John Dies at the End reads like if Douglas Adams wrote the novelization of a Bill and Ted movie while stoned. Now, if you were offended that I used the word dick in the last sentence, then you can continue reading about romantic sparkly vampires. How can you tell if it’s for you, well, if you like you sci-fi horror buddy comedies laden with dick and fart jokes, a surprising number of puns using the word “chair”, wig wearing beaked spider creatures and an extremely unreliable first person POV, well, congrats, someone wrote the perfect book for you. That is to say, this novel isn’t for everyone, but, if it is for you, you’re in for one hell of a unique trip. John Dies at the End is a twisted, adolescent romp through a multitude of science fiction and fantasy tropes, which author David Wong has bitten into, chewed thoroughly and rewarded his readers by having them repeat on him over and over, like bad chili.

When I saw it was released in audiobook, I though, heck, it’s time to check this bad boy out.

John Dies at the End was one of those novels I had heard buzz about, and although it was not “post apocalyptic” like the majority of Permuted’s offerings, there was something intriguing about it. Yet, when JL Bournes Day by Day Armageddon and ZA Recht’s Morningstar Strain novels were given greater exposure, I checked them out, and was impressed.

As big fan of Apocalyptic fiction, I often heard about titles being produced by Permuted, but would turn my nose up at them, considering them barely a step up from self-published. Eventually in 2009, 8 years after its initial serial founding, it was published as a Hardcover, and a year later, in audiobook form. John Dies at the End began as an internet serial, before being published by Permuted Press, an independent publisher whose main focus is on apocalyptic fiction. Quick Thoughts: An highly entertaining, often adolescent mashup of science fiction and fantasy tropes with a solid performance by the narrator.ĭavid Wong’s horror comedy John Dies at the End is one of those novels that has taken an untraditional road in publishing, yet with the internet being such a powerful tool for aspiring writers we are seeing more and more of.

John Dies at the End by David Wong