Alive in Necropolis [Hardcover]

Doug Dorst (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 17, 2008

A "dark and funny debut"(Seattle-Times) about a young police officer struggling to maintain a sense of reality in a town where the dead outnumber the living.

Colma, California, the "cemetery city" serving San Francisco, is the resting place of the likes of Joe DiMaggio, Wyatt Earp, and William Randolph Hearst. It is also the home of Michael Mercer, a by-the-book rookie cop struggling to settle comfortably into adult life. Instead, he becomes obsessed with the mysterious fate of his predecessor, Sergeant Wes Featherstone, who spent his last years policing the dead as well as the living. As Mercer attempts to navigate the drama of his own daily life, his own grip on reality starts to slip-either that, or Colma's more famous residents are not resting in peace as they should be.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Amazon Best of the Month, July 2008: Mix one part gritty police procedural with one part ghost story, add a splash of teen angst and a hefty dose of black humor, and you have Doug Dorst's brilliant debut novel--a delicious blend of Paul Auster, Kevin Brockmeier, and Joss Whedon. In Colma, California, where the dead outnumber the living, a rookie cop who saves the life of a troubled teenager is either the savior of the city, or a man on the brink of losing his mind. Alive in Necropolis is brimming with fascinating characters (both the living and the dead), none more so than the young cop trying to get a handle on his place in the world. Dorst defies conventional storytelling--at once grim and playful (his two epigraphs quote Joseph Conrad's Lord Jim and Hanson's "MmmBop"), he weaves the supernatural seamlessly into this "straight" story and the result is effortlessly imaginative, funny, and poignant. Fans of Auster, Jonathan Carroll, and Haruki Murakami will want to make room on their nightstand for their next new favorite. --Daphne Durham

Review

"A daring and big-hearted first novel...Like Dashiell Hammett, Dorst conveys a hard-bitten love of the physical San Francisco."
-New York Times Book Review

"In the same way Buffy the Vampire Slayer mixed high school and bloodsuckers, Doug Dorst combines cops and ghosts in his Alive in Necropolis. The result is a haunted variation on Ed McBain's 87th Precinct series...Imaginative and accomplished... Pitch-perfect."
-USA Today

"Rich, unsettling...truly haunting."
-San Francisco Chronicle "An intriguing mix of coming-of-age story, police procedural, and magical realism."
-Seattle-Times

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Riverhead Hardcover (July 17, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594489874
• ISBN-13: 978-1594489877
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,430,659 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read, solid writing July 22, 2008

By JC

Format:Hardcover

Let me just begin with an exceprt of the publisher's description of the book, as I don't think I can describe the premise of "Alive in Necropolis" nearly as well as they do:

"Colma, California, is the only incorporated city in America where the dead outnumber the living. The longtime cemetery for San Francisco, it is the resting place of the likes of joe DiMaggio, Wyatt Earp, and aviation pioneer Lincoln Beachey. It is also the home of Michael Mercer, a rookie cop trying to go by the book as he struggles to navigate a new realm of grown-up relationships..."

But instead of settling comfortably into adult life, Mercer becomes obsessed with the mysterious fate of his predecessor in the police unit, Sergeant featherstone, who seems to have become confused about whether he was policing the living or the dead...

This is not a typical description of the books I read. It sounds like an odd cross of mystery and fantasy. I read almost nothing in the mystery genre and not much in the fantasy genre, and there mainly in young adult fantasy. However, I figured that this was a review copy and I might as well give it a chance, branch out a bit.

I am extremely glad that I decided to be openminded about this book! Surprisingly, the whole `policing the dead' aspect turned out to be less prevalent than expected. "Alive in Necropolis" was more about relationships, about being `alive' in this city most notable for graveyards. I was quite impressed with Dorst's skill, particularly as this is his first novel. I figured that the book would feature some ridiculously inventive plot that would excuse a lack of substantial writing. This wasn't remotely true. Yes, there was a fantastic aspect to the plot, but this book was primarily made by the writing. Dorst gave his main character(s) in particular a good deal of depth and was able to show the reader this depth through the actions and reactions of the characters.

I would recommend this book for those who love good, solid, well-written fiction, fantasy fans or not.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Alive in Necropolis July 31, 2008

By Readingrat

Format:Hardcover

Colma, CA has 1200 living residents and 2 million residents already dead. "No one knows for sure what (the dead) do - if they do anything but lie mute, immobile, decaying - but some of the living have their suspicions."
So starts the story of Officer Michael Mercer, Colma Badge 13. Mercer feels that his life is heading in the right direction - a new job, a new girlfriend, and now hailed a local hero for saving the life of the teenaged son (Jude) of a famous film director. However, Colma's dead have also taken an interest in Mercer because, unlike most of Colma's other residents, he is able to both see and hear them.
After Mercer receives 4 boxes of questionable incident reports from the widow of Officer Featherstone, the man he replaced on the Colma police force, he begins to recognize his unusual link with the dead and realize this "communication" was something he had in common with Featherstone.
Mercer soon finds himself saddled not only with Jude's case to solve, but also the pursuit of "Doc" Barker and his gang of ghostly thugs who are harassing the deceased population of Colma. The real question is, if Mercer will be able to actually defeat "Doc" Barker or if he will suffer the same fate as his predecessor, Featherstone.
On the whole, Alive in Necropolis is a wonderfully entertaining read. The author does a fantastic job of bringing all of his characters fully to life - even when they're dead.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I've read this year. August 9, 2008

By Kerry Dohm

Format:Hardcover

I bought this book randomly and I'm really glad that I did. While the cover is kind of cheesy, the prose inside is anything but.

Although it does involve ghosts, I've never read something so real before. The relationships between the characters aren't exaggerated like you find in so many books. There are real issues and feelings involved. I think the confusion the main character has over whether he was in love or not is a universal problem and I have never seen it explored in this way.

Beautiful book.