Hit page 300 and the author literally killed off the main character in one sentence

I was reading this mystery novel last week, got to the big reveal, and the detective just drops dead from a heart attack with zero setup. No foreshadowing, no warning, just bam done. Has anyone else had a book totally pull the rug out like that with a main character death that felt like a prank?

2 comments

2 Comments

dakotaknight2d ago

Wait, you mean he just dropped dead in the middle of the scene? That's like when I was reading this fantasy series and the hero gets hit by a carriage halfway through book two. No battle, no prophecy, just a regular traffic accident. I was so mad I threw the book across the room. The author even had the nerve to have the next chapter start with his funeral like it was some deep artistic choice.

ramirez.caleb2d ago

Page 47 of a thriller I read last year, the main love interest gets hit by a stray golf ball while walking her dog. No warning, no buildup, just a random accident. Honestly @dakotaknight, I think that kind of stuff is more real than the heroic deaths. Life is stupid and random and sometimes people just die from dumb stuff like a bad batch of shellfish. Makes the book feel grounded instead of like some fantasy where every death has to be a big dramatic moment.