Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-12 08:54:43
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Emily R. Austin
- ISBN：1838953736
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A BUZZFEED 'HIGHLY ANTICIPATED BOOK' FOR 2021
Meet Gilda。 She cannot stop thinking about death。 Desperate for relief from her anxious mind and alienated from her repressive family， she responds to a flyer for free therapy at a local church and finds herself abruptly hired to replace the deceased receptionist Grace。 It's not the most obvious job - she's queer and an atheist for starters - and so in between trying to learn mass， hiding her new maybe-girlfriend and conducting an amateur investigation into Grace's death， Gilda must avoid revealing the truth of her mortifying existence。
A blend of warmth， deadpan humour， and pitch-perfect observations about the human condition， Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead is a crackling exploration of what it takes to stay afloat in a world where your expiration - and the expiration of those you love - is the only certainty。
Meet Gilda。 She cannot stop thinking about death。 Desperate for relief from her anxious mind and alienated from her repressive family， she responds to a flyer for free therapy at a local church and finds herself abruptly hired to replace the deceased receptionist Grace。 It's not the most obvious job - she's queer and an atheist for starters - and so in between trying to learn mass， hiding her new maybe-girlfriend and conducting an amateur investigation into Grace's death， Gilda must avoid revealing the truth of her mortifying existence。
A blend of warmth， deadpan humour， and pitch-perfect observations about the human condition， Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead is a crackling exploration of what it takes to stay afloat in a world where your expiration - and the expiration of those you love - is the only certainty。
Reviews
Livvy
，
giving this 5 stars despite the fact that my shirt is soaked with tears。 amazing book。 i see the best and worst parts of myself in gilda — austin doesn’t shy away from the ugly manifestations of depression and anxiety。 i laughed， cried （obviously）， and now am craving thin mints。
Theo Zhang
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DNF， too depressing can’t handle that
ieva
，
as i think i am also depressed the overthinking about death and the meaning of life did not put me off。 some of gilda's decisions were so bizzare that i could not get myself to believe them at all。i did life how she contemplated a lot about that death means and that christians must feel nice to know that there is something after death after all， because neither she nor i actually know。 as i think i am also depressed the overthinking about death and the meaning of life did not put me off。 some of gilda's decisions were so bizzare that i could not get myself to believe them at all。i did life how she contemplated a lot about that death means and that christians must feel nice to know that there is something after death after all， because neither she nor i actually know。 。。。more
Mtraf
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DNF around page 100 - I don’t know what to say about this book， except that it exacerbated my own anxiety and my own negative thoughts about the Catholic Church in which I was raised。 I enjoyed the writing style and I can see why so many people rated this so highly。 It just wasn’t for me unfortunately。
Eleanor
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Incredibly written and the closest narrative I've read to what suffering with mental illness is actually like。 Very difficult to put down！ Incredibly written and the closest narrative I've read to what suffering with mental illness is actually like。 Very difficult to put down！ 。。。more
Cleo Joyce
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This definitely had some LOL moments and I really like the deadpan voice of the audio narrator。 Occasionally it dragged a bit towards the end and was almost too depressing/anxiety inducing （which given the tone of the book wasn't always bad）。 Overall a good audio listen。 Would highly recommend for fans of Eleanor Oliphant。 This definitely had some LOL moments and I really like the deadpan voice of the audio narrator。 Occasionally it dragged a bit towards the end and was almost too depressing/anxiety inducing （which given the tone of the book wasn't always bad）。 Overall a good audio listen。 Would highly recommend for fans of Eleanor Oliphant。 。。。more
Anwen Hayward
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There was so much to love about this book: Gilda is one of the most interesting narrators I've encountered in a long time， and the way that Emily Austin portrays her slow unraveling is genuinely disturbing。 I laughed out loud frequently on the train at the oddly dark humour， and I thought that the inclusion of Grace was a real masterclass in making a character seem completely believable and real， even though she only ever appeared in epistolary form。 I did think that the book resolved itself muc There was so much to love about this book: Gilda is one of the most interesting narrators I've encountered in a long time， and the way that Emily Austin portrays her slow unraveling is genuinely disturbing。 I laughed out loud frequently on the train at the oddly dark humour， and I thought that the inclusion of Grace was a real masterclass in making a character seem completely believable and real， even though she only ever appeared in epistolary form。 I did think that the book resolved itself much too quickly; it all comes to a head and comes good in about 5 pages at the end， which is a shame considering how well-paced the rest of it was。 Still， a book I know I'll be thinking about for a long time。 。。。more
