Don’t Tell Me How to Die

A Novel

By: Marshall Karp

Narrated by: January LaVoy

“What begins as a mystery-tinted character study transforms into a full-bore thriller, with a spate of jaw-dropping twists that recast the entire narrative. Readers should be prepared to stay up all night.” —Publishers Weekly

“A razor-sharp domestic thriller about a dying woman’s desperate mission to handpick her husband’s next wife—and she’ll stop at nothing to get the job done. Darkly funny and relentlessly suspenseful, Karp displays every skill as one of the greatest storytellers of our generation.” —Joe Donahue, host of The Book Show on NPR

I have one thing to do before I die.
And time is running out.

I had it all: a fantastic husband, two great kids, an exciting career. And then, at the age of forty-three, I found out I would be dead before my next birthday.

My mother also died young. I was seventeen, and she warned me that women would flock to my suddenly single father like stray cats to an overturned milk truck. They did. And one absolutely evil woman practically destroyed his life, mine, and my sister’s.

I am not letting that happen to my family.

I have three months, and I plan to spend every waking minute searching for the perfect woman to take my place as Alex’s wife, and mother to Kevin and Katie.

You’re probably thinking, She’ll never do it. Did I mention that in high school I was voted “Most Likely to Kill Someone to Get What She Wants”?

From thriller writer Marshall Karp (cocreator with James Patterson of the #1 New York Times bestselling NYPD Red series), and rich with Karp’s deft array of three-dimensional characters and his signature biting humor, Don’t Tell Me How to Die has so many twists and turns, you’d swear he wrote it with a corkscrew.

©2025 Mesa Films, Inc. (P)2025 Blackstone Publishing

As promised, ending packs a satisfying punch.

The story as it was, was well told with interesting characters and the anticipation of a twisty, action packed ending. It took a long time to get there though. So long, I stopped twice to make sure I understood the overall plot correctly. I almost threw in the towel but decided to stick with it and was rewarded with an ending filled with surprises and turns that tied the whole book together.
If you like the first half of the book, hang in there. The second half is even better.

Fantastic

Loved it! Didn’t see that twist coming. I liked the characters too. Highly recommend. Narrator was great too.

So twisty!

Wow - there so many twists I didn’t see coming!! Loved the story and the narrator!

Solid storyline, unexpected twists

The story kept me engaged throughout the entire reading, realistic actions and dialogue of characters, no loose ends, and unexpected twists that I didn't see coming but fit the story well. I'll look for other books by this author!

Amazing story

This story took so many twists and turns, I was constantly surprised and I loved this book!