Strange Ways to Die in the Dark Ages (Hardback)

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This was such a refreshing way to learn about such interesting pieces of our history and death practices across the world. A serious topic presented with humorous details, modern comparisons to help resonate with a younger audience. This is how we teach history.

NetGalley, Kirsten Wamsley

If you're a history lover and have a passion for everything death related, this is a book for you. It's well written and structured, and could also be an interesting reference book for RPG/LARP writers.

NetGalley, Céline BADAROUX

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book was so much more than I expected. I was thinking that it was going to be going of the death lists that people use to publish (not sure if they did that in the Dark Ages, now that I think of it), which some examples of the stranger ones. This book exceeded all of my expectations...
Definitely will be recommending this book (and already have on several different platforms).

NetGalley, Rebecca Stewart

Great for fans of history and interesting historical facts. I found this to be full of wit and satirical humor. A fun and entertaining exploration into the many ways one could die in the Middle Ages. Had a good time would recommend.

NetGalley, Emily Ross

Horrible Histories for adults.

I enjoyed this book. It shared a lot of things I didn’t know in an interesting and engaging way. It was easy to understand and a good overview of the period as whole. It would be a great starting point if you wanted to do some further reading.

NetGalley, Amber Johnson

I found this informative, entertaining and consistently engaging. It’s a great pick if you want a humorous but thoughtful take on a very dark period of history. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to try not to picture how Edward II reportedly met his end… as it were…

NetGalley, Jonnie Milne

Benjamin Franklin once said "In this world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes". Today taxes have been eliminated at least for the 1% of the population. Death however is something we all share, an equalizer some would say. Everyone rich and poor, royalty and normal, influencer, innovator, all individuals will eventually die and and find answers to that question of what comes next. Nothing, prayer nor paying hucksters will stop this, though some might get better milage, the destination is the same. Humans being humans have also decided to speed up death for many. Why wait for the body to become sick and die, when one can be tortured, stabbed, drawn quartered and so many other fun things. Add to this the way mother nature decides to fix the mistake that is humanity, ice, snow, fire, and disease. Sometimes one wonders how we made it to now. Reading this history of the middle ages, one comes to the conclusion that we as humans are very lucky. Looking at the times we find ourselves in now, one wonders if our time is up. Strange Ways to Die in the Dark Ages by Emily Bush and Carrie Ingram-Gettins is a look at the history of the middle ages, how people lived, died, faced the end, thought about death, and brought about the end to many of their fellow humans, in gross, odd, and weird ways.

The book is about death, but is also about how the people of the times dealt with death in all its forms. The book is mainly about England, and that is where most of the book is based. The authors do go into the history of France and Italy, and also Asia, though while Europe was going through its Dark Ages, Asia was having its own problems and oddness. Most of the book deals with death, but the authors look at how humans got there. The authors go into the ideas behind death, the religions that focused on death and what came next. Rites and rituals and even philosophy about death. Events are covered big battles, massacres, and lots about maladies and early thoughts about how people became sick and their treatments. In addition there are plenty of odd stories about being killed, accidentally dying, and how humans found new ways to murder each other.

A book that was far more informative and interesting than I expected, one with lots of history and a bit of humor. A great book for the goth person in one's life. And for people who love to read about the dark side of history. Going in I thought this was almost going to be just a list of funny stories about people dying. This is quite a bit more. The history is very well presented, and serves as almost a primer of medieval history. The authors did quite a lot of research, and do a good job of explaining, and of keeping the narrative moving. One can learn quite a bit, while being entertained. That said there is quite a bit of humor. I could see where some would have a problem with that, however considering the subject matter, I thought the humor both apropos and well funny.

A intriguing book, one with lots of information about death both rites, and how people thought of it, along with a lot of sad stories about people dying. A subject that might not be of interest to many, but one I really quite enjoyed. I look forward to more by both these authors.