Cat
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I loved this book so much！ A very very accurate portrayal of having anxiety， I really felt it in places。 I loved the story， the characters， the pace。
Julie Sheila
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It was funny and sad and sweet and I loved it。
Sarah
，
Could see why this isn’t for everyone but I thought it was a pretty fantastic depiction of mental illness that isn’t sugar coated or reliant on overused tropes。
Mary
，
This was a very interesting book。 I am only giving it 3 stars because I did not connect with it at this moment in my life。 It does not make it a bad story it just makes it not relatable to me。 I found that how the author described depression and anxiety so fascinating。 It was a world that I did not know a lot about personally but was able to understand how this character might feel。 Good story。
Sophie
，
I absolutely loved pretty much everything about this book。 I think some readers will be incredibly turned off by the plot/pacing （by which I mean not much actually， you know， happens） and the stream of consciousness writing style， but I felt deeply seen by this book。 In fact， even though I enjoyed it every time I picked it up， it took me ages longer than a book of this length normally would because sometimes Gilda's anxious thought spirals would be so spot on that I couldn't read it if I was anx I absolutely loved pretty much everything about this book。 I think some readers will be incredibly turned off by the plot/pacing （by which I mean not much actually， you know， happens） and the stream of consciousness writing style， but I felt deeply seen by this book。 In fact， even though I enjoyed it every time I picked it up， it took me ages longer than a book of this length normally would because sometimes Gilda's anxious thought spirals would be so spot on that I couldn't read it if I was anxious myself。 There were numerous passages in this book I found so beautiful that I stopped reading to send a picture of the section to a friend。 I think Gilda is such an endearing character-- as dark as her thoughts can be， she is truly kind and cares so deeply about other people。 I found the ending deeply satisfying: it's hopeful， but not necessarily neatly tied up。 I don't know how widely I will be recommending this book to other people， but my personal reading experience was so profound that I could not rate it anything less than 5 stars。 。。。more
Constance
，
I have a feeling that everyone has felt like Gilda at times， or maybe that just makes you think I'm crazy。 This book has so much heart and ultimately hope for our brokenness。 I have a feeling that everyone has felt like Gilda at times， or maybe that just makes you think I'm crazy。 This book has so much heart and ultimately hope for our brokenness。 。。。more
James Resendes
，
Love the tone of this， really nails the balancing act of self-deprecating humour。 But as much as I liked the style， it began to feel a little too cyclical towards the end — just never fully pulled me in， ya know？That being said， I'm a sucker for #catholic #content， especially when it features an atheist lesbian eating a bag of sacramental bread w cracker barrel cheese so¯\_（ツ）_/¯I still had fun。 Love the tone of this， really nails the balancing act of self-deprecating humour。 But as much as I liked the style， it began to feel a little too cyclical towards the end — just never fully pulled me in， ya know？That being said， I'm a sucker for #catholic #content， especially when it features an atheist lesbian eating a bag of sacramental bread w cracker barrel cheese so¯\_（ツ）_/¯I still had fun。 。。。more
Carolyn
，
DNF at page 44 / 17%At first I found myself relating a lot to Gilda and seeing me in her， but I also found her extremely annoying so I dunno what that says about me。 💀I thought this would be helpful as I go through a rough time right now but its scattered narrative was grating。 It had so much potential （lesbian working for the Catholic Church！ Obsessed with death！） that I thought it would be right up my alley but it wasn’t。 It’s depressing and chaotic and not what I need or want when my own brai DNF at page 44 / 17%At first I found myself relating a lot to Gilda and seeing me in her， but I also found her extremely annoying so I dunno what that says about me。 💀I thought this would be helpful as I go through a rough time right now but its scattered narrative was grating。 It had so much potential （lesbian working for the Catholic Church！ Obsessed with death！） that I thought it would be right up my alley but it wasn’t。 It’s depressing and chaotic and not what I need or want when my own brain feels like that some days。Pass。 🙅🏼♀️ 。。。more
Carleta Joseph
，
Despite the entriuging summary， the book was slow to start， and did not meet the expectations of the summary。 This book pretty much went through the life of a person suffering from depression and low self-esteem。 The murder investigation comes late in the book but should not be considered a major part of the book， in my opinion。 Overall， I did enjoy portions of the book and its dry humor。
Aliza Shah
，
