Aaron Rowe has just started his first day at his new job as a funeral director. He is grateful for the job in more ways then one, primarily because it gets him out of going to school but the bonus is he'll get payed. There are some obvious draw backs to the position, though it is not the dead bodies as one would expect, it is the living that are left behind and their grief that has stirred something in Aaron.

It has been years since Aaron has had trouble sleeping, but now the nightmares have returned. But just as bad as the dreams is the sleepwalking. So now it's not only the dark disturbing images that fill his sleeping mind that frighten him, it's the fear that he could wake anywhere, at the beach, outside a cafe, at the lookout. But scarier is the possibilities of what Aaron has done in his sleeping state.

the dead I know is about a tough yet vulnerable boy who is struggling with his hidden past and his current circumstances. Although a book about death the meaning behind its pages is life. A story that speaks to all those who have been left behind to pick up the pieces in the wake of a death of a loved one. Aaron's tale is an urban mystery that is shaded in tragedy, death, dreams and crustless sandwiches. ( )

"The Dead I Know" surprised me. From the blurb, l thought I'd bought an Australian Urban Fantasy novel. I was more than half way though this short little book before. I finally understood that I was reading mainstream fiction.

By then I was hooked and quite happy with my accidental selection of the story of Aaron Rowe, an isolated, broken teen, plagued by a recurring nightmare and prone to walking in his sleep, who may find salvation through his job as a funeral director in training.

The story is a first person account of Aaron's first few weeks working in a funeral home, coming to terms with caring for the bodies of the dead and drowning in the grief and distress of the living left behind. Aaron's natural reticence is so pronounced that,even living inside his head, it took a long time to mine the pieces of his past and weld them together into a story that gives the true context for his actions.

The descriptions of Aaron's work are detailed, even when dealing with the most unpleasant aspects of his job but there is nothing voyeuristic about these scenes. In fact, the time Aaron spends with the dead starts to feel like a sanctuary of calm compared to the mystery, stress and violence in the rest of Aaron's life

in the end, this is a book about the damage death can do to the living and the power kindness has to heal and create hope.

These big themes are handled with a simple realism that amplifies the emotional impact of the story without lapsing into melodrama or cliche. It was a compelling read with a distinctive voice..

The audiobook is narrated by the author. He also has a very distinctive voice. The first time his working class Australian drawl hit my sesnsitve, over-educated, English ears, I thought, "Good grief. He sounds like he can barely construct a sentence, never mind write a novel." I wondered if I could get through five hours of listening to a voice like that. Within a few minutes, Scot Gardner's talent shone through and I set my prejudices aside and settled into the rhythm of the story ( )

To anyone considering this book, please do yourself a favor and completely ignore the blurb. Go into The Dead I Know with no preconceptions, and just let it sweep you up and away. I can't believe how easy this read was. For the first time in my reading life, a book that dealt with monumentally heavy topics felt like it flew by. That might not make any sense now, but trust me when I say you'll see what I mean if you choose to add this to your reading list.

Aaron's past started as this vast and empty space. I was presented with a boy I knew nothing about. A troubled boy who others looked at with mistrust or disdain. Slowly, little pieces of him began to come to the surface. Gardner expertly led me into the gritty truth that surrounded Aaron's past, into the darkness that he tried so hard to keep suppressed, and finally I was able to see why our main character was so broken inside. I honestly believe that this was the perfect way to tell this story. Aaron felt real. He intrigued me. This book just wouldn't let me go.

I'm not sure what else to say here. This review is short, but my words have dried up. I've waited this long to write a review, simply because I couldn't figure out how to express how this made me feel. It was unlike anything I've read so far, and for that it garnered five stars without a second thought. ( )

Aaron is faced with more responsibilities than most young men. He is caring for his grandmother who is suffering with the increasingly debilitating effects of dementia. They live together in a caravan park (the Australian equivalent of an American RV park). Caring for someone in this condition while holding down a job is difficult, but for Aaron the situation has a number of complicating factors. Aaron is plagued with nightmares which cause him to sleepwalk, often waking up in strange places, sometimes bruised and usually disheveled, always with no memory of what has happened. His days aren’t any easier, Aaron has taken on a position at a funeral home. The downside of this job is the constant reminder of death when he has a very sick grandmother to worry about. The upside is that the undertaker has taken a special interest in Aaron and is not only giving him a trade, but also teaching him some of the important fundamentals of the workplace, including the importance of a polished appearance and how to interact appropriately with the public.
As is often the case, things get worse before they get better. Because Aaron can’t remember what happens during when he is sleepwalking he is unable to account for his time he finds himself at odds with the local police and a potential scapegoat for a drug addled neighbor/bully. Eventually, Aaron is able to determine the cause of his nightmares. This enables him to deal with the issues that have been sealed in his subconscious and live a more productive and safe life. ( )

This was a decent look at a teenage boy dealing with the effects of trama, both immediate and long term. My biggest complaint were the anacronisms. It needed a better editor who would have either decided to leave the British-ism in all together or completely take them out. This halfway approach was sloppy. "I'll get a bunch of dollars to spend outside the caravan park after I go to the hospital to see Mam." So distracting! ( )