NetGalley, Dan O'Leary

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book was a really fascinating read. Comprehensive in you get background for context for every chapter. It’s very plainly spoken and easy to access. The wry humour doesn’t take away from the facts and I really appreciated and enjoyed the tone.

I absolutely recommend this for people who enjoy the macabre and those who love trivia and people in between.

NetGalley, Debbie M

My favorite subject in history will forever be medieval times/the dark ages. Mostly because the way they did things was hilarious, but also extremely genius for the stuff they had managed to figure out. The writing in this book was engaging, which can be hard in this dense of a history. It's the sophisticated and educational Dumb Ways to Die.

NetGalley, Laine King

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I honestly didn’t expect to like this book as much as I did. It was definitely a fun read!

NetGalley, Eeviee M.

The title says it all. Disease, accident, torture, beheading (at best), starvation and all round beastliness. Fun for all the (adult) family.

NetGalley, Rolf Bachelor

Don’t be fooled by the title of the book, it seems dark but it’s a really enjoyable read. It made me realized why History was my favorite subject at school.
If you like to learn about history or a history nerd, you need to read it.

NetGalley, Linda Millan

Despite the dark subject matter, this was actually a very fun read! Gives a great, broad view of some of the common ways people died in the Middle Ages as well as ways to avoid them. This would be a great gift for any lover of the medieval period.

NetGalley, Kayleigh Kress

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book, especially the dark subtle humour of the two authors.
The title describes the content very well, and some of the various violent ways to die were quite shocking. Luckily the author’s humour lightened some of the more gruesome tortures, and inventive methods of execution.
Definitely recommended as a light(ish) read!

NetGalley, PETER COXALL

Such an informative and entertaining book!! I didn’t know how much I didn’t know about the dark ages! (Very thankful for the notes and glossary section! ) this book is well researched and the information is presented in a very digestible way. It is SO interesting! I love reading about how people die and react to death! A great read!

NetGalley, Vanessa Valenzuela

Strange Ways to Die in the Dark Ages by Emily Bush and Carrie Ingram-Gettins is a book that will make you see the Dark Ages in a light you have not seen it before. They will take you through a journey of history which will set the stage about the final scenes of the characters at play. I appreciate that it is not simply the death that was discussed, but everything that lead up to it which made it more of a history book than just a quirky ready.

The subtle humor while discussing gruesome makes reading the book along worthwhile. The book is primarily (though not exclusively) focused on the European experiences. The authors do a great job of taking the rich and complex history and compiling it in this book. Be prepared to jump back and forth between different periods and often same characters to see how their relatives or circumstances made their final moments weirder.

If you like a book that will make you look at the history from a different perspective and to visualize how it was to die (rather than live) in the Dark Ages, I highly recommend it.

NetGalley, Filip Jolevski

I like how the book starts with a bit of a background, so you'll know the overall frame of the events taking places in the timeline. It is divided into a few chapters, that also makes it easy to read and digest. You can tell how much time, research, love and personal touch the authors have put into this book.

NetGalley, Angelina Titeryakova

An interesting and entertaining read, despite the dark theme. It gives some insights into the time period while being easily accessible, so the book can definitely be recommended.

NetGalley, Marina S.

I enjoyed this! I have always been fascinated by this period in history, and it was really interesting to read about in this way.

NetGalley, April Elrod

I'm not generally a non-fiction reader, but I have always had an interest in the macabre, so I knew I needed to read Strange Ways to Die in the Dark Ages.

The book’s structure is fantastic. It quickly sets the historical scene, then jumps right into compelling chapters covering everything from poisoning and the witch hunts to execution methods and deaths during major battles.

I was hooked, with "Deadly Superstitions" and "Kill or Cure" being my top chapters. The seamless cross-references kept the read immersive while including even more content if you want it, and the inclusion of pictures at the end was a great finish!

This book gathers the most interesting and gruesome deaths, delivering them with a bit of humor that makes the tough content easier to digest. For a fun, highly recommended non-fiction read, look no further!

