Death Is Full of Surprises in Touching Literary Fantasy

The Waiting Dead by Bill VanPatten

Be ready to dive into a touching and thoughtful novel that will pull at your emotions, make you stop, wonder and contemplate, and in the end, surely satisfy the senses of any passionate reader.

Here’s how death works:

Up there, you’re not allowed to leave your residence or contact other dead people — although you’ll be afforded any leisure pastimes or hobbies that may interest you. No one said death wasn’t boring.

The only exception is if your phone rings and you are contacted and called to Earth by a living descendent for one unknown reason or another.

In Bill VanPatten’s intriguing and thought-provoking new novel, The Waiting Dead — in which his two narrators happen to be deceased — it’s almost two decades after Guy’s demise that he gets the call.

When the Dead Walk the Earth

VanPatten’s previous novels focus heavily on gay themes and characters wrestling with difficult pasts and identity issues. The Waiting Dead is no exception, except the work is not so much the characters’ struggles with their identity but rather how the story’s narrative is shaped by those identities.

After more than 20 years in death, Guy gets the call — and he is sought on Earth by a former lover. TJ, it should be pointed out, was not Guy’s most recent lover when he died, but TJ had unceremoniously dumped Guy after living together for 15 years. What could he possibly want?

Guy returns to Earth, and VanPatten takes advantage of the literary license that comes with the territory of writing about the afterlife: where he shows up (Chicago), what has changed, how he will contact TJ or anyone else he wants to check up on.

A Gifted Storyteller’s Complex Characters

But VanPatten introduces an interesting device: He has Guy befriend a 12-year-old boy. Actually, the boy, Torrance, was 12 when he died — he too has been summoned back to Earth, by his father.

While Guy’s disposition seems to be one more of curiosity, Torrance is bitter, resents his father and questions the purpose of his return. But Guy sees through Torrance’s despair, embraces him and offers emotional support throughout his journey. 

VanPatten is a gifted storyteller who bravely steps beyond his element with the subject of death but doesn’t neglect his signature descriptions, back stories and characters that have defined his brand and made him an emerging force in LGBTQ literature.

Stories of Life Through the Eyes of Death

As Guy seeks out TJ and Torrance, his father, the two get to know each other and learn more about their lives. The two share snippets of their past, but do not immediately reveal their causes of death. While on Earth, Guy also wants to check in on his sister and his more recent lover, Matt. He comes to realize, “Time does not stand still on Earth.”

While VanPatten’s vision through Guy and Torrance paints a physical, creative picture of death, he also addresses the topic through people still on Earth going through the fear of the unknown and understanding that “faith is no substitute for truly knowing what occurs after that last breath.” There’s nothing romantic about it.

The author is hardly the first to imagine a make-believe death world, albeit in this case simply as a vehicle to tell his story. But in so doing, it’s fascinating to hear Guy describe the experience: “I’ve just learned to accept that we deceased exist as we do, outside of the perceptible world of the living, somewhere between the looking glass and eternity. We are out there, beyond the stars, within the stars, around the stars. I’m not sure.”

A Satisfying, Passionate Read

At the heart of The Waiting Dead, really, is a study of the different shapes and forms of love, in this case best realized only through death or imminent death. Once again, VanPatten works his magic to force his characters into self-reflection, trying to better understand what love was on Earth, how to recognize it or be blinded by it, and pay the consequences or reap the rewards of decisions too often motivated by the moment and the circumstances. 

VanPatten’s characters are flawed and never fit into neat boxes. Their sexuality often guides them and can lead to pain and tragedy. But such despair helps readers understand the true nature of love and how it sometimes shows up in unlikely ways and places.

So where do Guy’s and Torrance’s journeys take them? Prepare for some twists at the end, but more so, be ready to dive into a touching and thoughtful novel that will pull at your emotions, make you stop, wonder and contemplate, and in the end, surely satisfy the senses of any passionate reader.