a contemplative Death discovering the meaning of life a la "Live, Laugh, Love" whilst trying to help her sister, solve some murders, keep the VP at bay and prevent the apocalypse.
It's nice to get a different perspective on Death. I could practically hear Louis Armstrong crooning "What a Wonderful World" in the background at some of her observations! Read if you liked Good Omens, it's the same sort of wit and humour.
4.5 stars

I was intrigued by the synopsis of this book, so when I saw it on my shelf I was looking forward to getting into it.
The spin the author put on the character of Death is one I’ve not seen before but found it was brilliantly executed.
On the surface this is a fun, quirky story, but the more you read, you realise it’s far more complex than first appears.
The characters are flawed, complex, relatable and have excellent depth and development.
Loved this one, I’ll definitely be recommending.