NetGalley, Emelia Fitzgerald

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This was a wild and amusing romp through the dark ages learning about the strange ways people died - either through wars, famines, plagues, proofs of witchcraft or crimes - often convoluted ways warped minds with no scientific information to bolster the methods chosen as proof the method worked - or just crazy theatrics the Vikings, Romans, Celts or other dark age groups thought up. It was great fun to read. (thank you NetGalley and Pen & Sword publishers)

I’m a history nerd and enjoy unusual adventures into the past. This book certainly supplied a lot of these for me. As I read, whenever the Vikings came to be discussed, I thought of the epic Netflix series, The Lost Kingdom (the Bernard Cornwall series, The Saxon Tales, on which the series is based is equally good) and these sections of the book really came to life for me. Plus, all the “tongue in check comments” (like the heading Tormod Kaldrunarskald: The Poet Warrior Who Died Like A Drama Queen -LOL- to mention but one humorous moment). These were so snarky I just grew to love this book more. I also enjoyed the Richard the Lionheart section (reminded me Kingdom of Heaven, historically inaccurate movie but great scenes of Jerusalem - much better is James Reston, Jr’s, Warriors of God, great book about the 3rd crusade). That’s what I loved about this book - it brought history to life - as gruesome as the topic was. And, I loved whenever “whilest” appeared - as an American this is not frequently used.

The book is very historically accurate, which makes it an especially good read.

Highly recommend.

NetGalley, Janine Skavnak

This was a really fun and entertaining look at how humans have always been our own worst enemies, and invites the question '...so how HAVE we actually survived this long?' Something I particularly enjoyed was the sense of humour this book has, the personalities of the authors really come through so rather than this being a dry, heavy essay; it's a genuinely funny book to read as well as being a genuine non-fiction learning experience.

There are examples of unfortunate endings from all over the world, though England and Europe are the main focus of the book. The chapters cover religion, medicine, food and much more and gives the reader a whistle-stop tour of an often overlooked period of history... I would recommend for anyone with something of an eye for the unusual.

NetGalley, Kelly Lake

I really enjoy reading about history in this way. Easily accessible, and even though the theme is dark it was presented in a light-hearted, informative and fun way. It was nice with a sort of wider perspective to look at strange deaths in other parts of the world too.

It was an enjoyable read.

NetGalley, Sarah Matsson-Klingzell

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Really enjoyed this book…the facts and learning strange ways that people passed in the dark ages was really enjoyable. Would definitely purchase and read again.

NetGalley, Amber Ward

This book dealt with a period that's usually seen as dark but also used humor to lighten the tones, and I liked this. I found myself smiling a lot and it kept me interested until the end.

NetGalley, Titti Capasso

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Welcome to my new favorite reminder that humans have always been a disaster. This book is basically a medieval “Darwin Awards: Special Edition,” except with more chainmail, questionable hygiene, and approximately 400% more death-by-cheese. And yes, I absolutely cackled my way through every single page like the respectful little gremlin I am.

This was the perfect blend of grim history, unhinged humor, and “wow, our ancestors really said YOLO but in Latin.” The stories range from monarchs who died in ways that could only be described as “unfit for the throne and the toilet,” to doctors whose medical advice was essentially, “have you tried bleeding about it?”

Every chapter had me alternating between horrified fascination and laughing like an absolute menace. And somehow, despite the chaos, it still manages to be respectful to the real people involved(which I appreciate because I may be feral but I’m not heartless).

If you love learning, laughing, and whispering “there’s no way that really happened” while knowing full well it DID… this one delivers. I inhaled it, giggled, winced, and immediately wanted to tell everyone around me about the weirder deaths like it was medieval gossip hour.

Five stars for:
• Making me laugh at things I definitely shouldn’t laugh at
• Deeply cursed historical facts
• A gentle reminder that no matter how unhinged modern life gets, at least we’re not dying from falling chamber pots

Highly recommend if you like your history with a side of existential dread and unholy giggles.

NetGalley, Courtney Aldrich