Analyzing the complexity, absurdity, and blessedness of seemingly ordinary people, this debut collection examines the metaphysical assumptions surrounding death. From the end of a relationship to the meaning behind its title, this anthology continually surprises and subverts, utilizing topics such as alien intelligence, reincarnation, imaginary children, and even conversations with Hitler’s childhood pet. Engaging and diverse, this compendium offers a fascinating perspective on mortality.

Winner of the World Fantasy Award for Best Collection 2008

Shortlisted for the Edge Hill Short story Prize

Longlisted for the Frank O'Connor Short Story Prize

PRAISE FOR TINY DEATHS

"Shearman offers us haunting, nightmare alternatives to our world that are still somehow utterly recognisable as our own thanks to the way he always picks out the comically mundane among the impossible and the fantastical. The dream-like logic of them – the simple acceptance of this as the status quo, rather than some mood sapping attempt at explanation - makes each story cling to you; forces you to make sense of it and somehow inhabit it."
– Steven Moffat

"A brilliant collection of page-turning twists and extraordinary comic understanding. With Tiny Deaths, Shearman must now rank alongside Roald Dahl, Douglas Adams, even Philip K. Dick, as an outstanding and highly original storyteller."
– Martin Jarvis

"Far from morbid, each bizarrely comic tale has a peculiar interior logic and, although the humour is invariably gothic, it’s also clever and oddly passionate... Wistful, dream-like... strangly beautiful... Shearman applies an oddball comic whimsy that doesn’t deny the darkness of his stories, but transmutes into something that, through its oddity, becomes comprehensible." 
– The Metro, 10 Dec 07.Read review.