As someone who has bouts of anxiety and depression， this book was both hilarious and incredibly depressing。 I related to almost everything that Gilda goes through， there were parts where I would read and go "Oh my God！ Other people think that too？" I too think about how incredibly meaningless everything is when everyone and everything you know will eventually die or ceast to exist， and yet can't help but feel so empathetic to everyone's feelings。 One of side effects of having anxiety or depressi As someone who has bouts of anxiety and depression， this book was both hilarious and incredibly depressing。 I related to almost everything that Gilda goes through， there were parts where I would read and go "Oh my God！ Other people think that too？" I too think about how incredibly meaningless everything is when everyone and everything you know will eventually die or ceast to exist， and yet can't help but feel so empathetic to everyone's feelings。 One of side effects of having anxiety or depression is both an increase in empathy for other people and an overwhelming sense of apathy for yourself， and this book pretty much nailed it。I know other reviews on here talks about how depressing this book is and the bits of humor （some of it cracked me up because it's pretty much what I think about all the time and so I'm like "Yep， life be like that， absurd and stupid。"） and hope in it doesn't change how depressing it is and how it can cause the reader to feel utterly hopeless， and。。。 well。。。 that's kind of the point！ For those with anxiety and depression this book is familiar and nothing new， but for those who don't you'll be seeing first hand how many of us feel。 If by the end of the book you think to yourself "What is the point？ Why are we here？ Why do anything？ Why even care？" Well congratulations you now know who many of us feel。 Why those like us procrastinate， why we rather we agree to things that we don't want than to waste our time explaining why we don't want to do it， why we rather be alone and let people hate us than to have to explain everything to people exhaustingly over and over again。Though the book is depressing there is still a lot of hope sprinkled throughout the book and at the end。 Gilda's empathy for other people's feelings， her quest to try to make everyone else happy while she spirals into sadness， eventually both puts her in the nadir of her life and slowly crescendo by finally have some of those around her understand her for who she is and leads to her bettering herself in the end。 Which leads to all of the great secondary characters in this book who even though Gilda doesn't think cares about her， she eventually realize how much they actually do。 Her brother， her girlfriend， and even her pen pal who she's been lying to throughout the book。 They all ultimately shows that they do care for her after everything that had happen。Finally， the writing was great， it was quick， and I couldn't stopped reading it（finishing it in a day）。 It is written in a "train of thought" style of writing with constant divergent to random thoughts mimicking the thought process of those with anxiety and depression。 The characters were amazing and Gilda is so loveable and so awesome that she definitely will be one of my favorite characters of all time。 。。。more
Reccabecca
，
I struggled when rating this book。 There were no big reveals， no crazy plot twists， but Gilda’s reflections on life and the human condition were so cerebral and insightful that I enjoyed it nevertheless， even without the constant action and events of many books。 As my mom would say， it was a slice of life book， with a minor mystery and self-exploration thrown in。
Emily
，
whewwwwwwwwww。 this book hit me like a hammer to the head and kept hitting over and over again， until the absolutely perfect end， when it hugged me so tight my whole body reverberated with the echo of everything that had come before。 the writing is so good and sparse and anxious， and Gilda is so good and full and anxious， and i just。 loved it so much。 made me laugh， made me cry， made me shudder with familiarity。 just！！！！ WHEW！！！（also in tone it reminded me a little of one of my fav books of all whewwwwwwwwww。 this book hit me like a hammer to the head and kept hitting over and over again， until the absolutely perfect end， when it hugged me so tight my whole body reverberated with the echo of everything that had come before。 the writing is so good and sparse and anxious， and Gilda is so good and full and anxious， and i just。 loved it so much。 made me laugh， made me cry， made me shudder with familiarity。 just！！！！ WHEW！！！（also in tone it reminded me a little of one of my fav books of all time， someday this pain will be useful to you by peter cameron， so maybe i am just biased toward depressed first-person narrators。 well。 definitely i am）--I think I am an imposter。 Twenty-seven years ago I was a baby。 Before that I was a clump of cells。 Before that I didn’t exist。 How could I be a bookstore clerk， or a Catholic， or a woman， or a person at all？ I’m a life force contained in the deformed body of a baby。 Of course I’m a fraud。 The fact that I’m able to carry myself through life without being crushed beneath the psychological weight of being alive proves that I’m a con artist。 Aren’t we all con artists？-I stole a roll of crackers from the church。 I don’t know when to expect my first paycheck， and the only food to my name is a block of cheese。 I hesitated as I pocked the crackers。 According to the book I was reading today， stealing is one of the top ten worst things a person can do。 I decided to carry on with the theft， however， because hell does not exist， and if it does， I’m already slated to go。-My mother had a baby， and her mother had a baby， and her mother had a baby。 Every woman in my family before me lived to have a baby—just so that baby could grow up to have another baby。 If I don’t have a baby， then all of those women reproduced just so that I could exist。 I am the final product。 I am the final baby。-“How is everyone doing tonight！” the singer shrieks into the crowd。Amid the screaming replies， I allow myself to say out loud， “I actually haven’t been feeling well lately。”-If I didn’t say goodbye to you， goodbye。 I have had a wonderful life。 I don’t know that I could have been happier。 I am so grateful to have been alive。 。。。more
