John Grebble Is Gone

John Grebble wakes up one day to discover that everyone thinks he is dead. Unfortunately, being alive doesn’t appear to be a particularly convincing argument.

That is the wonderfully awkward situation at the centre of John Grebble Is Gone, and I had a lot of fun with it. There is something immediately entertaining about a man facing a problem that should be very easy to disprove, only to discover that nothing he does seems to make a difference.

The premise raises a good question: what do you do when everyone has apparently settled on a version of reality that leaves you out of it? John seems to have no way to change anyone’s mind. Or does he? That uncertainty is a big part of what makes the idea so appealing, and I’m not going to spoil where it goes.

This was a fun novella built around a situation that grabbed my interest. Sometimes an odd premise is enough to make me want to read a story, and a supposedly dead man trying to explain that he is still very much present certainly qualifies.

Overall, an entertaining short read with a very good hook. Reports of John’s death appear to have caused a few administrative difficulties. 5 stars.