Calvert Green, suffering from Cotard's Disease, believes he is dead and now he's wound up in a murder investigation. He left his care facility, New Horizons, to go looking for truths. With its intriguing premise, I was hoping for a really compelling read here... and got it! I was fascinated by Calvert's issues and intrigued by Moe and Whistler. If you're searching for something in the mystery category that is unique, you might want to grab a copy of Half Dead.

Disclosure: Thank you to Crooked Lane for providing a digital ARC of Half Dead by Brandon Graham, via Netgalley for review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Calvert, Graham's protagonist in Half Dead, is not a likable character. He's recently released from a care facility, following a horrific accident which damaged his brain, and believes himself to be half dead. Three people died in that accident, and although Calvert can’t recall the details, he somehow feels he was responsible. He's no loner able to perform his prior job as a professor of Russian literature, and even basic social interactions seem to be beyond him.
But in the end, Calvert makes a friend. And when her life is threatened, he rises to her defense in heroic fashion—and also manages to solve a mystery.

Calvert is suffering from Cotard's Disease- he believes he is dead- but now he's wrapped up in an murder investigation. I'm at a loss on this one. I was fascinated by Calvert's issues and intrigued by Moe and Whistler but the whole thing didn't come together. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Wasn't for me but I'd like to see more from Graham.

Calvert believes that he is dead, suffering from a rare disease that takes a severe toll on the victim's mental health.

Half Dead is a novel where the protagonist is the centerpiece of the novel. And while Calvert's story was interesting, I thought his personality wasn't as compelling to read. His narrative overshadows a lot of the murder mystery, which is what I really wanted to return to.

The unique premise with a dark aura is the strongest point in the novel, and I did like a lot of the investigation and police procedural aspect. But Calvert's story didn't hook me as much as I hoped.

A compelling and character-driven thriller with a unique hook. A recommended purchase for collections where crime fiction is popular.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Half Dead.

I thought the premise was intriguing and I was pleased when my request was approved.

The main character, Calvert Green, has just been released from rehab. He has Cotard's Disease, a rare physiological condition after surviving a terrible car accident and the loss of his wife and student.

As he struggles with repressed memories of his marriage and the accident that nearly killed him, he's trying to get on with his life - getting a job, being a productive member of society, but most of all, remembering daily that he's alive, not dead.

At the same time, a woman has just been murdered, but she's not the first.

Moe, a journalist, queer and woman of color, is intent on solving these cases with her cousin, a recently promoted detective named Whistler.

As she conducts her own investigation, she eventually sets her sights on Calvert, after the man rescues a local female entrepreneur.

But, will her assumptions lead her down the wrong path and into the sights of a killer?

Half Dead is less a mystery/thriller and more of a character study, a man struggling to deal with a strange medical condition and the loss of everything he's ever known; his identity, his career, his marriage, his guilt and what his future holds.

I didn't like Calvert as much as I had hoped; I didn't hate him, but I didn't like him. Perhaps it was because I didn't know much about him before the accident.

With the exception of what led to the accident, the transgression that almost killed him, character development was weak about Calvert as a person before his life changed forever.

I liked Moe and Whistler; the former is an idealistic journalist confident she will change the world and the latter looking to make his mark in the homicide squad.

I appreciated the sexual and racial diversities of supporting and minor characters.

The identity of the killer was hard to suspend disbelief for but the mystery was weak so whodunit was secondary to a story about Calvert, a crusading journalist and a decent homicide detective.

The writing was good, but most of the narrative read as filler.

I wanted a mystery, not a character study about a not quite likable main character.

I truly delighted in Half Dead. This book resembled watching a film on Netflix or amazon prime. It was great. I was not expecting what I read. It is less a secret/thrill ride and all the more a character study. A man is battling to manage a peculiar ailment and the deficiency of all that he's consistently known. His personality, vocation, marriage, blame, and future holds. Except for what prompted the mishap, the offense that nearly executed him, character improvement was feeble about Calvert as an individual before his life changed until the end of time. This book resembled watching a film on Netflix or amazon prime. It was acceptable. It was noteworthy I was not expecting what I read.