Ashley Holstrom
，
Contender for favorite book of the year。
Kaylie
，
3。5 stars。 This book was very addictive and very sad。 The stream of consciousness anxiety is so well done， it will fill you too with existential dread。
Katie
，
Quick and easy read that was also quite relatable from a mental health standpoint， for me。 Gilda seems to be well-meaning， but she's also a major people pleaser and gets herself into several awkward situations because she can't stand to tell the truth if it will disappoint someone。The depressive spiral we see her go through is definitely reminiscent of times I've been very depressed and withdrawn， "existentializing" about everything， doing anything I could to hide it and appear functional， and s Quick and easy read that was also quite relatable from a mental health standpoint， for me。 Gilda seems to be well-meaning， but she's also a major people pleaser and gets herself into several awkward situations because she can't stand to tell the truth if it will disappoint someone。The depressive spiral we see her go through is definitely reminiscent of times I've been very depressed and withdrawn， "existentializing" about everything， doing anything I could to hide it and appear functional， and seemingly unable to find the words to tell anyone what I was going through which felt even lonelier。 It's this compounding feeling of "god I'm being so weird and awful， I need to stop being so weird， every time I say something it gets worse so I'll just hide from the world， but that makes me seem even weirder" and on and on。 I loved that her relationship with Esther was a bright spot in Gilda's life。 Sometimes it feels like nobody wants lesbian women in fiction to be happy， at least in most of the tragic sapphic tales I've read and watched so far - but this was a sweet story overall。 。。。more
Doreen Cavazza
，
This was an amazing book。 Engrossing， great characters， wonderfully written。 I couldn't put it down。 I will be watching for more from this author。 This was an amazing book。 Engrossing， great characters， wonderfully written。 I couldn't put it down。 I will be watching for more from this author。 。。。more
Robin
，
Great narrative voice， but the character development was very limited。 I strongly recommend Pizza Girl instead for readers looking for a similarly bleakly humorous novel about a young queer female grappling with mental health and disappointment in the world。
Nikki McClaran
，
I can already tell this is one of those books that I'm going to recommend as amazing and then they will say "oh yes， loved it" while secretly thinking I have awful literary taste。 It's fine。 This book is dark humor but also just dark， so if that's not your cup of tea， switch to coffee （and another book）。 It's told in collections of short scenes- encompassing both the past and present， often not in order。 Despite that format， I think this reads better drawn out over a few days （vs。 in one sitting I can already tell this is one of those books that I'm going to recommend as amazing and then they will say "oh yes， loved it" while secretly thinking I have awful literary taste。 It's fine。 This book is dark humor but also just dark， so if that's not your cup of tea， switch to coffee （and another book）。 It's told in collections of short scenes- encompassing both the past and present， often not in order。 Despite that format， I think this reads better drawn out over a few days （vs。 in one sitting）。I， personally， found it to be hilarious in its one-liners， witty commentaries， and the scenarios it depicts。 During one scene， I imagined Gilda slowly following an old man wobbling down a street， trying to go unseen， and "hmphed" so loud it scared my dog （which actually isn't saying much）。 It's like tailing a turtle。 After finishing， it reminded me a lot of Ricky Gervais' show， After Life， which I also loved but is similarly dark。 So， maybe when reflecting on "why did Nikki recommend this？" just remember that I'm apparently， as evidenced by my media selection， a sad， dark， death-obsessed person。 You've been warned。4。5 rounded up 。。。more
Jillian
，
holy shit
mae
，
RTC
Jamie L
，
While I totally support calling attention to and normalizing the conversation around of mental illness and alcoholism， this book didn't really excite me。 Not quite what I was expecting。 While I totally support calling attention to and normalizing the conversation around of mental illness and alcoholism， this book didn't really excite me。 Not quite what I was expecting。 。。。more
Rachel
，
Really really good。 Characterization and voice is excellent。 It's darkly humorous and super original！ The only "downside" is that I suffer from sometimes debilitating health anxiety， so I had to take lots of breaks while reading。 Fantastic novel， I'll be recommending it to everyone I know Really really good。 Characterization and voice is excellent。 It's darkly humorous and super original！ The only "downside" is that I suffer from sometimes debilitating health anxiety， so I had to take lots of breaks while reading。 Fantastic novel， I'll be recommending it to everyone I know 。。。more
Kaleena Brown
，